Wisdom Matters

Yielding to God’s wisdom means yielding our ideas to God’s.

You have probably heard someone invite a person to church saying, “Your life will be so much better if you just get involved.” Maybe you’ve heard someone say something like, “God wants you to have the best life possible. You need to come to church with me.”  Truthfully, I’ve probably said things like that to people in the past. Sometimes our good intentions or personal experience stand against the truth of God’s promises. I often use John 16:33 to teach people that the actual promise of Scripture is that our earthly lives will have troubles—tribulation. Those words were spoken by Jesus to his disciples, and they are just as true for his disciples today. Sometimes our faith brings trouble to our earthly lives, with children, spouses, and friends. I’ve known people whose friends said, “I liked you better before the whole church thing.” There are two great truths of John 16:33 that are sometimes missed in the reading. Jesus taught his disciples some hard truth in the upper room. He told them he would die, but that a Helper would come. He told them one of them would be his betrayer, and he said many other things about what would happen to their lives after his death. Then he told them, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace.”  John is the only Apostle believed to have lived a long life and to have died a natural death. His life was full and blessed, but it was also very difficult at times. When John authored the gospel that bears his name, he made certain we would have these important words from Christ. John knew the truth. Jesus came so that we could have peace in this world because we could live our lives “in Christ.” Jesus came to be the sacrifice for our sins so that we could live each day confident of our forgiveness. The Spirit of Christ came to indwell our lives so that we could know we had been saved; we are “in Christ.” John wanted us to know and have great hope, even during the trials of life. If we are in Christ, we have hope eternal because Jesus promised, “I have overcome the world.” We can offer people the great hope of eternal life if they are “in Christ.” We need to be cautious about offering them anything but “the peace that is ours in Christ” and the eternal hope that is ours when we leave this life.  The best earthly life is a blessed earthly life, whatever those blessings turn out to be. Our ideas and experience may not be someone else’s story. The most profound comfort is found in the truth of Christ’s words to his disciples in the upper room. Jesus said we would have troubles in our lives but that we can always trust the promise of our lives eternal.  Yielding to God’s wisdom is our spiritual strength. Yielding our words to God’s biblical wisdom will equip you to share his truth with others.

Will you yield the wait to God’s timing?

One Sunday my husband, Jim, was preaching a sermon on patience and I was teaching my Sunday School lesson on the topic of grace. He and I laughed about that and decided we should both be calling in sick! Jim has a lot of grace, but neither of us is very good at waiting. In fact, few people are.  Waiting on the Lord is the most difficult wait of all. I’ve rarely known God to hurry things along. As I’ve often said, “Waiting is often the most important part of God’s answer.”  When you have been waiting on God for something you know would be his will to answer, be encouraged. One of the best ways to recognize the hand of God is at work is the wait. We need to become spiritually patient because that is a great strength in our lives. It shouts to the world, “I trust God’s plan and I’m willing to wait for it.” Waiting gives us the chance and the inclination to seek after God and his thoughts. The more we learn about God in his word, the more likely we are to trust his perfection. The psalmist could have said, “Enjoy the wait because you will grow stronger and your heart will be encouraged by all you learn during that time.” Even as I consider my own words, I realize explaining God’s word is much easier than following God’s word in my own life. We are human beings and we want what we want as soon as we want it. God often makes us wait until we are willing to want what he wants and wait for his work in our lives. Yielding to God is spiritual wisdom. Yielding to the wait of God’s perfect timing is wise. His solution is about our salvation, our eternal reward, and quite possibly about the eternal lives of others as well. Wanting his answers makes it well worth our wait.

Will you yield your fears to his promises?

I decided to create Wisdom Matters because so many people I knew ended their day with the evening news and then struggled to fall asleep. There is increased anxiety and worry among God’s people and a sense that God’s family is moving in some wrong directions. Christians don’t need to worry, but we do need to seek God and his wisdom. Jesus told his disciples, “You will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately” (Matthew 24:6 NLT). When Jesus said “don’t panic,” his words were in the form of a command. In other words, panic is not our option.  Every generation has wars. Every generation has worries and concerns. Every network does its best to sensationalize the news these days because simply reporting the facts will send most of its viewers to a different network.  Wisdom Matters is intended to bring biblical truth that will transcend the thoughts and opinions created by the world’s news. In the end, we have the certainty of our salvation. We therefore live each day with the confidence that whatever our earthly lives hand us, we have nothing to fear. Jesus didn’t tell us to try to be brave. Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid.” The psalmist said, “The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid.” The most important word in that verse is the two-letter word my. A stronghold is a fort, providing walls of protection. The psalmist was saying, “If I run to God and take refuge in him, I will have nothing to fear.” God cannot be our refuge or stronghold until we run to him and give him that place in our lives.  If you have ever watched a toddler become frightened, you have watched them run as quickly as they can to the person they most trust to keep them safe. The parent, grandparent, or caregiver scoops them up and speaks quietly in their ear, “It’s okay. You are safe with me.” Compared to God, you and I aren’t even toddlers! The illustration is still true. Our Abba, Father, is present and ready to protect all who will run to him. We have been commanded, “Do not panic, do not be afraid.” The only way not to break those commands is to know and trust the One you can run to at any time.  Of whom are you afraid? Don’t be. Run to God and rest in his perfect, protective love. When God said not to panic, he wasn’t making a suggestion for your spiritual life; he was giving you a command. Yielding to God is spiritual wisdom. He is your stronghold, your fortress, and it is wise to live there.

Will you yield the fighting to God?

Moses was teaching the Israelites how to go into battle whenever it became necessary. He taught the people not to fear, panic, or be in dread of their enemies. Moses taught them to allow the Lord to “go with them” and that God would fight for them and give them the victory. The most important lesson Christians can learn from Scripture about controversies, battles, warfare, and even the daily irritations we might find ourselves in is this: The battle is the Lord’s. We don’t know what to say or do until we ask God for his wisdom and direction.  Making Jesus our Savior was an easy choice. Allowing him to be the Lord of our lives is much more difficult. We can experience joyful peace when we remember that the battle is not ours to fight. The Lord has basically said, “Hop off my throne and allow me to handle this in a way that is best for everyone.” God always has a kingdom purpose as his goal. He doesn’t just want to fix the problem today; his plan likely includes the best fix for our eternal lives as well. Our battles are simply opportunities to step into his strength and surrender our own. There might be consequences to our earthly lives that are actually blessings for our eternal lives. The Bible teaches us that “iron sharpens iron” (Proverbs 27:17). God allows many of our struggles in life because they provide a way for us to strengthen and hone our faith and receive his favor and blessings as our reward.  God wants us to be strong and he wants to bless us for our choices. The greatest victories in our earthly lives will have heavenly rewards. Who or what do you need to surrender to the Lord and allow him to fight for you? Don’t panic, dread, or fear when an enemy comes against you. Just “tell God on them” and hear him say, “We’ve got this.” God has promised victory to those who allow him to own the fight. The best way to know God has fought the battle is that the outcome turns out to be a spiritual blessing for all involved.  We have a wise and powerful God. Yielding to God’s wisdom is spiritual strength. Allowing him to fight with us and for us is our hope of victory.

Do you stand firm in faithful service to your King?

This verse always reminds me of the guards standing outside Buckingham Palace. They are known for their uniforms, those tall hats, and for remaining focused and immovable for their entire shift at their post. The tourists do some crazy things trying to draw their attention, to no avail. Those guards are an image for our Christian faith. Paul told the Corinthian believers to be “watchful.” Corinth was a rough, ungodly city in Roman culture. The first-century Christians were very different from most people in the city, and they were carefully and curiously watched. The church in Corinth became one of the most influential churches of the first century.  Paul closed his letter to the church in Corinth by telling the members to pay attention to their witness inside the church as well as out among the culture. Their job was to “stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.”  Christians are supposed to be like those guards in front of Buckingham Palace. We aren’t supposed to look like the rest of the crowd, and we aren’t supposed to act like them either. We have a job to do because we are enlisted in the King’s service. We stand our post when we stand firm in our faith. There is no reason to waffle about because of different opinions. We don’t have to tolerate or accept what the Bible defines as sin. We don’t have to weaken our faith to make it acceptable to others. We are called to stand firm and serve our King. We are to be strong, steady, dependable, convinced, mature, and confident in our faith. That witness greatly impacted the decadent, sinful city of Corinth in the first century, and that same witness will impact our culture today. How would you describe your witness to others? Chances are, most people know you are a Christian and they know what Christians believe. We speak our loudest sermons sometimes by using no words. We simply take our post, stand firm, and remain focused on whom we are serving. The “tourists” can jump around and act crazy, but we are immovable, certain of the truth. Those guards at Buckingham Palace serve an earthly monarch. Christians serve a heavenly King. Yielding to God’s wisdom is spiritual strength. His strength and our dedication to serve will provide an influential witness to those who are watching. Are you willing to yield your life to faithful service of the King?