Have you ever said to yourself, “if only I knew God’s thoughts?” Some people seem presumptuous to think that they do know God’s thoughts. They’re full of advice and act as if they understand exactly what God thinks and what He would do in every situation. Too often such people fail to recognize that God’s thoughts and ways are far beyond our ability to understand. His ways are typically not our ways.

God’s Word does give a glimpse into His thoughts and desires. He calls us to forsake our worldly thought patterns and learn His principles for life because conventional, worldly wisdom is the exact opposite of God’s ways. By saturating our minds with God’s Word we begin to see both God’s message and His method.

What God calls wisdom and what the world calls wisdom are two very different things. The world looks to academia for wisdom. That is a trap. Pride loves the appearance of wisdom, but it is always rooted in self-deception. The wisdom of God; however, is viewed as foolish to the world.

Many people have concluded that when the light of faith goes on in a person’s heart, the light of knowledge in their brain has to be put out. Nowhere in Scripture does God condemn the acquisition of knowledge. It is only when experts elevate human knowledge over godly wisdom-that they become foolish. God isn’t against human knowledge. He who gave us brains to think is pleased when we put them to use. When earthly experts elevate human knowledge over God’s wisdom, they become foolish.

God used infinite wisdom when He created the earth. God by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding He established the heavens. It would be wise to fear God, which means to stand in awe of who He is. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

If we think we have a lot of religious knowledge, we actually might not know anything. The core reason for this is that true Christianity is not adherence to doctrine and devotion. It’s a mystery that can only be known in the context of relationships. If we have the Holy Spirit in our spirit and God’s Word in our hand, all things pertaining to the mystery and all things pertaining to salvation and life in Christ are available to us. We can understand them as the Holy Spirit reveals them to us. As we submit to the Holy Spirit and ask Him to do that, He will be faithful to do it.

When we confuse being current with being wise, we deceive ourselves. The only way to be wise is to walk with God. To walk with God, we need to spend time reading and studying the Bible. There are no shortcuts to wisdom! We can ask God to give us a desire for His wisdom over any worldly wisdom. When we live in light of what He reveals to us in His Word, we won’t need to know everything in the world. We won’t need to be right all the time.

God gave us Jesus. We are the Father’s love-gift to His Son. He assessed the price of our redemption and decided it was worth the torturous, bloody death of Jesus on the cross. This knowledge will shore up our hearts against temptation. Knowing how easily we fall into temptation, we can say “I cannot, and will not do this offensive thing, for I am Christ.” This simple phrase is all the Holy Spirit needs to pull us back from the edge of disobedience.

(An audio version of this sermon can be found at https://www.spreaker.com/episode/1-corinthians-3-verses-18-23-how-to-gain-god-s-wisdom–62148448)

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible, New Kings James Version (Nashville, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p. 1378)
2. “Reading God’s Mind.” Retrieved from Crosswalk@crosswalkmail.com
3. Pastor Daid McGee, “Need Wisdom?” Retrieved from Crosswalk@crosswalkmail.com
4. Joni Eareckson Tada, “You Are of Christ.” Retrieved from communications@joniandfriends.org
5. Pastor Ken Klaus, “Real Wisdom.” Retrieved from www.lhm.org
6. Raul Ries, “Man’s Futile Wisdom.” Retrieved from www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/somebody-loves-you-radio-w-raul-ries/
7. Pete Briscoe, “Do You Really Know Him?” Retrieved from Crosswalk@crosswalkmail.com
8. Rick Warren, “A Faith That Works When Life Doesn’t.” Retrieved from connect@newsletter.purposedriven.com