The Wisdom Of This World

Alba 3-23-2025

THE WISDOM OF THIS WORLD

I Corinthians 3:18-23

Chris Surber, a minister in Florida, told about being a child growing up in North Central California. He said his favorite time of year was winter. While it would seldom snow in the San Joaquin Valley where he lived, only a little more than an hour’s drive away from Modesto are the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

He said that they often spent time there. But in the winter it was particularly magical. His siblings, cousins, and he would play in the snow and have snowball fights. Eventually they would head home but not without packing an ice chest or two full of hard packed snow. He said, “That ice chest may as well of been a treasure chest, for a young boy who loved snow, and that snow was more valuable than any gold, rubies, and silver, for when we returned home we had a piece of the snow of the mountain with us!”

He then would make snow castles in their front yard and pray for colder weather so that the snow would last just a little bit longer. But, of course, it never did last for more than just a short while. The snow removed from the mountain was destined to melt. And then he made this observation: “It does so because that is what snow does; it does not last forever. Earthly wisdom, the vanity of this life, is similarly fleeting and does not last. Oh, but the great wisdom of God is eternal. It is mighty and shall never fade!”

Why do people grow content with the wisdom of this world? We have available today more knowledge than at any time in history. Most of it right here on our phones (show). They say that more information has been produced in the last 30 years than in the previous 5,000 years. And that today information doubles every 4 years. But while we have plenty of information, there is still a shortage of wisdom. Especially when it comes to the kind of choices we make in life. Why do we place our trust and such high premium upon things that will not last?

I Corinthians 3:18-20 says, “Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, 'He catches the wise in their own craftiness'; and again, 'The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.'”

The wisdom of the world says that only what can be seen, touched, or tasted, with our physical senses is worthy of trust. But Psalm 111:10 tells us, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.” This is not to say that worldly knowledge is inherently bad or useless. On the contrary, it can be very beneficial in many aspects of life. But when it comes to matters of eternal significance, when it comes to knowing God and understanding His ways, worldly wisdom falls woefully short. Why is that? It is because the wisdom of this world...

1. Is Finite - limited

Verse 18 speaks of those who “seem to be wise in this age.” That is the problem, isn't it? In each age people think that they know what needs to be known and consider themselves to be wise. Let me give you some examples.

Elizabeth Cotton had an article on BuzzFeed, Sept. 5, 2023, that stated, “As humans, we've been around for a long, long time. With that comes a lengthy history of different beliefs and cultural practices that nowadays seem, well, bizarre.” She gives several examples including this one: “In 19th century England, many believed that arsenic (in small doses) was safe to use, and it was actually incorporated in a diverse range of products.” She says, “Yup, it was used for everything from rat poison to face powder! It soon found its way into household goods, food, medicine, and even in wallpaper.” Arsenic!!

An August 15, 2018 article on the Listverse website titled, “10 Dangerous Health Fads And Medical Treatments Used In The Past” tells that, “When Marie Curie and her husband Pierre discovered radium, it was one of the biggest finds in the 19th century. Marie later died of asplastic anemia thanks to her lifetime of exposure to the element, but long before her death, radium was considered a miracle substance that companies simply had to include in all of their products. Ironically, it was believed that radium had miraculous health-benefiting properties.

“Before the effects of radiation on human cells were fully understood, companies put radium in products including toothpaste, chocolate, and water, all meant for consumption. This continued well into the 1930s. Other uses for radium included placing it in toys and night-lights, thanks to its luminous properties... It was also placed into cosmetics that people smeared all over their faces, in heating pads, and in suppositories.”