13Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. 17But 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. 18Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness
Wisdom. An often misunderstood word, character trait, and gift of the Holy Spirit. As often as it is misunderstood, it is even more often abused by its use in various ways or descriptions.
A couple of women in my small group have recently asked for wisdom in their prayer requests. That made me think about what exactly wisdom is and why should we want it in our lives. Then I went to Texas to see my family and my mother had been seeing the James passage fleshed out in her own life- God was using it...and she passed it on to me.
Matthew Henry has this to say about wisdom, "True wisdom may be known by the meekness of the spirit and temper. Those who live in malice, envy, and contention, live in confusion; and are liable to be provoked and hurried to any evil work. Such wisdom comes not down from above, but springs up from earthly principles, acts on earthly motives, and is intent on serving earthly purposes. ...It has no disguise or deceit...but it is sincere, and open, and steady, and uniform, and consistent with itself."
I find it interesting to see that true wisdom of God has fruits and a path- found on a journey. Wisdom is listed as one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and I know the more we seek Godly wisdom for God's purposes- he is faithful to give it (If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! Matt.7:11).
James gives us a summary of worldly wisdom v. Godly wisdom. Their end results are very different and a great tuning fork of wisdom in our own lives. Worldly wisdom is motivated by a heart of envy and selfishness, spurred on by the world, the flesh and ultimately the devil himself. It may be subversive and not overt...seeping into our lives through pride, puffed up knowledge or perceived righteousness. A great concept of this I heard most of my life in regards to sin- and pride is definitely a sin- is how if you put a frog in water and then let it boil- the frog dies because he adjusts to the hot water rather than jumping out- and ulitmately dies. Sin does the same thing to us- if we adjust our lives to the world- the result is death. In much the same way, worldly wisdom, if left unchecked, results in a life of confusion and ungodly acts, pleasing self and not God.
In contrast, Godly wisdom comes from a pure and humble heart and is grown in a righteous life that results in peace. It is quick to hear and slow to speak, not hypocritical- consistent with the teachings of God in Scripture. And peace as a result is a very rare and much desired commodity in this day and age.
People seem to always use the verse that that the 'fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom' and yet there are countless other verses regarding wisdom in the Bible. Most of them are connected to understanding. I love that- it is not just a talking wise head (like the wizard in oz) but one that listens and understands as part of the wisdom. I love this passage in Proverbs 8. It defines what the fear of the Lord is and also talks about what can co-habitate with wisdom.
Proverbs 8:12-13
I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence; I possess knowledge and discretion.13 To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.
Wisdom can, and often does accompany those with years and experience but it is not exclusive the trait of the 'aged'. I recommend reading Job 32 and 33. It is a recounting of Elihu, son of one of Job's friends. He ended up challenging the conclusions reached by Job as well as the the friends- his voice was one of wisdom in spite of his youth. Job 32:6-9 says, "So Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite spoke out and said, "I am young in years and you are old; Therefore I was shy and afraid to tell you what I think. 7 "I thought age should speak, And increased years should teach wisdom. 8 "But it is a spirit in man, And the breath of the Almighty gives them understanding. 9 "The abundant {in years} may not be wise, Nor may elders understand justice.
Many times in the past, but not enough in the recent days, I have prayed for wisdom for a given situation. I used the word in regards to telling my children what to do the other day and had to find a definition to satisfy them. I used one Todd uses often- which is basically- knowing what is the right thing to do and then doing it. But, wisdom, true wisdom, doesn't seem to be a one stop shop- but multi-layer and multi-dimensional and ultimately life giving. Jesus came to confound the wise...his ways are foolishness to the world- we must fight worldly wisdom and not allow it to come into our lives under the guise of reason, intellect, or false teachings.
I close with this passage in Proverbs 4 and could have used the entire chapter:
4 he taught me and said, "Lay hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands and you will live. 5 Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them.6 Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you.7 Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.8 Esteem her, and she will exalt you;embrace her, and she will honor you.
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