The Gift of Wisdom Part 3

Some people have a spiritual gift of Wisdom. This gift is such that they have inhaled the Word breathed out by God and can use it to direct and assist others in their spiritual lives. All of God’s people have gifts, gifts which differ from person to person. This is only one of them. But it is important for us to be able to recognize such people for they are folks to whom the rest of us should cling tightly. I know I’ve known several people with the gift of wisdom and their advice and counsel has made my life better. Those who can use God’s Word to bring righteousness into the lives of others are a true gift to the Church.

Most of us, however, do not have this particular and special spiritual gift of wisdom. But that does not mean that we cannot become wise in a biblical sense. There really is no excuse for the people of God not to live wisely before the world; for all that we need to do so is right in front of us, it’s no great secret requiring special learning or greater than usual brain power. That was the heresy of the Gnostics. Rather it’s right here in front of us, right here in the Bible. We don’t have to devise a new way of life or seek out some guru on a mountain top. We don’t have to attend college or get some self help book off a shelf. We won’t find out how to live wisely on television. We will find it here in the Word of God that David so praised. Pick up your Bibles and read, that’s it.

We will sometimes hear someone referred to as a theologian and we think of a specially trained individual who has deep knowledge in the ways of God. But that’s not necessarily true. Theology simply means the study of God, and it is a study in which each and every one of us can engage. All of God’s people are, or at least ought to be, theologians. We ought to be people who dedicate our lives to studying what has been revealed to us about the nature of God and about His will for us on this side of eternity.

One of the great gifts handed down to us by the Reformers such as Luther and Calvin is the concept of the priesthood of all believers. The Reformers didn’t make this doctrine up, but they recovered it after centuries in which the concept had receded and the idea that a special group of people called priests were necessary for salvation had grown. Simply put, the priesthood of all believers means that you and I do not need someone else to bring us into relationship with God, Christ has already accomplished that at Calvary We can go directly to Him because He has come directly to us through the Holy Spirit who indwells us even as we indwell Christ. The chosen people of God need neither priest nor saint in heaven to intercede for us for Christ does all the intercession necessary.

But the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers, like all benefits from above, requires something from us—it requires that we be diligent both in seeking wisdom and in living wisely based upon that hagia sophia, that Holy Wisdom that comes down from above and makes us to be full and living witnesses of the truth that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father unto all eternity.

The Laity–A Royal Priesthood

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.  ” 1 Peter 2:9

In medieval times, everyone regarded the monks and nuns, with their religious vows of poverty, chastity and obedience as the truly religious ones.  Lay people were simply out of the running.  Martin Luther thought this was wrong and the verse from 1 Peter bears reinforces this.  Luther maintained that the milkmaid or carpenter was called to serve others in a practical way, and if their work was done to the glory of God, it was as holy as the prayers of the priests.  As with so much of the Christian life, it’s all a matter of attitude.

There’s an old story you may have heard that goes something like this:

“A man came across three masons who were working at chipping chunks of granite from large blocks. The first seemed unhappy at his job, chipping away and frequently looking at his watch. When the man asked what it was that he was doing, the first mason responded, rather curtly, “I’m hammering this stupid rock, and I can’t wait ’til 5 when I can go home.”

”A second mason, seemingly more interested in his work, was hammering diligently and when asked what it was that he was doing, answered, “Well, I’m molding this block of rock so that it can be used with others to construct a wall. It’s not bad work, but I’ll sure be glad when it’s done.”

”A third mason was hammering at his block fervently, taking time to stand back and admire his work. He chipped off small pieces until he was satisfied that it was the best he could do. When he was questioned about his work he stopped, gazed skyward and proudly proclaimed, “I…am building a cathedral!”

As lay people, we have all kinds of work.  We can choose to see it as service to others, and an opportunity to witness;  or we can whine and complain that it’s not very enjoyable.  We can work for the glory of God, or we can work for a paycheck that’s never quite enough.  In our daily lives we meet all kinds of people.  We can see this as an opportunity to serve and witness, or be annoyed because we’re surrounded by those who don’t meet our standards of behavior.

Which mason are you most like?  Do you need to adjust your attitude? You’re part of a royal priesthood.  Remember what you’re building and who you’re really working for.