James 3:17

James 3:17 – “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.”

I can think of several very smart kids I grew up with in grade school that I don’t remember too fondly, simply because they were know-it-alls. It’s funny how childish pride can turn knowledge and wisdom into a bad thing, and while kids are more often guilty of this, it’s not necessarily something that everyone grows out of. I’ve found that the desire to be seen as intelligent is a personal flaw of mine, and I find it to be rooted not only in a desire for validation, but in sinful pride as well. As sinners (just as with children), we default to assuming that our own wisdom and knowledge is king; we fail to prioritize any “external” wisdom, as that would somehow make our own less valuable.

In all honesty, it’s less than shocking that the wisdom that we consider to be our own, holds little value in the first place. Divine Wisdom, however, is just that – divine. It is pure, gentle, reasonable, merciful, fruitful, impartial, genuine, perfect. The knowledge and mental clarity that we obtain when we open our minds up to God is infinitely better than the knowledge that we hold within ourselves when we close our minds from Him. Why should we let pride get between us and perfect wisdom? 

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