Knowledge and Wisdom Part 2 : The Emptiness of Human Wisdom



Photo by Aldrin Muya

   All of us want to be wise. Having an education, being able to make the right decisions, and being able to solve problems does make us wiser and may improve our quality of life. However be aware that though it has value, human wisdom does not bring lasting happiness nor answer the meaning of life as we expect. It is very much like chasing after the wind. This was the grim conclusion of a man who endeavored to acquire wisdom and understanding in this world :

For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.

- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (ESV)

   The irony is the more you know, the more you will ache. For you will see that human progress and advancement is both a blessing and a curse. Even if everyone in this world were smart, hate, prejudice, adultery, murder, deceit, and many other evils will never be eradicated because human wisdom is powerless to transform the heart of man that is by nature morally corrupt.

    There are people who put their faith solely in their education and knowledge.They put their hope and trust in being raised well by their parents, attending good schools, receiving high marks, and getting a diploma but in the end, what does that really gain? This same wise man also said,

The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness. And yet I perceived that the same event happens to all of them. Then I said in my heart,“What happens to the fool will happen to me also. Why then have I been so very wise?” And I said in my heart that this also is vanity. For of the wise as of the fool there is no enduring remembrance, seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. How the wise dies just like the fool!

-Ecclesiastes 2:14-16 (ESV)

The fate of the fool and the wise is the same, hence human wisdom - this wisdom apart from God - is ultimately empty. This does not mean that we should abandon wisdom altogether. Rather, there is the right wisdom that we ought to recognize and embrace.

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.

-Proverbs 4:7 (ESV)

What we need to get is transcendent wisdom and insight. This is not man-made understanding. This wisdom comes from the all-wise, and all-knowing God.

Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts.

- Psalm 119:98-100 (ESV)

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

-Proverbs 1:7 (ESV)

I've written previously that to fear the Lord is NOT to be filled with terror, despair, and dread before him. This kind of fear drives us away from God. Godly fear is best described as "reverence". It is the convergence of awe, adoration, veneration, wonder, honor, worship, confidence, and thankfulness that arises from recognizing God for who he is. It is an acknowledgment of his transcendent qualities, his absolute authority, and his supreme value. David Legge says,

It is a deep-seated humility, humble, poor of spirit, grounded upon an abiding awareness - totally in your mind and in your heart at all times is an awareness of absolute dependence for your very existence on, not just God, but the undeserved mercy of God. And only a heart like that, full of humility and dependence, is prepared to perceive and receive the wisdom that God gives!

    The fool is the one who in his pride, has no fear of God, rejects God, and despises God's wisdom and instruction. The fool trusts in his self-sufficiency, self-effort, and self-experience. He relies, according to John Piper, on the "wisdom of the world": the use of the human mind to achieve and maintain a ground for boasting before God and man. He may be wise and understanding in his own eyes and in the eyes of others yet he does not really see.  

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good. God looks down from heaven on the children of man to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.

-Psalm 53:1-2 (ESV)

Have you invested your life in the pursuit of human wisdom? Realize that it is a vain and empty quest, like chasing after the wind. Listen to the cry of another wise man :

The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle.

The man declares, I am weary, O God;

    I am weary, O God, and worn out.

Surely, I am too stupid to be a man.

    I have not the understanding of a man.

I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One.

Who has ascended to heaven and come down?

    Who has gathered the wind in his fists?

Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment?

    Who has established all the ends of the earth?

What is his name, and what is his son's name?

    Surely you know!

-Proverbs 30:1-4 9( ESV)

True wisdom begins with the knowledge of the Holy God who is all-wise and all-knowing. Divine wisdom can only be ours when we become humble, acknowledge our littleness, recognize the limits of our self-wisdom and understanding, and be willing to have our minds turned upside down.

More next time...

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.