A man’s thoughts serve as the foundation for his actions. If a man fails to be sober minded, he will likely fail to behave soberly. The Bible likens a sober mind to one that has girded loins. When a man would gird his loins, he would tie off his garments in such a way to assist him during work or when he was running. A man’s mind is best prepared to work properly when it is girded up with sobriety. This sobriety keeps a man humble by keeping him from thinking “of himself more highly than he ought to think” (Romans 12:3). Pride hinders a man’s ability to work for the Lord, but sobriety girds up the mind with humility. It is very important for this sobriety to begin taking root in one’s youth (Titus 2:6).
The scripture never offers a positive viewpoint of meddling. One might consider intermeddling with wisdom as a good thing, yet the scripture teaches otherwise. Today’s passage states that a man through desire seeks and intermeddles with “all” wisdom. According to James, there are two major types of wisdom, earthly (James 3:15) and heavenly (James 3:17). According to Proverbs 18:1, the man intermeddles with all wisdom, including the earthly. He separates himself from the pure truth and opens his mind to all the various types of wisdom that the world offers. Just as the scriptural teaching on meddling in other places, the man has no business involving himself with the world’s wisdom.
