USING YOUR KNOWLEDGE WISELY

BIBLE PASSAGE:
The wise will be put to shame; they will be dismayed and trapped.  
Since they have rejected the Word of the Lord, 
what kind of wisdom do they have?  
(Jeremiah 8:9)

MEDITATION:
Most everyone would like to be considered wise and intelligent,
but if you could only have one of them, which one would you choose?
Intelligence is defined as 
“the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills”.
Wisdom is defined as “the quality of having experience, knowledge, 
and good judgment; the quality of being wise”.
Some have defined intelligence as the capacity for learning 
and wisdom as using what we have learned wisely.

There are intelligent people who lack wisdom 
and wise people who might not be as intelligent as others.
The scriptures tell us that we are all fearfully and wonderfully created by God.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; 
your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (Psalm 139:14)
That means that none of us are “better” than others, 
we are just different because we are uniquely made by God.

Although we are different, we all have the ability to develop wisdom.
Everyone gains knowledge throughout life, 
but it is what we do with what we have learned that is important. 
If we are disconnected from God, 
then whatever wisdom we have will be flawed and misdirected.

We may be wise in our own mind, 
but the scriptures tell us that we will be “put to shame”.
This probably means that we will not be respected by others, 
and certainly our wisdom is not being applied to the important areas of life.

When Paul asked, “Who are you, Lord?” he gained some valuable 
information and it was his responsibility to wisely use what he had learned.
“Who are you, Lord?” I asked.
“I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting” he replied. (Acts 22:8)

It is a question that all of us have to face.
If Jesus claimed to be the Son of God, knowing He was not, 
then He was a deceiver, the greatest liar the world has ever known. 
If He thought He was God and didn’t know the difference, 
then He was a mental case. 

But if He was who He claimed to be, 
then He is rightfully the Lord of our lives. 
What keeps us from acknowledging this Christ, 
if He is who the Bible tells us He is? 

It’s fairly simple isn’t it? 
We are not applying wisdom to what we have learned.
Each of us have to face the question that Pilate asked, 
“What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” (Matthew 27:22)

Pilate washed his hands and said he would have nothing to do with Jesus, 
but God does not let us off that way. 
We must say either “yes” or “no” (failing to make a choice is “no” by default).
We can ridicule the scriptures and what they say about Jesus, 
we can reject Him, we can neglect Him, or…we can accept and receive Him.

Paul chose to accept Him and his life was forever changed.
Not only that, but because his life was changed, 
the lives of many others were also changed.
Because Paul applied wisdom to the things he learned, he and many others 
were blessed by God and now had the promise of an enjoyable future.	

ACTION:
Have you applied wisdom to the things you have learned, 
or are you dismayed by the ineffectiveness of the knowledge you have gained?
Wisdom is enhanced and magnified when you connect with the Lord.
What will you do with this Jesus, who is called the Messiah?
Will you store your information away in the recesses of your mind,
or will you integrate it into your life and be blessed by God?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for how you have made me. Your works 
are wonderful and I am grateful for my uniqueness. I thank You for my 
capacity to use wisdom and I pray that You will help me to us it wisely. 
Help me to pause and think about what I will do with the knowledge I 
have about You. Guide me in making wise choices so I will not be 
dismayed as one who does not know You. Teach me how to use the 
unique gifts You have given me to have a positive impact on others.”

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