Wisdom is not as complicated as you might have previously thought.
Wisdom's depths are vast and a life dedicated to obtaining wisdom will never plumb the depths of it—but it is not complicated. It's meant to be obtained, pursued, and valued. James tells us even the obtuse can obtain wisdom if he asks God for it without doubting.
Wisdom, in its simplest definition, is knowing God and keeping His ways.
Throughout the Bible, we are taught wisdom, enticed by the "good life" wisdom provides and won over by wisdom perfectly personified in Christ:
While we'll never come to grasp the fullness of the wisdom of God, we know:
Wisdom starts with the fear of the Lord, which is the dedicated practice of God's ways as well as the avoidance of the ways that are NOT God's ways.
Wisdom includes humility, which is our right position in relation to who God is, discovered when we come to know God or receive a revelation of God.
Wisdom includes knowledge, which specifically refers to the revelation of God through creation, Scripture, Christ's teachings, etc.).
But notice how each aspect of wisdom has to do with either WHO God is or His WAYS, or BOTH!
"The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding."—Proverbs 4:7
There are some (even Christians) who do not feel God can be known. However, the Bible claims not only that God can be known but, in fact, that God goes to great lengths to make Himself known.
This is not to say that we will ever know the depth and breadth of Him or fully comprehend everything there is to comprehend of Him. The Bible teaches us that while God is incomprehensible, He is also knowable.
The stories of those to whom God reveals Himself demonstrate this. The mere existence of humans demonstrates this! Athanasius, the second-century defender of the deity of Christ against the Arians (who taught that God could not be known), once posed the question, “Why did God make them (people) at all if he did not wish to be known by them?”
Clearly, Jesus Christ declares to us He was sent for this very reason: He came so that we might come to know the Father. (John 17:3; I John 2:3, I John 2:13, I John 4:8, I John 5:20, Gal. 4:9; Phil 3:10) Similarly, our own stories can demonstrate that God is knowable to those around us who do not yet know Him. This brings glory to God.
"This is life eternal, that they might know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent."—John 17:3
Wisdom is vital because:
Knowing God shows us the right relationship to God (knowing ourselves in relation to God)
Knowing God shows us the right relationship to others in light of that knowledge (our place in this world and the actions we ought to take).
Without the study of God for the purposes of following His ways (wisdom), our world becomes a chaotic, strange, meaningless place and our own place is obscured. For example, for those who don't know God as the one who created order out of chaos, the world seems chaotic and without purpose. Those who don't know God as the Provider will spend their lives trying to get "enough" and easily justify oppressing others.
My own first revelation of God was The God Who Is Present. I never knew a time when He wasn't a distinct and permeating presence in my life. I grew to know the God Who Could Be Known as my parents guided me, and later, the God Who Saves and still later, the God Who Requires & Enables My Surrender. Each step I take with God in pursuit of wisdom is predicated by a fresh revelation of who God is and how I must respond.
In my last blog post, I shared this "formula" for what it means to walk in the "good way" or wisdom:
To know Him is to love Him.
To love Him is to trust Him.
To trust Him is to obey Him.
To obey Him is to follow Him.
To follow Him is to die to our self/absolute surrender and walk in abundant life.
We could (and should) spend a lifetime at this beginning stage of "knowing God" while at the same time stretching into the latter stages, which I will discuss in consecutive blog posts. The key to wisdom is the pursuit of this amazing God we serve and our response to each revelation God provides.
So how can you obtain wisdom—to know God and to know His ways? First, ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom. Then, seek Him in simplicity. Look again with new eyes at the stories of the Bible that you may have heard so many times they've become boring. Study His character as revealed in the Bible and His names. Look for Him in His creation and what it reveals about His character. Look for Him in the community around you and how He is revealing Himself to them and to you, through them and through you. Look for Him in traditions—the old ways. Look for Him in the old ways that are so old that they are new again. Listen in the quiet. Hear His voice.
Make the old hymn your heart-cry: "To know Him, to know Him, is the cry of my heart, Spirit, reveal Him to me! To hear what He's saying brings life to my bones. To know Him, to know Him, alone."
Grace imparts wisdom.