“Now then, you kings, act wisely! Be warned, you rulers of the earth! Serve the Lord with reverent fear, and rejoice with trembling. Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry, and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities— for his anger flares up in an instant. But what joy for all who take refuge in him!”
Psalm 2:10-12 NLT
The Psalmist David gave us a bit of advice that we would all do well to heed – “act wisely”. But it seems to be a human trait to do just the opposite. The Bible is full of advice about wisdom, but why is it that even God’s people seem to lack the ability to “act wisely” as they go about their business? David was focused on world rulers when he wrote Psalm 2 and as we look around we can see a stunning lack of wisdom in the behaviour of national leaders today. We see the actions of heads of nation states who seem to be quite prepared to sacrifice their own people at a whim, causing unnecessary deaths and misery to many innocent people. And this is not just through wars – it can also be through political decisions derived from following a flawed ideology (for example think about the confusion about gender). But where can we find the wisdom that aligns with the wisdom David was warning the “kings of the earth” about?
In Psalm 2:11a we read, “Serve the Lord with reverent fear …”. If we turn to Proverbs 1:7 we read, “Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline“. This isn’t the sort of fear that comes from expecting a lightning bolt from Heaven if we do wrong. This is a reverent awe, acknowledging all who God is, realising that He created the earth and all that is in it, and therefore ensuring that we include Him in all that we are about. So where do we find the wisdom so essential to living a life God’s way? Turn to James 1:5, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking”. Simple really – God has all the answers we need to live a life impregnated by wisdom. We might protest that we are not world rulers so the need for wisdom is perhaps not quite so important. But God’s ways are for everyone, no matter how insignificant we might think we are.
Father God. You are the Source of all wisdom. Please forgive us for our errant ways and we pray for Your wisdom to infuse all we think, say, and do, day by day. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 