The Tongue of the Wise

Proverbs 15:2 “The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouth of the fool spouts folly.”

Do you desire wisdom?

Would you recognize the knowledge of the Holy if you heard it?

If you witness others exhibiting these traits, how would you respond?

These questions are meant to give notice to our position in Christ. The moment we think we know God, we are reminded that we know very little. To acquire wisdom is one thing, to walk in understanding is another.

“To admit that there is One who lies beyond us, who exists outside of all our categories, who will not be dismissed with a name, who will not appear before the bar of our reason, nor submit to our curious inquiries: this requires a great deal of humility, more than most of us possess, so we save face by thinking God down to our level, or at least down to where we can manage Him. Yet how He eludes us! For He is everywhere while He is nowhere, for “where” has to do with matter and space, and God is independent of both. He is unaffected by time or motion, is wholly self-dependent, and owes nothing to the worlds His hands have made.”

A.W. Tozer (Knowledge of the Holy)

This description of God can either bring us to our knees in humility or cause our hearts to harden in pride, either way we are reminded of how little we are comparative to God’s majesty. We can strive to understand the depths of the knowledge of God but soon recoil at the prospect of our weakness when faced with a glimpse of His glory.

Wisdom comes only from God. I’ve prayed for wisdom most of my life and often find myself violating wisdoms demands more than I desire. With wisdom comes not only a knowledge of the Holy but a greater knowledge of sin, namely in myself. The more I seek after God, the more I realize how unworthy I really am.

Jesus, in His abundant grace, came forth from the Father and brought wisdom into the world; the world struggled to receive it.

John 1:9-11 “The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.”

The light that Jesus shown was the wisdom of the Father. If the world did not know Jesus and could not receive Him, then the world will not receive you if you are filled with His Spirit…..if you shine His light….

The world doesn’t need to receive you, it needs to know why they are separated from Christ and the gospel is the means to do that.

To know wisdom is to know our calling in Christ.

1 Peter 5:10 “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”

Coming to Christ is to respond to God’s call to Holiness. Come out of the world and be consecrated unto God, glorifying Him in this weakened state of humanity is lift Him up higher. Let the Word of God dwell within you and He will make you into His image. This is a high call.

The wisdom of God is meant to be shared with other believers.

Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

The fellowship of Christ is found within the Body of believers which compromise the church. It is not found solely in a congregation or within the walls of a building, but rather the wisdom of God is shared among God’s people, to strengthen, edify, and build up.

There is wisdom in how the gospel is shared.

Galatians 3:23-24 “Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.”

The moral law is the method by which the world is able to recognize their captivity to sin. The law points people to Christ. These 10 commandments form the structure of God’s Righteousness that was revealed in Jesus Christ. To obey Christ is to obey the law. To come to Christ is to recognize our deficiency in keeping the law and the penalty for offending it.

To be justified is to be recognized without sin. Jesus made this pathway possible, for those who humble themselves under God’s mighty hand and repent of their sin, there awaits a crown of glory.

Wisdom reveals how to acquire understanding.

Psalm 111:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!”

Wisdom isn’t meant to only be gained but to be practiced. It is through the practice of godly wisdom that understanding is imparted; there must be a connection to God’s Spirit for this to occur. The Spirit leads the faithful follower of Christ toward obedience, it’s up to the wise to act on that obedience.

With each step of obedience comes greater knowledge and with that knowledge is understanding attained.

Wisdom gained is of great value.

Proverbs 16:16 “How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.”

How much of our lives have been spent in striving after riches? What percentage of our existence will be spoiled in striving after things? Can you draw from wisdom and shift your focus or is the sacrifice too great?

The product of wisdom is everlasting life. The fruit of wisdom carries forth into eternity. Human life is an iota of time comparative to an eternity that exists beyond, why can’t we measure the energy we extend towards the things that are temporary and begin to shift that energy toward the things that carry purpose?

Our Position

“Whatever exists must have had a cause that antedates it and was at least equal to it, since the lesser cannot produce the greater.”

A.W. Tozer (Knowledge of the Holy)

Our ancestor Adam was formed from the dust of the ground. When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, they took with them a fallen nature and cast it forth in time toward us. We are no greater in form than a couple that was kicked out of paradise because of their indiscretion.

For the one who falls before their Creator and accepts their low position, there stands a Savior ready to lift them up.

God is self-existent, and we are not.

Anything that we become that exceeds the lowliness of a heritage of sin can only be accomplished by someone greater in us. When anyone comes to Christ, greater is He who is in you. God’s goodness is manifest through the life of a believer, all glory belongs to Him.

Colossians 1:26-27 “the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

The least of those filled with the Spirit is greater than those who preceded them. We live in an age that allows us to partake of the work of God. We have been given the right to represent God as His temple to the world. The Lord has bestowed upon His people the privilege of revealing Christ to the world.

Do we share the same values? Is the miracle of the new creation being formed in you or have you only been a casual observer?

The greatness of God’s presence is found in the camp of the wise. Seek wisdom while it may be found, call upon the Lord while He may be found and begin this walk that leads in a way the world will never know or understand.

Embrace God’s wisdom and you will find you have embraced Jesus.