Transitory Psychosis

What do you have too little of? Ask that question to people and you’re likely to get answers like money, time, sleep, or love. While I can relate on all counts, I’m convinced I have an even greater need: wisdom. I don’t think I’m alone, either.

The book of Proverbs is all about wisdom–how to get it, how to keep it, and how to use it. Interestingly, wisdom is often personified as a woman (“she”) in Proverbs. (Maybe Solomon was trying to tell us something, guys.) Proverbs is clear about the value of wisdom. I won’t take time to write out the verses, but grab a Bible and look at what gaining true wisdom (the kind God gives) will do for you.

1. Wisdom will make you happy (3:13). It will raise the level of joy and satisfaction in your life.
2. Wisdom is more valuable that riches (3:14-15). Nothing compares with it.
3. Wisdom will give you a long life (3:16a).
4. Wisdom will bring you riches and honor (3:16b). These riches are measured in more than money.
5. Wisdom results in pleasantness and peace (3:17). Sin causes turmoil. Wisdom calms the seas.
6. Wisdom gives you courage (3:21-24). That’s because the wise trust God!
7. Wisdom enables you to be victorious (21:22). To the wise, no obstacle is too great.
8. Wisdom brings deliverance (28:26). It sets us free from bondage.

For these reasons and many more, growing in wisdom should be the goal of every believer. So how do you know if you are wise? More about that later…

Matthew Henry

Last night, as I faced a rather thorny biblical passage, I searched several books for an answer. I finally found it in Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments. When I was placing the book back on the shelf I thought once again, “Matthew, my brother, the English-speaking part of the body of Christ owes you a great debt.” Henry died in 1714, nearly three centuries ago. In the providence of God, He left a written work that is still in use today.
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This weekend I read an article from the June/July issue of The Atlantic magazine. The article, “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off,” was written by Sandra Tsing Loh (read it here). The teaser reads, “The author is ending her marriage. Isn’t it time you did the same?”

Forty-seven-year-old Loh chronicles the demise of her 20-year marriage, apparently prompted by her extramarital affair. Early on, she asks, “Why do we still insist on marriage? Sure, it made sense to agrarian families before 1900, when to farm the land, one needed two spouses, grandparents, and a raft of children. But now that we have white-collar work and washing machines, and our life expectancy has shot from 47 to 77, isn’t the idea of lifelong marriage obsolete?”
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It’s happened again today. Someone sent me a question about a Sunday School teacher who is apparently leading his class down the dead-end street of false doctrine. As is most often the case, the class has no curriculum or set direction of study. They simply study whatever strikes the teacher’s fancy. Although the particular teacher in question seems to have a plan of study that extends a few weeks at a time, there is no overall direction or curriculum to follow.

In my experience, this kind of class almost always drifts into falsehood or foolishness. The falsehood usually results from the teacher presenting whatever sounds good to him or her. In most cases, such teachers have no biblical training and they often lead their classes into old lies and misinterpretations that were laid to rest centuries ago. (Such as the so-called “lost” tribes of Israel.)
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Some years ago, when I was pastoring, a man came to my office to tell me how much he disliked me. In no uncertain terms (and a few I wouldn’t repeat), he accused me of breaking up his relationship with his live-in girlfriend. He explained that ever since his lady starting coming to church and studying the Bible their relationship had gone downhill. He complained that she didn’t like to go out drinking anymore, didn’t want to have sex unless they got married, and now wanted him to move out. I gently told him that I wasn’t the problem. She had changed because of a relationship with Christ and the study of the Bible.
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More than once I’ve heard non-Christians refer to Christians as “arrogant.” These individuals resent Christians acting like they have all the answers to life’s questions. To an extent, I’m sympathetic. Some Christians do act that way. Even when a Christian is technically correct in what he or she says, it can be said in such a fashion that you half expect it to conclude with nanny, nanny, boo-boo.
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As a Christian, I don’t depend on archaeology to prove the veracity of the Bible, but I’m always interested when it backs up the biblical account. That’s why a recent story in Focus on the Family’s Pastor’s Weekly Briefing caught my eye.

According to the article, “Artifact Supports Accuracy of Scripture” (July 13, 2007), a small clay tablet that was first unearthed in 1920 near Bagdad has only recently been deciphered. Dating from 595 B.C., during the time that Nebuchadnezzar II ruled in Babylon, this small tablet mentions an official by the name of Nebo-Sarsekim. Interestingly, this same official is referenced in Jeremiah 39:3 as a “prince” of the king of Babylon.

Dr. Michael Jursa of the University of Vienna, one of the few scholars in the world who can read cuneiform script, says the tablet is basically a receipt for a payment of gold to a temple in Babylon. Jursa discovered the tablet amid the British Museum’s collection of more that 100,000 inscribed tablets.

What does this mean? It means that the prophet Jeremiah wrote with detailed accuracy regarding the events of his day, even down to the rather insignificant name of a Babylonian “prince.” Once again, the reliability of the Bible has been demonstrated by archaeological research.

The critics of the Bible are many today. They spout their half-truths and outright lies–often disguised as “entertainment”–in books, movies, music, and websites aimed at young people. Christian youthworkers need to make their groups aware of stories like this one.