Saturday, September 25, 2010

Wine of foolishness, wine of wisdom

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars. She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine; she has also set her table. She has sent out her maids, and she calls from the highest point of the city. "Let all who are simple come in here!" she says to those who lack judgment. "Come, eat my food and drink the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of understanding (Proverbs 9:1-6).

Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (Ephesians 5:15-20).

Have you ever been amazed because someone really smart did something very foolish? Did you ask yourself, "how could someone so bright do something so stupid? Of all people, she should have known better!"

Have you ever been surprised by a child who says something truly insightful? When a person who never finished high school is the first one to see right to the heart of the matter, do you ask yourself: "how on earth did he figure that out?"

We tend to view intelligence and wisdom as two sides of the same coin—but actually, they are two different things. Intelligence is your ability to solve problems. Intelligence has to do with learning facts, finding patterns in that information, and drawing reliable conclusions which can then be used to make decisions. Intelligent people can analyze a crime scene and determine what happened.

Wisdom, on the other hand, is your ability to make good decisions. Wisdom has to do with interpreting facial expressions and tone of voice; it is about understanding the urges people feel because of their emotions, and being able to anticipate how people will react in a given situation. Wise people can interview suspects involved in a crime and determine why the crime happened.

The intelligent motorcycle rider may know that wearing leathers and a helmet contribute greatly to his safety; still, he might choose to ride without them, preferring the wind on his skin and in his hair. The wise person, however, considers the impact on his wife and children should he die in a crash; not wanting to cause them emotional pain or economic hardship, he chooses to dress for safety.

After running all the required tests, an intelligent doctor might suggest a painful medical procedure as the best hope for her patient’s recovery. The wise physician, however, will take into account her patient’s quality of life and ability to tolerate discomfort, before making a treatment recommendation.

The intelligent atheist knows that committing murder carries with it a risk of prison time and maybe even the death penalty; however, he might go ahead with the crime if he believes that he can outsmart the authorities. The wise Christian, however, realizes that breaking God’s Laws angers the Judge of heaven and earth; knowing that there is no way to escape God’s notice or wiggle out of eternal punishment, the wise Christian steps back from committing the crime.

Intelligence can be considered "head knowledge"; wisdom can be called "heart knowledge." Obviously, both intelligence and wisdom are desirable, but if we have to choose one over the other, wisdom wins hands down.

In the Bible, Solomon and Paul speak about wisdom. Both of these men were gifted by God with tremendous wisdom and understanding, so they certainly knew what they were talking about. Interestingly, they both compare wisdom to wine—however, the wine of heaven imparts understanding, while the wine of earth yields only foolishness. The wine from heaven builds up, the wine made on earth destroys. Let’s consider these two wines.

The Bible does not condemn the production or drinking of wine. Wine was one of the things God accepted for sacrifice at His altar. Psalm 104 names wine as one of God’s gifts to those He loves. In the New Testament, Paul recommends wine as something to settle an upset stomach; and of course Jesus used wine when He gave us the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.

But the Bible does condemn drunkenness. The abusing of alcohol caused problems for one of Noah’s sons, who did not handle his father’s inebriation appropriately. God forbade His priests from working in the Temple if they were intoxicated, promising them death if they disobeyed. In Proverbs chapter 20, Solomon warns against the dangers of alcohol: Wine produces mockers; alcohol leads to brawls. Those led astray by drink cannot be wise. And Paul says, Don't fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).

In fact, the Bible often uses wine as a word picture to illustrate God’s curse on sin. In Psalm 60 David says to God, You have shown your people desperate times; you have given us wine that makes us stagger. Speaking to the Israelites, Isaiah said: You have drunk the cup of the LORD's fury. You have drained the cup of terror to its dregs (Isaiah 51:17). Most notable are Jesus’ words in the Garden of Gethsemane: "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will" (Matthew 26:39).

Why does God hate the misuse of alcohol? Because it replaces wisdom with foolishness. When a person is drunk, she stops thinking about how others feel. She just blurts out whatever is on her mind, without considering the impact or consequences of her words. The wise person is thoughtful in what she says and how she says it, hoping to build others up instead of causing needless emotional pain. Too much alcohol makes it impossible to think clearly. How many fights happen after several drinks have been consumed? How many friendships have been ruined by thoughtless words let loose by alcohol? Misuse of wine and other intoxicants invariable leads to sinful behavior, words and deeds which anger God.

What God wants us to crave is the wine of wisdom. Both the wine of wisdom and the wine of foolishness have this in common: they tear down barriers of reluctance. Earthly wine, the wine of foolishness, tears down a good barrier—our reluctance to speak impulsively and carelessly. But heavenly wine, the wine of wisdom, tears down a bad barrier—our reluctance to speak with another human being about things that are deep and personal and truly important.

Wisdom builds relationships, because it helps us look at each other intimately; wisdom looks past the external and focuses on the soul. You don’t have to have a Ph.D. in order to sense when a soul is in pain; a child can see hurt in the eyes as well as any adult. This is why Jesus said, I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:3). A child is not distracted by clocks and sales figures and shaking the right hands to get elected; in many ways, it is easier for a child to be wise than an adult.

Wisdom is essential for relationships to flourish. It should come as no surprise, then, that Paul speaks of Jesus as being God’s wisdom: you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God (1 Corinthians 1:30). Jesus is the ultimate relationship expert. No one could fool Him; Jesus could tell immediately when people were lying—to Him or to themselves. In fact, Jesus’ primary reason for coming to earth was to repair broken relationships. People forced to live alone in the wilderness, because of highly contagious disease, were cured and restored to their families. People who were given the cold shoulder by respectable folks, because of sins they had committed, were forgiven and found a new family among Christ’s followers. Jesus had the wisdom to see into every heart and determine exactly what that person needed from Him to become happy and content.

But more than anything else, Jesus’ wisdom showed Him that we could never be happy permanently unless our relationship with God was fixed. Because we were drunk with sin, we could not see how our behavior was angering God and leading us to hell. So Jesus, in His wisdom, put us first—He suffered His Father’s punishment of our sins so that we could look forward to eternal happiness instead of eternal pain. Was suffering and dying in our place the smart thing to do? Atheists don’t think so. But that was irrelevant to Jesus—His wisdom dictated His loving actions.

Because of His sacrifice, our sins are forgiven. Because we are His, Jesus now shares His wisdom with us. He has torn down the barrier separating us from God; He enables us to understand His Father’s heart, and shows us how to please the One who created us and takes care of us every day. Jesus also tears down the barriers separating us from each other. The wine of His wisdom removes our hesitance to connect with others in a profoundly personal way. The wine of heaven takes away our fear of looking into another person’s eyes and seeing the pain in them; the wine of wisdom loosens our reluctant tongues so that we tell others of Jesus’ love, His sacrifice, and the need to replace love of sin with love for Christ.

The pleasures of this world can be intoxicating, whether it be sex or money or popularity or alcohol. But wisdom is not found in these things—if love for them consumes you, then your decisions can only be foolish and result in hurt. But if you drink deeply from the wine that Jesus offers, the Wisdom from on High, then your decisions can please God, benefit your neighbor, and give you satisfaction and happiness that will last forever.

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