Godly versus Worldly Wisdom
Sermon by Ps. Luke
The preacher expounded on two kinds of wisdom (worldly versus Godly) and we mainly meditated on James 3:13-18. Just like Adam and Eve, we have a choice between the tree of life that God has planted in us when we were born again, or the tree of knowledge of good and evil. True wisdom is seeing everything per God’s way. Each time we make decisions, let us examine which tree they come from.
We need to be wise enough to understand the purpose of our lives which is not marriage, career, and so on, as these are goals. Sometimes, our purpose is to support your leaders’ vision/mission of church. We need to write the vision and purpose of our lives, just as God told Habakkuk, so that we do not lose track of it. The preacher guides his daughter to do this and encouraged us all to write down the vision for our family.
Our human natures aren’t very different from our parents but we need to set ourselves apart. Look carefully at what drives you; sometimes it is selfishness. As believers we cannot be inward focusing but have to be outward looking people who in humbleness think of others as better than us (Philippians 2:1-4). Jesus is the right example for us to remain humble. Are we like Christ? There are no shortcuts; we have to go through everything He went through. Meekness is the right amount of humbleness that comes through the working of the Holy Spirit.
Earthly wisdom’s point of view and focus is our earthly life. If we are earthly, our decisions will be temporary and concerned with gratification and indulgence in sensuality. But as Christians, we need to be careful about how we live (Ephesians 5:15-16) and our walk with God. All areas of our life must be affected by Godly wisdom: finances, and relationships with family, siblings, spouses, and at the workspace. If we are not different from the world and live in the same manner, the world will not see a difference. Decisions based on feeling or our emotional state at the moment are unwise. Also, humility implies that we listen to fellow believers and learn from them as nobody knows everything but we can benefit from the collective knowledge in the church.
James tells us that wisdom from above is peaceable, pure, and gentle. We should not get bitter towards people. God shows compassion to all so we should be the same and not be quick to judge. Wisdom from above is reflected as fruits in our life. If our lives do not show Godly fruits, we need to ask yourselves which tree of wisdom are we plucking from.
The preacher then discussed a few examples of Godly wisdom and worldly wisdom in the Bible. David made an unwise choice but repented the moment Nathan confronted him. When our pastors/parents advise us about something, we should have the wisdom to correct ourselves. God directed Solomon to not marry many wives but he did so, and also allowed them to practice their pagan beliefs resulting in the entire nation moving away from God. Other things that destroy our good sense are money and power which corrupt. Samson was very gifted but indulged in sensuality and then demonic influences entered his life. Jacob cheated his brother of his birthright but God restored him because he wisely repented for his deeds. The Samaritan woman transformed after one encounter with God. We must have fear of God and reverence for Him so that we can understand His will; this enables heavenly wisdom to operate in our life.
Faith is all about action. Storms will come in our nation and affect our lives but we must have the wisdom to understand them from the heavenly perspective. God does discipline us and when He speaks, we must change our life. The preacher spoke about the 15-20 years that God shaped him by breaking his idol of money by taking him to a stage where he had no money for his son’s cancer treatment.
Wisdom entails that we have nothing to prove to others as our security is in God. People will be mean to us but we don’t have to prove a point. Let us examine our motives while making decisions so that our past does not overshadow our current choices. We must have nothing to hide and need to have an honest approach to everything.