Wisdom

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 5:15-20a).

Do you any of you know someone named Sophia?  It’s not a name that gets used much these days.  But that’s a shame—Sophia is a wonderful name.  The name Sophia comes from Greece; in English it means ‘wisdom.’

God blesses us with all kinds of gifts, but wisdom is one of the best.  Wisdom isn’t the same as intelligence; there are a lot of smart people who aren’t very wise.  Let me give you an example: Kirby was a smart guy.  He breezed through school with honors; he could get straight As without breaking a sweat.  Kirby went on to medical school and graduated top of his class; soon he had a private practice of his own.  But Kirby was unhappy.  He did not see how his long hours at work were hurting his wife; when she filled for divorce, he was completely surprised.  The employees in his office were constantly bickering, and Kirby had no idea what to do about it.  His bedside manner was terrible; many patients who were impressed by his skills were put off because he didn’t seem to understand their concerns.  To put it simply, Kirby was smart but he was also clueless.

A person can be wise even if she is not well educated.  Let me give you another example.  Sophie never did well in school.  She struggled with reading.  She struggled with math.  She managed to graduate high school, but just barely.  Some of her friends dropped out and urged her to do the same, but Sophie was not willing to give up; even though it was hard, she understood the value of getting that diploma.  Sophie worked as a waitress; she was a favorite with the customers because she always seemed to know when someone needed a little extra attention.  Sophie dated lots of guys, but she wouldn’t let any man push her around; she took things slow because she didn’t want to get attached to a person who was wrong for her.  Eventually Sophie got married and was blessed with kids; as they grew older, they found out that lying to their mom was pointless because Sophie could always tell when someone wasn’t being straight with her.  Although she had trouble helping her kids with their homework, Sophie was the wisest person in their lives.

In today’s Epistle lesson, Paul urges us to avoid foolish behavior by seeking wisdom from God.  He says, Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  We live in a world that doesn’t cut you any slack; do something foolish and people will rush in to criticize you or take advantage of your mistake.  Leave your keys in the ignition and someone will be tempted to steal your car.  Start dating someone you met at work and you will be the featured topic of office gossip.  Get your facts wrong and people will accuse you of trying to manipulate them.  The days are evil; we cannot afford the luxury of foolish mistakes.

Instead, Paul urges us to make the most of every opportunity.  God gives us all sorts of opportunities every day—opportunities to live wisely.  Every time you speak to another person, you have the opportunity to make his life better.  You can make it better by speaking the truth in love.  Lives are not improved by lies and half-truths.  Lives are not made better by telling someone what they want to hear.  And lives are not improved by using the truth as a weapon to cause hurt.  Lives are made better when the truth is spoken with love. 

But let’s get specific.  How does wisdom enable you to speak the truth in love?  It starts with observing.  Look at the eyes.  Look at the mouth and forehead.  Look at the shoulders.  Is the person confused?  Scared?  Depressed?  What does their face and body tell you about how they’re feeling?  It is foolish to ignore such things. 

Listening is important, too.  What emotions are revealed by speaking volume and tone of voice?  Do the words reveal doubt, anger, or worry?  Has the person thought things through, or do her words reveal a mind in turmoil?  The wise person pays attention to such things.

Wisdom also affects how you react to what the other person is saying.  Foolish people don’t take the time to watch and listen; they are too busy planning what they’re going to say next.  Wise people are patient; they take it all in and think carefully before responding.  They want their words to be helpful, not patronizing or nasty.

Sharing words of truth and wisdom is how relationships grow.  You might chat with a buddy about football stats, but those kinds of visits don’t build a true friendship.  You can text someone all night long about what’s going on in school, but you don’t grow close to others unless you start talking about personal stuff, stuff that is important and involves your emotions.  And good relationships won’t last if they are based on lies and foolish talk.

Lies and foolish talk—these destroy our relationships with each other, and they also destroy our relationship with God.  Remember Psalm 14?  David writes, The fool says in his heart, "There is no God."  Remember Proverbs chapter nine? Solomon writes these words: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Remember what Jesus said: I am the way and the truth and the life (John 14:6).  Relationships depend on truth and wisdom; God is the source of truth and wisdom.  To have solid, satisfying relationships, we need God to help us.

In Proverbs 9:1-6, Solomon compares wisdom to a hostess who opens her home to the needy.  She invites everyone who lacks good judgment to come eat her food and drink her wine; these will give the blessings of life and understanding.  This is picture language of course, but it reveals how important wisdom is.  “Let all who are simple come in here!” she says to those who lack judgment.  A simple person—one who lacks wisdom—does not have good judgment.  He makes mistakes without even realizing it.  A person without judgment does not understand that he is angering God and will be punished eternally for his foolishness.  Those who lack judgment have no relationship with the Lord, and mess up every human relationship as well. 

To have good judgment, you need to know God—know that He exists, know what He says, know that He keeps His promises.  As Paul says, we must understand what the Lord’s will is.  Without wisdom this is impossible.  Without wisdom we cannot tell the difference between lies and truth, and the devil knows it.  Satan knows that we would rather hear a pleasant lie than a hard truth, so he hits us with a constant barrage of lies, hoping to bury God’s truth in all the noise.  Without wisdom, we prefer to believe the devil’s lies—lies like “God doesn’t care about you; you’re on your own.”  “God could never forgive you for what you’ve done.”  “God is just like Allah or the Buddha; all roads lead to heaven.”

We need wisdom to see the truth.  God cares about you; Jesus said: Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.  Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows (Luke 12:6-7).  God hates your sins, but He gave His Son up to death so you can be forgiven; Paul writes in Christ, God forgave you (Ephesians 4:32).  But there is only one way to heaven; Peter said Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). 

Wisdom gives understanding and life.  When we recognize the truth of God and reject the devil’s lies, we’re on the right path.  Foolishness and lies urge us to reject the Spirit of God and bar Him from our hearts.  Such rejection keeps God away and guarantees an unhappy eternity of suffering in hell.  Paul speaks of this in 1st Corinthians chapter one: the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  It is foolish to reject the Savior; in Revelation chapter three Jesus said be earnest, and repent.  Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne.  Look at the wonderful blessing Jesus promises if we overcome our foolishness and bad judgment with the wisdom that He offers us!  Wisdom will lead to good judgment and eternal life.

But such wisdom only comes from God.  He gives it through His words.  He also gives it through the Lord’s Supper.  In the Old Testament lesson referenced earlier, wisdom gives us life and understanding through food and wine; Jesus does the same through the bread and wine that carry His body and blood.  Look at John 6:51-58; the Lord says Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life…Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.  Jesus made this promise something we can touch on the night when He was betrayed; While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you.  This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:26-28). Through the Sacrament Jesus fills our hearts with Himself, and He brings with Him the gifts of wisdom—understanding and everlasting life.

Of course, even when you have wisdom that doesn’t mean that you will necessarily use it.  We all have friends that we turn to because they give good advice; but when they tell us something we don’t like, it’s easy to ignore their wisdom.  It’s the same with the wisdom Jesus shares with us.  Our sinful nature still listens to the devil’s lies, still wants to make impulsive decisions that turn out poorly.  We don’t like to be criticized, even when the words are true; we don’t want to take the time to observe and listen and then think carefully before opening our mouths. 

Thankfully, Jesus does not make hasty decisions.  He values having a relationship with us and works hard to keep it healthy despite our failures.   He looks deep into our hearts and listens to our very thoughts.  He understands how we are feeling; He knows exactly what we need to find lasting happiness.  So He offers to forgive us.  He offers us His wisdom and peace, His strength and patience.  He offers to bless our lives with His love, a love that fills us up and comes pouring out in a generous flood to bless other people as well.  Through Jesus, God offers all of this to us, if we are wise enough to appreciate its value.