Verse of the day: Ephesians 5:15-16 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as
fools but as wise, 16 redeeming
the time, because the days are evil.
The one
thing that we can ask the Lord for that is always within His will for each of
us, as we seek to imitate Him, is wisdom. In James 1:2-8 we are told that when
we are tested by trials, we can go to the Lord and ask Him for wisdom, and He
will not mock us or fault us, but will liberally give us wisdom. However, we
must ask it in faith, not doubting and being as one who is double-minded, being
tossed to and fro. In 1 Kings 3, God was pleased with Solomon’s request for
wisdom, and as a result not only gave him wisdom, but riches beyond what he
could have imagined, as well. Now, please hear me; I am not advocating that
just because we ask for wisdom God is going to make us rich. If that is the
only reason we ask for wisdom, God knows the intent of our hearts when we ask
Him. God gives us, or keeps us from having, whatever He chooses, in accordance
to His plan for our lives. Regardless of what He chooses for us, we are called
to be content and give thanks in all things (v. 20). That said, one of the
greatest gifts God can give us is godly wisdom. Too many of us rely on our own
wisdom and understanding or the wisdom of people who are not really living for
the Lord (even though they claim to be Christians). The Scripture warns against
trusting our own wisdom, and leaning on our own understanding (Pro 3:5-7). The
Apostle encourages us to walk diligently or maturely, not making decisions as a
fool. All too often we rush to give an answer and to give our opinion of what
we think the solution should be in certain situations. In every situation,
whether urgent or not, the child of God should always be in a prayer frame of
mind (1 Th 5:17). If we are facing a situation that is less urgent, we should
be taking a step back, praying, and thoughtfully searching what God would have
us do, before giving an answer. One area that I find that we, as God’s
children, do very poorly in is the area of how to best use the time we have
been given here on earth. Let us stop for just a moment and think about how we
live out each day God gives us. How much time do we waste, literally throw away
our time, doing things that have no value from a Kingdom perspective? How much
of our time do we waste being mesmerized and brainwashed by the television and garbage
on the internet? How much time do we throw away playing videos games, searching
social media and watching things on the internet that do not glorify God? We live
in evil times. We have an enemy that will go to great lengths to distract us
from what we are supposed to be doing while we are here on earth. Would not our
time be better spent praying, reading and studying God’s Word over watching
mindless, sensual, and utterly corrupt programs on television and on the
internet? Should we not be busy doing good to others and seeking opportunities
to share God’s truth and Gospel message with a lost and dying world? Am I
saying that it is wrong to enjoy our time here on earth? No, I am not. Having a
hobby or favorite thing to do, as long as it’s not something sinful, is not a
bad thing. However, when it occupies so much of our time that it becomes a
priority over the things we are supposed to be accomplishing, it becomes sin in
our lives. What I am saying is that we need to be balanced in our living, and
set real priorities, and doing so prayerfully. How often has God given us
opportunities to be there for someone in need, but the timing of their
situation was inconvenient for us, even though we really did not have anything earth
shattering or of grave importance to accomplish. Too often we are not willing
to take up our cross, and deny ourselves, for the sake of allowing the Lord to
use us to do something that will count for Heaven. Yet, we adamantly claim to
be followers of Jesus. The Apostle, in verse 18 of this chapter, warns us
against drunkenness, which only leads to wasted and corrupt living, and
encourages us to understand what the will of God is. So often we want to know
what God’s will and plan is for our lives, but in the end, we fail to do that
which leads us to find it. James 3:17 tells us that wisdom from above is pure,
peaceable, gentle, yielding, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality
or hypocrisy. In other words, if we are to imitate our God in the way we live,
we must always be thinking about and doing that which is pure. We must be peace
seekers, even when we are dealing with those who persecute us or mistreat us.
We must be gentle in our approach to dealing with others and be humble enough to
yield to what the Lord wants us to do, and not seek our own way. We must be
humble enough to think on the things of others, and seek their good even if it
means sacrifice on our part (because what we do for others, we do for Jesus; Mt
25:41-46). Just as God has been merciful with us, we must show mercy to others,
and not give them what they deserve by returning good for evil (Rm 12:17-21);
let us remember that as His children He does not give us what we deserve
(eternal condemnation; Rom 8:1). We must not show partiality, and must see
others as being better than ourselves (Phil 2:3-4), and avoiding hypocrisy.
This is godly wisdom in action, and this is how we imitate our God while
walking in wisdom.
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