Jesus Creed

Jesus Creed

A Brother’s Wisdom 57

posted by Scot McKnight | 12:47pm Monday May 25, 2009

JesusJames*.jpgWe turn now to James 3:13-18, one of the favorite sections in James for many Christians. I want to quote the whole passage today so you can read it in context:

Who is
wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life,
by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then
peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit,
impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.


The opening question is important and I re-phrase it: What are the characteristics of the person who is wise? of the person who has understanding?

Do we ask this question often enough? Do we focus our lives on gaining wisdom? Clearly, the Eastern world has focused more on wisdom and the Western world more on the knowledge (as mastery of information).

The wise person is the one who (1) has absorbed, in faith and receptivity, the wisdom of the fathers of one’s faith and (2) knows what to say at the right time, knows how to live, and knows what to know — and (3) lives that wisdom in the day to day of life, (4) while also discerning the present in light of that past and for the future.



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Comments read comments(3)
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BeckyR

posted May 25, 2009 at 4:30 pm


What have you used to get to your definition of a wise person?



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Scot McKnight

posted May 25, 2009 at 5:01 pm


BeckyR,
The ol’ noggin!
Actually, it combines my own work on wisdom stuff in the Bible and how various wisdom texts approach the meaning of wisdom.



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Scott W

posted May 25, 2009 at 7:01 pm


In cocert with this text the Desert Fathers said that humility is the greatest of all virtues, for good reason. Here it is a true reflection of and an outworking of divine wisdom.
This text should frighten (and thus humble!)everyone who confessed Jesus Christ as Lord and God and Savior;for the proof of who we say we are is not so much in our “truth claims” but in the reality of the Truth that has claimed us and,through our cooperation with the Spirit of God, is manifesting the life of God in us which is Jesus-shaped,that is Cross- and Resurrection-shaped and has to be lived out in relation to our brothers and sisters.



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