Wisdom & Discernment

The world is a confusing place. Before sin entered the system back in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had only one moral choice to make. God had commanded them not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil; it was the only thing forbidden to them in all of Creation. (See Genesis 1-3.) Once they sinned and betrayed God by violating that command, they were bombarded with countless moral choices, as is every human being since. In a world now full of moral choices and fraught with sin, it is crucial for those who follow Christ to discern between good and bad, truth and error, holy and unholy.

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:9-11)

Tragically, such discernment is often conspicuously lacking among those who claim to follow Christ.

One would be quite hard-pressed to find a book of the Bible—or even a reasonably large passage—that does not relate to discernment, since the very nature of faith and obedience requires assessment and decision between competing truth claims and moral alternatives. Discernment is intertwined and nearly synonymous with wisdom, and the importance of wisdom to the people of God is everywhere in the Bible, not merely in the parts classified as “wisdom literature”. Nevertheless, wisdom or discernment are not often primary qualities people might think of when describing the church, nor do they tend to be high on the list of things people look for when selecting a local church. Though a primary focus of the Bible, few Christians seem to devote significant time and effort to discerning between true and false teaching or whether a particular entertainment choice (or activity or teaching or friendship or song) promotes holiness or worldliness.

The call to wisdom—the ability to discern right from wrong and apply truth in pursuit of living wholeheartedly for the Lord—is clear and unambiguous in God’s Word. Our pursuit of wisdom, like our pursuit of holiness, is a key element of reflecting God’s glory in the reality of Christ. To receive Christ by faith, we must discern whether the Gospel message is true and trustworthy. To walk with Him by faith, we must constantly evaluate our path and decide which steps will honor our Lord, build our faith, and strengthen His Church. Living wisely for Christ will require three foundational things: a desire for wisdom, a knowledge of wisdom, and a submission to wisdom.

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. (Proverbs 4:7)

…(F)or wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her. (Pr. 8:11)

How much better it is to acquire wisdom than fine gold! And to acquire understanding is to be chosen above silver. (Pr. 16:16)

The first foundational element of becoming wise is the choice to seek wisdom. Discernment requires effort; connecting the reality of God to the realities of life takes diligence and intentionality. We must choose to test everything. While some individuals may be more or less gifted in the area of discernment, there is no accidental wisdom. It must be pursued, sought, worked for. In simply following our hearts, which are naturally driven by sinful human nature, we will elevate our own understanding over trusting the Lord (Prov. 3:5-6), inevitably leading us into folly, pride, and disobedience. Wisdom is not merely amassed; it must be applied. Those who fail to desire wisdom as worthy of pursuit above all other things will not pay the price required to obtain and apply it.

Your commands are always with me    and make me wiser than my enemies.I have more insight than all my teachers,    for I meditate on your statutes.I have more understanding than the elders,    for I obey your precepts. (Psalm 119:98-100)

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2)

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4)

For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. (1 Corinthians 1:25)

Living wisely for Christ necessitates diligent study of and meditation on the Scriptures (Ps. 1:1-2, 119:97-104). This is the Psalmist’s description of the blessed man, in contrast to the ungodly (Ps. 1). It is why Luke’s Gospel describes the Berean believers as especially noble (Acts 17:11); they were commended for testing Paul’s message against their diligent study of the Scriptures. A knowledge of the Bible as the source of true wisdom is the second foundational element for becoming wise.

The devil is the father of lies. He makes lies seem like truth and evil seem like good. When we lean on our own understanding rather than the wisdom of God’s revealed Word, we make ourselves easy prey for the lion-like deceiver who seeks to devour us (1 Peter 5:8). Our own hearts, naturally bent toward sin, will readily deceive us, because the natural heart is deceitful and desperately sick, unwilling and unable to submit to the Lord (Jeremiah 17:9, Ro. 8:7).

Real wisdom is found in the truth of God’s Word. God is perfect in wisdom; wisdom and understanding belong to Him. (Job 12:13) If the fear of the Lord (reverent awe and submission to His authority) is the beginning of wisdom (Ps. 111:10; Pr. 1:7, 9:10), then a thorough understanding of God’s revelation of Himself and His will in the Bible is central to acquiring that wisdom. It is the renewing of the mind with the Word that allows the Holy Spirit to transform us from within so that we can discern God’s perfect will.

People of truth serving the God of truth in a world of error must be diligent about recognizing which is which.

Human beings tend to follow our own understanding, but our knowledge is always limited and our hearts and minds corrupted by sin. The corruption of sin blinds our natural thinking to the truth. We must use the Word to renew our minds in order to rightly discern truth from error, good from evil, and sound doctrine from deception.

But wisdom is proved right by all her children. (Luke 7:35)

Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. (Matthew 7:24)

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32)

But test everything; hold fast what is good. (1 Thessalonians 5:21 ESV)

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. (1 John 4:1)

The third foundational leg to wisdom’s stool is the actual submission to wisdom. One must desire and seek wisdom, which is ultimately only found in the Word of God, but none of it has any meaningful effect unless the will surrenders to and acts upon the wisdom.

Wisdom, like faith, is demonstrated by the actions it produces. This practical working out of God-reflecting righteousness is the emphasis of all the Bible’s wisdom literature and the cry of the Prophets. James echoes that call when he writes, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22) Jesus did not call wise the one who hears His words, but the one who puts them into practice. He was equally clear that the truth of His teachings sets us free when we hold to them, not merely study them. The call to act on wisdom is a call to submit to its authority.

Christian discernment is examining all of life through the lens of biblical wisdom. It is a rigorous mental and spiritual exercise requiring constant, intentional effort to evaluate things according to the explicit teachings of the Scriptures and the implicit ramifications of those teachings. We must test everything…every prophecy or teaching, every spirit or mindset. We must examine our own actions and attitudes according to the commands of God. Entertainment, education, relationships, and even politics must be weighed on the scales of Scripture, not assessed merely by the fashion of the world, the inclination of the flesh, or the misleading influence of the devil. Priorities must be ordered to conform to godliness. Every aspect of living is to be carefully judged, because if we will not, the Great Judge eventually will.

To borrow from Paul above, if we would be filled with the fruit of righteousness through Christ to God’s greater glory, we must certainly grow in love, knowledge, and depth of insight so that we might be able to discern what is right and be found blameless when we stand before our Lord. As Paul prayed for the Philippian church, this is my prayer for you.

As you seek to reflect the reality of Christ with wisdom and discernment, may this exhortation from Hosea the Prophet ring in your heart and mind:

Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them; for the ways of the Lord are right, and the upright walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them. (Hosea 14:9 ESV)