by Doy Moyer<\/p>\n
Scripture shows that God’s concerns are not just for what is technically good or bad, right or wrong, allowed or disallowed. We could argue over what is technically sinful or not, but that’s essentially a legalistic approach that misses the essential element of wisdom, especially in matters that are not explicitly given. Of course, we need to know what Scripture says about right and wrong, but God’s intent was not just to provide a list of do’s and don’ts. He wants us to learn how to think. He wants us to know principles by which we make wise decisions that glorify Him. It’s not just about what we can do legally but what we should do in any given situation that would glorify Him.<\/p>\n
If we push what a text technically says but don’t consider how to apply it with wisdom, we’ve lost the spirit of what God wants from us. We must discern good from evil as we mature in Christ (Hebrews 5:12-14). Something might not technically be wrong, but a lack of wisdom in application could be disastrous.<\/p>\n
Wisdom is a way of living, a learned skill in what it means to serve the Lord. We cannot reduce that to a mere list. This is one reason why reading a book like Proverbs regularly is vital. Through it, we learn discernment. “To know wisdom and instruction, to discern the sayings of understanding…<\/em>” We can learn to walk in wisdom (Ephesians 5:15-17; Colossians 4:5-6; Matthew 10:16).<\/p>\n “The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; and with all your acquiring, get understanding<\/em>” (Proverbs 4:7).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Doy Moyer Scripture shows that God’s concerns are not just for what is technically good or bad, right or wrong, allowed or disallowed. We could argue over what is technically sinful or not, but that’s essentially a legalistic approach that misses the essential element of wisdom, especially in matters that are not explicitly given.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[1119,730],"class_list":["post-69330","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-discernment","tag-wisdom"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":69397,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/acquiring-wisdom\/","url_meta":{"origin":69330,"position":0},"title":"Acquiring Wisdom","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 19, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer Scripture shows that God's concerns are not just for what is technically good or bad, right or wrong, allowed or disallowed. We could argue over what is technically sinful or not, but that's essentially a legalistic approach that misses the essential element of wisdom, especially in matters\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":82240,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-does-godly-wisdom-require\/","url_meta":{"origin":69330,"position":1},"title":"What Does Godly Wisdom Require?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 19, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer Living in any given culture and time requires the wisdom and will to be what we should be for the Lord. Serving the Lord is not just about obeying a few commandments. Rather, it is a lifelong commitment to be faithful, loyal, and true to the end\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16703,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-i-know-if-im-doing-what-god-wants-me-to-do\/","url_meta":{"origin":69330,"position":2},"title":"How do I know if I’m doing what God wants me to do?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 30, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: How do I know if what I am doing is what God wants me to do? I don't know if I should do what I want to do or what others want me to do. Above all, I don't know if what I am doing is right or wrong.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12946,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/if-youre-praying-for-something-and-believe-you-have-received-it-what-if-its-not-what-god-wants\/","url_meta":{"origin":69330,"position":3},"title":"If you’re praying for something and believe you have received it, what if it’s not what God wants?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 27, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I'm curious to know about some Bible verses I've heard. Well, I heard a Bible verse that said something like: \"Therefore, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe you have received it, and it will be yours\" The thing I don't understand is, is that people say God wants\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33401,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/becoming-wise-men\/","url_meta":{"origin":69330,"position":4},"title":"Becoming Wise Men","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 17, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Steven Harper When Job had suffered some great losses due to the devil's personal attack on him,\u00a0we are told\u00a0\"when Job's three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":21156,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-gods-will-for-me-part-3-the-basis-for-decisions\/","url_meta":{"origin":69330,"position":5},"title":"What is God\u2019s Will for Me? Part 3: The Basis for Decisions","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 12, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Deuteronomy 10:12-14 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Numerous people are convinced, through repeated teachings, that there is a specific plan that God has for each person\u2019s life \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0You would think that would make life easier. 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