Articles
A Worthwhile Education
In a good portion of the world, an education is often a pathway to a better life. A degree from the right school of higher learning can sometimes lead to a job or career that provides enough income to potentially live better than previous generations, money to donate to family or causes we support, and maybe even with some left over to save for a comfortable retirement. But education can also lead to a more fulfilling life, too, just by learning about things we might not ever have thought about or could even imagine. To say the least, an education is often very beneficial.
But one does not necessarily need to go to a school of higher learning [college or university] to gain an education. Many people learn by apprenticeships or by the old OJT [on-the-job-training]. Many have followed such a path and gained the same financial benefits as those with college degrees, and actually were able to work in a career more suited to their personal desires and abilities, without going into massive debt. Regardless of the means of education, many people benefit from education, and some [like me] never quit learning.
The wise writer had something to say about education, too — words worth hearing and heeding, if we would take a few minutes to consider those words. His words are, in fact, a means to education in itself — if we desire it.
For example, he wrote, “A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel” (Prov. 1:5). He also wrote, “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a just man, and he will increase in learning” (Prov. 9:9). Throughout the book of Proverbs, the wise writer repeatedly contrasts the wise with the fool and, many times, the biggest difference is the simple fact one wanted to learn [the wise] and the other did not [the fool]. That truth still stands today, and will be true until time ends; those who don’t want to learn will, necessarily, remain ignorant. This is not a good thing, especially when we consider that the wisdom the wise writer admonishes us to seek is the wisdom that comes not from other men, but from God.
The Wisdom of God. Someone once said that knowledge is good, but wisdom is better. Wisdom is better because it takes that knowledge gained and uses it — and uses it properly. And when it comes to knowledge, man cannot compare with the knowledge God has, for His is essentially complete and maybe better described as infinite. The Scriptures tell us, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Rom. 11:33). Indeed, the wisdom and knowledge really cannot be measured, for we have nothing that could truly compare! To this end, the psalmist reminds us, “Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite” (Psa. 147:5).
Now, obviously, since God’s wisdom is “infinite,” He has not revealed everything to mankind, and neither has man discovered everything God already knows. [Remember that: Whatever man discovers is something God already knew!] But, what God has revealed is something we need to know, and it is for our good. When God gave His law to the Israelites, for example, Moses told the people, “the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always” (Deut. 6:24). And, since He did not reveal everything, some might wonder about those “unrevealed” things; but we are reminded, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law” (Deut. 29:29). This principle is still true today, for those things revealed to man within the New Testament can still be said to be “for our good” and were given “that we may do all the words of” the New Testament of Jesus Christ.
The Wisdom We Must Seek. Knowing that God has revealed the things for our good, and things have been given that we might keep His commandments, we might then ask, “To what end?” That is not an unfair question, for He does not ask us to blindly follow anything or anyone; in fact, He wants us to investigate His words and even investigate and question Him. He wants us to consider His existence, His works, and His character. After we do that, we can then consider the words He has revealed to us for our good, and those commandments, and we can know that they are indeed for our good!
It is for that reason we must seek the wisdom that comes from God, for man has no ‘wisdom’ that can benefit us as does God’s wisdom. It is God’s wisdom revealed to us that tells us we are in sin, but that wisdom also reveals to us a means of obtaining His forgiveness and receiving the eternal reward in heaven with Him. What man could have ever imagined, let alone provided, what God has provided? Remember, this is the God “who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20). He can do — and has done — many things that are simply beyond our capability to even imagine, and for that we should be thankful and then seek after His wisdom diligently.
It is with this in mind we go to the wise writer once again, for he tells us, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Prov. 1:7). A deep and reverent respect for God is just the beginning of knowledge and, not surprisingly, men reveal themselves to be fools when they despise the knowledge of the spiritual things that God has revealed to us. We are the ultimate fool if we think we can reject God’s wisdom and still please Him or still get to heaven. While men delve into human wisdom in the hopes of finding wealth or power or achieving greatness, the wise writer reminds us to seek after God’s wisdom, “For wisdom is better than rubies, and all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her” (Prov. 8:11). God’s wisdom will take you much further and benefit you infinitely more than any human wisdom or anything at all.
But let us be warned: “A scoffer seeks wisdom and does not find it, but knowledge is easy to him who understands” (Prov. 14:6). If we have disdain for God’s wisdom, we will never find it; just like a thief will never seem to find a policeman! We may have heard of those noble Bereans who “searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether” the things Paul were true (Acts 17:11), but let us note that they were noble because they first “received the word with all readiness” — they were prepared to hear the truth, and prepared to search for it and find it. They wanted to hear and to know the truth! Unfortunately, it is common today to find people who are very wise in their own opinions, and will gladly cite those ‘experts’ who agree with them, while ignoring and belittling those who disagree. That is what might be best called “educated ignorance.” [Educated in only the things that are personally agreeable, while purposefully ignorant of the things we dislike.]
So, whose wisdom do we seek? What kind of “education” do we value most? While some spend a good number of their lives gaining education in the hopes of some future benefit, friends and brethren, the most worthwhile education you could ever possibly gain is the wisdom that comes from God, for its benefits are eternal!
Wisdom! — Steven Harper
