Proverbs 1:22
“How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?”
When my daughter was an adolescent, she had a fantasy of being a princess and living in a palace. This fantasy that she had was like any other young girl. As I write this devotional, she is now in her teenage years. There would be something wrong for her to continue to live in the world that she lived in when she was an adolescent. Because she has left that fantasy land, she has grown up into a fine young lady. The fantasy was fine for that young stage of life, but she needed to grow up, and will need to continue to grow if she is going to be able to interact in society.
God asks the question, “How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?” God was asking the simple person how long they were going to live before they grew up. The simple person in this verse was living in a fantasy land, and God was teaching this simple person that there comes a time when they needed to grow up. There are several thoughts that we need to learn about coming out of the fantasy land.
First, there is nothing wrong with being simple. Being simple is like being a blank sheet of paper that is waiting for something to be written upon it. Everyone starts out simple in every area of life, but the reality is that you cannot continue to live in the world of simplicity for it is not reality. In and of itself being simple is not a bad thing, but there must come a time when you choose to move on from simplicity to wisdom.
Second, it is a fantasy to think that you can live life in simplicity without anything being written on the page of your life. Something is being written on the blank sheet of paper of your heart. To think that you can live in the fantasy of simplicity just isn’t reality. Living in the fantasy land of simplicity is truly hurting your ability to be used by God in a greater way. When a person chooses to live in the fantasy land of simplicity then they will eventually become a fool.
Third, God demands that you leave the life of simplicity. God asked how long the simple person was going to live in that world. God never intended for you to stay simple. God intended for you to move on from simplicity to wisdom and understanding. God commands in 2 Peter 3:18, “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.” If you are not growing, then you are moving into the world of the foolish.
My question for you is, what are you doing to move on from the world of simplicity? You must be careful who you allow to influence you because whoever influences you is writing something on the blank page of your heart. Yes, you need to move on from simplicity, but be sure whoever you allow to influence you is influencing you for right.
Furthermore, you must purpose to move on from the world of simplicity by learning to study. In whatever area you are simple, learn to add to your life in that area so that you can better help others. The more you move away from the land of the simple, the more you will be able to help others in life. Let this simple reminder encourage you to learn something everyday. It is through the process of learning that you will move from simplicity to wisdom.