They say we live in the information age, with more books, radio stations, satellite/cable TV channels, and talking heads than ever. And when you add the Internet to the mix, we have billions of pieces of information at our fingertips.
But wisdom is harder to find than information. A while back I was trying to figure something out about the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta, so I Googled it and got 614,000 hits. For fun, I tried salamanders and got 1,600,000. Even cooler, Mr. T. of Mohawk haircut and “I pity the fool” TV fame netted 6,300,000 results. Judging by the Internet, B. A. Baracus, Mr. T’s rough-and-tumble character on The A-Team, has been more critical to civilization than anything Thucydides ever wrote about. We have more information than ever before, and yet our wisdom has not kept pace with our knowledge. In fact, you could make a good case that where information has increased, wisdom has decreased.
Take the news, for example. We watch twenty-four-hour news channels so, we imagine, we will be informed about the crucial events shaping our world. But all we really know is what people are talking about right now, most of which will prove monumentally insignificant in a month.1 And even when we do get helpful information, it’s surrounded by so much unhelpful information that it’s hard to put things in perspective.
These were the headlines on CNN.com on a Tuesday afternoon back in 2007: “Bush to call for sharp cutback in gas consumption.” “Military: 4 held in sneak attack on U.S. in Iraq.” “Libby: White House wanted to sacrifice me for Rove.” “Smoking gun report to say global warming is here.” “Shark chomps head of man diving for weeds.” “Oscar nominations announced.” “Sex offender, 29, enrolled himself in seventh grade.” “Sea lion misses water, ends up on dairy farm.” “101 dumbest moments in business.” “Tulsa digging up car buried 50 years.”
These are the top stories, mind you. Do you remember any of these two years later? Or even two days later? How much of it actually matters? And if something really did matter in this list, how could you recognize it when it is surrounded by breaking news about the daily travails of sea lions? We have plenty of information. Not enough wisdom.
Wisdom is what we need to live a godly life. God does not tell us the future, nor does He expect us to figure it out. When we don’t know which way to turn and are faced with tough decisions in life, God doesn’t expect us to grope in the dark for some hidden will of direction. He expects us to trust Him and to be wise. This is the theme of Proverbs, especially chapter 2. Consider verses 1–6 (NIV):
My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
Verse 5 gives the answer to the question, “What is wisdom?” Wisdom is understanding the fear of the Lord and finding the knowledge of God. Wisdom, in Proverbs, is always moral. The fool, the opposite of the wise person, is not a moron or an oaf. The fool is the person who does not live life God’s way. Wisdom is knowing God and doing as He commands. Foolishness, on the other hand, is turning from God and listening only to yourself. So when we talk about wisdom, we are talking about more than witty aphorisms and homespun advice. We are talking about a profoundly God-centered approach to life. Biblical wisdom means living a disciplined and prudent life in the fear of the Lord.
Proverbs 2 not only tells us what wisdom is but what our attitude should be toward wisdom. Our attitude should be one of earnest longing. Wisdom, for the Christian, is more precious than silver or gold.
Our attitude toward wisdom should be one of earnest longing.
Imagine if someone came to you tonight and said, “I’ll pay off all your bills. I’ll pay off your mortgage. I’ll load up your Roth IRA. I’ll give you money for vacations. I’ll give you 20,000 square feet to live in, and any car you like, or I can make you wise.” What would you say to that person? If you fear the Lord, you’ll take wisdom in a heartbeat.
Isn’t it interesting that we are never told in Scripture to ask God to reveal the future or to show us His plan for our lives? But we are told—in no uncertain terms—to call out for insight and to cry aloud for understanding. In other words, God says, “Don’t ask to see all the plans I’ve made for you. Ask Me for wisdom so you’ll know how to live according to My Book.”
Wisdom is precious because it keeps us from foolishness. If you turn to Proverbs 2, you’ll notice the “if-then” construction of this chapter: If you do this, you get wisdom. Specifically, if you accept my words (v. 2), and if you call out for insight (3), and if you look for wisdom as for silver (4), then you will understand the fear of the Lord (5), and then you will understand what is right and just and fair (9). Verses 5–11 show you everything you have when you get wisdom. You have understanding and knowledge (5–6) and protection (8) and a good path (9).
Just as important, having wisdom keeps you from real dangers. Verses 12–22 show you that wisdom keeps you from wicked men (12), dark ways (13), crooked paths (15), and the adulterous woman with her seductive speech (16). Wisdom is the path of righteousness (20), while foolishness is the path of death (18–19).
So how do we get this valuable wisdom? Our text mentions three ways. The first way to get wisdom is to store up God’s commands (1). The second way is turn your ear to wisdom (2). And the third way is to call out for insight (3). To put these ways into familiar language, we could say we get wisdom by reading our Bibles (storing up God’s commands), listening to sound advice (turning our ears to wisdom), and praying to God (calling out for insight). The second and third are nearly interchangeable because when God gives us wisdom, He most often gives it through other people. But for the sake of organization we’ll look at them as distinct.
God’s Word is living and active. When we read the Bible, we hear from God with a confidence we find in no other book and from no other voice. We can read the Scriptures knowing that this is what the Holy Spirit says. And as we read and reread and ponder and study and digest the Scriptures, we will, as 2 Timothy 3:15 says, become “wise for salvation.”
But the Bible is not a casebook. It doesn’t give us explicit information about dating or careers or when to build a church or buy a house. We’ve all wished that the Bible was that kind of book, but it’s not because God is interested in more than getting us to follow His to-do list; He wants transformation. God doesn’t want us to merely give external obedience to His commands. He wants us to know Him so intimately that His thoughts become our thoughts, His ways our ways, His affections our affections. God wants us to drink so deeply of the Scriptures that our heads and hearts are transformed so that we love what He loves and hate what He hates.
Romans 12:1–2 is the classic text about this kind of spiritual transformation.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, topresent your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
There are three commands here: (1) Present your bodies as living sacrifices. (2) Do not conform to the world. (3) Be transformed by the renewal of your mind. If we do these three things, then we will be able to discern what God’s will is. This is how the Christian life works. There are no shortcuts. We don’t get secret messages that tell us whether to drop the entomology minor. God wants us to offer ourselvesto Him, turn from the ways of the world, and be transformed. Then we will have something better than special revelations and words about the future—we’ll have wisdom.
Eat, swallow, and digest the Word of God.
God wants us to develop a taste for godliness. My wife, Trisha, really doesn’t appreciate that I have—how shall I put it?—a sensitive palate. To put it less charitably, I am a very picky eater. There are lots of foods I don’t like (too many), and I can often detect new ingredients in a familiar recipe. My lovely wife generally isn’t thrilled to hear my exceptional discoveries: “This looks like strawberry-banana Jell-O, but I think I taste some strawberry-kiwi in here,” for example. I am a lifelong Jell-O eater—several bowls almost every Sunday growing up. So I’ve developed a taste for Jell-O—with or without Cool Whip and with or without ice cream. (Yes, you can and should put ice cream in Jell-O.) I know Jell-O brand versus off-brand. But it’s taken a lifetime of Jell-O eating to acquire this exquisite taste. (I can also tell when my wife skimps on the butter with the macaroni and cheese and when she puts wheat germ in the chocolate chip cookies, but I’ll save that for marriage counseling.)
That’s how we are to be with the Word of God. We must eat it and swallow it and digest it so regularly that over time we develop a taste for godliness. That’s wisdom.
Wisdom is the difference between knowing a world-class biologist who can write your papers for you and studying under a world-class biologist so that you can write the kind of papers he would write. Too many of us want God to be the world-class scholar who will write our papers and live our lives for us, when God wants us to sit at His feet and read His Word so that we can live a life in the image of His Son. God doesn’t tell us the future for this simple, yet profound reason: We become what we behold. God wants us to behold Him in His glory so that we can be transformed into His likeness (2 Corinthians 3:18). If God figured everything out for us, we wouldn’t need to focus on Him and learn to delight in His glory. God says, “I’m not giving you a crystal ball. I’m giving you My Word. Meditate on it; see Me in it; and become like Me.”
Those who are wise read and memorize Scripture. They love to hear it read, preached, and sung. But the wise also know you need to read the Bible in community. You need to listen to what other Bible-reading Christians say. If we want to make wise decisions, we must seek advice and counsel from others. This is especially true when dealing with nonethical choices or decisions that aren’t clearly laid out in Scripture. It’s not that we always listen to the majority in everything, or that the decisions we make will always please everyone, or that every friend in your circle must be consulted before making a decision. But when God’s Word doesn’t speak decisively, or when the matter facing us isn’t even considered in Scripture, it is wise to listen to other Christians.
Consider these words from Proverbs:
Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance. (1:5)
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice. (12:15)
Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed. (15:22)
Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future. (19:20)
One of the virtues I appreciate most in others, and it’s a virtue I hope I have in some measure, is teachability. Are you willing to change your mind when another person’s case has more merit than yours? Are you able to hear good advice when it comes from some mouth other than your own and may even contradict your preconceived ideas? Are you willing to admit “I didn’t think of that” or “I see your point”? If no one has ever heard you change your mind about something, then you are either a god or you have mistaken yourself for one. I can say without a doubt that I make better decisions when I consult with my wife. I make better decisions with the elders rather than without them. I am wiser when I listen to my friends first.
Now, of course, often you just have to decide things on your own. And sometimes you need to make an unpopular decision because you know it’s right. But for most of our decisions we would do well to simply ask someone else, “What do you think?” We spend all this time asking God, “What’s Your will?” when He’s probably thinking, “Make a friend, would you? Go talk to someone. There’s a reason I’ve redeemed a lot of you—because you do fewer dumb things when you talk to each other. Get some advice. You might just hear My voice.”
The way of wisdom means three things: searching the Scriptures, seeking wise counsel, and praying to God. But what do we pray for if we aren’t asking God to tell us exactly what to do? Well, first of all we pray for illumination. We ask God to open our minds so we can understand the Scriptures and apply them to our lives. Don’t forget about this prayer. God can show you amazingly relevant things in His Word if you ask Him to. Second, pray for wisdom. We have not because we ask not God wants us to make good decisions that will help us be more like Christ and bring Him glory. Third, pray for things that you already know are God’s will. Pray for good motives in your decision making. Pray for an attitude of trust and faith and obedience. Pray for humility and teachability. Pray for His gospel to spread. You know that He wants these things in the world and for your life. Pray for them. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, as Jesus asked us to (Matthew 6:33).
The way of wisdom is a way of life. And that makes you freer than you realize.
And then after you’ve prayed and studied and sought advice, make a decision and don’t hyper-spiritualize it. Do what seems best. Sometimes you won’t have time to pray and read and seek counsel for a month. That’s why the way of wisdom is about more than getting a decisive word about one or two big decisions in life. The way of wisdom is a way of life. And when it’s a way of life, you are freer than you realize. If you are drinking deeply of godliness in the Word and from others and in your prayer life, then you’ll probably make God-honoring decisions. In fact, if you are a person of prayer, full of regular good counsel from others, and steeped in the truth of the Word, you should begin to make many important decisions instinctively, and some of them even quickly. For most Christians, agonizing over decisions is the only sure thing we know to do, the only thing that feels safe and truly spiritual. But sometimes, oftentimes actually, it’s okay to just decide.
A while back I was on the phone with a nice Christian man asking me if I would be willing to do a small speaking gig sometime in the following year. I got some more information over the phone and checked out the dates as we were talking. Everything seemed to work. I would be away less than twenty-four hours, and I could speak on something I already had basically prepared. I told him that I would be willing to come. He told me I could have time to pray about it. I noted again that the dates worked, it was still a long way off (so I could plan accordingly), the subject was fine, and I’d be happy to do it. But my yes didn’t stick. He politely insisted that I should pray about it. So I prayed about it and called back the next day saying yes again.
Now, the last thing I want to do is discourage people from praying. After all, prayer is the third key in seeking wisdom. But isn’t it possible that if we are walking with God in daily prayer, and we have some sanctified common sense, that we should be able to make decisions on the spot once in a while? Certainly we have been spared poor decisions by waiting and thinking, but we can also miss good opportunities and waste valuable time by grinding the wheels of choice into a pseudo-spiritual halt before we pencil something in on the Day-Timer.
Study the Scriptures, listen to others, and pray continually—that’s the best course of action, not just at the moment of crisis, but as a way of life. And as you engage in these practices, don’t forget to make a decision—always with wisdom, always with freedom, and sometimes even with speed.