Discipline, Encouragement, Forgiveness, Holiness, Humility, Kindness, Obedience, Peace, Relationship to Christ, Repentance, Restoration, Strength, Submission, Wisdom

Characteristics of Godly Wisdom

Godly wisdom, or as James describes it, wisdom that comes from above, can be exhibited outwardly in our language, actions, and attitudes. The third chapter of James begins by talking about how the tongue can be used for good or evil, speaking both righteousness and unrighteousness at the same time. He continues by stating that one can tell a wise person by how they speak and act. James 3:13-18 talks about what Godly wisdom looks like. I would like to focus on James 3:17, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.”

Before we dig deeper into that Scripture, I think we must first look at the definition of wisdom. There are two types of wisdom – earthly wisdom and Godly wisdom. Earthly wisdom as defined in the Cambridge Dictionary is, “the ability to use your knowledge and experience to make good decisions and judgments.” Pastor Jeff Stott of Genesis Church defines Godly wisdom as, “the practical application of God’s truth to a specific situation. Wisdom is knowing what God wants you to do and then doing it.” Other definitions of Godly wisdom that I found, state that the characteristics of wisdom describe God, Himself.  

Dr. Michael Youseff, Senior Pastor of Church of the Apostles in Atlanta, GA, and speaker on the Living the Way radio and television broadcasts, lists the characteristics of Godly Wisdom as stated in James 3:17, as: 1) Pure. He states that Godly wisdom is characterized by pure motives. Those who have Godly wisdom are not governed by bitter envy or selfish ambition. Their motives come from a heart that desires to be obedient to God’s voice and direction. 2) Peaceable or peace-loving. Those who desire to live in peace with all men. (Romans 12:8) Dr. Youseff states, “ Selfish ambition can start a war, but God’s wisdom can bring Truth and clarity where there is chaos.” 3) Gentle. Dr. Youseff defines this as considerate. He states that we may all have strength and power, however, one with Godly wisdom has them under control so that even when there is an opportunity to be hurtful to someone, we won’t take advantage of that opportunity. 4) Submissive. This characteristic of Godly wisdom shows a person who is willing to listen to varying opinions, to hear the other person’s side and is willing to be taught and to learn. Dr. Youseff states, “To be submissive is to be humble and teachable, not a doormat to be walked over, but meek, so that your strength is guided and submitted to God, making you gentle and kind.” 5) Full of mercy. Being merciful is something all Believers should exhibit in all situations. It shows the character of God in us. We should be merciful (forgiving) to those who do something against us, but then we should also be willing to help them be restored. 6) Full of good fruit. We should demonstrate the Fruit of the Spirit in all we do and say. Exhibiting the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives shows maturity in a Believer’s life. That’s when Godly wisdom truly comes from the inside out. 7) Impartial. This truly shows God’s heart. Scripture tells us that He doesn’t differentiate between us whether rich or poor, freed or slave, by the color of our skin or how we were raised. A person who lives by God’s wisdom exhibits single-mindedness and is authentic. 8) Sincere. A person who has a sincere heart shows no fakeness, no mask, is not hypocritical, but is the type of person that people say is authentic, a “what you see is what you get” kind of person.

When we show these characteristics, we are showing Godly wisdom and showing the world what God looks like.  “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.” (1 Corinthians 1:30 NIV)  

Each of us needs to do a self-check. Do we exhibit Godly wisdom in all things? Do our lives show these characteristics? If not, then we need to come before God, humbly ask for His forgiveness, and ask Him to direct us so that we show Jesus to the world plainly in our actions, attitudes, and speech.

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Donna Knuth Rice

I am trying a blog for the first time in my life, and frankly, I feel like I don't have a clue as to what I'm doing! But, here goes. I work at a Christian Television network in the Correspondence Department, where I write letters and emails to our viewers, pray with them for their needs, and send materials they request. I am a Christian. I was saved at the age of 11 during a youth meeting at my church. My pastor led me to the Lord, and to say the least, my life has been an adventure. I am a widow. My late husband, Allen, passed away after 34 1/2 years of marriage. He had been sick the last seven years of his life, and it was a struggle, for him and for me. We met as part of a singing group that was affiliated with a Christian Radio station, and we sang together all through our lives together. We both worked in television and radio all through our married life, mostly for Christian stations. Besides singing I also play flute. I had the luxury of having parents who started out as music teachers...so music was in our house constantly. Some people describe me as being a loud-mouthed lime type...can't disagree with that. I have a tendency to put my foot in my mouth more times than I can count! I also have a tendency to say exactly what's on my mind...which is why I get myself in so much trouble! LOL! Trust me, that's something me and God have been working on for a very long time. I have no children here on earth, although I have a baby in heaven. My baby here is my dog Jack. He's a black lab/ chow mix. He's a big boy....thinks he's a lap dog! Can't think of much else to say. The reason I started this blog is because a few months ago in church, a guest pastor came and delivered a message, and when he asked for those of us who wanted prayer to come forward, I did. When he came to me he asked me if I did any journaling. I told him no 'cause I wasn't very good at it. He told me to start, and prophesied over me that my journal thoughts would impact other people. I wasn't sure just how I was to go about doing this. In fact, I was a little hesitant at first. I started journaling at home, and our assistant pastor's wife asked me to submit something for our Senior newsletter. I didn't the first edition, but something I had heard on Christian radio a long time ago and has stuck with me all these years, came to mind so I submitted an article. That article will be my first post. I don't claim to have all the answers, and my thoughts may seem a little "out there", but I feel God has been prodding me to do this, and so here I am. I hope what I post will bring encouragement, and "Something to Think About".

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