We all desire to gain Wisdom and we also want to impart that to our children, we do many things to get that Wisdom. So what is “Wisdom” ?
Wisdom is defined as the ability to think and act using knowledge, experience, understanding, common sense and insight. We spend a lot of time in the world to gain wisdom with studying (from early school life to earning PhD) , We undertake many trainings to get that wisdom. we rely on our elders to teach many things in our life. Even after all of this we fall short on many things and feel we still lack wisdom and want more of it and as we age have more wisdom.
God’s View of World’s Wisdom
We all think we are wise and knowledgeable from the things we learn from this world. but the Bible tells a different view.
'For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness” ; and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. ' 1 Corinthians 3:18-20
Foolishness – The word says “'For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight”. When we rely on our human wisdom and do something in our life, God looks at that as fools activity. Many times we feel we have it covered on all the things and do some work, but end up as a big failure as we relied on our human wisdom which is foolish from Gods sight.
Craftiness – Many of us think we are wise, we have our hidden motives as we do things, the word says “He catches the wise in their craftiness”. Craftiness is like being cunning with some inner motives or clever manipulation on what we do. Satan has this character, God catches our craftiness. This is why we humans fail many times unable to understand the craftiness of another human being and fail many times
· Futile – The word says “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” The meaning of Futile is “incapable of producing any useful result” or call it “useless”, no wonder we are failing on many things.
If you read the word further “you should become “fools” so that you may become wise.”
It’s quite opposite to our human standards, how can you become a fool, so that you can become wise? , the fool that’s referred here is to humble yourself to God to get God’s Spiritual wisdom.
How to Get Spiritual Wisdom?
If we are child of God, we can get the this wisdom from God completely free, but there are somethings that God expects us to do before it can be given to us.
1. Pride – God hates a proud heart, if you read 1 Corinthians he talks on Pride in Context to the wisdom of God. See below verse
'But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”' 1 Corinthians 1:27-29
God chose weak things and lowly things of the world to shame those that rely on their own physical strength..
Another passage on Pride and wisdom found in Proverbs. Where he asks us to have a humble ourselves to get the Wisdom of God
'When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. ' Proverbs 11:2
2. Fear of the Lord – We all have heard this verse many times. if we fear and revere for Jesus, that’s the beginning of the Wisdom. See the verse below
'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. ' Proverbs 9:10
Solomon has discovered that reverential fear of God is the first step towards Godly wisdom. Solomon has been given great wisdom from God but he spent much of his life seeking pleasure and fulfilment in wrong places. Finally he discovered that life does not consist of gaining wealth or popularity, after all of his life experiences he say, the fear in the Lord is beginning of wisdom.
Many time we fear and revere when we pray to God and try to live a fearless life when no one is watching us. The Fear of the Lord that refers here is the fear and reverence on actions when no one is watching us. Are we showing the fear and reverence when we are in private and public life.
3. Dependence on God – Paul explains on this when he writes to Corinth followers like this,
'For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. ' 1 Corinthians 2:2-5
Just a context of things, Corinth was a cosmopolitan town with many Greeks, Greek culture valued the pursuit of wisdom, usually expressed in high, academic, philosophical terms. Paul, who is a Jew, comes to preach there. He says “I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power” He says he had fear and trembling seeing the intellect of the Greek’s, but his dependence of God got him the persuasive words and demonstration of Spirit’s power.
Once we give up Pride, Fear and Revere him and have our dependence on God, he gives us the Spiritual Wisdom totally free to his children. We saw what human wisdom was earlier, let’s look the Qualities of spiritual wisdom and what it can.
Qualities of Spiritual wisdom
God’s spiritual wisdom comes to his children. Ones we have that the spirit guides on many things for us to navigate for God’s eternal glory, we benefit out of this as we live in the world
1. Plan for our future – God’s spirit helps us plan for our future. many times we can see only things that’s in front of us, but the word says
'However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him— these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. ' 1 Corinthians 2:9-10
What an amazing verse this is, the spirt reveals “those who love him— these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit”. We can plan only for what we see, but God helps us to reveal things ,our mind has not even conceived.
2. Uncovers craftiness – We humans are master of disguise, People have a different thoughts on their mind and put a different face when they talk to a person. But God is gracious, and God’s spirit can reveal to us their thoughts when we depend on his spirit.
'For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. ' 1 Corinthians 2:11
'The human spirit is the lamp of the Lord that sheds light on one’s inmost being. Proverbs 20:27
3. Sound Judgement – God gives the ability to discern things which is right and wrong, secondly he helps us determine a good judgement about things “The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things”.
The word of god says
'The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, ' 1 Corinthians 2:14-15
Summary
God gives us wisdom to make us bring Glory to him. So that our ways are righteous in his sight, look for ways to be holy and seek his redemption.
'It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. ' 1 Corinthians 1:30
He did not give us the spiritual wisdom just to live a life for our us to overcome challenges in world. Our eyes have to be set on Jesus. The wisdom given through the sprit is to get there in the right paths, as we live in the world when we rely on the Holy spirit it helps us avoid sin and bring Glory to God in actions we do.
Call for Action
Surrender to God to give up on your Pride.
Fear and revere the Lord on all things that you do, not what you see but things that are unseen from human eyes.
Be dependent on the Lord for all the work you do
Ask God to give you his spirit of wisdom and it will be given to you freely. we need God’s spirit to empower and to make changes which we can’t make on our own
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