Wisdom requires humility . . .

 

 

READ Job 29-32

Dwelling on my mistakes is sometimes a good thing if it leads to repentance and change, but this can also be self-centered navel-gazing, just one more way of putting me in the spotlight instead of exalting my Savior. On the other hand, when down and down-trodden, a review of how God has blessed and used my life can be medicine for a discouraged and depressed soul.

In today’s chapters, Job rehearses the good times. He thinks of his family, his position as a prominent and respected man who was blessed by all. People listened to his wisdom and all was well. He also talked about his present situation. He was ridiculed by those who once looked up to him and even by those whose opinion was generally unworthy. His friends turned against him and everyone misunderstood him. His afflictions deepened each day.

Not only that, when he called on the Lord, he heard silence, as if he were forgotten. His joy was gone and he was mourning for his losses, even for himself. All that was left was his integrity. Even in all his anguish, he knew that he was all that he claimed to be before God. For him, there was no answer to this deeply painful situation except to keep trusting God.

“If I have walked with falsehood and my foot has hastened to deceit; (Let me be weighed in a just balance, and let God know my integrity!) (Job 31:5–6)

God know the human heart. He knows our intentions and our difficulties. He never leaves us or forsakes us even if we feel alone and without any resources. Reviewing the past, the present, and our hopes for the future along with an honest declaration of all that we are feeling is one way to display integrity. Job did this and in the midst of tough times, he remained full of faith. He trusted in the only One who could truly help him and Job never forsook the Lord.

As I look back at fifty years or so of being a Christian, my errors and failures could easily throw me into a pit — if I make them the focus of my review. Yet God, through the life of Job, tells me to do that review with His faithfulness in mind rather than my failures. In that lies great blessing.

Chapter 32 is interesting. A younger man comes forward. He has been listening to Job and the words of his ‘friends’ and been angered at both sides of this debate. He first goes after the three accusers and says:

“I am young in years, and you are aged; therefore I was timid and afraid to declare my opinion to you. I said, ‘Let days speak, and many years teach wisdom.’ But it is the spirit in man, the breath of the Almighty, that makes him understand. It is not the old who are wise, nor the aged who understand what is right. Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me; let me also declare my opinion.’” (Job 32:6–10)

I don’t know what I might have said to these three ‘friends’ but Elihu’s rebuke includes a wisdom that many do not realize. He said that understanding comes from God, not necessarily because a person is old and wise. My dad used to say, “There is no fool like an old fool” and Elihu would agree.

However, this young man also knew the possibility that what he says is his “opinion” rather that the thoughts of God, another wise statement. This is a rebuke to these ‘friends’ for speaking without the humility that comes with an admission that not one of us really knows very much. Their words to Job would have been much different had they told him they had no idea why God had allowed this man to suffer.

In my prayers, I realize how little I know of the will of God. When they are answered, the answer is a small glimpse, yet when nothing happens according to my requests, I also learn something: that I’m either to wait or that God is telling me how clueless I am to what He is doing. From Job, I learn that the best thing I can do is to keep on trusting Him. Only the Lord can give me right words and right thoughts. I must admit that when He does (or does not) I may not have a clue about that either. Unless what I say lines up with His words plainly stated in Scripture and unless He reveals it by His Spirit to my spirit, I am just as oblivious as those ‘friends’ when stating my understanding about most everything, no matter my age or how much I study, or much I think I know.

 

When the rug gets pulled out from under me . . .

 

 

READ Job 25-28

As Job persisted that he was blameless, his ‘friend’ Bildad hammered him — no one can be pure. Ironic. Was he including himself? Job responded that God’s majesty is unsearchable yet no matter what God did, he held to his claim:

“As God lives, who has taken away my right, and the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter, as long as my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils, my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit. Far be it from me to say that you are right; till I die I will not put away my integrity from me. I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go; my heart does not reproach me for any of my days.” (Job 27:2–6)

Job knew that every part of his life depended on his Creator. He could not breathe apart from God. He knew that his righteousness was a gift from the Almighty. He held on to that gift and would not let go. He also knew about another precious gift and began talking about wisdom.

Wisdom in not about being smart, inventive or creative. It is not about knowing all sorts of things about the world, it’s flora and fauna, or people, or any area of study or science. Job talked about some of these wonders as he set up his listeners for a huge question, the answer of which explains how he knew God was not punishing him for sin:

“But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? Man does not know its worth, and it is not found in the land of the living. The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’ and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’ It cannot be bought for gold, and silver cannot be weighed as its price. It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire. Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold. No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; the price of wisdom is above pearls. The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, nor can it be valued in pure gold. (Job 28:12–19)

Again, wisdom is not about intelligence; there are many highly educated fools. It is not about being cunning; some of those wind up in prison. Wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge or experience or understanding or common sense and insight to the situations of life. It can be as simple as knowing what to do with a screaming baby, or how to minister to a broken heart, or how to sooth an angry neighbor when your child broke two of their windows. It is being able to guide a country through a crisis, the threat of war, or a pandemic. Wisdom for the tough stuff is not only precious as Job says, it is rare.

He finally asks, “From where, then, does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding? It is hidden from the eyes of all living and concealed from the birds of the air. Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’” (Job 28:20–22) Then this man, even in his anguished state and suffering, answers his own question:

“God understands the way to it, and he knows its place. For he looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens. When he gave to the wind its weight and apportioned the waters by measure, when he made a decree for the rain and a way for the lightning of the thunder, then he saw it and declared it; he established it, and searched it out. And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’ ” (Job 28:23–28)

Job knew what thousands do not know. Humanity races toward the greatest inventions, the biggest and best ideas, but the world does not know how to properly use most of them. Some of the best ideas are ruining health, relationships, and certainly robbing from human hearts the need for God and His grace, including His wisdom.

A deep respect and reverence for God means trusting Him even without understanding Him. This is the doorway to wisdom and the only way that Job or anyone else can hold on to godly convictions when it seems that God has dropped them off a cliff. Today and every day, I need to remember that whatever flies at me or is pulled out from under me  and threatens to shatter my peace, I need God’s wisdom and grace to stick to what He has shown me, even when it seems He has changed His mind.