From God comes…
From God comes wisdom. Wisdom is a good and perfect gift that comes from God and it is ours for the asking (Proverbs 2:6). In fact, we are told if we lack wisdom to ask God for it and He will give it to us liberally (James 1:5).
If any of us lack wisdom? Boy, what an understatement!
A worldly definition of wisdom would be the quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment. A biblical definition goes much deeper. Godly wisdom is more than just making good decisions. It is about who we are and what we think.
James tells us that those who are wise conduct themselves appropriately. They do everything in a spirit of meekness and humility. They are not envious, self-seeking, prejudice, or hypocritical. The wisdom from above is pure, peaceful, gentle, honest, fair, and merciful, plus produces healthy fruit (James 3:13-18). It’s the ability to discern and judge what is good and true, so we are not easily led astray.
This kind of wisdom can only come through Jesus Christ because He is the power and wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24). We need Christ to help us react wisely to what happens with gentleness, kindness, mercy, and peace, without selfishness, self-righteousness, anger, and jealousy. No wonder the Bible tells us wisdom is more valuable than gold (Proverbs 16:16).
How do we get this wisdom that God freely gives? We would start by respecting God and appreciating His perspective on everything (Proverbs 9:10). Then we could listen, hear, and heed God’s instruction (Proverbs 8:32). The Bible is full of admonitions on how to live better lives and we are encouraged to internalize this advice (Proverbs 4:13). However, reading the Bible is not enough. We must implement what we learn into our lives. Jesus said, “Whoever hears these sayings of mine and does them is like a wise man who builds his house upon a rock (Matthew 7:24).” Our Rock is Jesus Christ.
Although Solomon was considered the wisest man who ever lived, there is one wiser. His name is Jesus. Jesus spoke about the queen of the South coming to hear the wisdom of Solomon, then went on to say, “…and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here (Matthew 12:42).” He was referring to Himself. What an understatement!
Jesus is wisdom personified. He is the very wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24). Staying close to Jesus give us access to all His treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3). Wisdom is another good and perfect gift from God to us. Let’s unwrap this gift and use it to reflect Christ in our lives.
“Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God…”
~James 1:17 (NLT)
