Training in Wisdom
Tim Keller | September 19, 2004
Overview
Wisdom can be defined as: competence with regard to the complex realities of life. It has to do with understanding a particular situation and then knowing the right thing to do. For example, you might decide you really want to help a poor family to get out of poverty. That’s a noble thing, but you could do it in a way that actually ruins the family. You need to be conversant with the complexity of the realities of how things work in the world.
It’s not good enough to be a person of vision or of moral values if you’re not a person of wisdom. For most of the decisions you have to make, there are multiple permissible options and wisdom is the ability to know what the right thing is. So how do we develop wisdom? Today we’re going to look at 1) the path of wisdom, 2) the process of wisdom, and 3) the man off the mountain.
Outline
Proverbs 3:1–12; 30:1–4
Wisdom is key to making good choices and dealing with life’s challenges. It involves daily habits and gradual growth. It’s important to know God, understand yourself, your friends, God’s way of doing things, and to see problems in the right light. Our society often looks for instant solutions, but gaining wisdom takes time and patience. The cross is the greatest source of wisdom and the answer to our pain.
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