Proverbs 1:7 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." There are “intellects” out there that scoff at Christians and think we are fools for believing in the Bible (which they call fairy tales). They believe that we check our brains at the door of the church and do not use reason to listen to the Word of God. Our verse tells us, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…”. This verse is less about being scared or afraid of God and more about being in awe of Him. Understanding His Holiness and Power should make us pause with respect, and that is the beginning of knowledge. The latter part of our verse tells us, “fools despise wisdom and instruction.” I don’t want to stick my head in the sand being a Christian, nor do I want to abandon reason. My God is big enough that He can answer any of my questions, whether they are related to wisdom or doubt. As the verse states, only a fool would dispose of wisdom and instruction, but where do we get God's wisdom and guidance? Does earthly wisdom have an agenda to pull us over to the world's way of thinking? Is its purpose to take our eyes off of Jesus? Knowledge vs. Wisdom There is an apparent difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge is merely “knowing,” learning, or understanding facts as they pertain to certain situations. Wisdom, on the other hand, is the ability to apply that knowledge to given situations. Reading from the Bible about topics from our past gives us the knowledge to apply to our future. Using those Holy Directives to our lives for the Glory of God by accepting Jesus as our Savior is wisdom. Many people who have very high IQs cannot understand the Word of God. Some people who can’t read have come to Jesus. The excellent news…you can have your brain back! 1 John 4: 1-2 — "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this, you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,"