Send Me: What is the "BIG Picture" of Missions?

Sometimes it's hard to see the big picture.  Sometimes an image only tells us part of a story.  We’ve probably all heard the expression “the BIG picture”.  Seeing the big picture is being able to look at what’s going on in it’s most basic and simple form.  When we look at the Bible we see a few basic themes . . . 1.)  God wants to relate with humans, 2.) Sin prevents God from relating with humans, and 3.) God has done and is doing everything He can to get rid of sin. 
If we look closely at the BIG picture of how God has worked in history we will find that His assignments for people have not really changed.  He has a few big purposes in mind that He knows are essential to recovering His relationship with humanity.  Although the small part that we each play may not make sense, knowing that God sees the big picture is reassuring.  The BIG picture for God has always been about BRIDGING the GAP between humanity and Himself!  We can look far back in human history and see that the BIG picture has always remained the same.

1.  God assigned Jesus to destroy SATAN (Gen. 3:15) –  Satan is a lot like the bully who just goes around tearing people down.  I remember one particular bully in my high school, his favorite thing to do was pick on, torture, embarrass, and put down whoever he could.  He was big, so he was usually successful.  I have one particular memory of him after gym class as a freshman.  I was in the shower all by myself and he came in after me.  Surrounded by 20 or 30 other open showers he walked up to me, punched me in the shoulder, and said, “that’s my shower”!  It took every ounce of will power I had to keep from crying. 

From the beginning God has wanted to eliminate the devil (Rom. 16:20; I Jn. 3:8)!  The devil has been working for thousands of years to destroy the people that God loves.  It is the devil’s intention only to steal, kill, and destroy the life that we have been given.  The devil has been fueling God’s fire for centuries by bullying His creation around.  Satan was one of the reasons that God sent Jesus.  He was sent on a mission to destroy the work of the devil.  God wants to get rid of the devil and the path of destruction that he creates in our lives.

 2.      God assigned Noah to rid the earth of WICKEDNESS and EVIL (Gen. 6:1-22) – Many of us have probably known someone who had cancer.  Knowing someone with cancer is a painful experience because of the destructive effective it has on the person’s life.  Cancer can be gotten rid of with chemotherapy treatments.  Chemotherapy uses powerful drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells by interfering with cell duplication.  The goal of chemotherapy is to rid the body completely of unhealthy tumors or cells so that the healthy ones can thrive.

From the beginning God has wanted to preserve righteousness (I Pet. 3:18-22)!  God wants to remove the “cancer” of wickedness and evil that exists within us.  Righteousness is the healthy condition we need to have a relationship with God.  By putting our faith in Christ, we are not just cleansed from our sin but the evil in our lives in drowned out!  Without the righteousness that comes through having our sins removed we can have no relationship with God.

3.      God assigned Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to BLESS the people of the earth (Gen. 12:3, 18:18, 22:18) – Some of my favorite gifts that I received at Christmas were the ones that were not given directly to me but I got to experience the benefits of.  Usually it was a gift that my dad got for my mom.  My dad would always get my mom something like a VCR, an exercise bike, or a new TV.  When my mom opened her gift the whole family would be like, “wow, WE can’t wait to use that!”  Too bad for my mom but good for all of us.  God’s gift to Abraham to bless his family was not for him alone, it was for all mankind.

From the beginning God has wanted to reward those who believe in Him (Mt. 1:1-17; Gal. 3:6-9)!  It is in the genealogy of Abraham that God revealed the blessing to all peoples on earth.  Jesus Himself, being a direct descendent of Abraham, was the blessing that God had promised.  Faith in Christ is what allows us to experience that blessing that God promised to Abraham thousands of years ago.  We become a part of Abraham’s great nation by believing in Jesus Christ!  It is our mission as well to reveal this blessing to others!

4.      God assigned Moses to RESCUE His people from SLAVERY (Ex. 3:7-10) – Have you ever been needed to be rescued?  If you’ve been rescued then you have been in a place or a situation that you could not get YOURSELF out of!  I had the opportunity to rescue a kid one time.  When I was a counselor at Bible camp one night when there was a kid who was acting crazy and would not go to sleep.  He would not let me shut the light off by screaming if I did.  He got so worked up that he fell off the bunk between the board that was supposed to keep kids from falling out.  He was literal stuck with his feet dangling and could not get out.  I enjoyed it for a minute but eventually saved him from his misery.

From the beginning God has wanted to free us from the bondage of sin (Jn. 8:34-36)!  Everyone who has sin in their life is a slave.  It controls us, it influences our thinking, and leads us to where it wants us to go.  God has never wanted us to be enslaved by anything.  He has always wanted to release us from the burden of guilt and oppression.  That freedom can only come through His Son Jesus.

Conclusion:

Every assigned mission that God has ever sent anyone on had something to do with bringing people back into a relationship with Him!  God assigns people mission’s in life that remove obstacles which prevent people from depending solely on Him.  When we are listening for our assignment in life we need be paying close attention to how it might draw people closer to God.  If your assignment does not accomplish that then we might be creating it ourselves.

Send Me: Am I Willing To Go On A Mission?

There is something exciting about being sent on a mission.  Everyone wants a mission in life.  We love movies where individuals are sent on strange and adventurous tasks to accomplish something profound.  What is a mission? A special assignment given to a person or a group.  Most people do not think that they will ever be given a truly profound mission in life.  It wouldn’t surprise me if most of us thought that our lives will be anything but exciting.  That is NOT what God has in mind for us.  He has a special assignment, a mission for each and every one of us.

READ:  Isaiah 6:1-13

Just like God told Isaiah to “GO” in verse 9, God has a “mission” for each and every one of us!  He has a place and plan for all of us to be used to most effectively minister for Him in His Kingdom.  His mission for us will be exciting and deeply satisfying.  The question is, “are we willing to listen for and accept ours?”  Here are a few ways we can know that we are ready to be sent on a mission . .

 1.      We are ready for our mission when we REALIZE God’s immensity (vs. 1-4) – Have you ever tried to describe something that was indescribable?  I don’t know if I could put into words what the Grand Canyon looks like.  It is simply too immense to put into words.  I don’t think I would do Niagara Falls justice if I tried to describe it to you.  It is too immense to describe.  If you have never been to either the Grand Canyon or Niagara Falls I’m sure you would not know where to begin in describing their immensity.

In Isaiah 1:1-4 Isaiah has a vision where he sees the Lord with his own eyes! In the vision there was a THRONE which represented God’s exalted rule and reign, a TRAIN which represented a king’s royal garments, there are SERAPHIM worshipping which represented those who serve Him, His voice caused an EARTHQUAKE which shook the foundations of the thresholds which represented the power of His Word, and there was SMOKE which represented God’s eternal presence.  I’m sure for Isaiah this scene was unforgettable.  Have you ever had an unforgettable experience with God?

Before we go on a mission we must have had an experience with God (1 Jn. 1:1-4)!  Prior to going on a mission we must intimately know and have experienced the One who is sending us.  We cannot speak accurately and passionately about God if we have never met or do not know Him.  We must have first hand knowledge of  God if we are going to proclaim anything accurately and convincingly about Him.  To have met and experienced GOD and to speak about Him in small, insignificant terms does not go together.  Having seen, heard, and touched God will give us something incredible to proclaim.

 2.      We are ready for our mission when we RECOGNIZE our sinfulness and have RECEIVED forgiveness (vss. 5-7) – Being in the presence of certain people causes us to recognize different things about ourselves.  Being in the presence of a friend makes us recognize how bored or unhappy we are when we are alone.  Being in the presence of someone who is sick makes us recognize how wonderful it is to be healthy and feel good.  Being in the presence of a boss makes us recognize when we are wasting time or being lazy on the job.  Being in the presence of a police officer makes us recognize when we are going over the speed limit.  

What does being in the presence of God cause us to recognize?  Being in the presence of a holy God makes us recognize our guilt and shame.  When we recognize that we are nothing without the grace, mercy, and forgiveness of God we in a position where we can be used by God.  If we do not recognize our sin we will live life and ministry with pride and arrogance.

Only a contrite individual will be effective as a missionary (Lk. 5:4-9)!  Being mission minded means admitting that only God can transform us into the people who can accomplish the mission He as for our lives.  Without God’s grace and forgiveness we are all unqualified and unequipped to carry out the mission He has planned for us.  In fact, God will not send us on a mission if we are not first of all humble enough to confess our sinfulness.  Only then are we capable of being the person that God needs us to be on our mission. 

3.      We are ready for our mission when we RESPOND to a calling (vs. 8) – Sometimes it’s nice having small children in the house because they do pretty much whatever you say.  I will quite often send Sarah or Emily on a mission to get something around the house and quite often their response is, “okay, daddy”.  There are other times though that Sarah and Emily are not quite so willing to do what they are told (i.e. nap and bedtime).  If there is something that they do not want to do then they will cry and scream and express their dissatisfaction.  We are trying to teach Sarah and Emily that when we ask them to go somewhere or do something they need to respond obediently.

We can be confident that God wants to send us somewhere (Mt. 28:19-20)!  The question for the Christian is not whether God has a mission for us or not, but rather are we willing to say YES to His calling!  God WILL invite us to go on a mission for Him.  We can be sure that at some point in our lives God will say to each and every one of us, “whom shall I send? And who will go?”  We need to be ready to respond by obediently saying, “YES!”

 4.      We are ready for our mission when we RELATE a message from God (vss. 9-13) – Probably one of the most annoying groups of people on a mission are telemarketers.  When they call they are determined to tell you their “speel” no matter whether you want to hear it or not.  Even after you’ve told them that you are interested in the message that they want to tell you they have some response to keep you on the line and potentially listen to what they have to say.  Christians on a mission have a vitally important message.

We are supposed to GO and TELL the good news (1 Pet. 3:15)!  Wherever we are sent on a mission the message will be the same . . . Jesus Christ.  There is not a person on the planet whom God does not want to hear the good news of the Son that He has sent.  He wants everyone to have the opportunity to hear the Word. 

 Conclusion:

The greatest missionary in history when He accepted His assignment was Jesus Christ (John 3:16).  God sent Jesus to leave heaven and come to the world where He revealed Himself as the One who could save the world from their sins.  Because Christ accepted His mission we are saved. 

You and I can be sent in much the same way.  If Christ was willing to be sent on our behalf then we should be willing to be sent on behalf of those who do not know.  There are people who are lost and need to hear to gospel of Jesus Christ and God wants to use us to reveal Jesus Christ to the world.  When God calls, our response must simply be, “SEND ME!”

Faith That Works: Patient and Steadfast

Hurry up, let’s go . . . we hate to wait!  Simply passively waiting is hard enough, but waiting is even more difficult if we are enduring a trial or a difficulty.  I was at McDonalds last week with my two daughters and when it came time to leave I noticed that I was running short on time to get to a meeting.  In order to speed up the process and make it to my meeting on time I started putting on our 3 year daughter’s shoes for her.  BAD IDEA!  She immediately and very emotionally said “no, I want to do it” which caused my impatience to grow quickly.  I knew it would take her 5 minutes to put each sock and shoe on and it would take me 30 seconds.  I was not just casually waiting on a 3 year old, I was waiting WHILE under the pressure of being on time.  I must admit, I displayed very little patience or steadfastness as I continued attempting to help her put her socks and shoes on while she screamed!

READ:  James 5:7-12

In this passage James uses two different words to express what we need to be doing while we wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  In verses 7, 8, and 10 the word translated PATIENCE means to WAIT despite difficulties.  The word translated STEADFAST in verse 11 means to ENDURE despite difficulty and suffering.  What’s the difference?  Patience is passively waiting for an uncomfortable period of time to come to an end, whereas steadfastness is actively bearing through in the middle of a particular hardship. What are some ways that we can be patient and steadfast while we wait for the coming of Jesus Christ?

Be patient and steadfast by WAITING for the precious fruit of Christ’s return (vss 7-8) – I grew up in Iowa, but I am as far from a farmer as you can get.  My grandfather was a farmer and so I got to observe what a life of farming looks like.  A farmer plants in the spring and then . . . waits on something that he has no control over . . . rain.  There are years that farmers suffer through drought and deluge anxiously awaiting a crop to grow.  Farmers can’t predict or guarantee what type of crop they will produce, but they sow seed with confidence and wait knowing that rain will come and “fruit” will grow.  Waiting patiently for the “harvest” of Christ to come is an act of faith, and so we must faithfully sow our lives with confidence expecting that it WILL happen (1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11).

Be patient and steadfast by SOLIDIFYING our expectation of Christ’s return (vs 8-9) – It’s okay to have doubts.  We are particularly susceptible to doubts when there are those around us who ask, “where is the promise of His coming, it’s been over 2000 years and he has still not come?”  Such questions can shake our confidence.  But there is reason to grow all the more firm in our belief that He is coming and that there is a great purpose in His “apparent” delay (2 Peter 3:1-13).  2 Peter 3:9 says, “the Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is PATIENT toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance”.  God is patiently waiting with us!  We dare not wish His patience to come to an end at the expense of those who have not yet repented.  Grow in assurance, the salvation of others is well worth the wait!

Be patient and steadfast by allowing God’s COMPASSION and MERCY to be seen in your life (vs 4-6) – James answers the question that Laura Story sings about in the song “Blessings” when she asks, “what if trials in this life are your mercies in disguise?”  James’ answer to Laura’s rhetorical question is, “yes”.  Just as God used the devastating experiences in Job’s life of losing his children and possessions to show His compassion and mercy, God uses the trials and sufferings in our lives to disprove Satan and put His loving compassion and mercy on display.  While we are waiting there may be seasons when we think we are experiencing God’s wrath, when in reality God is using our suffering to bring greater glory and honor to Himself!

Conclusion:

BE PATIENT (and steadfast), therefore, brothers (and sisters), until the coming of the Lord!

Faith That Works: Riches

Being rich is relative.  Ask most Americans if we would consider ourselves rich and we automatically compare ourselves to someone else who has more than us which allows us to say, “no, I’m not rich”!  We are so immersed in a culture of affluence that we don’t even recognize the extent of our prosperity.  In fact, we’ve come to expect it and believe that we have somehow earned it.  I recently found an interactive website called www.globalrichlist.com where you can enter in your annual income, press a button that says, “show me the money” and it will tell you in what percentage of the richest people you rank in compared to the rest of the world.  I’m sure that many of us are aware that a person only has to make $48,000 per year (which may sound like a lot) and still be in the TOP 1% of the world’s richest people!  I’d say that is a majority of us in America.  We sit on the opposite end of those in the bottom 1% who make $400 per year or less.  The worldwide average annual income is $5000.  These statistics reveal one very simple fact . . . we may not think that we are rich, but compared to the rest of the world . . . we are!

READ:  James 5:1-6

James has already been writing in pretty intense words and tone (James 1:6-7, 22, 2:17, 3:1, 6, 10, 4:4, 16), but I think he hits the climax of his admonition when he addresses the issue of riches.  James gives some harsh warnings to those who are rich . . .

Riches will DETERIORATE and ultimately DESTROY us (vss 2-3a) – Money is known to “burn a hole in your pocket”.  As soon as you possess it, it disappears.  And all the things that we spend it on disappear just as quickly.  All the possessions that we accumulate have a very short life span.  All the time and energy we put into possessing things will eventually rot, be eaten by moths, and corrode (Matthew 6:19-24).  A dangerous and subtle consequence is that the money and possessions that burn a hole in our pockets burn even deeper into our soul and can easily destroy our lives with pride, arrogance, jealousy, greed, and independence from God.  We can avoid the deterioration and destruction of riches by serving God and laying up treasure in heaven.

The Lord will hold us accountable for HOARDING of riches (vs 3b-4) – “What’s mine is mine” is an American attitude that lends itself to an excessive accumulation of riches (Luke 12:13-21).  Hoarding of riches and possessions is really a symptom of a lack of trust in God and a reliance on ourselves to primarily provide for our physical needs.  We busy ourselves accumulating as much as we can in order to anxiously protect ourselves from pain, discomfort, or embarrassment (Matthew 6:25-34).  Such self-protection leaves no room for God to provide for our daily needs of food, shelter, and clothes.  The greatest sin of laying up an abundance of treasure is how it detaches us from our dependence on God. 

 

Excessive riches cause us to NEGLECT and ABUSE those in greatest need(vs 4-6) – While we live in luxury and comfort, there is an entire world that is severely lacking in some of the most basic needs of food, water, clothing, and shelter.  In a sense, by selfishly over-indulging in things BEYOND our basic needs, we are stealing from those who are barely surviving around the world.  Being rich should not be a right we selfishly abuse, but a blessing and a responsibility to care for the needs of the less fortunate around the world.

Conclusion:

READ:  1 Timothy 6:6-10, 17-19  Practical question at this season of the year . . . would you be willing to sacrifice a Christmas gift you were going to receive in order to give some of your riches to someone in need?   I would like you all to personally consider this question and pray about whether it is something you feel God leading you to do.  Continue to pray about this as Christmas approaches and commit to doing whatever God convicts you to do!

Faith That Works: Life

Probably one of the most frequently asked questions in history has been . . . What is the meaning of life?  I have found myself asking that question throughout my life, pondering how I got here, why I am here, why I was born in the life circumstances I am rather than in some much more impoverished existence in another part of the world.  I look around at the world and creation and can’t help but wonder where did this all come from?  Where did it all begin?  The answer to the question “what is your life?” is one that we must all answer for ourselves.  How we answer this question will dictate whether our lives are characterized by arrogance, evil, and waste or humility, righteousness, and purpose.

READ:  James 4:13-17

What do we learn from James about the answer to the question, “WHAT IS YOUR LIFE?”

The future of our life is TOO UNPREDICTABLE for us to plan out (vss 13-14a) – In jr high and high school I thought I had my life pretty well planned out . . . PLAN A = practice and become the greatest athlete I could become, get an athletic scholarship, and pursue an athletic career as far as it would take me.  If that did not work out I had a PLAN B (backup plan) so that if plan A did not work out I would still be able to get a good job . . . use my skills and ability in art, go to college, and get a degree in engineering/architecture.  Plan 3 (God’s plan) = Abandon plan A or B and obediently follow God who had a completely DIFFERENT, and yet perfect, plan for me.  We must all pursue God’s will, life is too uncertain to leave our immediate and eternal future in the hands of our own limited ability, strength, and creativity.

Life is TOO SHORT to waste it on our own selfish/temporary plans (vs 14b) –  According to James, our life, the 75 to 80 years that we have on this earth is like a mist.  We have life on this earth for a moment and then we evaporate into eternity (Psalm 102:3, 11, 103:15; Job 7:7, 14:2; Isaiah 40:6-8; 1 Pet 1:24-25; James 1:10).  This means that our lives are too short to waste.  We all have a physical “expiration date” and we need to use our lives for their intended purposes.  Have you ever found an old can on the shelf that had long expired?  An expired can is good for nothing but to be thrown away and was never able to be used for its intended purpose.  We never know when our lives might expire and so we must get “off the shelf” and quit wasting opportunities to do what God has planned for us by making our own plans and directing our own lives.

Living life doing the right things is TOO IMPORTANT for us to miss the Lord’s will (vss 15-17) – The alternative to sitting on the shelf by making our own plans and directing our own lives is to allow God to dictate the activities and events of our lives.  Jeremiah 29:11 says, “I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Prov. 16:3, 9, 19:21; Romans 12:1-2).  Anytime we reject God’s will, the “right” thing to do, James says we are sinning!  Making our own plans and directing our own lives reveals our greatest problem which is an arrogant, rebellious, and therefore sinful, attitude against God.   Life is too important not to pursue and obediently live out God’s very best.

Conclusion:

If we don’t do the right things that God has purposed for us to do, our lives will be characterized by sin and we will be rebelliously missing out on the best that God has for our lives!  It’s never too late to pursue God’s will for your life.  If you think you have done too much planning and it would be too devastating to turn back now, it is NEVER too late abandon our pursuits and give our lives over to the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God!  What is your life?  I don’t have all the answers about life, but I do know that it is too unpredictable, too short, and too important to live without His input!

Faith That Works: Worldliness

Have you ever declared WAR against another person?  WAR = a period or state of active hostility between two opposing sides.  We may not think so, but we engage in war with others all of the time. Even if the war only lasts a few moments, it is still a war.  Dad and mom say we should be home by 10pm, but we think we should be able to stay out ‘til 11pm . . . so we declare war.  We see a friend/boyfriend/girlfriend spending time with someone else, but we think they should be hanging out with us . . . so we declare war.  We take the chance of trying to make a new friend, but they ignore us . . . so we declare war.  Our coach doesn’t put us on the starting team, and we think we deserve it . . . so we declare war.  God says in His Word that we should not steal, but we think taking a few dollars from a friend’s locker is no big deal . . . so we declare war.  We declare war by INITIATING hostile interaction with another person in an attempt to GET WHAT WE WANT!  Being at war starts in with the selfish, prideful, passions, and desires of the heart and mind and moves to our attitudes, actions, and words!

READ:  James 4:1-12

Who are those that we declare war with and why?

We declare war with OTHERS by pursuing our selfish passions and desires (vs 1-3) – No one has to tell us what we WANT.  WANTING certain things is the most natural desire we have.  Interestingly, we all WANT different things.  But our WANTING is the same.  According to James, there are 3 WANTS that put us in conflict with others.  1)  Our want for personal pleasure (passion, hedonism).  2)  Our strong want for what is morally wrong (desire, lust) 3) Our want to possess what others have (covet).  So, why do these desires put us in conflict with others?  Very simply, when we want what we want, we will fight for it!  When we find ourselves in conflict with others, stop and think about what you are fighting for and why.  If you are fighting for a selfish, prideful, passion, or desire, I have one word of advice . . . STOP.    Take the time to ask God for what He WANTS you to possess in your life!

We declare war with GOD by pursuing friendship with the world (vss 4-5) – Simply by choosing to have a companionship with the world, without even saying a single word, we at the same time declaring war against God.  We position ourselves as enemies of God when we unfaithfully choose the world above Him!  To want any other person or any other thing in the world more than God is spiritual adultery.  God desperately wants us to want Him.  The best way to show God our love and friendship with Him is by doing what HE wants.  In order to do His will we first stop living for what WE want (I John 2:15-17).

It is sad that we find ourselves at war with God and others when the one we should be at war with is the devil! The devil is constantly pushing us toward our passions, pride, and friendship with the world . . . tempting us to start a war with God and with others.  So, how do we fight back? 

We declare war with SATAN by humbly submitting ourselves to God and drawing near to Him (vss 6-8) – In a book titled “Nearness is Likeness” AW Tozer wrote, “the more we are like God, the nearer we are to God.  I may be sitting in my living room with my Siamese cat on my lap, and my wife may be 20 feet away in the kitchen; yet I am nearer to my wife than to the cat because that cat is unlike me.  We have very little in common.”  As we submit ourselves to God and allow Him to conform us into His image we will draw nearer and nearer to Him and further and further away from our enemy the devil.

No one wants to be at war with God and others.  So how do we declare a truce and be at peace?  We can bring the “wars” in our lives to an end by letting go of our passions, pride, and friendship with the world! 

Faith That Works: Wisdom

No one would like to be considered a FOOL.  And yet, I don’t think very many of us have any idea how to be WISE!  We all want to possess wisdom.  Wisdom is hard to come by when we are prideful and arrogant.  Recently our 10 year old son Caleb was convinced in his mind that an event at our church started at 5:00pm.  We told him, “no, it starts at 6:00pm”. He argued with us for a few moments convinced that he was right.  I think, if left to his own wisdom he would have walked to the church to be there at 5:00pm.  It would have been foolish to show up at 5:00pm when it actually started at 6:00pm. This is an insignificant and a simple example of how our own pride and arrogance can get in the way of submitting to an authority who knows and understands MORE than we do.  We often lack wisdom because we are arrogantly convinced that we are right and that there is no greater source of what is right and true than ourselves.

READ:  James 3:13-18

What is wisdom? = The humility to discern God’s perspective in any and every situation and apply it to our lives.  Wisdom is not just being smart or intelligent, in fact, according to Scripture it probably has little or nothing to do with it.  In Proverbs 1:7 we are told that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and discipline”.  True wisdom starts with a humble fear of God.  A humble fear of God begins with a fundamental understanding that He is perfect and we are flawed, He is right and we are wrong, His thoughts are higher than our thoughts and His ways are higher than our ways, and that we are in desperate need of Him to lead in guide us in our attitudes, actions, and words.  When we have this type of fear, reverence, and awe of God, we are in a position to receive and put God’s wisdom to work in our lives!

How do we know whether we possess wisdom?  We can observe whether we, or those around us, have wisdom by the fruit that comes out of our lives.

False wisdom (foolishness) is SELF-RELIANT and SELF-FOCUSED (vs 14-16) – “I can do this myself” is the motto of the fool!  Oh, that hits most every one of us square between the eyes.  Selfish ambition and jealousy reveal something very important about the condition of our heart . . . the things that we are doing (selfish ambition), or would like to be doing (jealousy), are all about ME!  For the fool, living life means having no source of authority above us but ourselves! 

True wisdom GOD-RELIANT and OTHER-FOCUSED (vs 13, 17-18) – If we are going to possess true wisdom it will not come from us but from God who is ABOVE.  In fact, God’s wisdom will often be different and even contradict with what we might think would be wise.  Therefore, in order for us to be wise, we must rely on God through the Holy Spirit to provide us with the mind, the way, and the will of Christ (1 Corinthians 1:18-2:16).  When we receive wisdom from God we can be sure that it will build bridges with other people.  Purity, peaceability, gentleness, open to reason, merciful, good fruits, impartiality, and sincerity are not characteristics that compete or promote ourselves over others, but ones rather that allow us to share life and be at peace with others.  We can be sure that we possess wisdom if the attitudes, actions, and words that come out of our lives promote peace!

CONCLUSION

The greatest way to get wisdom and to discern whether we have wisdom or not is whether we are asking God to give it to us.  James 1:5-8 says, “if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him.  But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.  For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways”.  The phrase, “let him ask” in verse 5 is a command!  We will NOT have wisdom in our lives if we do not possess the humble fear of God to ask Him for it.