Wisdom From Above: Living In Light Of The Victory Of Jesus Christ

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

Ephesians 5:15-17 ESV

Ah wisdom, who can have it? Who can live wisely in such a strange corner of the universe? Who can live on this place they call Earth? More so, who can live rightly?

Perspective I think, it's all about perspective. We arm ourselves with truth, we gird ourselves with it. We see rightly, and we learn to live rightly. Yet blindness is common in this life. People seem to hide from truth. They set up systems to subvert it. They develop industries to plod around it. Yet it's God's wisdom, the wisdom we ought to have that allows us to see through the ploys of this world. Or as it says in the good word:

"Make the best use of your time, for the days are evil." They are indeed. Truly they are.

When one reads in the news of the body parts of exterminated fetuses being sold for profit by a government funded organization like Planned Parenthood... You start to wonder, has everyone gone crazy? What is it our government is sanctioning and encouraging?

On a day to day basis our society can seem, on the surface, fairly clean cut and decent. At least that's how it seemed to me when I was growing up. Obviously there were issues, but it seemed like society was basically good, and people were basically getting along fairly well. As I got older that façade seemed to peel away. Just beneath the surface it was rotting away. With the internet and the spread of information, it's not hard to learn about how various sectors of society and government are corrupt, broken, and charging further in those directions.

The genocide of the unborn is one of the more disturbing aspects of that systemic corruption. Another aspect would be the sex slave industry, or what has come to be known as "human trafficking." Military spending in the United States. The prison population problem in the USA. The depravity of Hollywood and the music industries. Cable television. The hundreds of millions of dollars flowing into Congress from special interest groups. Need I continue?

The point being, wisdom is needed. Before I came to know Jesus Christ in 2012 I saw some of these problems. I could see some of them, not all. It was like I was looking through a glass darkly. I couldn't see clearly.

Upon receiving Christ as savior, my vision began to clear. I was reborn into a new family. I had become a foreigner in the world, and often foreigners can see the truth more readily than natives. Yet even for the regenerate, born again believer, seeing the truth can be tough. Wisdom is hard to gain.

The Holy Spirit makes so much of this wisdom business possible. And we live in light of the victory of Jesus Christ on the cross two thousand years ago. We live in light of that tremendous victory over the forces of corruption in the heavenly places. So much strength flows to the believer from that victory. It means everything.

Through the eyes of the Holy Spirit, the new eyes, we can see there are troubles in this world, and also victories for good in this world. At times we do suffer trials, difficult circumstances, losses, and internal sorrows, yet we do so in light of eternity. We must always caution ourselves to remember that physical death is not the end. The social and political activists of this world tend toward despair because they see no way out, and death as the final. But death is not the end for us, it is only the shadow of death which we pass through.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Psalm 23:4 ESV

The wisdom from above begins with a healthy fear of God. Yes indeed, a reverence for the Creator and a desire to shun evil. Many don't like that, including myself. FEAR? WE WANT LOVE! LOVE IS THE ANSWER! Love is certainly very important. But so is reverent fear. Not a terror, but a reverent foreboding... A trembling respect for the majesty of an infinite God. Fear isn't always a bad thing. Fear motivates us. Fear warns us of boundary lines, and dangerous places where we should not go. Fear is a good thing, when kept within it's boundaries. A reverent fear for God keeps us humble, and reminds us of our own limitations.

I've often said that I don't like reading the Bible sometimes. Why? Because it upsets me. I get angry and up in arms about what its saying to me. I think that's a good thing!