Thinking They’re Wise
Tuesday, April 15, 2025
The Most Foolish of Follies.
True Wisdom is As Accessible As Beauty,
Everywhere!
Jeremiah 8:9
The wise shall be put to shame, they shall be dismayed and taken; since they have rejected the word of the Lord, what wisdom is in them?
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1 Corinthians 1:20
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
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Words of Grace for Today –
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The world’s ways spawn many people who think they are wise, who are told by many others they are wise, who’s counsel is taken by many especially those in power.
But they are nothing but mere fools, thinking they know so much, in such good ways, as to bring the world forward to some nebulous goal.
God’s Word brings a different kind of wisdom:
Jesus sees the crowds, climbs the mountain, sits down, and begins to teach. Actually, he begins to turn everything upside down. Or is it right-side-up? All of a sudden, the meek, the poor and the heartbroken are the blessed ones — and our enemies are the ones we should pray for. The Sermon on the Mount is one of the greatest gifts of scripture to humanity; just ask Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and Leo Tolstoy. But who is making any use of it today?
In a time, like every other, when an eye for an eye still seems to hold sway, what is this seemingly bizarre logic of Christian non-violence, beginning with Jesus’ counsel to ‘turn the other cheek’*
if not the wisdom of God for us all.
* CBC IDEAS’ Newsletter description of IDEAS’ “Turn the Other Cheek: The Radical Case for Nonviolent Resistance” episode for 14 Oct 2022 and rebroadcast Good Friday 18 April 2025