Appearance of Wisdom
by Suzanne Benner
**Do you have some heart issues that you would like us to pray for? http://christianwomentoday.com/prayer/share.html
“Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”(Colossians 2:20, 21).
It’s a good question.
Why, when we know we are saved by grace do we keep trying to be saved by good works?
Why, when Christ has freed us from the law that condemns us do we keep trying to follow legalistic rules?
Why?
The answer may be because those kinds of rules look good.
“Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence” (Colossians 2:23).
Have we settled for what looks good? What superficially appear wise, but have little value? What looks like humility but is actually false?
It is easier to concern ourselves with appearances rather than with what is going on in our hearts, but our relationship with Jesus is not about how things look.
Do we have the courage to face the heart of the issue and the root of our problem, rather than spend our time trying to look good for everyone else? Will we move beyond the appearance of wisdom?
It requires a willingness to have God reveal our wrong thoughts, attitudes and motives; a willingness to surrender them to God once He has shown them to us; and a willingness to follow God on His path.
David’s prayer in Psalm 139 is a wonderful guide to help lead us beyond appearances to a vibrant relationship with God.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23, 24).
Questions: How have you been trying to follow rules that only have the appearance of wisdom? Why do those rules lack any value for restraining sensual indulgence? What heart issue is God revealing to you?
About the Author: http://talk.thelife.com/experience/devotionalforwomen/authors/suzanne-benner/
Dear Dianne, you are very precious to all of us here, and even more so to God! The next time Satan tries to convince you that you have little worth, just tell him to come with you to Jesus and tell Him that! That should send him looking for someone else to mess with! ;)
Thank you, again, Marilyn :-}.
thank you
Thank you, Crystal, for your kind words! I join you in extending best wishes to Saryta, her husband, and their growing family! :)
Patricia, you are so right about the scripture that Suzanne opened the devotional with — it surely is directed to believers. Oops — my bad! ;) Thank you for your great explanation regarding the intent of the Colossians verses vs James Ch. 2!
Saryta,
As far as Wise Counsel I think Annette and Marilyn pretty much covered it :) I just wanted to congratulate you, and let you know I will be praying that you and your baby stay healthy. Don’t forget God created your baby and has an amazing plan for it!!!!!!!!!
Your sister in Christ
Just reread the scripture that Suzanne opens with and it is clearly written to those who have already died with Christ, but I have no trouble reconciling it with James ch. 2.
I see the first relating to legalism and following rules to gain God’s favor, the second to working out our love for God by serving Him.
The first relates to things done out of fear because of not recognizing the completeness of the work at the cross, the second to things done out of love and an appreciation of what was done at the cross.
Dear Saryta
Would just like to relate a bit of family hx to encourage you.
My mother was told over 60 years ago, when tubal ligations were rarely done, and after having four children, that she must have one as the next pregnancy would cause her death. She could get no peace before God and refused. She then had my youngest brother with no health issues and immediatly felt she had the okay to have the tubal done.
The rest of us have wandered around the globe, but that youngest has purchased the family land and stayed nearby to provide all the care that our parents needed as they grew older, and to provide a place for all of us to stay when we visit.
God knew they needed that one more child, and overruled the doctor on it.
Good devotional today Suzanne. The comments are really thoughtful too. Sheila, loved what you said ” Or do I simply go along with the status quo because doing so is so much easier, so much safer, and requires little self-sacrifice on my part?” We can get very comfortable in our faith. We think that we are traveling really well….doing all the right things, going to church, taking the sacraments, etc. and even serving in some area as a demonstration of our Christian duty. I had to learn some years ago that it’s not about the things I do for man…its always about what I do in obedience to God. My salvation requires nothing from me except my faith in Jesus. I pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to reveal to me my wrong thoughts, attitudes and motives, that He would be working in me to rightly demonstrate my faith and use me to obediently serve Him. Loving you all from far away and praying God’s blessings on each of you…Donna
Hi Dianne! :) Remember, my friend, your worth is not related to feelings. You may ‘feel worthless,’ but that doesn’t make you worthless! Feelings are fleeting, variable, and unreliable. Nor is your worth determined by the perceptions of others, for perceptions are not always accurate, and sometimes even distorted. Our true worth is in our relationship with our Redeemer, our Lord and Savior! As for ‘feelings of worth’, I believe that we all need to feel needed. And, it is in serving others that this ‘need’ is met. When we reach out to others, it returns a blessing. You have spiritual gifts that the Lord blessed you with, special strengths that are intended to serve the body of Christ! If you are not certain what your gifts are, perhaps a close spiritual friend or church leader could help you discover your gifts. As you uncover them and use them for God’s glory, you will be filled with great joy and a sense of purpose in God’s Kingdom, which will make you ‘feel’ worthy! :)
Oops! I was going to continue by saying that faith, if it not reinforced by action, will weaken and fade. Also, works are evidence of faith if the faith is genuine. So James 2:17 “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead,” is true. Works are both evidence of, and sustainers and builders of faith, but without the presence of faith there is little power or effectiveness in them.
For someone like me, who has chronic low self esteem, I think it is because of it being a deeply ingrained a habit.
The habitual thoughts are: “I have to earn my worth,” (false)and “I can never do enough to be worthy.” (true)
No matter what ANYONE, including the Bible, says, I am never worthy, nor even worth much for very long (maybe for an hour or two, or if I am lucky, maybe a day or two at best).
All it takes is for a little bit of time to pass or for a discouraging circumstance to happen (and these are common) and I once again see myself as defective and not good enough. Feelings of positive self esteem, for me, are infrequent and short lived.
It’s a perpetual circle: “I’m not good enough > I can never be good enough–round and round and round it goes.
I don’t even have to think about these thoughts, I just catch myself living by them. When I catch myself doing it, I try to correct the thinking but before too long (while my attention is on other things) I forget that I am worthy in God’ eyes. I live my life, and then couple of weeks later, I again notice that I have been trying to earn my worth through works.
faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
Thank you so much for all of your words of encouragement. It is truely appreciated during this stage of my life. God bless you all!
Dear Saryta, the Lord has said that children are a blessing, and it is so! I agree with Annette wholeheartedly, that the decision between you and your husband to honor the Lord according to your convictions is wise, regardless of what hurtful, insensitive remarks others might make. God has sovereign control over all things, Saryta, and He personally ordains conception! In other words, if you are pregnant, dear one, then God approved it! And, He is not subject to science or biology, but biology is subject to Him! Trust Him to oversee your pregnancy, and to give you and your husband wisdom. And, dear sister, do not let the words of fools burden your heart. It is none of their business , and you owe them no explanation. God bless you, Saryta, and may His loving watch-care bring you safely through this pregnancy, and bless you with a precious little one in the months ahead!
Thank you Suzanne for today’s devotional, that causes me to
stop and examine myself and my motives concerning some of
the works I do. When I was a young adult, married and with
my first child, not saved. Due to the teaching I came up
under in my home church, I thought if I just be good and do
good, and treat other right, that was how I would get into
heaven. Thank God for the woman of God who minister the
gospel of Jesus Christ unto me, and I was given the truth
that none of this get you into heaven, only by grace through
faith in JESUS! I was so wrong in my thinking that by living
a good moral life will get you into heaven,and that was over
thirty years ago. I have to be careful about good works, it
is hard for me sometime to say no to good works. What I have
done is I try to let God place on my heart the works he want
me to do. I don’t want to be doing something because it looks and sound impressive to man. I want to do it to im-
press God , by obeying what he is instructing me to do, it
does impress God when we obey him. Going to the prison for
bible study(Matt.28:16-20), going to the family shelter to
feed,(Isaiah 58:10), and leading intercession prayer (ITim.
2:1-2), by doing these I am just obeying the instructions of
God to all the body of Christ. This means that I have to be
faithful to these things, because I am doing them unto the
Lord, and God has put these works in my heart to do. I hate
being superfical, I feel more comfortable in being for real,
being my true self. Sometime I find myself doing the very
thing I hate, one reason is it is easier to go along with
the status quo, don’t want to have to put forth the effort
that it takes otherwise. I can’t stay in the place long be-
cause it is to uncomfortable for me, I need to be me, not
pretending to act like and be like what other may want.Even
if I am strange to some, and they may choose not to come
close, still that who Iam, who God made me to be. God said
to me one day,”People think you are strange, and you are
strange, because I made you that way”. Lord thank you for
being that open door to God and into heaven for us. We know
the truth that it you(Jesus) is the way, truth, and life, and no person can come unto the Father but by you, thank you
so very much. Ladies have a refreshing day in the Lord.
Great devotional thoughts and comments by the readers! It is of the utmost importance that we understand that it is by Grace, through Faith that we come into a saving relationship with The Living God; that it is not due to anything we can do ourselves. With that said, the word, faith is better read as faithfulness, it is a verb and requires action. If Abraham’s action was inputed to him as righteousness in the sight of God, does it not stand that a mental ascent is not sufficient, but one must act. If the LAW is our tutor to bring us to Messiah, do we abandon the tutor once we reach our destination. In other words, once we are ‘saved,’ how then do we live? Surely one would not suggest that we continue to live as unbelievers, but God, who is the same today, yesterday and forever has clearly set down instructions for how His children are to look and behave. Let us read with wisdom and keep the full counsel of God when reading the Gospels. Saryta, Blessings to you on the news of your pregnancy. May all go well and I pray for comfort from the hurtful and condemning words spoken to you. Yes, a baby is a blessing, especially to you and your husband who are serving the Lord. Remember, there is no condemnation to those who are in Messiah. I am sure you ask God for wisdom and to lead and guide your decisions in life. I encourage you to faithfully walk out your convictions. This pregnancy is a gift. Life often throws us some pretty hard punches and yet God is faithful in all of His way, you can trust Him with your life, your decisions and this pregnancy. Peace be with you in the wonderful Name of Jesus!
I’m not sure if my issue is directly dealing with this mornings devotional, but I need some wise counsel in this area.
I’m 28 yrs old, married for 3 years, with 3 kids, and just found out I’m pregnant with my 4th child. I just recently (April) had emergency surgery for a tubal pregnancy that went bad. When I share with someone that I was pregnant, the first thing that was said was that I lacked wisdom. That at this point in my life with everything going on, I should have used protection.
My husband is a Pastor, I am a minister in training. We sought the Lord on the issue of birth control, but have never got any conviction. I almost felt as if it were wrong, for us mind you. I believed that if God wanted or didn’t want us pregnant, his will would be done, but I was told that was tempting God. So now I’m at a point of confusion. A baby is supposed to be a blessing, we weren’t trying to get pregnant, but we weren’t shunning the idea either. Please help!!!
Dear Sheila and Margo, we are ALL guilty as charged! We can even grieve God with our Spirit-inspired good works, when they become as idols to us! As pride is offensive to God, Satan will even use our service to God as a temptation for those of us whose hearts are not guarded. Praise Him, though, that He is always ready to forgive us and restore us! :)
Great devotional. Shiela has just spoken for me. I do believe this devtoinal is for both believers and non believers. Many of us believers are conveying on the physical that which we are not on the inside.
Awesome devotion, Suzanne! Hi Ruth! I wonder if what you are talking about and what Suzanne is talking about are two different things. The wonderful book of James is directed to believers, already saved and implanted with the Holy Spirit. It is a reference point for Christians for self-examination of purpose in God’s Kingdom. I believe that Suzanne may be referring to those who may not yet be saved, but are counting on their ‘good works’ to impress God (and their community), but with empty hearts for God and His Truth. They live by spiritual laws, Old Testament regulations, instead of by grace, New Testament freedom. The Old Testament people of God did not have the power of the Holy Spirit in them to make right choices or serve God joyfully. They had laws that guided them spiritually. At Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit started His earthly ministry, He motivated and empowered believers to serve God, and others, lovingly and joyfully! No longer would Christians need laws to tell them how to act, they wanted to please and serve the Lord and found great joy in doing so! James gave Christians a spiritual ‘thermostat,’ to help them see where they were spiritually. If they had no joy in serving the Lord, but did it out of duty or tradition, or feelings of guilt, it was worth self-examination of one’s spiritual condition. While ‘good works’ are always beneficial in some way, apart from spiritual regeneration, they still lead to eternal death.
Suzanne, thank you for a very touching devotional; you posed some thought provoking questions that I dared ask myself…Have I settled for what looks good? Do I find myself in situations where I display false humility? Do I have the courage to face the heart of my issues and the root of my problems? Am I willing to submit to God’s discipline and grace, and let Him refine me into someone through whom He can accomplish His purpose, His will, His good deeds? Or do I simply go along with the status quo because doing so is so much easier, so much safer, and requires little self-sacrifice on my part?
Today, I’m asking God to reveal to me what “legalistic appearances” have I been masquerading behind…thanks for the starting point. God bless.
The fact that we are saved through faith and not deeds, does not mean we should ignore the need both spititually and physically to practice the performance of good deeds!
Let’s not forget James Chaper 2. Here is a partial quote from the NIV, James 2:14-17 14What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? 15Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. 16If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? 17In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.