Praise God For His Gentle Wisdom

Today’s word of encouragement from Wayne:

“The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace”

James 3:17-18

Praise God for His wisdom, which He has abundantly provided for us in “Christ Himself, in Whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:2-3). And Praise God for the beautiful nature of His wisdom, as revealed to us in this passage from the letter of James.

Once more the word “gentle” appears, this time as a characteristic of God’s wisdom.

We know that our Savior and High Priest, Jesus Christ, is “gentle and humble in heart” (Matthew 11:29). Yesterday we considered Paul’s exhortation to “let your gentle spirit be known to all men” (Philippians 4:5), and Peter wrote of “a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God” (1 Peter 3:4).

A “gentle spirit” is a spirit that lives in accord and harmony with the wisdom and Holy Spirit of our God.

This is important for us to recognize in terms of our own ability to receive spirit and truth from our Lord in His presence and through His word. This is important for us as well in terms of our effectively reaching people with the gospel of Jesus Christ, “ministering as a priest the gospel of God” as we have been considering (Romans 15:16).

After describing the blessed traits of God’s wisdom to us, James went on to say “And the seed whose fruit is righteousness,” meaning the imperishable seed of the gospel, “is sown in peace by those who make peace.” True, obedient, effective gospel sowing of “the seed whose fruit is righteousness” is done by those who are “ministering as a priest the gospel of God,” with a gentle spirit, just like our High Priest Himself; for this best faithfully represents our Lord Jesus Christ and His desire for all people to be saved.

God’s will is for His gospel to be “sown in peace by those who make peace.” A gentle spirit is a spirit who lives in peace, in and with God.

Oh Lord, we praise You for Your gentle Spirit that fills us and makes us more like You. Fill us with Your “wisdom from above” today, as we minister to You in Your presence, so we may know You better, with the result that we may more effectively sow Your seed in peace and gentleness for all people. We ask this in Jesus’ name with great thanks.

Hallelujah!