He who gets wisdom loves his own soul;
he who keeps understanding will find good. 

Proverbs 19:8

Our culture is obsessed with loving ones-self! This narcissism really is at epidemic proportions! But there is a world of difference between destructive narcissism and a biblical and nourishing love of self.  You may be surprised to learn that the Bible actually reinforces the principle of loving ourselves. The only other choice is to loathe ourselves and that is extremely harmful to us and, more importantly, harmful to others. 

Today’s key verse challenges us that if we get wisdom and keep understanding then we will have a beneficial love of ourselves (our own soul) and we will find good: God’s goodness, not the American dream fake good. God is very clear on this. Our soul needs to be full. It searches for saturation, significance, and substance in life. And we will either fill our souls with God and His wisdom of the Gospel of Jesus Christ or we will try to fill it with all the fake temporary trappings our culture throws at us minute by minute (thank you social media)! 

Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life,
is not from the Father, but is from the world.
The world is passing away, and also its lusts,
but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

1 John 2:15-17

When I read these verses, I can almost see the Apostle John reading through Solomon’s Proverbs just like we are. I can imagine him sorting through all the wisdom verses, just as we are. I believe he would have compared the ungodly culture he lived in with God’s commands about wisdom and determine, just as we have, that the ‘Roman Dream’ could not deliver anything to the human need any better than our ‘American Dream’ can! I can see him, inspired by the Holy Spirit, writing this portion of his letter with Proverbs’ wisdom verses on his mind and heart. Truly, he knew, there is nothing new under the sun. 

I pray as we continue to study through The Proverbs in the coming months that each of us will see so clearly how the whole counsel of the Bible is interwoven together. The whole of the Bible is the inspired Words of God written to and for us that we might know His heart for us and His eternal plan for each of us!

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man [woman] of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. [mine]

2 Timothy 3:16-17