Psalm 33:10–15 ‘Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance. From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind’ (vv12–13)
Our prayers are directed towards establishing God’s rule so that all nations can enjoy God’s blessing. It sounds simplistic, but Scripture declares that without God’s authority chaos asserts itself. Whilst human brilliance is evident in the skill and speed of scientists creating a vaccine for Covid-19, such brilliance isn’t the same as wisdom. Brilliance brings sudden flashes of insight; wisdom secures stability over an extended period of time through right judgment.
Whilst humans may have beneficial moments of brilliance, we also see the fruit of such brilliance is exploited for great harm, such as nuclear fission. We celebrate brilliant advances in knowledge, but knowledge is no guarantor of wisdom.
Jesus is presented as ‘wisdom from God’ (1 Cor. 1:30), which means having the power of discerning and judging rightly. Here’s how we all benefit, for God, who has created all things, enjoys unrivalled insight into how we might best order life from a personal to a national level. Whilst it’s unfashionable to see Jesus as the source of wisdom, part of our learning is to find confidence that the Holy Spirit will lead us into all truth (John 16:13).
Until we are convinced, we live a mixed message in the world, our place of witness. It’s remarkable that we enjoy access to one who can truly lay claim to the title ‘fount of all wisdom’, yet our ability to access such wisdom, and consequently our confidence in advocating for God’s rule, remains limited.
SCRIPTURE TO CONSIDER: Job 28:12–28; Ps. 14:1–4; Eph. 1:3–14; Heb. 4:12–16.
AN ACTION TO TAKE: Learning God’s wisdom is essential in helping us live the Christian life.
A PRAYER TO MAKE: ‘Lord, help me to discover more of Your wisdom and to place my full confidence in it as I pray for wise leadership worldwide. Amen.’
