Dont Be A Cowardly Conformist
Why do I focus on this path to wisdom? Because Bethlehem College & Seminary is an academic institution. Academic institutions, like once glorious ghost towns, breed fear of being called a fool like slums breed rats. Academia breeds cowardly conformists posing as cutting-edge progressives. Students and teachers in academic institutions have the strongest aversion to being seen as fools in the eyes of other academics.
To be a faithful Christian, to be obedient to Gods word, to be truly wise in the eyes of God in Corinth, or in Athens, or in the heady halls of academia we must become fools. Thoughtful fools. Hopeful fools. Happy fools. Not self-pitying, dour, defensive, forlorn, miserable fools. But unashamed, happy fools.
How Did The Serpent Tempt Adam And Eve To Eat From The Tree Of Knowledge
Genesis 3:1 shares that the serpent was more crafty than any of the animals God had made. This statement shows that God created the serpent, too. The serpent convinced the woman to eat the forbidden fruit, telling her that she would obtain wisdom from the tree.
The woman fell into the trap of dishonesty by listening to evil and not following the instructions from God.
You will not certainly die, the serpent said to the woman. For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil . She proceeded to disobey God. Giving her husband some of the fruit was another sinful mistake. The husband and wife both ate the fruit, and their eyes were opened. They realized their nakedness and sewed fig leaves together to cover their bodies . They could not hide their disobedience, just as we cant hide our sins from God.
The man and woman hid when the Lord called for them. The man finally answered and told God they were afraid because of what they had done. The man laid blame on the woman. The man said, The woman you put here with meshe gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it .
Ask And You Shall Receive
Blessed is the one who seeks wisdom, and the many Bible verses about wisdom teaches us that its more valuable than gold.
Wisdom and understanding are two different things. If we say that understanding is knowledge based, than wisdom is applying that knowledge through making right decisions.
Its the key to living the abundant life God promises His children. As James says here, good life. Wisdom means making those right decisions about what we put in our minds, put in our mouths, and how we treat our bodies.
Sometimes its way too easy to ignore the things we know we should do.
Praise God for teaching us how to live the abundant life and for blessing us with the wise promises of Scripture. As you meditate on these verses, my prayer is that you would be filled with the wisdom that comes only from God and leads to a peaceful, abundant, and everlasting life! God Bless You Abundantly!
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What Are The Five Parts Of The Soul
The five components are: Ren, Ka, Ib, Ba and Sheut.
What does Ennoia mean in Greek?
Ennoia is a Greek word which means sense, such as in the term koine ennoia or common sense. It is sometimes used in a religious context as the name of various figures, such as in Gnosticism where she is an all-mother who begets angels and archangels.
What is Easter and how is it celebrated?
According to dictionary. com, Easter is an annual Christian festival in commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, observed on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox, as calculated according to tables based in Western churches on the Gregorian calendar and in Orthodox churches on the Julian calendar.
What is the significance of Eastre?
According to the theory, Eastre was the goddess of the east , her symbol was the hare , and a festival called Eastre was held during the spring equinox by the Saxons to honor her.
Wisdom And Understanding In The Proverbs
King Solomon, as a young, inexperienced leader, prayed to God for wisdom and knowledge to rule His people. God answered Solomon:
Since this is your hearts desire and you have not asked for wealth, possessions or honor, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king, therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given you. And I will also give you wealth, possessions and honor, such as no king who was before you ever had and none after you will have.
God blessed Solomon for his desire to have the wisdom to do Gods will and Solomon shares much of his wisdom with us in the Proverbs. Lets look at what he shares with us, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit about wisdom and understanding.
For the Lord gives wisdom from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
Wisdom is the principal thing therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
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Wisdom Works For A Greater Goal
Now, consider just a few passages of Scripture that point to the definition I have just unfolded. Consider, for example, 2 Timothy 3:15: The sacred writings are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Notice how wisdom functions. It is a means to a goal. Wisdom is always a good means to a good goal. The Scriptures make you wise unto salvation.
Wisdom is the mental, attitudinal, volitional capacity to get somewhere. So what Paul is implying is this: that the Scriptures impart to you, by the Spirit, the knowledge of reality and the situational discernment and the necessary resolve unto salvation. They impart to you what you will need to walk on the narrow road of faith and obedience that leads to final salvation to full and everlasting happiness in the presence of God.
Or consider Proverbs 3:13, Happy is the one who finds wisdom. Biblical wisdom is not a dead-end street leading to a cul-de-sac of misery. It is the path to deep and lasting happiness. Or consider Proverbs 24:1314:
My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.Know that wisdom is such to your soul if you find it, there will be a future , and your hope will not be cut off .
If you find true wisdom, it will lead you infallibly to a happy future. And that future will last forever.
Could it be clearer that wisdom is the knowledge and insight and resolve that successfully lead to full and everlasting joy?
Pursue Wisdom By Bringing All Things Into Relation To Jesus Christ
All things were created through him and for him. . . . In him all things hold together. . . . And in him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom.
Those are the vital paths to wisdom that I am not focusing on. Prize her. Pray for her. Pursue her in the word, in the world, in the company of wise teachers, in the light of eternity, in relation to Jesus.
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How To Get Wisdom From God
How do we get Gods wisdom? The first step is fearing and reverencing God. Secondly, we must incessantly and passionately seek it out like hidden treasure . We need to prize and embrace wisdom . Thirdly, we should ask God . Fourthly, we need to study and meditate on Gods Word, so we know what God has to say about . . . everything!
The Law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul. The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
Observing and learning from Gods creation brings His wisdom: Go to the ant, O sluggard consider her ways, and be wise.
But failing to acknowledge Him as Creator makes one stupid and obtuse:
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their reasonings, and their senseless hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools.
Finally, we get Gods wisdom from godly and wise counselors, mentors, and teachers: Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise. Where there is no guidance the people fall, but in abundance of counselors there is victory.
84. Proverbs 2:4 and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure.
What Is The Difference Between Wisdom And Knowledge According To The Bible
We have already established knowing and doing are different things but, in Gods word, they are closely connected. You cannot have wisdom without knowledge. Knowledge comes first, as with Adam and Eve in the garden. Our eyes must be opened to the truth of good and evil and that God is the One True God and that none is good but God. Then comes wisdom, once we understand who God is, we have a new found respect for Him and are motivated by love to obey and please His good will.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.
The fool says in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, their deeds are vile there is no one who does good.
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Godly Wisdom Vs Worldly Wisdom
We need our minds and spirits to be invaded by Gods wisdom. Godly wisdom guides us in a correct understanding of morality and in making decisions based on Gods perspective, as revealed in His Word.
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways!
Human wisdom is helpful, but it has conspicuous limitations. Our human understanding is incomplete. When we make decisions in human wisdom, we consider all the facts and variables we know, but theres a multitude of stuff we dont know. Thats why the wisdom from God, who knows all things, outshines worldly wisdom. Thats why Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us:
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
When we dont understand Gods nature and purposes and fail to seek His wisdom, we generally become cynical, fearful, fatalistic, or passive. Gods wisdom makes us proactive, positive, and faith-filled as we face challenges.
Gods wisdom makes the most brilliant philosophers and debaters look foolish because the worlds wisdom fails to acknowledge God . Our faith does not rest on human wisdom, but on Gods power.
The Bible says that earthly wisdom is unspiritual and even demonic . It can lead away from God by promoting science that denies Gods existence or immorality that denies Gods moral authority.
Christian Quotes About Wisdom
Patience is the companion of wisdom. Saint Augustine
Wisdom is the power to see and the inclination to choose the best and highest goal, together with the surest means of attaining it. J.I. Packer
Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom. Charles Spurgeon
No man acts with true wisdom till he fears God and hopes in his mercy. William S. Plumer
A prudent question is one-half of wisdom. Francis Bacon
The chief means for attaining wisdom, and suitable gifts for the ministry, are the Holy Scriptures, and prayer. John Newton
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How Is Knowledge Different From Understanding And Wisdom
Basically, knowledge is information we gain through reasoning, experience, or people, and wisdom is the ability to judge what is right and true. Understanding is another term the Bible uses that acts as a bridge between knowledge and wisdom.
In You Dont Know What You Dont Know: Knowledge, Understanding, and Wisdom, Hugh Whelchel charts the differences between the three terms. Whelchel says that at first glance the terms seem almost interchangeable, but there are differences.
Knowledge, he says, deals with knowing the facts. People with knowledge can collect, remember, and access information, but they might not know what to do with that information. A person can be knowledgeable without being wise.
Understanding, Whelchel says, is the ability to translate meaning from the facts. Those with understanding can extract the meaning out of informationseeing the what, how, and whyenabling a person to produce life principles.
Wisdom, then, is knowing what to do next, given an understanding of the facts and circumstances. A person with wisdom knows which principle to apply in a given context and do the right thing.
With Humility Comes Wisdom
When we fear God, we are humble before Him, learning from Him, rather than being proud and thinking we know it all. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction .
Humility acknowledges that we dont have all the answers, but God does. And even other people do, and we can learn from others experience, knowledge, and insight. When we acknowledge our dependence on God, it positions us to receive the Holy Spirits wisdom.
Pride is the opposite of humility. When we fail to humble ourselves before God, we often encounter calamity because we havent opened our hearts to Gods wisdom. Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall .
104. Proverbs 11:2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.
108. Proverbs 18:12 Before his downfall a mans heart is proud, but humility comes before honor.
109. James 4:6 But He gives us more grace. This is why it says: God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
110. 2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
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Can A Person Have Too Much Knowledge
Solomon said, Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body but that doesnt mean education is useless. Solomons point was that accumulation of knowledge isnt as important as fearing and obeying God . Jesus modeled this for us. No doubt His growth in wisdom as a child was based on the spiritual training He had at home .
Education has been an important factor in church history. Church leaders like John Calvin and Martin Luther promoted education so people could understand Gods Word. That emphasis continued through the Sunday school movement and the establishment of universities as religious institutions. Parents are also encouraged to nurture their children in the Lord, which in the original language carries the meaning of training and instruction. All believers are to diligently study the Word.
All that said, the Bible warns about a danger of knowledge. It can become a point of pride or arrogance . The context of that verse is Christians who had knowledge about the problem of food sacrificed to idolsmaking it ceremoniously uncleanbut new believers didnt have that knowledge yet. Paul warned, knowledge puffs up while love builds up.
What Does The Bible Say About The Tree Of Knowledge
Genesis’ early chapters mention an important feature in the Garden of Eden: the tree of knowledge. Here’s why this tree is so important to the story of Adam and Eve.
- Melissa HendersonContributing Writer
- 202223 May
What does the Bible say about the tree of knowledge? The Book of Genesis details Gods creationsfor six days, he created. Then, on the seventh day, He rested. God created everything that grows, which means God created trees.
The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the groundtrees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil . God gave specific instructions to Adam and Eve about one of these trees. Breaking those instructions would mean a very different life for Adam and Eve.
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Bible Verses About Knowledge
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,
For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice,And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
Teach me good discernment and knowledge,For I believe in Your commandments.
The mind of the intelligent seeks knowledge,But the mouth of fools feeds on folly.