Real Wisdom Only Comes from God

Based on 1 Corinthians 2:6-16

Khen Lim



Image source: descendantsofnoah.com

At no other time in the history of man has the human race been able to access so much information in so little time but despite such formidable technology on hand, we are still impossibly far from being able to answer even the most basic spiritual questions. What kind of wisdom do we have if we still do not know how and why we came into existence or where we go after we die? More importantly, what is the meaning of life if our lives are finite?

A little under two decades ago, I attended a conference in downtown Sydney on depression where selected speakers shared ideas on how to manage and overcome it. In one of the tracks called ‘Taking Control of What We Think,’ the speaker who was apparently a successful physician from the Gold Coast told us that whenever negative thoughts came to pass, be assertive and shout ‘Stop It!’ so that we could just move on and not get bogged down. She also encouraged us to listen to ‘positive’ music as well as sounds of natural ambience such as streams of water, breezes, rustling trees and so on.

For night time, she recommended that we put on headphones and listen to pre-recorded cassette tapes (no CDs then) of positive inducement materials that she could supply… at a fairly handsome fee, of course. After all, like other speakers in the conference, she had her own display booth with her own ‘personalised’ merchandise for sale. There was more though.

The speaker also talked about how nurturing a healthy spiritual philosophy works well too. To her, any belief system (including Ba’hai, Gaia etc) will work fine so long as you avoid any talk revolving around sin, guilt or remorse because they promote negative vibes. The main thing was to discover the ‘glowing light’ that shines from within yourself.

If that’s the best that human wisdom can muster with all that physical advancement, we should be worried. Trouble could just be around the corner.

Only God has True Wisdom

Job 28:28 says, “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.”

This is saving faith and Job describes it as both the fearing of God and the walking away from evil at the point of conversion. In other words, real wisdom can only be had when we fear but also trust God and when we repent of our sins.

Human wisdom hasn’t a hope if it remains “earthly, natural and demonic” (Jm 3:15), let alone match what God offers.

Which Wisdom is Better?

Ever notice how so many wise guys are around in our lives, telling us what’s good for us, what transforms our lives and what rewards we gain through wealth and material means? People like Steve Jobs like us to think that owning an Apple product is wisdom. Miley Cyrus certainly thinks she’s a smart one too. Barack Obama probably thinks he’s the best president America has ever produced. Guy Kawasaki wants you to believe that wisdom and success come from reading his books. And no doubt, Hollywood and all left-leaning progressives love to think they’re going great reshaping society with its wisdom.

All of these are, unfortunately, pretty successful endeavours at diverting many of us from the Word. As a matter of fact, it’s certainly not a new thing. After all, the Corinthians during Paul’s days were far earlier victims than us. And so were the Colossians, Philippians and the Galatians. For them, the early (hedonistic) prevailing ideas all seemed great until they found out. It was only when they discovered Christ that they began to understand where their worldly wisdom had led them so astray.

Paul said, “The word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God… Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” (1 Cor 1:18-20)

When early century philosophers rubbished the wisdom of God, calling it foolishness, it is, in truth, they whom God has exposed as being laughably unwise and shallow in their wisdom.

While God has endowed us with incredible skills, talent and even ingenuity to advancing our lives through the use of earth’s physical resources, that is where our wisdom stutters to a halt. Beyond that is impossible because sin encroaches, rendering our minds incapable of understanding or discerning the critical spiritual dimension.

True Wisdom is God Revealed

1 Cor 2:7 says, “We speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God predestined before the ages to our glory.”

The original Greek word for “mystery” isn’t what we think it is. Instead it refers to the type of truth not known to man but is only now revealed so that we sinners can be saved through the substitutional sacrifice His Son has made plain for all of us to witness.

However sin drives a wedge in between us and God, which then prevents us from arriving at that truth on our own.

Paul says in 1 Cor 2:14, “A natural man (an unconverted person) does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually appraised.”

God’s wisdom cannot be prised apart by science and even the most advanced technology cannot explain it either (v.9) because it is only as a gift that God will bestow and reveal the truth in His Word for us.

In 1 Cor 2:10, Paul says, “To us, God revealed (His truth) through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.”

Because the Holy Spirit searches the deep recesses of God the Person and knows His mind perfectly, He is also able to reveal Him and His will completely.

Those deep things of God, Paul continues, “we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words” (1 Cor 2:13).

We have in us, an internalised Facilitator of Wisdom who will reveal and enlighten us about the spiritual truths in ways we couldn’t have otherwise. The Holy Spirit takes God the Father’s Word, the Word that only He has revealed and inspired, and shines His light upon those whom He indwells. It is only when we hold ourselves dependent on the Giver of the Word that we can then begin to rightly appraise the Word in all its truth.

When Paul says, “We have the mind of Christ” in 1 Cor 2:16, he meant that only if we are diligent and obedient enough to study and submit to it. Because the truth is finally revealed, its genuineness is guaranteed. Because it is divinely inspired, its accuracy is assured. And because the truth shines from within our lives, its applicability is beyond doubt.

God’s Truth or Nothing at All

Because we are Christians, we are no longer at the crossroads of indecision, inadequacy and inopportune anymore. We have long gone past and left that behind and instead, arrived at a point in which we realise and understand that the wisdom of the world holds no wick to the power of God’s truth.

And when it comes to solving spiritual problems, nothing that human wisdom can do will match what God has to offer. If the world ever had anything to offer, then the best of mankind would not have sent our Lord to be crucified (1 Cor 2:8). That is not wisdom but complete foolishness.

So if you are a heartfelt believer, the best you can do is to invest all your confidence in the Word of God, the Divine Truth, for it is the only source of true wisdom.