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I know... late again, but last weekend was a bit "cray cray" and we chose not to attend Church and just rest. Beyond that, the message wasn't posted on the Church website until this past weekend or something. IDK... it wasn't up by Friday morning, that's all I know. I sent an inquiry and got word back that it's a volunteer that posts it, so we just have to take what they can give. Tempting to offer my own services, but not sure if I'd be qualified technologically speaking, plus maintaining my own stuff can put enough on my plate as it is. Anyway, it's here now and I'm working on it...
To start with, I'm actually going to bring the side-story from the end of the message to the beginning.
Who among you has wisdom in painting?? Specifically in house-painting or wall painting. If you're experienced in this, you know it's impossible to cover a dark color with a lighter one in a single coat. That's what a client of Nate Parks once expected of him, thinking that she knew best as to saving money on the project. This is an example of Earthly wisdom vs Godly wisdom. The woman thought she had all the answers, but she was lacking the wisdom necessary to the bigger picture of how the project needed to be done. You can't take shortcuts and expect things to turn out right in God's eyes. (shortcuts in driving may or may not be wise, but that's a different issue)
So we probably all grew up hearing the saying, "knowledge is power", right?? Well, the fact is, knowledge is really just Step 1 towards power. Without Steps 2 and 3 of understanding and wisdom*, you're not going to get very far. We have more access to knowledge today than people have had at any other time in history. People have said that more knowledge leads to a more civilized society. IDK where they got that, because that's not been my experience at all*!! I mean, I can understand to a certain extent what they're thinking because more knowledge should lead to better society, but they're missing the points of understanding and wisdom in meekness* that are required beyond that in order to actually achieve a better society. Do you realize that the Wall St. Sunday Edition contains more basic knowledge than the average person living in the 1700's could obtain in a lifetime!!?? Pretty amazing, right!? But what is knowledge, really?? By itself, it's nothing more than a collection of facts (or at least statements meant to be taken as factual). You can gain knowledge by reading the dictionary or an atlas, etc... but without the understanding of what you've read, and the ability to make dynamic connections in the context of the information, a.k.a. wisdom; you're not going to be able to make any practical use of it. You won't be able, for example, to write a report or plan a trip based on what you've read or observed. Our access to knowledge today is so advanced and prevalent that any lack of it is due to either our lack of personal access at home or more likely these days, a lack of interest in pursuing it. -- Let's see what James has to say this week --
James 3:13-18
New International Version
Two Kinds of Wisdom 13 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. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. 17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.
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Short passage, but with a lot of impact!! Let's dig in together --
Verse 13, "Who is wise among you...??" James starts off with a question right out of the gate*. Most of us would probably be tempted to raise our hands at that, amiright?? I can tell you right now as I sit here typing this that I would*!! But as James calls them out on it, where's the proof?? How are you living that shows wisdom?? This shows us that it's not about what we say, it's about how we live that truly reveals what we think and believe. And we know that because what have we said for ages?? "Actions speak louder than words", right?? We know that. Or how about this one, "The proof is in the pudding." Okay, so you claim you can cook, let's taste the results!! That's another thing where we know that there are specific steps to be taken in order to get a good outcome. You can read a recipe all day long, but if you don't understand what the measurements and instructions mean, you're not going to get the cake made, are you??
In verse 14, James shows the people what "human" or "Earthly" wisdom looks like. Things like bitter jealousy and selfish ambition drive our actions. We think those are the paths to success. But where do they get us in the long run?? Nowhere. People end up hating us for being jerks. So why continue in the same pattern?? Because it may look good for a while. It's easier than being a decent human being because it comes more naturally... There's also that "pesky" little definition of insanity to be considered*... LOL But what does James tell us about them?? He tells us not to boast, outwardly promoting ourselves. Then looking inward, he tells us not to be false to the truth. We know the truth of our hearts when we take the time and courage to examine ourselves. That's why most people keep themselves too busy much of the time. So they don't have to look at their hearts and see how wrong they might be. There's no time in their days and when they go to bed, they're too tired to bother about it. It's the application of our knowledge that proves out the presence of wisdom or lack thereof. True wisdom always requires Divine direction. James calls human, or Earthly wisdom "unspiritual and demonic". Pretty strong wording on that second one, isn't it!? But that's the truth, because anything of importance that is not based on Godly wisdom, is, by default, demonic. We know this because Jesus tells us back in the Gospels that, "the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me." Jn. 14:30*. And what does James say is the proof or results of Earthly wisdom?? Disorder and vile practice. (virtual looking around at the current state of the World in general -- yep!!)
The next thing Nate did in the message was to make sure everyone was at ease and then just in a very "matter of fact" manner, he was going to say four words that he knew would trigger people in light of the past 18 months. I'm not going to repeat them here, because at least 3 of the 4 are most likely obvious. Besides which, you can choose your own. The point of the exercise was to emphasize the fact that it's human nature to blame others for our triggers. "If those people over there would just change..." We all understand this because most of us have done it at one time or another, and probably more than once. Once again, "guilty as charged".
Okay, we've sufficiently covered Earthly wisdom, so what does Godly wisdom involve?? Our answer to this is found in verse 17 with the results in verse 18. Here we find the "polar opposites" of the earlier drivers -- where bitter jealousy and selfish ambition are Earthly and demonic, the drivers of Godly wisdom are from above and are spiritually guided. So the evidence list James gives us is a challenging one --
Pure -- That certainly doesn't describe human ideas, does it?? We tend to have selfish ambitions behind our words and actions, don't we?? Purity speaks of love, which is putting others first whenever possible.
Peaceable -- This can be a battle even on a good day, depending on the situation and subject matter!!
Gentle -- This can be subjective at times, but still a potential challenge.
Open to reason -- Too many people both inside and outside the Church struggle with this one...
Merciful -- This one can be the onus (responsibility) of anyone, but more important for those of us who claim belief in Christ.
Good Fruits -- As mentioned above, results matter!!
Impartial -- A particularly challenging one these days, for sure!!*
Sincere -- Sincerity is tricky. People can be "sincere" and still be wrong in their thinking. Godly sincerity is integrity to a belief combined with purity of heart as shown by genuine love for others.
The final truth of the matter is that we're not accessing Godly wisdom as frequently or as properly as we should in order to live in it consistently. (this includes me) -- God Bless!!
Footnotes --
Speaking of the definitions of wisdom out there, I've always appreciated the one that says, "Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is not using it in a fruit salad." LOL
My experience of knowledge equaling power has actually been in evidence before, if only in limited ways. Just a year ago last January, I believe, I gathered knowledge and was able to have power over a situation in my apartment building. But in general life decisions, Godly wisdom is best. And really, I had that going for me as well in the above situation because I had more "ammo" I could have used, but didn't end up needing because things went smoothly during the meeting.
The word "meekness" can be a bit of a puzzle, but Nate showed us in a cross-reference to Titus 3:1-2 where the same Greek word is used. "Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility to all men." In these verses, the phrase, "peaceable and considerate" is the same as "meekness". Nate spoke of it as, "perfect courtesy". He also referenced Matt. 5 where the Beatitudes speak of peacemakers as being like God's "protégé".
Asking a question "right out of the gate" was/is common practice in Jewish teaching.
I would raise my hand for wisdom because, as someone who is High Functioning PDD, the struggle not to feel like I'm "surrounded by idiots" is very real... ;p
That "pesky" definition of insanity, for those who may not know, is this -- "Repeating the same actions while expecting a different result."
There are numerous verses referencing Satan as having sway over the World until Jesus returns. Here is the list I used for the commentary above -- https://www.cgg.org/index.cfm/library/verses/id/2120/satan-as-ruler-this-world-verses.htm
Notice how the last image below mentions doing things without hypocrisy. I really like that. It adds a valid nuance to the idea of sincerity.
This week's music -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5id12G52aQ
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