“Real Wisdom”
James 3:13-18
“Who is wise and understanding among
you?”
That is
quite an opening line from James.
You
can imagine the people in the church
James was
addressing starting to posture.
I wonder if he’s talking about me?
I want you all to think about that same question.
Who do
you know who is wise?
I’m not asking for the smartest person you
know.
Frequently
a smart person is not really very wise.
In
fact I know a lot of really smart people
Who
do not have good common sense…
Is that
what wise is all about?
It certainly is not what James is thinking about
When he talks about wisdom.
For
James wisdom is not “common” at all.
In
fact James distinguishes quite dramatically
Between wisdom from above and earthly wisdom.
He
calls earthly wisdom “bitter”, “ambitious”,
“unspiritual”, “devilish”.
This
is the second time in two weeks that we
have heard Satan or the devil
mentioned in
scripture.
We
don’t usually dwell on language about Satan
At
Covenant and yet here in two weeks we hear
This
language evoked in Scripture.
Last
week it was Jesus saying to Peter:
“Get behind me Satan, you are not
on the side of God but of men.”
And this
week false, worldly wisdom is called “devilish”
Martin Luther, founder of the
Reformation once commented
“The
best way to drive our the devil,
if he will not yield to texts of scripture,
is to jeer and
flout him,
for he cannot bear scorn.”
One of my favorite treatments of Satan
is by C. S. Lewis
“The
Screwtape Letter” in which C.S. Lewis make fun
of Satan in this imaginary dialogue between a
junior level devil- Wormwood
and his uncle- Screwtape.
In a letter discussing the victim
Wormwood is trying to tempt,
Screwtape says: “You don’t realize how enslaved humans are
To the pressure of the ordinary…
They find it impossible to believe in
the unfamiliar
while the familiar is before their eyes.
Keep pressing on the ordinariness of
things.”
This is not to say that we can’t see God
in the ordinary.
It
is to say that real wisdom is seeing the extraordinary of God
In
the ordinary acts through which God reveals himself.
Even
our Gospel lesson today is about welcoming
God
as we welcome the child in our midst.
Don’t
be fooled by the devilish.
Brother Lawrence was one who understood
this and in the process
received and shared wisdom from above.
He
entered the monastery at age fifty
after a career in
the army.
He
was all the things James talks about “jealous” and “bitter”
With
his mudane work in the kitchen for four years
Until
he remembered that he had joined the monastery
Out of a love for God.
He
started to concentrate on God’s love in ordinary things
And
he found himself being changed,
And filled with unexpected joy.
Others
noticed ht echange in Brother Lawrence
and started to
ask him about about his philosophy.
They recognized a wisdom
from above
That he ultimately wrote down
in
“Practicing
the Presence of God”.
So what does this wisdom look like?
How
do we recognize it and how can we embrace it?
James tells us:
“wisdom from above
is first pure, then peaceable, gentle,
willing
to yield, full of mercy, and good fruits,
without
a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.”
Real wisdom has no ulterior motives.
Like a child.
James
starts with “wisdom from above is pure…”
And he ends
with the assertion that it is
“…without trace of partiality or hypocrisy”
There is not much that we cannot say hasn’t
been spoiled
By the worlds values of money, power or prestigue.
When
Donald Trump says something
We
always wonder how much money it will make?
When a
politician makes a moral proclamation
We
wonder what political base
He
is catering to?
There
is always some ulterior motive
That
makes us ask:
“What’s he or she really up to?”
The middle three words: “peaceable,
gentle and willing to yield”
Describe
my grandfather Deward.
He
was a tax collector for the County in
You
don’t usually think of a tax collector as loved
But
he was because he had these traits.
I remember delivering meals at Christmas
with him.
It
was my Grandmother’s idea to deliver the meals
And
she told him what to do but he was the perfect one
To
deliver the food and cookies because unlike
My
grandmother he was gentle and yielding.
She
is the one that got things done.
He
was the wise one who read people,
Understand,
listened and accommodated
to people’s
needs so they could receive what
my
grandmother offered.
Finally James says wisdom from above is
“full of mercy and good fruit”
Remember James is the ‘faith without
works is dead guy”
So one would imagine that for
him words and action
Would
have to go together.
When I think about the authors I read
and respect
As having great wisdom I
think about
Dietrich Bonhoeffer who didn’t merely write
About
Christian ethics but went to prison
During
World War II for his faith;
Or Jimmy Carter who
didn’t just write a book
“Our
Endangered Values” but lived out
his values during his Presidency and
his post presidency time
and who teaches a Sunday School class
In
Plains
And
continues to build Habitat
Houses into his eighties.
According to
James, wisdom is known by her mercy and fruit.
So how do we recognize wisdom from above.
It
is pure and not contaminated by ulterior motives;
It
is not pushy but rather gentle and yielding;
And
it is fruity- evidenced by actions that consistent.
And why do we care about wisdom?
Because
we are besieged with false wisdom
in every area of our
lives- our personal lives,
our nation and
even our church.
In
the Presbyterian Church we are besieged by people
who want to
destroy our church from the inside.
They criticize every action taken by
Our denomination in the name
of
truth and purity.
When people
ask me if these criticisms have any
Element of truth in them, I suggest
that the real
question
is whether there is real wisdom
according
to the definitions in James
Is there any ulterior motive- yes; any
flexibility- no; spirit of gentleness- no; any peace- no? James gives us a good measure to evaluate
those who would destroy the church.
Likewise
our nation is facing an important time in our
Political life and wellbeing.
We are facing an important election
this fall
And
usually I don’t tell you who to vote for
But
today I will.
Vote
for the candidate who is wise according to James.
Vote
for the candidate whose life and political
philosophy are consistent and integrated;
Who can work
with other leaders and be flexible
enough to work out compromises that benefit
all the constituents , not just a few.
Vote
for the candidate who is wise.
Lastly,
we need wisdom in our person lives.
We
are besieged by television and a popular culture
That
pretends to tell us what is good and true.
We
are all looking for a personal compass to tell us
What
is right and wrong and good and true.
James says we should be searching for
what is wise-
It
means evaluating our own motives in all that we do;
It
means sometimes fighting for the truth but more often
Waiting
on the truth of God;
Being
wise means being flexible and open
to the truth God will
reveal to us and in us or others.
Thomas
Sweet writes in his book “Leadership”
Today’s
leaders must shift from being “learned”
To being “learners”.
When
we think we know everything and “are learned”
We
may be smart but not wise.
Most of all wisdom is seeking, yearning,
working for peace.
So let us go forth from this place
As
people who seek wisdom- in our own lives,
In our nation and in our church.
Let
real wisdom, God’s wisdom be our guide.
Amen