Wisdom

IBS 1

James 3:13-17

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.”

When I read this verse my first thought is that wisdom is a matter of the heart. I want to be wise, I want to be a woman in pursuit of the gentle and quiet spirit Christ calls me to have in 1 Peter 3:4. In order to have a gentle and quiet spirit I must first bring my spirit under obedience and quiet my heart before the Lord. In my desire to pursue wisdom I so often forget that the establishment of wisdom is submission. Submission to the Lord and what His word says. The wisdom the earth has to offer me is self-elevating, full of my own envy and tainted with confusion. God is not a God of confusion. When I try to be wise by my own understanding I create confusion. As I submit to the Lord He draws me deeper into His word; giving me clarity that wisdom is a matter of pressing into His word and allowing Him to establish me. One of the biggest truths I pull from James 3:13-17 is that wisdom is not merely understanding or knowledge. Wisdom is understanding with action; it is the ability to know what is needed in a situation and determining how to respond. The Lord keeps reminding me that in order to gain wisdom and understanding and before I can act on the wisdom I have, I first must have self-control. I must have control of my heart, my mind, my emotions, my words. The Lord keeps speaking to me Proverbs 10:19 which says, “In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise.” In my pursuit of wisdom I will continue to humble myself before the Lord and press into His word. I will quiet my heart before Him and ask Him to transform my understanding of wisdom.