“Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the LORD.” (Proverbs 8:34-35)
I awoke this morning to the sight and sound of a gentle rain. It’s December here. Snow and ice are north and south of us, yet here we are enjoying the somewhat balmy weather of the northern country of Denmark. I love it!
In our scripture this morning, wisdom is the speaker. This entire chapter of Proverbs is written in the voice and point-of-view of wisdom. Wisdom was present in the act of creation. Wisdom speaks as a creation or an out-pouring of God upon His people. Wisdom is one of those things we, especially as Christians, should seek. The fear of the LORD, we read, is the beginning of wisdom. By her (wisdom) the worlds were framed and all that is therein. By wisdom kings reign and princes rule. By wisdom mankind is blessed with all things.
But just what is this wisdom? We tend to equate it with knowledge, we exchange it in our minds, we entertwine the two. Wisdom, simply put, is the prudent application of knowledge or information to a task or situation at hand. For example, wisdom would teach us to wait before the LORD before undertaking any endeavor. Wisdom is David petitioning God before he began any military mission. Wisdom is Abraham seeking God’s direction before attempting to rescue his family and those taken by enemy forces. Wisdom is Solomon hearing the voice of God in the erection and dedication of the Temple. Ah, but wisdom is also the heart and voice of Mary as she received the message that she would deliver the Savior of the world although she was pure and had never “known” a man. Wisdom is Paul and Silas shackled in the prison, yet rising at midnight to sing praises to God. Wisdom is Jesus at the pool of Bethsaida as He asked the crippled man, “Wilt thou be made whole?” Wisdom was Noah who, after hearing the command of God to build an ark, obeyed while preaching the message of salvation to those around him for one hundred and twenty years until the rains began to fall. Wisdom was Cain crying out to God, “My punishment is more than I can bear.” Wisdom was King Hezekiah who, after being told to get his house in order because he was to die, cried out to God in repentence and received another fifteen years of life.
Wisdom is SO MUCH MORE than just knowledge. How many times have you and I had knowledge about a situation, known what the “right” thing to do according to human understanding was, yet God told us something totally different? Human understanding, while sometimes quite expansive, is still limited to our earthly view. God’s wisdom, however, can see the end from the beginning. His wisdom is SUPER-natural – wisdom that is above and beyond anything we can even ask or imagine. His wisdom comes from a place where there are no boundaries, no walls, no impossibilities.
Many of us have studied a particular field of knowledge – seemingly to the outer limits – only to find that we are shockingly still not even close to the edge. Plus, our stock of information is only in THAT field. For example, a neurosurgeon may be world-ranked in their field but be woefully ignorant in the field of cardiology. So it is with us. We stand before our Creator as ignorant fools, unskilled, untrained, empty of all we need to operate in accordance with His commands and His desire that we rule and reign in this world. We have been called to “go forth, multiply, and have dominion over all creation” yet we can’t even handle the smallest affliction in our own lives. The Bible tells us that we, as believers, will one day judge angels! We need God’s wisdom. Not just then, but now. Here. In this present day.
James wrote in James 1:5: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” We need God’s wisdom in all we do. In the purchase of a new car, in the purchase of a house, in our relationships with one another, in our finances, in our health, in our every day lives we need God’s supernatural understanding and wisdom. Without this we blindly go about our work, living our lives by feeling and stumbling through minefields set by the enemy of our souls. The wisdom God gives me for my life cannot be the wisdom you need for your individual walk with God. True, some of it crosses over and interlocks with yours – but I cannot know the traps Satan has set for you, neither can you for me. Each of us is granted, if we ask, wisdom for our own specific path with God for each of us comes from a different place. I’m not saying there are many paths that lead to God (like many in the world would say), I’m saying Jesus rescues us each from different places – therefore our paths to restoration and salvation in Him are personalized. Maybe you have been rescued from prostitution (for example). Your healing process and sanctification is entirely different from someone who has been rescued from a life of drug addiction or alcoholism.
Today, my friend, wherever you are, I encourage you to seek God’s wisdom for your life. It’s probably cold outside where you are, so this is the perfect chance to sit inside where it is warm and dry and talk to Him – as friend to Friend. One of His greatest desires is to see you full of wisdom and grace. Through wisdom you will know victory, through wisdom you will know peace, through wisdom you will know the blessings God has in store for you. Make the time to spend with Him today, won’t you?
Be blessed.
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