The Pursuit of Wisdom

May 28, 2008

Lar,

I’m thinking you will be MIA for most of the week, seeing that you are away and all. I will try to keep things going. Anyhow, during my time with the Lord this morning, I read Proverbs 2. The first eight verses read,

2:1 My son, if you receive my words
and treasure up my commandments with you,
2 making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for insight
and raise your voice for understanding,
4 if you seek it like silver
and search for it as for hidden treasures,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
7 he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
he is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
8 guarding the paths of justice
and watching over the way of his saints.

I just love those verses. For you will notice that verses 1-5 more or less say that the pursuit of wisdom should involve every aspect of our being. It requires a diligent pursuit. Indeed, it speaks as if the pursuit of wisdom is entirely concerned with our own efforts. If we want wisdom, we need to pay the price to get it.

But then verse six makes plain that it is the Lord who gives wisdom. It’s a gracious gift of God, one we know that we are commanded to pray for (James 1:5).

The beauty of it is that those two realities by no means conflict. We must act as if it depends entirely on us, but we must do so with a heart of humility, a heart that recognizes that wisdom, no matter how hard we work, is a gracious gift of God. In the end, two people could do the same external actions in order to obtain wisdom, but one might dishonor the Lord while the other honors the Lord. For the one will work in dependence upon himself, while the other (the one honoring the Lord in his pursuit), will work in humble dependence upon the Giver of every good gift. “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.”

Seeking to embrace both realities to the full,

Joe

Posted by Joe | Filed Under Scripture Meditation, Seeking Him 

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