October 2
“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy,” James 3:13-17.
As Christians, we should want to be wise and understanding people. To get true wisdom and understanding, we must search deeply into the Word of God. The wisdom from the Word of God is something very different from the wisdom of this world. The wisdom of the world reveals itself in sinful pride. It is self-centered and self-seeking. Sinful pride centers around the words I, me, and mine. Sinful pride has no ear for the Commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” In the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord Jesus expressed it in another way: “Whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them,” Matthew 7:12. This has been called the ‘golden rule’ – do not do to others as they do to you, rather do to them as you want them to do to you.
The wisdom of this world, which centers around sinful pride, is the wisdom of which James says, “This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic.” It is not God-given wisdom, but it is from the devil. After all, the devil tells you that if you do not look out for yourself, nobody else will. However, when we are envious, proud, and self-seeking, it leads to other sins. James says, “Where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.” We go from sinning to more sinning, and we become more evil.
By contrast, James says, “The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” The wisdom from above is God-given and is revealed in God’s Word. It is wisdom that is pure and holy. It is wisdom that keeps us from sinning. It moves us to live and be at peace with one another. It is gentle in dealing with others. It is willing to yield – that is, it does not always insist upon having its own way. It is willing to compromise or to accept the view of the other person, if this can be done without going against God’s Word. It is wise to be merciful to others, and to be impartial, honest, and upright in all our dealings with others. It is wise never to play the role of a hypocrite.
This wisdom from above is the wisdom for which we should pray, as James wrote in the beginning of this Epistle: “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. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting,” James 1:5. Pray, and trust the promise of Jesus, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you,” John 16:23. “Whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive,” Matthew 21:22. You have the Savior’s promise to hear and answer every proper prayer, in His own way and at His own time.
Your loving Savior, who fulfilled the Commandments in your place and who took all your sins upon Himself and washed them away with His holy, precious blood when He died on the cross, eagerly waits for you to come to Him for wisdom from on high. The wisdom from on high will enable you to live a God-pleasing life.
“Jesus gives us true repentance,
By His Spirit sent from heav’n;
Whispers this transporting sentence,
‘Son, thy sins are all forgiven.’
Faith He grants us to believe it,
Grateful hearts His love to prize;
Want we wisdom? He must give it,
Hearing ears and seeing eyes.” Amen.