Do we really want God's wisdom?
Isaiah 5:21 What sorrow for those who are wise in their own eyes and think themselves so clever.
Proverbs 1:7 Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Ask just about anybody that you want and you will probably never have somebody admit that they are a fool. Usually the fool is a fool because he doesn't know it.
God's children thought that they were wise when they were so unashamedly following after false gods and ignoring the commands that the real God gave them. They even thought that things would be fine when they took God's words and twisted them so that they could make themselves look wise.
God's children couldn't say that they didn't know. They had wisdom available to them, they had God's word, they had the testimony of their forefathers and they had numerous prophets that God sent to them as a wake-up call. All of these sources of wisdom were being completely ignored.
The first truth that we need to realize about wisdom is that it comes from God and it is founded in God. Their is no other absolute authority on the subject, the one that had the wisdom to create the world and keep it's intricate details all running smoothly is the only one who is truly wise. (Job 12:13)
That's why we war against wisdom, it is actually a war against God, we don't want God to be a part of our lives. We want to live a lifestyle that is driven by convenience and pleasure, often the price for that kind of living is morality, God's rules get in the way of the "good life." We don't want to be slowed down by the ten commandments or that love your neighbor stuff. The issues on morality in our society can be traced to the war against God and his wisdom, all of these issues would be settled if we agreed that God is wise, we are not, so we should do it his way.
Be careful if you claim to be wise
Romans 1:21-23 Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. 22 Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. 23 And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.It is easy to see that if you reject God then you reject wisdom. True wisdom belongs to God and is offered up freely to everyone that will accept him and his wisdom. There are a lot of clever people with great insight that will try and seem wise but if their wisdom isn't based on the rock solid truth that comes from God then it will come to nothing.
What is the difference between the wise and the foolish? The fools have been fooled into thinking they are wise and refuse to let themselves think otherwise. The wise man knows that the only wisdom that he has is what he copied from God.
I need to remember what James said about the foolish and the wise:
| 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. James 1:22-23 But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. James 3:17 But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. |
Help me Lord to always place a priority on Bible study, I need your wisdom injected into my life everyday so that I won't be fooled by the devil.
