Psalm 1:1-2

Psalm 1:1-2 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor stitch in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

In these verses, two separate roads, choices, are laid before us. Either we follow the wisdom, counsel, ways of the world or we make a habit of letting the word of God dominate the way we think and therefore live.  

The fact is that the word of God needs to be affecting us. It needs to make a difference in us. We need to spend enough time in the word that it makes a difference in our thinking, in why we do things and in the way we do things.

I remember when I was in jr. high school. There was this weird trend among us kids. When someone would ask another person for some favor, if that person did it they would say "check." And that person and others would laugh at that person. 

For example, Sally asks Melody to throw away her paper. Melody gets up and throws away the paper and then Sally would say "check." It was a way of claiming superiority over others and getting someone to obey a command was evidence of that superiority. So, people then avoided doing things for each other because they did not want to be looked down upon.

How would the bible look at the same situation?

Matthew 5:41-42 KJV

And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

The wisdom from the bible would definitely run contrary to the way we thought in jr. high. Here is another example:

Proverbs 15:1 KJV

A soft answer truth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.

Proverbs 15:1 NLT

A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare. 

Wow. So, when someone comes at us angry, the wise thing is to answer them gently. How many people even have that as a goal? When people come at us angry, I think it is our natural inclination to take it as disrespect and get angry right back. I have seen people able to remain calm in the face of someone having wrath but only for two apparent reasons- professional, or godly. Professional - because they were at work and need to stay calm as a part of work. Godly - because they are trying to stay calm and represent God. 

However, I know many people that would see a gentle answer as a sign of weakness and be very hesitant to choose that approach. The irony is that people who choose to treat others gently are definitely stronger because it is the more difficult approach.

These are just a couple examples of how the wisdom of the world runs contrary to the wisdom of the bible but I am sure we can find many more. My prayer is that we all take advantage of the wisdom available for us in the word. I pray that we become not only hearers of the word but doers of the word as well. I pray that we will have faith in the Lord and his ways and follow him in the paths that he is directing us.