The Value of Wisdom

But where can wisdom be found?
    Where does understanding dwell?
No mortal comprehends its worth;
    it cannot be found in the land of the living.
The deep says, “It is not in me”;
    the sea says, “It is not with me.”
It cannot be bought with the finest gold,
    nor can its price be weighed out in silver.

Job 28: 12-15

The Bible calls wisdom, one of the greatest gifts we can discover. It has more valuable than the greatest riches on the planet.

So, what is wisdom?

Perhaps a good way to describe wisdom is knowing what to do; and knowing the right time to do it. As the late Kenny Rogers once sung:

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run

We live in a knowledge economy at the moment. We can literally kind find out whatever we need to know at the tap of a button. However, it is one thing to know things, it is another to know how to best apply what you know. This is the big difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge can be a useful thing to have, but wisdom puts knowledge to its best use.

One of the best examples of wisdom we discover in the Bible comes from Jesus. Jesus seemed to know exactly what to say at the right time. Whether it was facing challenging questions from enemies, or offering hope to people in difficult circumstances, Jesus always seemed to know the right things to do at the right time.

So how well do we cherish wisdom? And how do we go about walking in it? 

We will begin exploring this on Sunday.