April 16, 2012
Wisdom
Opening
Question: What is something you did without knowing
everything about it or without having all the information, only to find out
that you did something wrong? How did
you correct it later on?
Wisdom, knowledge, understanding are all important
things in our lives. We cannot function
well and cannot do much without a proper understanding of the basics of
life. Without knowledge it is difficult
to live a good Christian life. And
without wisdom we can make mistakes that may have a tremendous impact on our
physical and spiritual lives.
As you may have guessed, today we are going to talk
about wisdom, from the Biblical point of view.
But before we go to the Bible, what is the definition of wisdom? How do we understand that?
Wisdom
means to have the experience, knowledge, and good judgment; the quality of
being wise. It also means the soundness
of an action or decision with regard to the application of such experience,
knowledge, and good judgment.
In sum, it is not just having the information, the
knowledge, but also to use that knowledge in the right way.
What
does the Bible say about wisdom?
In James
3:13-18, we read: 13 Who is wise and understanding
among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that
comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in
your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such “wisdom” does not
come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you
have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil
practice.
17 But the wisdom that comes from
heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full
of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace
reap a harvest of righteousness.
In verse 13,
we read the good advice of showing your wisdom and understanding in your life,
with humility, a humble spirit, not arrogant and boasting.
James continues to explain that there are two kinds
of wisdom: the worldly wisdom or “wisdom”—verses 14-16—and the godly wisdom or
the wisdom that comes from heaven—verses 17-18.
What
is worldly wisdom?
James defines it as “bitter envy and selfish
ambition,” “earthly,” “unspiritual,” “demonic.”
It brings with it “disorder” and “every evil practice.”
Where
does the worldly wisdom come from? How
can it affect us? What happens when we
follow worldly wisdom?
Worldly wisdom is evil, but also inaccurate. There are many examples over the history that
something which was considered for a very long time as true and wise turned out
to be wrong and foolish (e.x. Pasteur)
James contrasts the worldly wisdom to godly
wisdom. In verses 17-18, he says that godly wisdom or the wisdom that comes
from heaven is “pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy
and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”
Where
does the godly wisdom come from? How can
it affect us? What happens when we
follow godly wisdom?
Godly wisdom is found, of course, in the Bible. By following the commandments of God rather
than those of men, we can gain the true godly wisdom.
Romans
12:10 says: 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor
one another above yourselves.
This verse and many more in the Bible indicate that
godly wisdom, the type of wisdom we should all have, is not an abstract,
philosophical concept, but something we should all show in our lives. We cannot pretend to be wise, but not show it
in our lives. In the same way that we
cannot advocate to people to save money, while we are living lavishly in our
own lives.
In 1
Corinthians 1:17-19, we read: 17 For Christ did not
send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence,
lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18 For the message of the cross is
foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the
power of God. 19 For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
The Bible is not written by men, so worldly wisdom
cannot be reconciled to what God expects from us, Christians. Worldly wisdom cannot explain or accept many
things in the word of God. But we know
that is the truth, giving to us by the wisdom of God.
Our last verse comes from Proverbs 9:10, which sums up how we can begin to gain this godly
wisdom. This verse says: 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and
knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
Fear, meaning reverence and respect for God is the
beginning of wisdom. If we understand
what God wants from us, we can gain His wisdom and show it clearly in our
lives.
Conclusions
There is both worldly wisdom and godly wisdom, and
we can chose which one we are going to follow.
God wants us to seek and find His wisdom, which will lead us to act in
the way that is acceptable to God. In
our next lesson, we are going to explore some of the ways in which we can find
this godly wisdom.
