Did you know it’s actually possible to be a “foolish genius”? That’s because having wisdom is much more than having a high IQ. Possessing wisdom, according to the Bible, isn’t having the ability to master a ton of information.
Biblical wisdom is “skill in living”; it’s insight into how to put knowledge into practice. Wisdom isn’t just a head thing (acquiring facts); it also involves one’s heart (submitting to truth, even when you don’t understand it or agree with it) and requires one’s hands (implementing truth at home, work, and school).
So how do we acquire such “skill in living”? According to the Bible, it’s “the fear of the LORD” that leads to wisdom (Psalm 111:10). Notice there are just two ingredients for gaining wisdom—fear (or reverence) and God.
God is the source of all true, eternal wisdom (Proverbs 2:6). This makes perfect sense because God is “the only wise God.” In other words, He is inherently, intrinsically wise. If you want earthly “wisdom,” you can, of course, find plenty of that in this broken-down world.
But James 3:13–18 reminds us (and experience shows us) that earthly wisdom leads to selfishness and conflict. God’s wisdom, on the other hand, is reasonable, is without hypocrisy, and leads to peace.
The second ingredient for gaining wisdom is fear (or reverence). To show reverence is to treat something as holy. Central to such an attitude is humility.
Reverent people aren’t arrogant know-it-alls. They are open to input. In fact, they are hungry and desperate for a wiser person to help them gain understanding.
Do you want to be a wise person who makes wise plans and then carries them out efficiently? Do you want to engage others and relate to others in ways that lead to harmony and joy?
Don’t make up your own moral code. Don’t rely on your own fickle ideas or actions. Instead, humbly ask the only wise God to show you how to proceed.
If you ask in faith, without any doubting, you can be sure that God will lead you down the path of wisdom (James 1:5–6).
Who is the wisest person you know? What makes them so wise?
