Wisdom

Sunday Sermons

Mark Dunagan
01/01/11 - N/A

Wisdom

“Therefore, be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise” (Ephesians 5:15).

There are not many blessings any of us needs more in this life, than wisdom! There have been so many situations at various stages of my life where I desperately needed its guidance. What a wonderful truth that God's wisdom is available to anyone and is very accessible:

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously” (James 1:5).
“Wisdom shouts in the street, She lifts up her voice in the square; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out.” (Proverbs 1:20).
“Does not wisdom call…where the paths meet, she takes her stand; beside the gates, at the opening to the city” (Proverbs 8:1-2).
“Wisdom has built her house…She has prepared her food..She has sent out her maidens, she calls…'Whoever is naïve, let him turn in here!'” (Proverbs 9:1-4).
“Buy truth, and do not sell it, get wisdom and instruction and understanding.” (Proverbs 23:23).

Why Do I Need It?

Sandra Carey puts it this way: “Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life." Solomon makes a similar point. If you want something more than existence or just making a living, if you want a “life”, then you will need wisdom (Proverbs 8:14-21; 34 -36 “Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doorposts. For he who finds me finds life, and obtains favor from the Lord. But he who sins against me injuries himself; all those who hate me love death”.

Wisdom brings power: Proverbs 8:14
Wisdom makes life easier: Ecclesiastes 10:10
Wisdom brings success: 10:10
Wisdom offers protection: Ecclesiastes 7:12
Wisdom brings a bright future: Proverbs 24:14

Certainly, if you want to have an enjoyable and truly happy life filled with countless blessings, and a life removed from all sorts of regrets, then do yourself a favor and seek wisdom. Ignore it and you are guaranteed to suffer.

The Starting Point

There are many passages that all give the same essential starting point— a healthy respect for God, which definitely includes listening to His instruction and decidedly acting upon it (Matthew 7:24).

“The fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding” (Job 28:28).
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments” (Psalm 111:10).
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10).

This starting point cannot be ignored or side-stepped. Besides, it is simply impossible to ignore God, reject His instruction and yet become genuinely wise. Our society, like many cultures in the past, has made the mistake of thinking that knowing information and being wise are the same thing. They are not. “We’re drowning in information and starving for knowledge” (Rutherford D. Rogers). “It not knowing much, but what is useful, that makes a wise man” (Thomas Fuller). “We have too many men of science, too few men of God…We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than we know about living” (Omar N. Bradley). Just what are the essential attitudes for becoming a wise person? The answer is undeniable: Trusting God, taking His word at face value, being willing to implement His instruction, working His plan, and doing so with a humble attitude, recognizing that He is the expert and we are the learners.

What Does a Wise Man See?

He sees that there is no real answer against God or His truth, so he decides to stop the vain attempt of trying to find one. Instead, he spends his time gathering all the evidence that reinforces reality rather than trying to deny hard facts: “There is no wisdom and no understanding and no counsel against the Lord” (Proverbs 21:30).
He sees the evil that is still left within himself; he sees his own weaknesses, and he is honest when it comes to temptation and sin. “When pride comes, then comes dishonor, but with the humble is wisdom” (Proverbs 11:2; 20:1). C.S. Lewis observed, “When a man is getting better he understands more and more clearly the evil that is still left in him. When a man is getting worse, he understands his badness less and less…You can understand the nature of drunkenness when you are sober, not when you are drunk. Good people know about both good and evil: bad people do not know about either”.
A wise person sees the evil in a culture —even a nation that he loves; he still is honest about where the country is, and the ethics it will take to set it on a course of stability. Such visionaries are few and far between: “The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical midgets” (Omar N. Bradley).
He sees the difference between between what is useful information and knowledge and the trivia that simply consumes brain space and time. His use of time acquiring knowledge reflects the kinds of information he values.
Rather than looking Creation and saying that it just happened by accident or evolved by chance, the wise man sees God’s wisdom in what has been made: “O Lord, how many are Thy works! In wisdom Thou hast made them all” (Psalm 104:24).
The wise man understands that “new” is not necessarily better; what is always best is what is true and what is good, regardless of how old or new it is.
Wise men dare to think, and furthermore, think things all the way through (Acts 17:11).
Wise men are very aware of their own mortality: “So teach us to number our days, that we may present to Thee a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).
Wise men consider various consequences before they choose; they think about the future, and have long-range goals in view. They see much of how the things they are presently choosing to do may either come together for good or for a huge mess: “Would that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would discern their future!” (Deuteronomy 32:29).
Wise men learn by observing others, observing both wise choices and foolish choices. They do not gloat over the fall of evil men, but they do learn, and give God the glory: “ A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is arrogant and careless” (Proverbs 14:16).
A wise man understands that wisdom needs to be saved, stored up, remembered (Proverbs 10:14), and that it can be sold if he is not careful to value it more than pleasure. A truly wise man can cease to be wise if he starts departing from wisdom.
A wise man knows that a little foolishness can completely undo a lifetime of wise living (Ecclesiastes 10:1).
A wise man knows that not everything is nebulous and vague. There are indeed answers, “Who is like the wise man and who knows the interpretation of a matter?” (Ecclesiastes 8:1).
He sees the limits of his knowledge, is aware of his own ignorance in various areas, and thus he is eager to learn more: Proverbs 9:9. A wise man knows that he does not know it all, so wise man surround themselves with other wise men, they seek out advice: “But with those who receive counsel is wisdom” (Proverbs 13:10); “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel” (12:15); “A wise son accepts his father’s discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke” (13:1); “He whose ear listens to the life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise” (15:31); “The ear of the wise seeks knowledge” (18:15); “Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days” (19:20). Surely, wisdom is gained and demonstrated by a person who is willing to be corrected, and is willing to listen to advice and adjust his course or plans.
A wise man understands history. He knows that sin has existed in all generations and that the past was not ideal: "Do not say, ‘Why is it that the former days were better than these?’ For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this” (Ecclesiastes 7:10).

Genuine and False Wisdom

The Bible likewise addresses the issue of “wisdom” that is not wise, but rather a wisdom of the world that is often short-sighted. Eve was promised this type of “wisdom” (Genesis 3:6).

“Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil” (Proverbs 3:7).
“The sluggard is wiser in his own sees than seven men who can give a discreet answer” (26:15).

This is the person who thinks they are being “smart” in rejecting God or ignoring His instruction. This person often thinks that they can sin and handle it, or that there isn’t any danger. They have convinced themselves that they have a found a better answer or way of living than outlined in Scripture. He or she may be very clever, but God says that there is more hope for a fool than for this type of individual (26:12).

Wisdom and Conduct

Wisdom or foolishness will clearly be revealed in our conduct:

How we use our time: “Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity” (Colossians 4:5).
How we manage our families: “The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands” (Proverbs 14:1).
How much we control ourselves: “A fool always loses his temper, but the wise man holds it back” (Proverbs 29:11).
The fruits that are present in our lives: “The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy” (James 3:17).

Make no mistake: There is no real wisdom in rebellion or sin. Pure human wisdom divorced from God results in arrogance, jealousy, and selfish ambition (James 3:15). So despite what the world glamorizes, a person sinning might be clever, but they are never wise. “To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society” (Theodore Roosevelt). Wise men are always good men.

Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017