But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.
James 3:17
If we are to reject the “wisdom” of this world, what does the wisdom from God look like? James is pretty direct in sharing the attributes of Godly (true) wisdom with us, but do we recognize these words when we see them in real life? Do we know how to live them out? Here are some definitions that will help us to recognize Godly wisdom in ourselves and others. Godly wisdom…
first pure - there must be nothing mixed with the wisdom of God.* It must solely be wisdom from Him. As such, it must be completely removed from moral and spiritual corruption.* With purity as a prerequisite, Godly wisdom places the holiness of God on display.* Like false wisdom, true wisdom is revealed by its results.*
then peaceable - also translated well from the Greek as peace-loving. This peace implies a multi-directional harmony between God and others and nature.* In the context of James 3, the focus is on human-to-human harmony, but the other aspects should not be disregarded.*
gentle - this describes a person who, though wronged, holds the right to enact justice but chooses not to.* It may also be translated as considerate or lenient.
open to reason - exhibits a willingness to submit.* The original Greek term communicates the willingness of a soldier to comply to their commander.* It could translate as compliant or accomodating.
full of mercy and good fruits - characterized consistently by compassion or kindness toward someone who has a need.* Jesus frequently used mercy as an indicator of a Godly person.* Acts of mercy are those fruits that genuine wisdom, like genuine faith, must produce.*
impartial and sincere - provides a picture of being undivided and avoiding the kind of hypocrisy that plays a part for the perception of others.* These words describing Godly wisdom communicate the opposite of double-mindedness and hypocrisy.*
These descriptors of the makings of Godly wisdom paint a desirable picture of human living! As Douglas Moo shares:
The person characterized by wisdom from heaven will be stable, trustworthy, transparent—the kind of person consistently displaying the virtues of wisdom and on whom one can rely for advice and counsel.
Amazing! That’s the kind of person that I want to be.
How do we get there? How do we have and exhibit this Godly wisdom?
Truly, none of these things come naturally; indeed, we must rely upon God to work in us for these good attributes. Like the fruits of the Spirit which Paul later pens (Galatians 5:22-23), we need to receive these as attributes that emanate from the Holy Spirit.*
Who can make themself pure? Who can make themself peaceable? Who can make themself gentle? Who can make themself open to reason? Who can be full of mercy and good fruits? Who can be impartial and sincere? We may pretend to embody these things for a time, but how long can we pretend? By pretending, we do not live in Godly wisdom at all.
Want wisdom? The only way to get it is to ask God for it (James 1:5).
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to allow Him to give you His wisdom. Perhaps today He wants you to ask for it. Maybe today God would invite you to stop pretending. Perhaps today God would welcome you to walk in purity. Maybe today God wants you to let Him give you each of the attributes of wisdom, one step at a time.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Blomberg, C. L., & Kamell, M. J. (2008). James (Vol. 16, pp. 175–176). Zondervan.
Guthrie, G. H. (2006). James. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, pp. 250–251). Zondervan.
Stulac, G. M. (1993). James (Jas 3:13–18). IVP Academic.
Moo, D. J. (2021). The Letter of James (D. A. Carson, Ed.; Second Edition, pp. 219–222). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Nystrom, D. P. (1997). James (pp. 208–209). Zondervan Publishing House.