Topic - Wisdom & Knowledge
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:33-36 - NASB)
And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD. (Isaiah 11:2 - KJV)
My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of GOD, namely, Christ, in Whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (Colossians 2:2,3 - NIV)
But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. (James 3:17 - NASB)
But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. (1 John 2:20 - ESV)
What’s the difference between wisdom and knowledge?
Sometimes in the Bible they are almost interchangeable. But generally knowledge
is awareness of facts and wisdom is awareness of how to use those facts for
good goals.
God’s knowledge is unfathomably deep. He knows everything
about everything. He knows things that we as mankind can't even conceive such
as infinity.
Not only God’s knowledge but also God’s wisdom is
unfathomably deep. God is infinitely wise. That is, He has always been able to
conceive and carry out plans that have good goals and that make use of all that
knowledge to bring to pass what He purposes. He knows how to use all the facts
of the universe and guide all the events of the universe to achieve the best
end, namely, the salvation of His beloved creation, mankind.
"All the treasures of this wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ Jesus" (Colossians 2:3). Christ is the Creator of all created reality: “All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). And Christ is the sustainer of all created reality. “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:17). And all created reality is for the sake of making Christ known and loved: “all things were created . . . for Him” (Colossians1:16 ).
† Therefore, all knowledge and all wisdom and all riches originate in Him, and are held in existence by Him, and are for the purpose of making Him known. Therefore, Christ Jesus is the final and ultimate meaning of all reality.
Knowledge, Understanding and Wisdom
For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. (Proverbs 2:6 - KJV)
To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:8 - NIV)
Scripture often uses the words knowledge, understanding,
and wisdom interchangeably, but occasionally they are spoken of as separate and
distinct. Thus, it may be useful to attempt to define the differences of
meaning.
Knowledge is the facts. Understanding is the ability to lift
the meaning out of the facts, and Wisdom is knowing what to do next. Since God
rarely gives all three gifts to any person, we need to cooperate and assist
each other with our particular gift--in this, as in every area.
Knowledge | Understanding | Wisdom |
---|---|---|
Facts | Meaning | What to Do Next |
Information | Principles | Application |
Memory | Reason | Action |
Scholars | Teachers | Prophets |
Those with knowledge are able to collect, remember, and access information. They "know" the Scriptures. God's word is literally "in them". They are scholars. But, it is possible to have knowledge and lack understanding and wisdom; to have the facts, but have no clue as to the meaning or what to do next.
Those with understanding are able to abstract the meaning out of information. They "see through" the facts to the dynamics of what, how, and why. They are teachers. Understanding is a lens which brings the facts into crisp focus. Understanding produces "rules of thumb" or principles.
Those with wisdom know which principle to apply now. Understanding without wisdom can appear contradictory. For example, "He who hesitates is lost", is a valid principle as well as: "Haste makes waste". We see the truth of both. But which should we apply next? Those with wisdom know what to do next; they know which way to go. They do the right thing. In contrast, there are many who have great knowledge and understanding, but consistently do the wrong thing. Wisdom, in this sense, is the goal, and knowledge and understanding only have eternal value as they result in wisdom, or what we end up doing.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, Who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him. (James 1:5 - ESV)
† If you want to begin a relationship with God now, you can.
God views your relationship with Him as permanent. Referring to all those who believe in Him, Jesus Christ said of us, "I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand (John 10:27-30)."
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Special Thanks
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Thank You and GOD Bless,
Joel