The Value of Wisdom
‘There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth and copper is smelted from ore…but where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell?’ - Job 28:1-2, 12.
Scripture is filled with truth. Laws revealing the truth of God’s character and values. Christ himself is the way, the truth and the life. To be a follower of Christ is to live in the way of truth. Within the bible however there is something else that is as vital to truth to living as a disciple, one which helps a Christian navigate through life when things are not black or white, where truth is hard to find or when situations become too complex for our human ethics.
Wisdom is an equally important area of growth and learning for a disciple of Christ as truth is. Wisdom allows us to apply truth and to discern through falsehoods (Job 12:12-13). Wisdom gives us the ability to see beyond our own short-sightedness (Proverbs 2). God’s wisdom guides us to the right words when we need it (Psalm 37:30) and whoever obtains it finds life (Proverbs 8:35). Even Christ took the time to grow in wisdom (Luke 2:52).
So where does one grow wisdom? Scripture tells us it begins in the fear of God (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14) and that wisdom comes from submission to God. But it is also something that we must be intentional in growing, through obeying God (Matthew 7:24), through humility (1 Corinthians 3:18) and through the community of saints (Colossians 3:16).
In a time where discourse in our society is becoming increasingly challenging, my hope is that disciples within CPC would not just grow in truth but also in the wisdom of God. How are you intentionally growing in wisdom this year? Could you invite a new voice into your life -whether older or younger? Perhaps it is time to take a moment and be intentional about building up your spiritual life again.
Whatever is it, let’s be encouraged to be a church that is filled with wisdom as well as truth.
智慧的價值
「銀子有礦；煉金有方。鐵從地裏挖出；銅從石中鎔化。然而，智慧有何處可尋？聰明之處在哪裏呢？」約伯記28:1-2,12？」約伯記28:1-2,12？」約伯記28:1-2,12
聖經充滿了真理。律法啟示了神的屬性和價值觀的真理。基督自己就是那道路、真理和生命。作為基督的跟隨者就是活在真理的道上。然而，要活出門徒生命，聖經中尚有一件與真理同樣重要的東西是須把握到的，它能幫助基督徒在生活中做出明智的選擇，特別是在當事情不是黑白分明，真理難以分辨，或情况繁複，超乎人的道德倫理所能夠處理之時。
對於作為基督的門徒來說，智慧與真理是同等重要的成長和學習領域。智慧使我們能夠將真理應用於生活中，並分辨虚偽（約伯記12:12-13）。智慧賦予我們能力看到超越我們狹窄的視野（箴言2）。神的智慧引導我們在需要時說合宜的話（詩篇37:30）。凡得着智慧的，就必得着生命（箴言8:35）。甚至基督也在智慧上隨時間經歷成長（路加福音2:52）。
那麼，智慧的成長從何而來？聖經告訴我們，它始於敬畏神（傳道書12:13-14），並且這智慧是來自於對神順服。但它也是我們必須刻意努力，藉着順服神（馬太福音7:24），謙卑（哥林多前書3:18），及與眾信徒相通（歌羅西書3:16）而增長的。
在這個時代,當我們與社會人士的對話變得日益艱難時，我的希望是在我們教會中的眾門徒不僅在真理上成長，更要在神的智慧上成長。今年，你如何有意用心地在智慧上追求成長呢？你能邀請一個新的聲音進入你的生命中嗎 - 無論是較年長的還是較年輕的？或許，現在是時候花點時間，刻意地重新建立你屬靈的生命。
無論如何，讓我們彼此鼓勵，成為一個充滿智慧與真理的教會。
