Living According to Heaven Part 10
13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding; 14 For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, and her gain than fine gold. 15 She is more precious than rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with her. 16 Length of days is in her right hand, in her left hand riches and honor. 17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. 18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who retain her. 19 The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding He established the heavens; 20 By His knowledge the depths were broken up, and clouds drop down the dew. 21 My son, let them not depart from your eyes— Keep sound wisdom and discretion; 22 So they will be life to your soul and grace to your neck. 23 Then you will walk safely in your way, and your foot will not stumble. 24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid; yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet. Proverbs 3:13-24
It is foolish to put the highest value on earth to money and material things. Wisdom from God is better than money or gold. If we are to live according to Heaven, our lives must be governed by wisdom. Wisdom is related to one’s relationship with God. It is defined by the spirit and not by humanism. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom which is having the right relationship with God (Psalms 14:1, 53:1, Proverbs 9:10).
Having knowledge means that you are able to collect, remember and access information. It is possible to have knowledge but lack wisdom and understanding. Those with understanding, extract meaning from the facts. Understanding brings facts into a crisp focus which produces principles. Those with wisdom know which principles to apply and when to do the right thing. Knowledge and understanding only have eternal value if they result in wisdom and if they inform what we do. God places heavy emphasis on His word. Without hearing and doing the word, we cannot be wise (Deuteronomy 4:5-6, Matthew 7:24).
Time in Ephesians 5:15-17 refers to a kairos moment or an opportune time. We have to redeem the time because the days are evil. We have to know the time to seize opportunities and to make the best of it. When opportunity presents itself, we need to have our own word from the Lord to know what steps to take. We need to have a word from God for ourselves instead of depending on other people to get a word for us. When Jesus speaks words to us, they are spirit and life. The Spirit of God releases wisdom (1 Corinthians 2:6-13). The word also comes with faith. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Whatever God says, will come to pass. We live according to the word of heaven. There is no need to panic, God is faithful to His promises.
Wisdom is supernatural functionality which means something beyond our own power. Hell is raging war against our lives, to steal our harvest and we can’t surround ourselves with ungodly counsel. We have to be in the right company with people of heaven and of wisdom. The word of God gives us life (Proverbs 4:20-22). We have to believe the word when we have seasons of sickness and financial difficulties. Whatever God is saying to us, we must do (Luke 5:1-7). If we are ruled by the wisdom of the world, we will miss what God is saying. We will miss our harvest if we let people cloud our ears with negativity. We can’t let anything stand in the way of the word that God has given to us. We need wisdom in our prayer life and in our ministries (Acts 6:8-10). Wisdom will be the stability of our times (Isaiah 33:6).
We must be prepared to look foolish when we follow the wisdom of God. God has used the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. We must be fools for Christ. We must desire wisdom and prioritize our pursuit. We must incline our ears and pay attention to wisdom and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us. When Jesus talks about the Queen of the South in Matthew 12, He is referring to the Queen of Sheba (Matthew 12:38-42, 1 Kings 10:1-5). Solomon didn’t only have wisdom but he also had riches. When we come into contact with wisdom, there will be no more spirit in us just like the Queen of Sheba. We can hear about wisdom but we have to experience it for ourselves. The greatest happiness is found in the presence of the Lord.
