Peace-Loving Wisdom

As the political news cycle became particularly polarizing over the past few years, my husband Tanner and I started questioning some ideologies by which we were raised. He had just finished his master’s degree at seminary, and we had just lived through the election of 2016. Despite our questions, we maintained a deep desire to see our family, our friends, and the church remain united on essential doctrine, even when some of the politics got messy. We felt that our changing views were motivated by faithfulness to the words of Jesus and obedience to the Bible, but navigating conversations wisely amid disagreement can be difficult.

For instance, I have a friend who is extremely intelligent and equally outspoken (even aggressive) in their critique of the church. This friend uses big academic words to articulate social problems, and to call for policy changes they believe will right the wrongs in the world. Yet I can’t remember a time I saw this person physically interacting with the marginalized communities they often discuss at a distance.

Then there are people like my mother-in-law (hi, Dawn!), who could not care less about academic language and winning the culture-war debates. We don’t always agree, but there is no one I see serving and loving people (including those who would call her worldview hateful) on a more regular basis. She is regularly uncomfortable for the sake of others’ good.

In presenting these two examples, I am not intending to make a statement about which political views are better. These scenarios could be flipped, and my point would stay the same: worldly wisdom and an impressive academic record do not automatically translate to meaningful action. As important as it is to make well-informed opinions, it’s perhaps even more crucial to bear the fruit of the Spirit. So how can we make sure that our wisdom leads to meaningful action? How can we make sure that the wisdom we are living by is the godly kind of wisdom?

Glad you asked. Let’s look at James 3.

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness” (13, 17–18 niv).

Real wisdom from God results in humility, and that humility bears good deeds.

Real wisdom is not hurling the better clap back or the smarter take; real wisdom is lived.

The first way to test whether your wisdom is godly is to assess the tone of your life. Do your ideas come with a strong side of cynicism? Do rage, fear, contempt, and pride frame all your opinions? Then I think it’s safe to say that your wisdom is not aligned with God’s wisdom. Do your convictions translate to deeds done in humility and peacemaking? If not, James might’ve suggested that your convictions are likely not rooted in God’s wisdom.

I share this not to ignite a political discussion. I share this because the time we live in brings much confusion and much emotion about who is right and who is wrong.

Maybe, in our quest for wisdom, it’s time we start looking for its fruit. James has told us point-blank what real wisdom will look like. If you want to be wise, watch the people who are loving and serving real people in real ways. When you are doing your best to look people in the eye and love them, your ideology doesn’t always matter as much as you think it will.

Look for the wisdom that lives a good life of service. Look for the people who are pushing outside of their comfort zones, not just to say hard things, but to do hard things for hard people (whomever that may be for them). Look for lovers of peace—those who are considerate and overflowing with mercy. Look for people who don’t play favorites and who put their whole heart in. Look at the fruit.

Reading: James 3:13-18
For Additional Study: 2 Peter 1:5-9

 

Lord,
When I feel overwhelmed by all the cynicism
and all the people claiming to be wise, help me
look at their fruit to discern whether what they’re
saying is worth listening to. I pray that your Holy
Spirit would guide me to Your truth and Your
wisdom, and that through it all, You would keep
my heart humble. Grow in me a love of peace.
Help me set my eyes on the fruit of true wisdom.
Amen.

…

Excerpted with permission from Set Your Eyes Higher: A 40-Day Reset to Slow Your Anxiety and Fix Your Focus on God by Whitney Lowe. Copyright © 2024 Whitney Lowe. Used with permission of Zondervan, an imprint of HarperCollins Christian Publishing.   https://a.co/d/cymuCd7