~ A Faith That Works ~
James 2.14-26
What is the benefit, my brothers, if someone says that he has faith but does not have works? That faith is not able to save him, is it? If a brother or a sister is poorly clothed and lacking food for the day, and one of you should say to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but does not give them what is necessary for the body, what is the benefit? Thus also faith, if it does not have works, is dead by itself. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe, and shudder! But do you want to know, O foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was working together with his works, and by the works the faith was perfected. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “And Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And likewise was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by a different route? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
James 2.14-26 is the natural conclusion to what James started writing about in this chapter: partiality. Some Jewish Christians were treating other Christians in varying degrees depending upon their social status; James told them, "This is not the Christ-like thing to do!" He went so far as to say that showing partiality was a transgression of God's law, putting them in the same camp as adulterers and murderers. He implored them to show mercy to one another: instead of treating others according to social stratification, they should treat others with mercy, regardless of their social standing or likableness. Now James goes on to point out that true Christian faith can't help but produce a lifestyle of obedience to Jesus; specifically, genuine Christian faith will result in striving to treat others the way God has treated us. There's a lot to this passage of scripture, and we will devote some time to fleshing it out, but it's easy to miss the forest for the trees. James' argument from the beginning of James 2 up to now is a coherent and logical whole: "If you're a Christian, you must show love and mercy to your fellow believers. If you treat them with partiality, you're disavowing the name of the one to whom you profess loyalty; but if you treat your brethren with love and mercy, then you are showing that your faith in Christ is genuine and made of the 'right stuff.'"
In 2 Corinthians 13.5, Paul tells the Corinthians, "Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith. Examine yourselves!" How do we follow Paul's injunction? By looking at our lives! It is possible to delude ourselves; indeed, we do it all the time! In our day and age, it is quite possible to be raised in the church and to profess belief in Christianity without ever truly committing oneself to Jesus. In many parts of the United States, identifying as Christian is a cultural rather than religious phenomenon; we identify as Christians because that's what the people around us do and expect, and we follow suit because we are, at heart, social creatures yearning to conform to the expectations of our heroes and peers. But true faith is more than mental assent; it requires a mental belief in the truth of the gospel message, to be sure, but it goes well beyond mere knowledge. Biblical 'faith in Jesus' is loyalty to Jesus or trusting submission to Jesus. This sort of faith - this 'saving faith' - can do no other than produce obedience to Jesus. This is why Jesus tells us that those who truly love him will obey him; it's why Paul speaks of 'the obedience of faith'; and it's why genuine faith will prove itself in the way we live our lives.
If we are truly committed to Jesus, our obedience to Jesus and the ways of God will be fleshed out in our daily lives. Our 'works' don't save us, but they testify to what is true about us. If we examine ourselves and see a lack of obedience, or even a lack of desire to obey or a lack of effort put towards obedience, then we would do well to question whether our faith in Jesus is genuine or a self-imposed delusion. A faith that doesn't 'work' is a 'dead' faith, and it is the sort of 'faith' that even demons have! The German reformer Martin Luther put it this way: 'If works and love do not blossom forth, it is not genuine faith, the gospel has not yet gained a foothold, and Christ is not yet rightly known.'
I'm reminded of the old adage that 'what we do is who we are.' Jesus says that our actions stem from our hearts. One of the peculiarities of drunkenness is that it reveals who we are: when people get drunk and do things that are 'out of character,' their actions aren't really out of character; rather, drunkenness removes our self-imposed inhibitions, those self-erected barriers that keep us from 'acting out' what goes on in our hearts. In this sense, drunkenness is great at revealing who we are. Jesus says that a good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit; the things we do and say spring forth from our hearts. When we become Christians, we are given new hearts and new spirits; God implants within us a desire to obey him, and he gives us the ability to do so by breaking our enslavement to sin and empowering us with the Holy Spirit. A Christian who does not desire to obey Jesus, and who thus makes no effort to obey him, is a Christian in name only; the metaphysical (or ultimate) reality for him or her has not changed - he or she remains dead in sin because their faith is not the sort of faith God requires and accepts.
James links one's faith with actions in life. He says, 'Do you see that faith was working together with [Abraham's] works, and by works [his] faith was made perfect?' James is saying that Abraham's faith was brought to its end, or its fullness, by his actions. Just as a fruit tree has not arrived at its goal until it bears fruit, faith has not reached its fullness until it demonstrates itself in a righteous life. Putting it another way, James says that we are justified by works and not faith alone. We must grant that this is confusing, because the testimony of scripture is that we are justified by faith and not works. Where does James get off, contradicting scripture?! We must grant that James' wordage is awkward, and we cannot say that we must perform works to be saved. This goes against the entire scope of scripture, in both the Old and New Testaments. When something odd sticks out, our rule is 'let scripture interpret scripture'; by doing this, we know that James absolutely cannot mean that our obedience saves us. What, then, is he saying? Ultimately he's saying the same thing that he said about Abraham's faith, that genuine faith will show itself true - reach its fullness - in our actions. The Greek word he uses for 'justify' has two general meanings; the first meaning pertains to acquittal, to declaring and treating a person as righteous; the second meaning pertains to vindication, or proof of righteousness. James has the second meaning in mind: he's saying that our faith is vindicated, shown true, by our works. This is a thoroughly biblical idea and not at all at odds with salvation by grace through faith apart from works.
We are justified - declared righteous by God - by faith.
Our faith is vindicated - shown true - by our works.
If our works do not vindicate our faith, then something is wrong.
It's really that simple.
On a closing note, the verb tenses James uses indicate a continued lack of works. He isn't saying that if you struggle to obey or screw up a lot, your faith is in jeopardy. He says in the beginning of the next chapter that we all stumble in many ways. The Christian's obedience to Jesus isn't perfect, and it's not a linear progression of sanctification; in other words, our obedience to Jesus, though increasing gradually as we 'grow into Christ' and mature in our faith, will often be marked by highs and lows. This shouldn't discourage us or make us doubt - but if our lives are consistently marked by a refusal to obey, then we should take James' words to heart and examine ourselves. If lacking in faith, we need to remedy the situation.
~ The Power of Words ~
James 3.1-12
Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.
Words have the power to strengthen, encourage, and build up - and they also have the power to weaken, discourage, and hurt. God expects us to be holy in the way that we speak. There are several sinful ways we can talk, and scripture highlights three big ones: gossip, slander, and cursing. Gossip is when we indulge in rumors about others and spread them without any respect for the truth or kindness towards those involved. Slander is when we cut people down with our words, either to their face or behind their backs. Cursing isn't using 'adult words' but verbally calling bad things down on someone. Because words have power, blessing someone means something and, in the inverse, cursing someone means something, as well. None of us are perfect in the way we speak. We are all tempted to gossip, slander, and curse others. James admits that no one is perfect and everyone, including Christians, fails to do what is right. He says that we all 'stumble' in many ways; to stumble is to sin against God. The Greek form of the word James uses emphasizes that everyone is continually failing to do what is right.
But James isn't just telling us to watch what we say: he's pointing out that the way we talk - the way we use our wagging tongues - reflects what's going on in our hearts. Paring this back further, the way we talk is a test of our faith. A person's faith (or lack thereof) is demonstrated by the way a person talks. The tongue, then, is a tattletale that tells on our hearts and discloses who we really are. This is the point James is making in verses 11-12: 'Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.' James is building upon his brother's teaching that our actions disclose the condition of our hearts. His brother Jesus says in Matthew 7.17-20: '[Every] good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.' Later on in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says, 'It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth - this defiles a person.' (Matt 15.11). A few verses later, in vv. 16-19, he says, 'Are you also still without understanding? Do you not understand that everything that enters into the mouth goes into the stomach and is evacuated into the latrine? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these defile the person. For from the heart come evil plans, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, [and] abusive speech.' Jesus' basic idea - which James echoes here - is that the way we live - the choices we make, the things we do, the way we talk - comes from the heart. Those whose hearts love God will tend towards a certain kind of lifestyle; those who do not love God will be bent towards an altogether different way of living.
Why, though, is James so focused on the tongue? The tongue is a specific barometer of our faith. We see this in Romans 3.10-18, an infamous passage wherein the Apostle Paul showcases human depravity by revealing how sin has infected the core of every person. He writes:
"There is none righteous, no, not one;
there is none who understands;
there is none who seeks after God.
They have all turned aside;
they have together become unprofitable;
there is none who does good, no, not one.
Their throat is an open tomb;
with their tongues they have practiced deceit;
the poison of asps is under their lips;
whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.
Their feet are swift to shed blood;
destruction and misery are in their ways;
and the way of peace they have not known.
There is no fear of God before their eyes."
In the text above, Paul established that all people are not only sinners before God but sinful to their core. He shows this by utilizing what's called a gezerah shavah, a Hebrew technique whereby he shows how depravity has affected all the parts of the body. He mentions how peoples' feet are swift to do evil, but he pays particular attention to the way people speak as indicative of our fallen status. In the Bible, the tongue is described as wicked, deceitful, perverse, filthy, corrupt, flattering, slanderous, gossiping, blasphemous, foolish, boasting, complaining, cursing, contentious, sensual, and vile. The tongue is a focal point and vivid indicator of our sinful hearts, and no one is exempt. No wonder, then, that James calls the tongue an 'unruly evil.' The Greek word he uses in verse 8 for 'unstable' refers to a wild animal fighting fiercely against the restraints of captivity; though many wild beasts can be tamed, the tongue cannot be tamed - at least absent the work of God in our hearts, which is exactly what Jesus promises us in the Spirit.
Because Christians are filled with the Spirit, who works inside us to transform our hearts and lives so that we can be obedient to God, Christians are able to mature in self-control and holy talk. Christians ought to be distinct in their talk from other people. This isn't to say that Christians will be perfect in their speech - James actually says the opposite of this! - but it does mean that if we claim to belong to Christ, that claim should be validated by the way we use our tongues.
But James isn't just telling us to watch what we say: he's pointing out that the way we talk - the way we use our wagging tongues - reflects what's going on in our hearts. Paring this back further, the way we talk is a test of our faith. A person's faith (or lack thereof) is demonstrated by the way a person talks. The tongue, then, is a tattletale that tells on our hearts and discloses who we really are. This is the point James is making in verses 11-12: 'Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.' James is building upon his brother's teaching that our actions disclose the condition of our hearts. His brother Jesus says in Matthew 7.17-20: '[Every] good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.' Later on in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says, 'It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth - this defiles a person.' (Matt 15.11). A few verses later, in vv. 16-19, he says, 'Are you also still without understanding? Do you not understand that everything that enters into the mouth goes into the stomach and is evacuated into the latrine? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these defile the person. For from the heart come evil plans, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, [and] abusive speech.' Jesus' basic idea - which James echoes here - is that the way we live - the choices we make, the things we do, the way we talk - comes from the heart. Those whose hearts love God will tend towards a certain kind of lifestyle; those who do not love God will be bent towards an altogether different way of living.
Why, though, is James so focused on the tongue? The tongue is a specific barometer of our faith. We see this in Romans 3.10-18, an infamous passage wherein the Apostle Paul showcases human depravity by revealing how sin has infected the core of every person. He writes:
"There is none righteous, no, not one;
there is none who understands;
there is none who seeks after God.
They have all turned aside;
they have together become unprofitable;
there is none who does good, no, not one.
Their throat is an open tomb;
with their tongues they have practiced deceit;
the poison of asps is under their lips;
whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.
Their feet are swift to shed blood;
destruction and misery are in their ways;
and the way of peace they have not known.
There is no fear of God before their eyes."
In the text above, Paul established that all people are not only sinners before God but sinful to their core. He shows this by utilizing what's called a gezerah shavah, a Hebrew technique whereby he shows how depravity has affected all the parts of the body. He mentions how peoples' feet are swift to do evil, but he pays particular attention to the way people speak as indicative of our fallen status. In the Bible, the tongue is described as wicked, deceitful, perverse, filthy, corrupt, flattering, slanderous, gossiping, blasphemous, foolish, boasting, complaining, cursing, contentious, sensual, and vile. The tongue is a focal point and vivid indicator of our sinful hearts, and no one is exempt. No wonder, then, that James calls the tongue an 'unruly evil.' The Greek word he uses in verse 8 for 'unstable' refers to a wild animal fighting fiercely against the restraints of captivity; though many wild beasts can be tamed, the tongue cannot be tamed - at least absent the work of God in our hearts, which is exactly what Jesus promises us in the Spirit.
Because Christians are filled with the Spirit, who works inside us to transform our hearts and lives so that we can be obedient to God, Christians are able to mature in self-control and holy talk. Christians ought to be distinct in their talk from other people. This isn't to say that Christians will be perfect in their speech - James actually says the opposite of this! - but it does mean that if we claim to belong to Christ, that claim should be validated by the way we use our tongues.
~ Wisdom from Above ~
James 3.13-18
Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
James contrasts two types of wisdom: earthly wisdom (which is also unspiritual and demonic) and heavenly wisdom (the wisdom 'from above'). Before launching into an examination of these contrasting types of wisdom, we must know what wisdom is. The Old Testament wisdom literature (the Book of Job to the Song of Solomon) divides wisdom into two realms: man's and God's. Each approaches wisdom differently. At the heart of wisdom is the question, 'How shall we live?' Wisdom is about living skillfully. The wisdom of man seeks to use truth and cleverness to accomplish one's goals; in this vein, 'wisdom' is manipulative; it's about how one manipulates life by shrewd living to reach one's goals. Politicians are wise with worldly wisdom to lie through their teeth, because doing so will help them attain their political ends. The wisdom from above - or 'godly wisdom' - seeks to live skillfully, but it understands 'wise living' in the context of God and His commands. Godly wisdom answers to a higher authority and approaches wisdom through a higher paradigm. The godly wise person, then, isn't the shrewd manipulator but the one who submits to God and obeys Him. This 'true' wisdom has less to do with factual knowledge than with behavior: wisdom is skill in living righteously.
James asks, 'Who is wise and understanding among you?' The Greek word he uses for 'understanding' can be better translated 'skilled in the art of living'; thus he's asking, 'Who among you is truly wise and skilled in the art of living?' The person who answers 'Me!' should show his wisdom and skill in living by practicing good works (which refers to obedience to God and doing good for others) that are done not for self-seeking ends or self-glorification ('Look how wonderful I am!') but in the 'meekness of wisdom.' Meekness is the opposite of arrogance and self-promotion; the ancient Greeks understood it as 'power under control.' James is saying that those who are truly wise and skilled in living will obey God and follow His will for their lives for the sole purpose of pleasing Him. They don't do good works to look good or as stepping stones to their ultimate personal goals; the wise person practices good works because it is the right thing to do.
This godly kind of wisdom stands in sharp contrast to the wisdom of the world, which harbors 'bitter envy' (a harsh, resentful attitude towards others) and self-seeking hearts. Those whose lives are characterized by bitter envy and self-seeking hearts are rooted in the wisdom of the world, which James identifies as being 'sensual' (in that it is rooted in one's basest desires) and 'demonic' (in that it is promoted by those spiritual powers opposed to God and His kingdom). When this warped type of wisdom is practiced, the fruit isn't 'skillful living' but confusion and moral chaos. An illustration of this would be the fanatical pro-choice movement when it comes to the subject of abortion. Earthly wisdom says that women have every right to make choices for their bodies, even to the point of killing unborn children growing inside them. The root of this conviction is that women should not have their lives dictated by others, but this earthly wisdom also means that children - who are human - can be exterminated at another person's behest. Earthly wisdom wants people to be jailed for not feeding their dogs the highest nutritional dog food while it praises the murder of children. This is the sort of wisdom that leads to confusion and chaos. Heavenly wisdom, however, is of a different caliber altogether. James says that godly wisdom is pure (morally right), peaceable (in that it produces harmony rather than conflict), and gentle. The gentle person will submit to all kinds of mistreatment and difficulty with an attitude of kind, courteous, patient humility without any thought of hatred or revenge. James says heavenly wisdom is willing to yield; the Greek term he uses describes someone who is teachable, compliant, easily persuaded, and who willingly submits to military discipline or moral and legal standards. For believers, this defines obedience to God's standards. Those who are wise from above are merciful to others and show impartiality; such a person is consistent, unwavering, and undivided in his commitment and conviction and doesn't make unfair distinctions. Those who have this kind of wisdom show it in the 'fruit of righteousness,' which is holy living and obedience to God's commands.
We have, then, two kinds of wisdom: earthly and heavenly. Earthly wisdom is characterized by self-seeking patterns of behavior, conflict among people, and bitter envy. It produces confusion and moral chaos. Heavenly wisdom is characterized by holiness and obedience to God. Keeping in mind that wisdom is about living skillfully, we can look at 'godly wisdom' from a different angle: godly wisdom results in good behavior and obedience to God, but it is also more than that. The ancient Greek philosophers, in their pursuit of wisdom, identified as wisdom as the steps taken to lead a fully flourishing human life. Various philosophical schools - such as the Epicurians and the Stoics - sought to answer the same question in different ways: 'What is the best way for humans to get the most out of life while being true to human nature?' Heavenly wisdom seeks to answer the very same question, and the answer given in the Bible helps us understand what 'right living' is all about. The Bible teaches that we are created in God's image. This means that God commissioned us to be His standard-bearers, those who advance His word and rule through the world. As His image-bearers, we are to live a certain way, namely the way He designed us to live. When we make our own wants and desires key in our hearts, we're sinning because we're failing to live as God designed us to live; when we live according to our own twisted moral codes, we're sinning because we're not living according to God's design. Sin is basically 'missing the mark,' and it means missing the mark not only of God's standards but also, on a deeper level, of missing the mark of true human living. When Jesus died on the cross and was raised from the dead, he not only enabled us to be forgiven of the guilt of our sins but also defeated evil so that the chains that bind to sub-human (or sinful) living are undone. We are filled with God's Spirit who empowers us to obey God. Much of the Christian life is about getting back into the rhythm of who God created us to be. We're learning the rhythms of relationship with God, of expanding His kingdom, of holy (or truly human) living. Ultimately we're learning how to be human again, as God created humans to be, and when we're given 'resurrection bodies' in the coming new heavens and new earth, we will be fully what God intended us to be from the start. In the here and now we're moving that direction, but we're not there yet. All this is to say that the 'wisdom from above' is the wisdom that guides us into a lifestyle fitting for human beings. Because God created us as humans and designed us to live a certain way, 'wise living' - or living in accordance with the reality of who we are as God's creatures - is the true path to fully flourishing human living. It is the answer to Greek philosophy, and this is what the Bible's getting at when we're told that we have 'liberty' in Christ. Woodrow Wilson captured the spirit of this liberty when he wrote:
In the same vein as Wilson perceives, human liberty isn't found in anarchy, isolation, or self-autonomy; rather, it is found in being in rhythm - perfectly adjusted - with what it means to be truly human as God's created image-bearers. True human liberty is found when we first acknowledge that we were designed for a purpose and to live a certain way then when we adjust our interests, activities, and energies around that reality. True liberty is found when we acknowledge that we are created by God for His purposes and submit ourselves wholeheartedly to His design. When we do this, we are on the road to the fully flourishing human life. This isn't just smart: it's wise.
James asks, 'Who is wise and understanding among you?' The Greek word he uses for 'understanding' can be better translated 'skilled in the art of living'; thus he's asking, 'Who among you is truly wise and skilled in the art of living?' The person who answers 'Me!' should show his wisdom and skill in living by practicing good works (which refers to obedience to God and doing good for others) that are done not for self-seeking ends or self-glorification ('Look how wonderful I am!') but in the 'meekness of wisdom.' Meekness is the opposite of arrogance and self-promotion; the ancient Greeks understood it as 'power under control.' James is saying that those who are truly wise and skilled in living will obey God and follow His will for their lives for the sole purpose of pleasing Him. They don't do good works to look good or as stepping stones to their ultimate personal goals; the wise person practices good works because it is the right thing to do.
This godly kind of wisdom stands in sharp contrast to the wisdom of the world, which harbors 'bitter envy' (a harsh, resentful attitude towards others) and self-seeking hearts. Those whose lives are characterized by bitter envy and self-seeking hearts are rooted in the wisdom of the world, which James identifies as being 'sensual' (in that it is rooted in one's basest desires) and 'demonic' (in that it is promoted by those spiritual powers opposed to God and His kingdom). When this warped type of wisdom is practiced, the fruit isn't 'skillful living' but confusion and moral chaos. An illustration of this would be the fanatical pro-choice movement when it comes to the subject of abortion. Earthly wisdom says that women have every right to make choices for their bodies, even to the point of killing unborn children growing inside them. The root of this conviction is that women should not have their lives dictated by others, but this earthly wisdom also means that children - who are human - can be exterminated at another person's behest. Earthly wisdom wants people to be jailed for not feeding their dogs the highest nutritional dog food while it praises the murder of children. This is the sort of wisdom that leads to confusion and chaos. Heavenly wisdom, however, is of a different caliber altogether. James says that godly wisdom is pure (morally right), peaceable (in that it produces harmony rather than conflict), and gentle. The gentle person will submit to all kinds of mistreatment and difficulty with an attitude of kind, courteous, patient humility without any thought of hatred or revenge. James says heavenly wisdom is willing to yield; the Greek term he uses describes someone who is teachable, compliant, easily persuaded, and who willingly submits to military discipline or moral and legal standards. For believers, this defines obedience to God's standards. Those who are wise from above are merciful to others and show impartiality; such a person is consistent, unwavering, and undivided in his commitment and conviction and doesn't make unfair distinctions. Those who have this kind of wisdom show it in the 'fruit of righteousness,' which is holy living and obedience to God's commands.
We have, then, two kinds of wisdom: earthly and heavenly. Earthly wisdom is characterized by self-seeking patterns of behavior, conflict among people, and bitter envy. It produces confusion and moral chaos. Heavenly wisdom is characterized by holiness and obedience to God. Keeping in mind that wisdom is about living skillfully, we can look at 'godly wisdom' from a different angle: godly wisdom results in good behavior and obedience to God, but it is also more than that. The ancient Greek philosophers, in their pursuit of wisdom, identified as wisdom as the steps taken to lead a fully flourishing human life. Various philosophical schools - such as the Epicurians and the Stoics - sought to answer the same question in different ways: 'What is the best way for humans to get the most out of life while being true to human nature?' Heavenly wisdom seeks to answer the very same question, and the answer given in the Bible helps us understand what 'right living' is all about. The Bible teaches that we are created in God's image. This means that God commissioned us to be His standard-bearers, those who advance His word and rule through the world. As His image-bearers, we are to live a certain way, namely the way He designed us to live. When we make our own wants and desires key in our hearts, we're sinning because we're failing to live as God designed us to live; when we live according to our own twisted moral codes, we're sinning because we're not living according to God's design. Sin is basically 'missing the mark,' and it means missing the mark not only of God's standards but also, on a deeper level, of missing the mark of true human living. When Jesus died on the cross and was raised from the dead, he not only enabled us to be forgiven of the guilt of our sins but also defeated evil so that the chains that bind to sub-human (or sinful) living are undone. We are filled with God's Spirit who empowers us to obey God. Much of the Christian life is about getting back into the rhythm of who God created us to be. We're learning the rhythms of relationship with God, of expanding His kingdom, of holy (or truly human) living. Ultimately we're learning how to be human again, as God created humans to be, and when we're given 'resurrection bodies' in the coming new heavens and new earth, we will be fully what God intended us to be from the start. In the here and now we're moving that direction, but we're not there yet. All this is to say that the 'wisdom from above' is the wisdom that guides us into a lifestyle fitting for human beings. Because God created us as humans and designed us to live a certain way, 'wise living' - or living in accordance with the reality of who we are as God's creatures - is the true path to fully flourishing human living. It is the answer to Greek philosophy, and this is what the Bible's getting at when we're told that we have 'liberty' in Christ. Woodrow Wilson captured the spirit of this liberty when he wrote:
I have long had an image in my mind of what constitutes liberty. Suppose that I were building a great piece of powerful machinery, and suppose that I should so awkwardly and unskillfully assemble the parts of it so that every time one part tried to move, it would be interfered with by the others, and the whole thing would buckle up and just be checked. Liberty for the several parts would consist in the best possible assembly and adjustment of them all, would it not? If you want the great piston of the engine to run with absolute freedom, give it absolutely perfect alignment and adjustment with the other parts of the machine, so that it is free, not because it is let alone or isolated, but because it has been associated most skillfully and carefully with the other parts of the great structure.
What is liberty? You say of the locomotive that it runs free. What do you mean? You mean that its parts are so assembled and adjusted that friction is reduced to a minimum, and that it has perfect adjustment. We say of a boat skimming the water with light foot, 'How free she runs,' when we mean, how perfectly she is adjusted to the force of the wind, how perfectly she obeys the great breath out of the heavens that fills her sails. Throw her head up into the wind and see how she will halt and stagger, how every sheet will shiver and her whole frame be shaken, how instantly she is 'in irons,' in the expressive phrase of the sea. She is free only when you have let her fall off again and have recovered once more her nice adjustment to the forces she must obey and cannot defy. Human freedom consists in perfect adjustments of human interests and human activities and human energies.
In the same vein as Wilson perceives, human liberty isn't found in anarchy, isolation, or self-autonomy; rather, it is found in being in rhythm - perfectly adjusted - with what it means to be truly human as God's created image-bearers. True human liberty is found when we first acknowledge that we were designed for a purpose and to live a certain way then when we adjust our interests, activities, and energies around that reality. True liberty is found when we acknowledge that we are created by God for His purposes and submit ourselves wholeheartedly to His design. When we do this, we are on the road to the fully flourishing human life. This isn't just smart: it's wise.
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