1 Corinthians 3:19
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written: "He catches the wise in their craftiness"
The apostle Paul once wrote a letter to a church in Corinth, and in that letter he addressed a group of believers who thought too highly of their human leaders. They were proclaiming that their sources for wisdom were the various preachers who had ministered to them. The believers in Corinth would say “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” rather than rightly proclaim that God was their ultimate teacher (1 Corinthians 3:4). Paul wrote to these believers, "What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe - as the Lord has assigned to each his task," (1 Corinthians 3:5). Paul made it clear that the believers in Corinth needed to attribute the teachings and wisdom they received not to any human leaders, but to the one who appointed their spiritual leaders to teach.
Paul wrote the following from 1 Corinthians chapter 3 from verses 18 to 21 on the matter of following human leaders:
Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”; and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” So then, no more boasting about human leaders!
There are two verses Paul quotes in this passage. The first comes from Job 5:13, where it is written the Lord "catches the wise in their craftiness, and the schemes of the wily are swept away." The second verse Paul quotes is Psalm 94:11 where it reads, "The Lord knows all human plans; He knows that they are futile." These two verses strongly convey the Biblical truth that even the wisest of human leaders are fools compared to the wisdom of God. This does not mean humans cannot become wise, but to be wise one must first respect and honor the Lord (Proverbs 9:10). Any wise human leader who teaches someone in the ways of the Lord should rightly give God the credit for their wisdom. God is the ultimate teacher, and only those who listen to His words and put them into practice are truly wise people (Matthew 7:24).
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| Build your life on God's wisdom, which has been given to you through the Holy Scriptures. |
One final word of caution from Paul's letter: Worldly wisdom is simply foolishness. If you want to hear wisdom from those in the world who have no care for the one who created them, then you are bound to hear some foolish things. In James' sermon recorded in the Scriptures he wrote in chapter 3 from verses 13 to 16 this about those who call themselves wise and live by the desires of the world:
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 if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
None of us, as believers, should seek after wisdom from the world; wisdom that is ultimately foolishness and is earthly, unspiritual and demonic (James 3:15). We should be very careful who we allow to teach us how to live our lives, making sure that we do our best to receive wisdom and life advice from those who know the Truth, rather than deny the Truth. In this way we will "be very careful, then, how [we] live - not as unwise but as wise," (Ephesians 5:15). We must seek after wisdom that we know comes from our Father in heaven. This wisdom comes from God, but we can be given it through pastors and preachers, such as James who wrote this of true wisdom in the book of James in chapter 3 from verses 17 to 18:
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.
Sources
- The Bible (New International Version)
- Knowing Jesus: 35 Verses on Worldly Wisdom
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