L e a r n i n g a b 0 u t l e a r n i n g

Let the Wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance.                Proverb 1:5

 
Civility, kindness, respect, deference and common courtesy are sorely lacking in our nation today.  Another thing that is lacking is wisdom.  How ironic that in a time so-named the “information age” we’re increasingly forgetting how to live, behave and interact.  The failure of secular humanism is evident:  simply educating people with “facts and figures” will not cure the ills of society, for people are not basically good.  We are fundamentally sinners in need of renewal and redemption.  Our willingness to humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD has been replaced with an unwillingness to face ourselves as we are—finite and flawed creatures in need of a new heart.  Pride and arrogance have won the day and relativism has led the masses to do “what is right in their own eyes” (Judges 17:6).
         The Western culture has been so influenced by Greco-Roman thought that we tend more often than not today to view the virtue of wisdom as synonymous with intellectual superiority.  Christians need to understand that wisdom, in terms of how the Bible defines it, deals less with intellectual acumen and more to do with moral and spiritual affairs.  As is pointed out by Gordon Fee, wisdom has to do with the ability to make godly decisions.  Without a doubt, it also has to do with the application of knowledge and not merely the apprehension of it.  It’s no wonder, then, that our culture is lacking this all-important virtue, for it is increasingly rejecting the very God who is the source of knowledge and morality.  There is no sustainable future for any society on such a trajectory. 
         The Wise listen.  The more close-minded and insular we are, the less wise we become.  This is especially so when it comes to a refusal to listen to God and godly counsel. 
         The Wise add to their knowledge.  The moment we stop learning is the beginning of stagnation and maturational atrophy.  God made us with minds; just like stomachs, they’re meant to be fed.  To quote the apostle Peter:  Add to your faith goodness, and add to goodness, knowledge (2 Pet. 1:5).
         The Wise get guidance.  We weren’t meant to live alone; nor were we meant to presume our own intellectual preeminence.  Humble yourself.  Seek counsel.  Come to grips with your own finitude. 
 
Word for the Way:
True wisdom makes room for God to have His rightful place in our lives.