Another Choice to be Made.
God's Wisdom or Worldly
James 3:13-18 (AMP)
13 Who
is there among you who is wise and intelligent? Then let him by his
noble living show forth his [good] works with the [unobtrusive] humility
[which is the proper attribute] of true wisdom.
14 But
if you have bitter jealousy (envy) and contention (rivalry, selfish
ambition) in your hearts, do not pride yourselves on it and thus be in
defiance of and false to the Truth.
15 This
[superficial] wisdom is not such as comes down from above, but is
earthly, unspiritual (animal), even devilish (demoniacal).
16 For
wherever there is jealousy (envy) and contention (rivalry and selfish
ambition), there will also be confusion (unrest, disharmony, rebellion)
and all sorts of evil and vile practices.
17 But
the wisdom from above is first of all pure (undefiled); then it is
peace-loving, courteous (considerate, gentle). [It is willing to] yield
to reason, full of compassion and good fruits; it is wholehearted and straightforward, impartial and unfeigned (free from doubts, wavering, and insincerity).
18 And
the harvest of righteousness (of conformity to God’s will in thought
and deed) is [the fruit of the seed] sown in peace by those who work for
and make peace [in themselves and in others, that peace which
means concord, agreement, and harmony between individuals, with
undisturbedness, in a peaceful mind free from fears and agitating
passions and moral conflicts].
There is a wealth of information here. First, let's look at wisdom that is not from above. You will find jealousy, contention and defiance to truth when it comes to earthly wisdom. Where you find this, you will also find confusion and all sorts of evil and vile practices. Second, when you look at God's wisdom you find peace, gentleness and compassion. It is open to reason and it is wholehearted and straightforward.Yet, the world despises God's wisdom and chooses contention and confusion. For believers, all one has to do is ask God for wisdom and He will give it liberally to all who seek it.
You can look at society and see the stark contrast between the two. Choice has become limited to what the world would have and fights against anyone's freedom to choose for themselves, especially, when it conflicts with the world's. With God's wisdom, one can accept the choice that others make even when it is not the choice that one would make for one's self. This is nothing new nor will it be any different until Christ returns. So why did I get upset when people I love make a different choice, because I know that God is not happy yet He allows them to make that choice. It is not right for me to mistreat anyone for their differing choices and I can only hope that with time the truth will be made known to them. After all God makes the same decision with those who choose not to believe in Jesus and with me when I make a poor choice more than I like to admit. He waits for me to confess and repent and choose to follow His will for my life.
God desires for all people to choose to accept His gift of salvation but does not force it. He is a gentlemen and He is righteous and just to all. He allows people to choose for themselves who they will serve, and they have to accept the consequences, either heaven or hell. I know from my own experiences that God is the better choice and I will follow Christ until the day I die. As it it is written in the serenity prayer, "trusting that You (God) will make all things right if I surrender to Your will; so that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with You forever in the next." I paraphrase Joshua 24:15, If it seems evil to you to serve the Lord God of the Bible, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether gods of this day and age in whose land you dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
My prayer: Dear Lord God in heaven, You are worthy of all my praise for there is no one like You on all the earth. May I not forsake You or Your word. I want to proclaim Your goodness to all the earth.
Amen
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