Divinely Defined

Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the whole earth. He never becomes faint or weary; there is no limit to his understanding.
(Isaiah 40:28)

The King of Glory is great, and greatly to be praised. Psalmist and prophet alike call this wise King unsearchable. Even so, Scripture plumbs the unknowable perfections of His character and His nature; no one can exhaust its depths; like a hyperdimensional cube—a tesseract—that both exists across time and space yet also defies their laws, there are just too may refractions of His knowledge, wisdom, justice, and grace to catch with the human mind; of His greatness there is no end.

But there are limits to ours.

The kingdom people are defined by the character of their King. The subjects of a good leader of an organization, institution, military, nation, or family will carry their head’s reputation and nature with them as they visit other principalities. So as we leave Wisdom’s house and travel about the world, we do carry Wisdom Himself, marked in our own distinctive way that is suited to our human nature, yet also very different from the wisdom of men.

There is a knowledge and a wisdom that comes from Folly’s house, but it is a grace and a gift from God—borrowed from Wisdom’s house so that our homes, lives, and streets can remain, at the very least, civil and humane. By this borrowed wisdom Folly can at times seem quite wise. But because Folly refuses to bend her knee to true Wisdom, the apostle Paul tells us that this wisdom of the age, be they sage teachers, skilled scientists, generous philanthropists, or even ethical politicians, will ultimately come to nothing lasting beyond this life. Since she can-not enter eternity if she doesn’t recognize ultimate Wisdom, then a borrowed wisdom is all the wisdom that Folly will ever know.

Those who are seasoned in Christ—those who have simmered long and suffered the difficulties and placed their hope and knowledge in Wisdom Himself, know the wisdom that lasts and builds things that no eye has seen or ear heard as yet. Like Jules Verne’s explorers journeying to the center of the earth, passing the strata of civilization to find untold wonders and treasure, the Spirit of God began this journey of discernment and revelation from the foundation of the world. The Wisdom from above has seen the Spirit search its depths in its journey to the center of our hearts, to our intentions, and infused them with a desire for God’s will. And He waits patiently until Wisdom calls and quickens the heart to know that there is much more beyond this world than anything the human eye can see.

Precious gift, this mind of Christ that sees beyond the temporal into the eternal with the eyes of faith and the heart of patience. Just a little while longer, beloved, and all will be made plain.

For who has known the Lord’s mind,
that he may instruct him?
But we have the mind of Christ.
(1 Cor. 2:16)

Wisdom-dwellers apprehend God’s wisdom by His Spirit; it is an in-house affair. Folly-dwellers can never understand the secret joys of the cross or the way of redemption, unless they cross into Wisdom’s house. And though not even Christ’s own will know Him exhaustively, in His mercy He has made it so we can know Him truly.

And that, of course, is the wisdom we most need.