Thinking (and writing) about “stupid” yesterday had me thinking also about wisdom. There is much about wisdom in our Bibles. There is an entire book dedicated to wisdom, Proverbs, and there are also stories about the wise and foolish throughout the Scriptures.
We know that in Scripture, God does not order mankind along the lines of stupid or intelligent. He ranks as wise or foolish. Psalm 14 describes wise and foolish. Verse one tells us about fools, “The fool says in his heart, ‘God does not exist.’” Verse 2 tells us the definition of the “one who is wise” as “one who seeks God.” [HCSB]
We could say it this way … there are only two kinds of people, lost or saved. Either we are fools who do not acknowledge God, or wise in that we do come to God on His terms. But in addition to being “one who is wise” as “one who seeks God,” there is the added component of the “wisdom” that is needed for spiritual growth and maturity after salvation.
In the New Testament, the letter of James references that wisdom a number of times. Perhaps the one we are most familiar with is found in James 1:5: “Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him.” [HCSB]
There are two critical parts to that verse. The first part is our responsibility; the second part is God’s. It is our responsibility to acknowledge that we lack wisdom and need to ask God for it. That phrase, “if any of you lacks wisdom,” could really be translated, “since you lack wisdom” because we all do.
None of us have the wisdom within us needed for our spiritual maturity in Christ. We must go to God for it. The world might classify us as “stupid” or having “intelligence” on the genius level, but none is born with spiritual wisdom. That is where the second part of this verse is so vital, “God…gives to all generously and without criticizing.” It is through the power of His Spirit of Truth indwelling us that we are given the spiritual wisdom we need to follow and to serve Him.
So let’s ask!
