The Path Of The Wise

Eternity Online: John Edmiston (Editor)



Eternity-Inspiration for Thursday 26th  November 1997


The Path Of The Wise

(Ecclesiastes 7:7-12 NIV) Extortion turns a wise man into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart. {8} The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride. {9} Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. {10} Do not say, "Why were the old days better than these?" For it is not wise to ask such questions. {11} Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing and benefits those who see the sun. {12} Wisdom is a shelter as money is a shelter, but the advantage of knowledge is this: that wisdom preserves the life of its possessor.
The path of the wise is narrow in that avoids many things like quick anger, bribery and corruption and extortion. Gangsters thus cannot be wise. They lead lives that have no nourishment in them and they are quickly destroyed. They create a web that slowly but surely entraps them. Someone who knows about their corruption "spills the beans" or in an outburst of anger they do something which irrevocably destroys them. Many "Mafia" types die young, are murdered by rivals or betrayed to police. The wise person walks away from evil.

The path of the wise looks forward not backwards. The wise person is concerned with designing a better world and does not worry overly about what was or what might have been. The wise person knows that saying "things are no good now" solves nothing. It is only as we commence thinking constructively and start designing a future that we will improve. The wise person is heard saying "Things will be better if we.."

The path of the wise thinks of the next generation. Wisdom is like an inheritance. It is passed on down the years from generation to generation and it is very valuable. The family that values wisdom and passes it on is far more likely to be successful than a family that values immediate gratification and instils that in its children. We see families producing missionaries or pastors for generation after generation or musicians or academics and politicians as each kind of wisdom is passed on down the family line. Families are one of the main sources of wisdom and it is hard to acquire wisdom if it is not valued at home. One example that stood out to me was in the area of literacy. The biggest single cause of illiteracy is growing up without books or reading not being valued in the home. As Christians we are to acquire godly wisdom and then carefully instil it in our children. Christian homes should value good character, ethics, the bible, good books, wisdom and knowledge and truth. In Townsville (where I live) nearly all the school captains are born again Christians. Their "inheritance of wisdom' from their Christian homes has made them outshine their peers.

The path of the wise is more secure than the path of the wealthy. Wisdom is a life-saving shelter. Wisdom gives us the ability to make good judgements and good judgements can literally save our lives. Money can be a shelter or refuge but money has the disadvantage of making us envied and vulnerable. Money gives us no moral qualities and riches do not improve one's ability to make good choices which is why so many lottery winners are poor again within 2-5 years. Wisdom however gives a lasting life-saving advantage and will keep saving us from trouble even when our finances have hit rock bottom.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father send Your Holy Spirit into our hearts so that we may know true wisdom from God and walk in the path of the wise forever. For Your glory and our safety. Amen.

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John Edmiston ([email protected])
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