INTRODUCTION: This devotional series is based on J.I. Packer’s classic work, Knowing God. There is no greater quest, no more important activity, nothing that should be a higher priority than getting to know God. Too many Christians know about God without making their time with him personal. These devotionals are designed to challenge you to ask questions of yourself, bring these questions before God, make you think, and transform your relationship with God. My prayer is that your study will overflow in emotion, in touching your heart, in connecting with God, and sharing your relationship with others. The book consists of 22 Chapters, thus this series last 22 days. Dig in!
Reflections on Chapter 9: God Only Wise
Wisdom is the practical side to moral goodness and therefore only found complete in God.
God displays his wisdom in how he deals with and trains the characters in the Bible. We can learn wisdom by applying lessons from the lives of Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph.
God helped Abraham overcome his propensity to lie and give in to pressure. How did God teach Abraham to rely on him?
· By teaching Abraham about true treasure: “I am your shield, your very great reward” (Gen 15:2)
· By rescuing Abraham’s nephew when he was captured by plunderers (Gen 14) and entangled in Sodom (Gen 19)
· By sparing his wife when she was imperiled by Abraham’s cowardice (Gen 20)
· By testing Abraham’s trust and faith in calling him to sacrifice his promised son, Isaac, after years of waiting for the promise (Gen 22)
· God’s presence through the trials in our life will bring wisdom if in those situations we believe God: he will credit us as righteous (Gen 15:6)
God helped Jacob overcome his conniving, momma’s boy attitude. How?
· By helping him come face to face with the consequences of deceit in his relationship with the deceiver, Laban (Gen 28)
· By teaching Jacob to struggle enough that he finally learned to wrestle with God on his own (Gen 32:22)
· When we come face to face with our sin, we are forced to wrestle one-on-one with God to understand true wisdom
God helped Joseph overcome his boastful arrogance. How?
· By humbling him when his brothers sold him into slavery (Gen 37)
· By purifying his motives when he was unjustly imprisoned after fleeing from sin (Gen 39)
· By making him wait in prison two additional, even after interpreting the cupbearer’s dream correctly (Gen 40:23-41:1)
· Once his character was formed, God made him the man he needed to be to rule Egypt and save Israel
· We must be willing to be purged of our pride, purified in motives, and reformed in God’s image; only then can we have the impact God desires for our lives
God works his purpose in our lives according to his will in ways that we can only understand later!