05/02/13

Wisdom - good or futile?

Proverbs chp 2 with Ecclesiastes 1:12-18


Yesterday I was talking with a beloved brother in Christ and in our talk he mentioned to me about the futility of wisdom and referred to Ecclesiastes, and today's message which the Lord gave talks of wisdom bringing security. Since both the references were written (or authored) by Solomon then they have to hold some sense for Solomon would not contradict himself.

Like I wrote in my previous messages wisdom is not knowledge but the ability to use knowledge to drive out the right understanding. Foolishness on the other hand is also an ability to use knowledge but it is the ability that does not bring the right understanding. Without knowledge one cannot be wise neither a fool. For example for a fool to talk rubbish he needs to talk something, even if it does not make logical sense.

If we read Proverbs 1:20-33 Solomon talks of how wisdom alerts us, warns us. Proverbs 2 speaks of wisdom bringing security and chapter 3 speaks of the rewards of wisdom.

Yesterday I spoke of the 2 parts of inner-man Discernment and Conscience. The other parts of the inner-man are Will (I call it the throne), Mind and Nature. Wisdom works in three parts of the inner-man i.e. Discernment (I call it the Pump for like the organ heart it discerns good from bad, it lets the good be spread and processes the bad to be made good), Conscience and the Mind. So we see wisdom is very essential for the inner-man, as the person grows in wisdom, the inner-man of the person grows and thus makes a person stronger in spirit, for the inner-man covers the spirit of man, same like a weak physical body can affect the thinking or mental working of man so also a weak inner-man affects the spirit of man.

If wisdom is good then why did Solomon say in Ecclesiastes 1:12-18 that wisdom is futile? Let us look at the scripture.

Ecclesiastes 1:13 Solomon speaks of the wisdom 'under Heaven', he clearly speaks the worldly wisdom which man pursues tirelessly.

When God created the world He said all is good, so how can worldly wisdom be futile?

We need to understand before Adam sinned the only thing bad was Satan (plural included the fallen angles). When Satan tempted Adam to eat of the Tree of Good and Bad to know good and bad, Satan was in others words was asking Adam to know him, for Adam knew all that was good but was innocent of evil. The fruit of the Tree of Good and Bad was the fruit of doubt and by eating doubt Adam came to know evil and thus became a corrupt being.

The world we live in is a corrupt world that is infected by evil; that is why Satan is called the prince of the air in this world. Bible tells us to be innocent of evil but does not tell us to be ignorant of evil for if we are ignorant of evil we will be victims of evil like Adam was.

The wisdom of the world which is corrupt brings a corrupt understanding of the good that God made, in other words the wisdom of the word is foolishness. That does not mean we need to not study or pursue the knowledge of this world. God says we need to be aware of knowledge and understanding of this world but not depend on it or trust in it. While we know things of this world we need to also be aware of the corruption that exist and that is possible when we are aware of the Truth. If we are ignorant of the Truth and filled only with the knowledge of the world we are nothing but fools. We need to know thing of the Kingdom of God and at the same time have knowledge of the world, Jesus showed this through His teachings, He used historical events as backgrounds for His parables; many a times Roman events which caused the Jews to dislike Him.

One preacher put this matter very well in his preaching. He put life like a boat (us) traveling across a river in this world (time) and the water is worldly knowledge and understanding. Without water the boat cannot move, it needs water to travel, but if the water gets into the boat the boat will drown. So the boat needs water but should not let the water be inside the boat.


[ Prayer Starter ]
Lord, You put us in this world which You were aware would be corrupt. You wanted us not to be like Adam but to be like Jesus who overcame. You allowed evil to flourish but make sure a perimeter was set for evil. You made a way for man overcome evil by your Spirit of Truth so that we may know the Truth which is your Word and thus overcome. O Holy Spirit, bring us to the right understanding, help us overcome the corruption that the world has infected us with...

This prayer we make in Jesus' Name, Amen.


[ Reference Scriptures ]
Proverbs 1:20-33

Proverbs 2

Proverbs 3

Ecclesiastes 1:12-18

The Word of God was given free to us, therefore we should also share it freely with others. (All rights are with God)