Pastor Jonathan Spencer’s Wisdom
Last Sunday, Pastor Jonathan’s message set my feet to dancing and my heart to singing God’s praises. His sermon was on wisdom—a subject we all should embrace.
The Apostle James speaks about true wisdom and fake wisdom, getting right to the heart of the matter in James 3:13: “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.” Don’t we wish our political candidates would take a lesson in humility and wisdom?
Pastor Jonathan pointed out the complete lack of wisdom in the “my way or the highway” mindset. He said, “Fake wisdom brings trouble. Fake wisdom is allowing men to compete in women’s sports. It’s disorder. It’s why babies are being killed inside the womb. False wisdom in marriages creates chaos in the home. False wisdom is letting children lead their parents and in financial management, causing impulsive purchases that sacrifice long-term dreams for short-term satisfaction.”
There’s a better way. God doesn’t want our lives to be in chaos. James 3:17 says, “The wisdom from above is peaceable, gentle, full of mercy and good fruits.”
True wisdom is open to mercy, compassionate, impartial, and serves everyone. It’s sincere, authentic, and becomes like Jesus. True wisdom is transformational. True wisdom produces peace.
A couple of weeks ago, Pastor Jonathan took a group to Greece to follow in the footsteps of the Apostle Paul. It was his first time on a cruise ship. Apprehensive and nervous, he thought, “If I get car sick on Hwy 2222, how will I survive the rocking of the ship?”
People told him, “You won’t feel the waves,” but he decided to ensure his health by visiting Walgreens before the trip. He bought Dramamine, anti-nausea medicine, anti-drowsy medicine, the patch, wrist band, and gum—just in case.
On Day 1, he felt the waves. He said, “My friends lied!” Ultimately, Dramamine was not the cure. But he said, “What made it all go away was getting off that ship and onto solid ground!” Wisdom!
Aw, wisdom. Are you tired of the rancor and chaos coming from the media? Are you weary of doing things your own way? James says the solution is to stand on solid ground.
He encourages us to get off that rocky boat and return to the solid ground of Jesus to make us more like Him. God desires that kind of peace for us. It’s all available for us to walk in humility and peace—on solid ground!