Knowledge and Wisdom - Part 1

    Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones offers a distinction between knowledge and wisdom.

1. The source of knowledge is study. The source of wisdom is discernment.

People get knowledge either by reading, listening to lectures, or by training. Education primarily gives knowledge. Wisdom, on the other hand, is not obtained in this way. Did you ever notice that there are people who study a great deal but not have wisdom for they lack discernment?

2. Knowledge can be obtained by conversation, talk and consideration. Wisdom is more intuitive.

There are some people who are just naturally wise. They may not have a lot of education but we go to them for advise. There are people who are knowledgeable but no one would go to them and ask their opinion because they are lacking in wisdom.

3. Knowledge is generally theoretical. Wisdom is practical.

Knowledge is concerned about knowing things for the sake of knowing them. Wisdom is concerned about life and living.

4. Knowledge has the mind acting apart from the will. In wisdom, the mind is acting in subservience to the will.

It is tragic to be a walking encyclopedia but so lacking in wisdom. All that stored knowledge counts for nothing when it is not applied in life.

    Now, I am not slamming knowledge. It isn't good to be lacking in knowledge. What I am saying is that knowledge alone does not make a wise person. This is how knowledge and wisdom work together : wisdom is the capacity to make use of the knowledge that you have and rightly apply it in life and and in work. Wisdom is knowledge fleshed out in living and in activity. It's "know-how".

    It's helpful to clarify this because God himself is infinitely knowledgeable and wise.

"Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!"

-Romans 11:33 (ESV)

He does not say, "ooops"! "God is too wise to be mistaken," so the song goes. God isn't just the God who knows everything but everything that he does is unfathomably wise. This means that his purposes, his plans, and his works are perfect.  

    God demonstrates his wisdom and knowledge visibly. His creation manifests his wisdom. He puts the galaxies, stars, and planets in their proper place. He made earth habitable for man and all living things. He designed all kinds of creatures, trees, and plants. His plan of redemption shows that indeed his judgments are inscrutable. How could a holy God reconcile rebellious men to himself? By giving himself through his Son who would take on flesh and dwell among men, live a perfect life, offer himself as the sacrifice of atonement on the cross, and be raised to life to show that he has power over death and is victorious over sin, and would reconcile men to God as they repent and put their faith in his Son.

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.

-Isaiah 11:1-2 (ESV)

And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

-1 Corinthians 1:30 (ESV)

    And more to the point in just how he is infinitely more wise and knowledgeable - though humanity has progressed, the wisdom of this world is foolish by comparison (1 Corinthians 1:20). God is so transcendent that his ways are unlike your ways and his thoughts are unlike your thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9). That is why in Proverbs you are urged to "trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your understanding" (Proverbs 3:5).

    God alone is wise and we can trust in him and rejoice in him at all times. Sometimes, it may seem as if he is hiding his hand and his path cannot be discerned. We may experience suffering and have trouble in this world, but in his wisdom, we can have confidence that he makes all things to work together for good (Romans 8:28). Nothing that happens in our lives is outside his purposes and his control. His understanding has no limit (Psalm 147:5) therefore he knows what he is doing. This is what makes him so glorious - because only he can bring good out of evil and turns beauty out of ashes.

    More next time....  

God Gave The Greatest Gift of All!

    "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son" (John 3:16). This is arguably the most well-known verse in the Bible. These few words capture the reason why the events that we now remember and commemorate during Christmas happened. Yet it is also misunderstood by many. Now God loves you and me, that part is clear. What we may fail to grasp is the condition of the object of his love. Indeed, those who do not understand this nor accept this will find no reason to believe in Jesus Christ.

   DA Carson explains,

What is God saying to the world? "World, I love you"? Is he saying, "World, your scintillating personality, your intelligent conversation, your wit, your gift - and you're cute! I love you! I can't imagine heaven without you." Is that what he's saying? In other words, when God says, "I love you," is he declaring the loveable-ness of the world? There are a lot of psychologists who use the love of God in exactly that way. If God says, "I love you," it must be that "I'm okay, you're okay; God says we're okay. He loves us; it must be because we're lovable."

Biblically that is a load of nonsense. The word "world" in John's gospel typically refers not to a big place with a lot of people in it but to a bad place with a lot of bad people in it. The word "world" in John's gospel is this human-centered, created order that God has made and that has rebelled against him in hatefulness and idolatry, resulting in broken relationships, infidelity, and wickedness. 

   -DA Carson (The God Who Is There)

    People who live in this world can never be categorized as naughty or nice. Left to itself, the world is by nature, morally bankrupt. John McArthur said,

The dark and ugly side of Christmas is sin...sin. The heart of Christmas is this, Christ came into the world to save sinners. Christ was manifest to take away sin. "You shall call His name Jesus for He shall save His people from their sin." And the real beauty of Christmas is to understand the ugliness that it cures.

    God loved this world not because it was lovable, adorable, and beautiful, but because he is that kind of God. God is holy, meaning, he is morally perfect. Think then about how this morally perfect Being would love. To love perfectly is to love the most unlovable of creatures who "did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened" (Romans 1:21). That's us. He demonstrates his love to us by giving his Son, who through his death on the cross and his resurrection, made the way to save us from eternal wrath and reconcile us to God.

    Christmas is the favorite holiday for many because of the decorations, gifts, food, Christmas lights, Christmas trees, family gatherings, and merriment but these are all fleeting pleasures. For the greatest and most excellent pleasure that we can experience this Christmas is being astonished at the fact that God would actually love us! God did not condemn us with our sin but loved us in a wonderful, surprising way by giving us His Son - the greatest Gift of all.

From Here To Eternity

    It seems like the first 40 years of my life went by so fast. I have now lived half of my expected average lifespan here on earth. This body is aging. Noticeable wisps of white hair, eyes not as good as they once were, and slowing reflexes are among the many signs of normal bodily wear and tear.


    Getting older should be put in a more positive light. After all, God designed our bodies this way. Aging is a gentle reminder from God that life in this earth is temporal. Man is like a mist that appears for a little while and vanishes (James 4:14). In our youth, we lived as though life would go on forever. By middle age, we have an increased awareness of our mortality thus leading us to take stock of what we have accomplished, what we still need to do, and what needs fixing.


    Even more significantly, aging forces us to think about eternity. A very wise man said,

Fear God and keep his commandments for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

-Ecclesiastes 12:14 (ESV)

    All human beings will account for their thoughts, words, and deeds in judgment before God. The final judgment is something that we do not like to think about, let alone think about everyday. It's an uncomfortable subject and a depressing topic of conversation. Yet Scripture says unambiguously that it will happen. For it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment (Hebrews 9:27) and for each man, there will either be acquittal or condemnation.

He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. For God shows no partiality.

-Romans 2:6-11 (ESV)

    Yes, we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) but in the final judgment it is our deeds that will be judged. Our deeds will testify to the reality of our faith in Jesus Christ. Pastor John Piper clarifies,

It is by grace we are saved through faith; not of ourselves, it is the gift of God. But the heart that is full of faith will overflow in attitudes and actions very different from those which flow from unbelief. Therefore, our deeds will testify, truly to the genuineness or absence of faith, and it is not inconsistent for God to judge us according to our works. But we must understand that this judgment according to works does not mean we earn our salvation. Our deeds do not earn, they exhibit our salvation. Our deeds are not the merit of our righteousness, they are the mark of our new life in Christ. Our deeds are not sufficient to deserve God's favor, but they do demonstrate our faith. Please keep that distinction clear in your mind regarding our attitudes and actions: they do not earn, they exhibit; they do not merit, they mark; they do not deserve, they demonstrate.

All the self-seeking deeds and striving that we do : our accomplishments, our successes, our diplomas, our wealth are worthless in eternity - they do not earn us anything except death. Only the deeds that are the fruits of faith in Jesus Christ will matter.

    If there was no final judment awaiting us, there would be no need for Jesus to come, die on the cross, and be raised to life. Hence, no Christmas and no Easter. It is through the work of Jesus Christ that we are saved from wrath and fury in the final judgment. That is why Jesus came into the world in human flesh because we were sinners in need of saving from certain eternal death and we could not save ourselves.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of lifehas set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law,weakened by the flesh,could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

 -Romans 8:1-4 (ESV)

  So as this body becomes creaky with age, each ache and pain is a reminder of a judgment that's in store for us. Let's strive make the rest of our life count for eternity. As long as you're still alive and breathing, it's not too late.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

-2 Peter 3:9 (ESV)

    The final judgment is nothing to fear about when you are in Jesus Christ. Do you know Jesus Christ? Respond in faith and repentance by acknowledging your helplessness and believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and that he will wash away your sins and make you right with God. Work out this faith that you profess by living in the power of the Holy Spirit, loving God and loving others, doing good, having the right mind and attitude, and finding satisfaction and pleasure in God.

Noel Piper|Thinking About Santa

    Pastor John Piper's wife, Noel Piper, writes why they chose not to include Santa Claus in their Christmas celebrations.

Noel Piper : Thinking About Santa

    Sometimes, we are really far too easily pleased with inferior things. Why be satisfied with having our children place their Christmas hopes on a fictional character? Some may argue that it's just a harmless fantasy. The reality is that it does more harm than good because Santa is a wrong picture of God and His nature. I would not risk having my kids grow up having a distorted knowledge of God.

    While we can't avoid Santa Claus - he's in schools, he's seen in the mall, he'll be on TV commercials, and he's sung in Christmas carols, we can engage with our children and point them to the infinitely more superior Person of Jesus Christ. "Joy to the world, the Lord Is Come" is a far better song than "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:14)." Let this be our goal this Christmas - that instead of Santa, our children will have in their hearts true joy and delight in Jesus Christ who has come to bring the hope of salvation to mankind. As the hymn says,

Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.

I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus' name.

Bytes of Wisdom

    Dave Kraft shared these lessons from his blog, Leadership from the Heart. It was written by a leader and addressed to leaders. However, as I was reading it, I realized that much of the wisdom that was being shared is applicable to everyone. Here are a few nuggets:

1. Tough Decisions Become Tougher

This is true as you get older and have more responsibilities. What do you need to stop doing or start doing? People are sometimes paralyzed to take take action because they are afraid to make big mistakes. Dave Kraft points out that one's destiny isn’t a mystery. Your destiny is determined by the cumulative decisions you make. What tough decision do you need to make? What are you waiting for? Start taking the little steps and you'll get there.

2. Negativity is cancer. Kill it or it will kill you.

Christians ought to be the most positive people in the world. We place our faith in God who is for us, graciously gives us all things, works all things for good, and whose love for us is everlasting and stronger than anything in this world (Romans 8:31-39). We rejoice in the Lord always and give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Negativity is not of faith but is a symptom of unbelief. Indeed it is a cancer that will kill you. So kill it.

3. No Margin = No Vision.

Dave Kraft warns, "If you don’t control your calendar, your calendar will control you." A doctor once said,

"We must have some room to breathe. We need freedom to think and permission to heal. Our relationships are being starved to death by velocity. No one has time to listen, let alone love. Our children lay wounded on the ground, run over by our high-speed good intentions. Is God now pro-exhaustion? Doesn't He lead people beside the still waters anymore?" - Dr. Richard Swenson

We need to put margin in our lives. In the end, being overloaded and overworked accomplishes nothing. If we make no room for reflection and rest, it kills our creativity.

4. Don’t just dream big. Think long.

Dave Kraft points out :

We tend to overestimate what we can accomplish in 2 years, but we underestimate what we can accomplish in ten years. Zoom out. Your mantra shouldn’t be “as soon as possible.” It should be “as long as it takes.” Your vision isn’t just too small. It’s too short.

5. Work like it depends on you. Pray like it depends on God.

Dave Kraft says it so well :

Failing to plan is planning to fail. So plan away. And loving God with all of your strength = a great work ethic. So work hard. But I believe in prayer-storming more than brainstorming. Prayer is the difference between you fighting for God and God fighting for you. If work is the engine of success, then prayer is the high-octane fuel.