Why do we value shortcuts to power, to wealth, to knowledge, and to socio-political outcomes?
Why do Jesus and the apostles frame the journey to both power and wisdom in terms of meekness? (Matthew 5:5; James 3:13)
My dad and mom were both rather quiet when it came to expressing opinions and judgments to others. My dad liked to think about things, and take some time with a topic before delivering a rant or strong opinion. Not always, but usually.
I watched the same traits in my numerous, older siblings. I learned something I didn’t realize until later: that our intuitive responses to a topic or to a person are often wrong or, at the least, shortsighted. If we think of this process properly, it’s a journey in gathering information while in the pursuit of wisdom.
That means putting the desired outcomes in a different category. It means believing that an outcome that is not the result of wisdom is not a satisfactory outcome.
Another, related, lesson I gained from my family: wealth does not come by intuition or by windfall. It’s a journey with a work ethic. Unfortunately, many needy individuals pursue wealth through lottery tickets or game shows.
In the same way, many pursue insights and knowledge through intuition. Apparently, for many Christians intuition is indistinguishable from a “word from God.”
Intuition is worth a dollar. Wisdom is worth a million dollars.
A prophecy is worth a dollar. Wisdom is worth a million dollars.
A political victory is worth a dollar. Wisdom is worth a million dollars.
A tribal identity is worth a dollar. Wisdom is worth a million dollars.
Being right is worth a dollar. Wisdom is worth…. You know the rest.
I believe God speaks to people. Today. But after recent prophecies and certainties published all over the internet and in other media, I’ve nearly lost my faith in the likelihood of anyone getting a reliable, “fresh” word from God.
I believe that sometimes opinion writers, analysts, and talk show hosts get it right. But after watching how Christians substitute values and perspective and priorities based on the information given by people whose lives are not aligned with biblical wisdom, I have nearly lost my faith in the Christian version of social realities.
It seems we’re usually too lazy to pursue wisdom instead of instant knowledge—with an instant stance on social issues.
Many of these reckless prophecies and godly-sounding analyses concerning our times and our futures have come from Christian leaders with a platform that impacts a lot of careless followers.
And when these prophecies and analyses prove to be ridiculous and false? The justifiable response is, “it’s because of our enemies. Once we dominate our enemies, this reality will be fulfilled.”
I wish we could all back off and arrest our quick responses to people and events. At the same time, I recognize that intuition and first impressions have an important place in our judgments. It’s not easy.
The pursuit of wisdom is a more demanding journey. Most of the time, we are too lazy to take that journey. It’s much more convenient to grab someone’s opinions, add our intuitions, and then just run with that tribal identity.
A warning: When we adopt our perspectives on reality from those who are not wise by biblical standards, we may well choose to be fools.
Information is not enough. Everyone has access to the information. Wisdom is way beyond that.
Outcomes and results are not enough. Good outcomes can also be achieved by treachery, treason, crime.
By what standards do we define wisdom? I begin with the “God of all wisdom” and his revelation through the Scriptures. The pursuit of wisdom is a theme from one end of the biblical story to the other.
The biblical descriptions of wisdom and its incredible, sovereign role are numerous and surprising.
The Apostle James refers to “the meekness of wisdom” in this foundational description of wisdom—where he contrasts “wisdom from above” with “wisdom from below.”
Wisdom from above: We really can, and must, learn to value wisdom over information; and to evaluate knowledge by its human sources; and to determine that true information does not always result in true wisdom, that desirable outcomes are not always the evidence of underlying wisdom.
“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” Read the whole passage here.
If you wish to watch my recent message, “How Did I Lose My Way?” check out my YouTube channel.
I think of the process of acquiring wisdom as being willing to “sit for a long time in a gray area,” while we continue to observe and listen and learn. Getting to “black and white” may never happen, and if it doesn’t, it will be likely at least to have bestowed humility in the process. If it does, the “black and white” will bear the marks of godly wisdom.
Thank you for a thought-provoking and insightful post.
I appreciate your response, and agree. There is much more to be said and considered in the pursuit. Thank you!
many good thoughts to collect and consider Merle: I want wisdom NOW! lol I feel like I’m in a boat trying to get to the city of prosperity so I can interact with the people who are smart. The more I learn about the majesty of Jesus and His Grace, the city seems to get further and further away because God’s wisdom seems to separate people from the world’s common thought and challenges personal beliefs such as “I do good things as a Christian so why do I need God’s grace to cause me to do good when I am doing good”
I am not of great learning or with big capacity so I’ve wondered over the years how can a person with low intelligence obtain what they need to Glorify God. If one discovers their rate of learning is slow and their capacity is very small: what would one need to put into that space? Jesus is Wisdom: the fear of the Lord is the Begging of wisdom – is that all we really need
to know?
How much do we need to know and what wisdom do we need to contain in order to make this new life work?
I want the text book answers but they make no sense to my core thoughts when it comes to knowing God and delighting in Him. I want wisdom but this seems to only come after years and years of internal study and the working out of ones thoughts and by depending upon God to make these things known to the soul.
God could just snap His fingers and cause us to know all we need to know: instead, it appears that Jesus wants us to wrestle with these things until we come to a place where we only see His Glory.
Thank you for your comments. I wish I knew your name. 🙂 You make some important points, especially in that wisdom is a journey. We don’t seem to find the shortcuts, do we? Thanks for joining in.
This is a good word. Thanks for sharing it.
Thanks, Tim. I appreciate your comment.