Daily Devotions
When I was young, I read the Bible, and I was very impressed by all the places where God urges people to ask for wisdom. Proverbs 3 was one of those places. It reads, “Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than the gain from silver and her profit better than gold. She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace” (Proverbs 3:13-17). That sounded really good to me; so I asked God for wisdom, and I’ve never regretted it. It’s kept me out of a huge amount of trouble.
Later, when my family started working in the church, I got a close-up look at what happens when people don’t have wisdom—the train wrecks that happened in their lives. So much drama, all the time—people getting involved with the wrong people, and losing their marriages and children. People making bad decisions that ended up with addiction, dead-end jobs, life-destroying debt, ruined reputations. I kept wanting to yell, “Stop! Stop it right now! Go home and take a nap before you say one more word! Get your head on straight!”
In today’s reading, God is doing the exact same thing. He’s calling anybody, everybody, to Himself. “Come and get My wisdom!” He pleads. “It won’t cost you a dime. Come, and you will live!”
God is talking about more than just giving us common sense, priceless as that is. He’s talking about His own Son Jesus, “Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24b).
When you live in a world darkened by foolishness and stupidity and downright evil, Jesus shines with an extraordinary light. Now there’s Someone who knows what matters most, and goes straight for it. He loves God the Father, and follows Him wholeheartedly. And He loves us—loves us so much—that He reaches into our dark, foolish, messed-up lives, and pulls us to Himself. He becomes our Savior, even laying down His life for us on the cross. He gets us out of our messes at the cost of His own blood. And now that He has risen from the dead, He is calling us to receive His gifts of life: “Come, eat of My bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways, and live!”
THE PRAYER: Lord, give me Your gifts forever. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions:
1. Tell about a time when wisdom kept you from making a foolish mistake.
2. How can people become truly wise?
3. Why do you think the Bible refers to Jesus as the wisdom of God?