Tag Archives: wisdom

Wisdom

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The Book of Proverbs continuously reminds us of the value of wisdom.  For example:

My child, listen to me and treasure my instructions. Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight and understanding. Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. Then you will understand what it means to fear the LORD, and you will gain knowledge of God. – Proverbs 2:1-5 (NLT)

One awful tendency I’ve noticed in myself, however, is that when I pray for wisdom, I often begin to doubt whether the Lord is really hearing that prayer.  James offers a straightforward cure for this malady: “Stop doubting.”

If you need wisdom – if you want to know what God wants you to do – ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. They can’t make up their minds. They waver back and forth in everything they do. – James 1:5-8 (NLT)

The application of wisdom requires confidence – confidence that we really know what we’re supposed to do, confidence that gives us a settled state of mind, confidence that leads to action when action is needed.  This is not self-confidence, but the certainty that God loves us, lovingly leads us, and graciously gives us the wisdom that we need.

Wisdom to Spare

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Intelligence has a dark side.  The mad scientist, the evil tyrant, the devious-but-brainy bad guys that our favorite super heroes destroy – these illustrate the fact that intellectual abilty can be used for wicked purposes. 

The ability to put whatever knowledge we have to good use is known in the Bible as wisdom.  It’s an acquired skill – the capacity to live life well.  Wisdom helps people stay happily married and to do OK financially.  It helps us raise our children in such a way that they appreciate us more and more as they get older.  Wisdom finds the solution to unexpected problems and makes us a blessing to our friends – and even our enemies when needed. 

Wisdom begins with the fear of God:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”
                                               – Proverbs 9:10 (NKJV)

That’s where it starts, but it can’t end there.  Life is just complicated enough that we often need more wisdom than we ever figured.  So how do we get all we need?  We pray for it, ask God for it, and feel free to keep asking.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”   – James 1:5 (NKJV)

And we can know God’s wisdom as we get it, because it tends to look like this:

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.”  – James 3:17 (NKJV)