Spiritually-Wise Christians

PART #2

James 1:22 says, “Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”  He also teaches, “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” (James 1:13-15) 

A spiritually-wise Christian knows that the flesh, that sinful nature, is powerful and can easily overtake him.  The wisest thing a non-Christian can do is what a wise Christian would do. That is to make a plea to the Lord saying, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalms 129:23-24)

Wise Christians know that “There is a way that seems right to a man but in the end leads to death.”  (Proverbs 14:12) They take the Word of God and use it as a mirror, praying that the Holy Spirit will use the Word to reveal sin.  The Holy Spirit moved the Apostle Paul to write, “…Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law.”  (Romans 7:7)  The Word of God is the X-ray of the heart.  Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

The Word of God is like a mirror for it reveals what is in our hearts.  Dr. Jay Vernon McGee points out, “If you had a spot on your face, the mirror will show it to you.  However, it must be noted that the mirror cannot remove the spot.”  Heart spot removal is done by the one whom the law has revealed, the blood of Jesus Christ alone.  Therefore, once sin has been exposed by the Word of God, the very first thing a wise Christian and the wisest thing a sinner does is agree with God that it is sin and put himself under the atonement blood of Christ.  He puts himself under the blood of Christ by trusting in Jesus to be both Savior and Lord of his life.  That is the wisest choice anyone can ever make.

God is faithful.  He is not a man that He should lie.  Through forgiveness that is found in Christ He forgives sin and gives all who come to him a fresh clean start. 

After a man recognizes that sin is a real threat to him, he is willing to look into the perfect law so as to understand all that sin is.  He then protects himself through being attentive to the law of God, meditating upon what the Bible says, obeying what Jesus has taught him and then enduring through the power of the Holy Spirit.  His heart is in line with the psalmist who wrote, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”  (Psalms 119:9-11)  It is a wise man who will ask such a question of the Lord.  The application is when the Christian reads the Word of God so as to keep himself blameless, to keep himself steadfast or for finding the practice of godliness, he is doing a wise thing. 

Are you living a life that reflects wisdom?