Wisdom - It Ain't Easy!!!
You look at the world today…and one (of the many) things that this world is lacking today is wisdom. There is knowledge by the terabyte to be had - the internet holds the repository of all of humanities knowledge (good and bad), and there are still books written millennia ago that hold ancient knowledge. Yet humanity is probably at the most destructive, deadly, tyrannical stage in its entire history. But wisdom is sorely lacking, and is hard to find.
Perhaps the problem that those who think they are wise - really aren’t. The Bible even talks about that. In Isaiah 5:21 it informs us that, “What sorrow for those who are wise in their own eyes and think themselves so clever.” This truly is a warning to us all. We really shouldn’t be relying on worldly wisdom to shape our thinking or our actions - we need to rely on God’s wisdom and understanding given to us through the Holy Spirit.
God is the only true source of wisdom. The world builds knowledge, and can do so at a frightening rate…but it cannot create wisdom, nor can it teach wisdom. That can only come through God, and having a relationship with God. This is reflected in both the Old and New Testaments, for example:
Proverbs 2:6 “For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” and…James 1:5 “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.”
Not only is God the source of wisdom, that we can access by asking for it, but it is the fear of God and having a relationship with HIM that leads towards wisdom. In Proverbs 1:7 it shows us that, “Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” We know from other scriptures that only fools say there is no God - so the foolish shun not only wisdom but the source of that wisdom as well.
So, once we have a relationship with God, what are we to do? Well King Solomon has something to say about that, several times in fact. Firstly in Proverbs 2:2-3, Solomon instructs us to, “Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding.” Just as a mother and father tune their ears to the sound of their children, we need to tune our ears to wisdom (and not be sucked into what sounds good to us), and once we know what wisdom sounds like, then we need to seek understanding in the things we are now getting to know at a deeper level.
King Solomon adds to this by acknowledging the difficult nature of finding and obtaining true wisdom, in Ecclesiastes 7:23-25 he says, “I have always tried my best to let wisdom guide my thoughts and actions. I said to myself, “I am determined to be wise.” But it didn’t work. Wisdom is always distant and difficult to find. I searched everywhere, determined to find wisdom and to understand the reason for things. I was determined to prove to myself that wickedness is stupid and that foolishness is madness.” Here is one of the wisest men to have ever lived, yet he always found true wisdom to be hard to reach, elusive at times even. It is also interesting to note that in his search for wisdom, Solomon found out that wickedness and foolishness are both unwise and are irrational acts. Their foundation lay in foolishness (really meaning ungodliness) and that those things will not only harm others, but also one’s self.
This perspective was discussed by the Apostle Paul in his writings to the believers in Corinth. In 1 Corinthians 2:5 he states that, “I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God….” and just a few verses later in 1 Corinthians 2:13 he adds, “When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths.” Paul is saying that those who are doing the work for the Kingdom of God, for the purpose of saving souls, they are not leaning on the wisdom of the world, but rather the wisdom that can only come from God.
James, the half brother of Jesus identified the difference between godly wisdom and demonic wisdom. He noted in James 3:13-17 that, “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” In these verses we see a dualism at play. The demonic versus the godly…the self-centred pleasure filled actions versus good deeds done for the sake of others. Wisdom, godly wisdom will take you away from yourself and towards the Kingdom of God, and the things that HE has ready for you to do.
Therefore, we can see that wisdom is not the accumulation of knowledge, nor is it something that one uses for your own gain, nor is it passive. Wisdom is an active and vibrant way of life that can only stem from the heavenly places of God Almighty. It is our duty to seek it, to search for it and to implement it in our lives, so that we may have a true godly impact on the world around us.