Knowledge: A Blessing or a Curse Part 3

Job 28:28 And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.

The Blessing

Wisdom is another one of many wonderful gifts God desires to give to us within the gift of salvation. Job gives us a very clear definition of wisdom, but the meaning is even deeper. Proverbs say that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom…”, leading us to conclude that   fearing is only the beginning of knowing God.  Logic would bring us to the final conclusion that God wants to give us wisdom to know Him, and through knowing Him we are able to make the right decisions. When we ask for wisdom are we asking to understand God’s heart about the decision or are we asking to clearly understand the pros and cons and make the decision by what best benefits us? So why did Solomon ask for wisdom? He wanted to rule the people well. He understood the great responsibility given to him. He was head of a very stubborn and fickle people group.  Did Solomon want wisdom to lead his kingdom into the Golden Age of Israel? Did he want wisdom so that men would look back on him as a good ruler? No, I truly believe that Solomon wanted God’s help when he asked for wisdom, because God was very pleased with his response. He was so pleased that He gave Solomon more than he asked. Sadly, the same wisdom that God gave to Solomon to use to know Him better was abused.

The Abuse

1 Corinthians 3:19 “ For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness.” In Ecclesiastes we hear a very concerning soliloquy. “Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me.”  This speech sounds very similar to a speech made a few hundred years later by a man named Nebuchadnezzar. “Is this not great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?” Both men had reached the peak of glory in their kingdom. Things were going well, and who was responsible for this miraculous sight? The pronoun “I” revealed their hearts of pride and self-dependence. Was it not God who gave both Solomon and Nebuchadnezzar wisdom and wealth? How could they have forgotten? How soon do we forget to give true credit to Whom the credit is really due? Was that aced test your work alone, or did God give you the brain to process that information.  Was that successful breakthrough at work your solo achievement, or was is God who gave you strength to overcome the obstacles and a good team of coworkers to aid you in the solution? The curse of knowledge comes when we forget to recognize the Source.

The Curse

Another puzzling statement made in Ecclesiastes is concerning. Solomon says, “I have gotten more wisdom”, not “I have asked for more wisdom.”  Instead of asking God for knowledge and wisdom, Solomon went in search of knowledge.  He “gave his heart” to know wisdom.  Wisdom became his passion. His passion for knowledge led him to experience anything and everything, so that there was nothing he did not understand and know. Solomon fully partook in the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. His regrets throughout the book of Ecclesiastes proved the depth of his search. “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” He had tried it and done it, yet in the end it left him empty.  So are you really missing out on what you do not know? Will the knowledge you desire bring you closer to or pull you farther away from the holiness of God. The safeguard that keeps the knowledge we receive from God from becoming a curse is found in the daily heart cry of the Psalmist, “Search me oh God, and know my heart, try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23-24)