Mensa Otabil - Dimensions of Wisdom
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Welcome to a brand new week! We start a new series today; it’s going to be another two-week series, as we did with the teaching on fruitfulness. We begin by talking about wisdom. It works naturally with fruitfulness because we are discussing practical things we must do to make our lives fruitful. Wisdom is one of those things that God must help us with to run our lives effectively. My study will be based on Proverbs chapter 8. I start with verse one: «Does not wisdom cry out, and understanding lift up her voice?»
We begin by trying to understand what we mean by wisdom because wisdom has different dimensions and expresses itself in different ways. There are about five main expressions of wisdom that I want to discuss, and then we will develop the concept throughout the days as we go along. Wisdom is, first and foremost, spiritual. When we say wisdom is spiritual, we mean that it has a spiritual foundation, and that foundation is the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom. When the Bible talks about the fear of the Lord, it means having reverence for God or having a deep appreciation for Him. It’s not being scared of God or running away from Him, but knowing God and respecting Him. Wisdom starts when we respect God’s laws and God’s rules. By observing God’s principles, we become wiser. For example, God’s principle of sowing and reaping works well for us when we respect and revere that principle. So, the foundation of wisdom is spiritual; it starts with fear or respect for God and His law.
Secondly, wisdom is mental, which has to do with understanding how life works. We reverence God, but we must also understand how life works and what principles God has placed in the universe and on Earth that work to our advantage. Wisdom, in this sense, is not just a high IQ or the ability to perform vast calculations. We all know people who can perform complex calculations but somehow are unable to put their lives together. Wisdom goes beyond just having knowledge of facts and theories of life; it involves the ability to properly interpret these theories into our day-to-day living. Thus, there is a mental understanding about how God’s rules work for us.
So, wisdom is spiritual, wisdom is mental, and wisdom is moral. That means it has something to do with conduct. When you read the Book of Proverbs, there is often a contrast between a wise person and a foolish person. This refers to a person whose morality or moral foundation is so weak that anything moves them; anything drives them to make poor choices. When we operate in wisdom, we fear God or reverence the laws of God, we have a mental appreciation for the principles of life, and we are morally sound so that we do not misconduct ourselves.
Number four, wisdom is practical, which relates to problem- solving. A wise person does not just know things; they solve problems. Wisdom helps us take a practical approach to solving problems, which is an integral part of wisdom. Therefore, we must learn how to do that.
Lastly, wisdom is governmental, meaning it has to do with ruling fairly, doing things equitably, and being right. When we talk about wisdom, we are not just discussing one aspect; we are talking about a spiritual relationship with God and honoring His laws. We are discussing mentally understanding how things work, being morally of good conduct, practically solving problems, and being able to rule or make the right judgments and decisions at all times.
These are the five parameters through which we will explore wisdom, and we will use these as the basis for all that we talk about in the next two weeks as we delve into the concept of wisdom. I trust that this will help us all to be wise, run our lives better, and make the best choices that please God and benefit other people. Are you ready to go on this journey with wisdom? Then, let' s start.
Let’s pray. Say with me: Heavenly Father, You are the all-wise God. Bless me with Your wisdom so I will see life as You see it. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.