Oh to be wise! Truly wise! Wisdom is the practical ability to take the truth and correctly apply it to the situations we face day by day, (see the parable of the wise and foolish builders in Matthew 7v24-27). In the parable, if you have heard that rock is firmer that sand and a storm could come (truth), and you are building a house (situation), then build it on rock (application).  We are inevitably in situations in this world, and we know the truth is in God’s Word, but often the challenge is to correctly apply God’s Word to the situation and do it.

God’s Word tells us what God-given wisdom is like. In James 3v17-18 we read this, “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.”

So the question is, when I apply God’s Word to my life, do these characteristics both define my action and flow from it? Let us think on these things, and maybe the following reformatting with some expansion of the Greek words will help us:

“But the wisdom from heaven is:

1)      Pure ( clean, innocent)

2)      Peace-loving (peace-living and peace-making)

3)      Considerate (appropriate to the situation, gentle, fair)

4)      Submissive (Ready to obey, obedient, open to reason from another despite disagreeing)

5)      Full of mercy (treating better than people deserve)

6)      Full of good fruit (probably the fruit of the Spirit)

7)      Impartial (not favouring any one)

8)      Sincere (without hypocrisy)”

May the Lord enable us to be people who are wise in every situation,

With love and blessing,

Roland