Wisdom: A Super Power

Wisdom: A Super Power

 

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” – James 1:5

I saw a poster the other day that said “Common Sense is so rare these days it should be a super power.”  I laughed at first, and then I thought about it.  No, common sense is not rare!  In fact, it is still quite common! 

Merriam Webster defines common sense as "sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or facts”.  Common sense is learned from our experiences. Its knowing to come in out of the rain or you’ll get wet, not to cross the street in front of an oncoming Mac truck, and not to wear a fur coat in 90 degree weather.  Common sense is simple knowledge based on the things we learn through past experiences.

I think what is in fact a rare super power is wisdom.  Wisdom is defined as discernment of what is true and right, perfect judgment, insight and understanding of people and the inner workings of emotions. But wisdom does not come from books and education.  Wisdom comes from God, who has infinite knowledge and understanding of the heart of man.  Wisdom tells you when something is wrong with a person, even when they don’t say it.  Wisdom will give you intuition as to whether you are hearing truth or lies.  Wisdom instructs you when to speak, and when to be silent.  Wisdom is beyond learning, beyond knowledge, beyond philosophy.  It will reveal the unspoken things of the heart, the intentions of man. 

Yes, wisdom is VERY rare these days! The rareness of wisdom has to do with how it’s given.  Wisdom, unlike common sense, is a spiritual gift, given through the Holy Spirit.  In Exodus 31:3, when God explains the building of the tabernacle and it’s furnishings to Moses, He speaks of a man named Bezalel, and says “I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship”. Later in verse 6, God says He has also put wisdom “in the hearts of all the gifted artisans”. 

Solomon was blessed by God offering to give him anything he desired in 2 Chronicles 1:8-12.  When Solomon requests wisdom from God, God honored his request and gave him “wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may judge My people over whom I have made you king”. But when we read of this event in 1 Kings 4:29, we see that God gave Solomon “largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore.” The wisest man to have ever lived received a larger heart at the time he received wisdom from God.  In Psalms 51:6, Solomon’s father, King David, says that “in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.”  King David had also been given wisdom in the heart.  Proverbs 2:10, written by Solomon, says that “wisdom enters your heart”.

Wisdom isn’t in the brain, as knowledge, but the heart (soul) is wisdom’s home. When we look at the original words used for “heart” in these verses we find the Hebrew word leb (Strongs H3820), which means not the physical ticking heart organ, but the soul of man.

It then makes perfect sense that God only gives wisdom to those that have attained righteousness through the salvation of Jesus Christ.  The soul of the lost does not have the Holy Spirit, whereby wisdom is given.  In Ecclesiastes 2:26 we read that “God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy to a man who is good in His sight”, but no man can be good unless he is made righteous through Christ. 

The book of Proverbs is rich in teaching about wisdom.  The author, King Solomon, seems to have understood the preciousness of the gift of wisdom he had been given, and dwelt on it.  Throughout Proverbs we read that wisdom comes from the “fear of God”, which is a reverence and respect for God and His will.  As Proverbs was written under the old covenant, righteousness was through following the laws and commandments. 

In Proverbs 2 Solomon speaks to younger men, calling them son, and tells them to fear God and obey His commands, and in verse 5-7 says “Then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom, from His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly”. Psalms 111:10 repeats the fact that wisdom comes from righteousness and says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.”  Even outside the book of Proverbs we find in Job 28:28 ‘the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom”.  Again in Daniel 5:14, we read that wisdom comes from the Holy Spirit as King Nebuchadnezzar says to Daniel “I have heard of you, that the Spirit of God is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you.”

Wisdom is with God, and without God there can be no wisdom.  In Isaiah 11:1-2 we are told that God has given the seven attributes of His Spirit to Jesus, our salvation.  These are also mentioned in Revelation 5:6 and again called the Seven Spirits of God.  One of those seven Spirits is the “Spirit of wisdom and understanding”.  The Body of Christ, His redeemed people who now have His Holy Spirit within them, are given different gifts of His Spirit for ministry (1 Corinthians 12).  Of those gifts, verse 8 says, “for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit”, which is wisdom given for the building up of the Body of Christ. Colossians 2:3 says that in God and Christ “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Without the Holy Spirit within you, you cannot attain wisdom, because wisdom comes from God.  And this, my friends, is why it is so rare today!  Lost souls live all around us and among us that have no ability to receive wisdom because they have not found Christ, their Savior.  Yet, even in those that are saved, we often find wisdom has not grown to its full potential. 

Wisdom is in fact, a super power, a gift from the supernatural abilities of the Holy Spirit.  But it is not a gift beyond our reach!  In James 1, the apostle writes to the church telling them that “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

Wisdom has so much value, and God stands ready to deliver wisdom to all His people, LIBERALLY! We are told that wisdom is more precious than rubies (Proverbs 3:15,Job 28:18), preserves you and keeps you (Proverbs 2:11), helps us deal with people (Proverbs 11:12), gives strength (Ecclesiastes 7:19), is better than weapons of war (Ecclesiastes 9:18), brings success (Ecclesiastes 10:10), and is better than gold (Proverbs 16:16).  The benefits of wisdom are infinite!

Considering that God gives wisdom to those that ask believing they will receive this great gift, we should all ask daily for wisdom.  If wisdom were to become a power prevalent in this world, instead of so very rare to find, how great a change we could see! 

Lord, give your children the precious gift of wisdom!