Lady Wisdoms Speaks

A bit of introduction to Wisdom

 The Book Wisdom of Solomon (see passage below) is not often found in common three year lectionary, used by most main stream denominations. The  Book of Wisdom belongs to what is called the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books.  These twelve books where not considered for inclusion in the first official Cannon.  However since the early years, the Roman Catholic Bible included them.  They were also in the first Bible that Luther printed in German.  In more recent years they have begun to be included in newer publication of some translations. The Apocryphal Books are found between the Old and New Testament. 

For some reason I have been drawn to those books.  I don't know if it is because they, were for so long, not apart of the normal reading resources.  

I am particularly drawn to the Book of Wisdom.  It has much the same message as the Book of Proverbs in the Old Testament Cannon.  Lady Wisdom's identity has been the source of much debate.  I am not sure if that is because of the female identification or not.  But I don't think so.  Because some would have you believe that Lady Wisdom is a reference to Jesus. That interpretation comes because Lady Wisdom was with God "at beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago......"(Prov. 8:22f).  

However, I challenge that interpretation.  I identify Lady Wisdom with the Holy Spirit.  "...the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.  Then God said....." (Gen.1:2-3a).

I am convinced that Lady Wisdom was God's first of creations. The one who would be left with us, by Jesus, to "lead us in to all truth." 

Jesus was "The Word" spoken by God in the beginning.  The Spirit was the wind that blew over the formless void that created order out of the chaos of nothingness.  

God, Wind, Word  

     The three of the Almighty  

                                              At the beginning! 

Now, I will always admit that I could be wrong.  However, I would need a strong argument to convince me otherwise.

I invite you to read Lady Wisdom's invitation to listen to her.  

This invitation is so clear and logical.  If you can use the word logical when speaking theologically.  

In this passage she speak first to the attitudes and habits of the powerful leaders.  Then she begins to speak to all:

1 Therefore set your desire on my words; long for them, and you will be instructed. 

 

12 Wisdom is radiant and unfading, and she is easily discerned by those who love her, and is found by those who seek her. 

 

13 She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.

1 Listen therefore, O kings, and understand; learn, O judges of the ends of the earth. 

 

2 Give ear, you that rule over multitudes, and boast of many nations. 

 

3 For your dominion was given you from the Lord, and your sovereignty from the Most High, who will search out your works and inquire into your plans. 

 

4 Because as servants of his kingdom you did not rule rightly, nor keep the law, nor walk according to the purpose of God, 

 

5 he will come upon you terribly and swiftly, because severe judgment falls on those in high places. 

 

6 For the lowliest man may be pardoned in mercy, but mighty men will be mightily tested. 

 

7 For the Lord of all will not stand in awe of any one, nor show deference to greatness; because he himself made both small and great, and he takes thought for all alike. 

8 But a strict inquiry is in store for the mighty. 

 

9 To you then, O monarchs, my words are directed, that you may learn wisdom and not transgress. 

 

10 For they will be made holy who observe holy things in holiness, and those who have been taught them will find a defense. 

 

11 Therefore set your desire on my words; long for them, and you will be instructed. 

 

12 Wisdom is radiant and unfading, and she is easily discerned by those who love her, and is found by those who seek her. 

13 She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.

 

14 He who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty, for he will find her sitting at his gates. 

 

 15 To fix one's thought on her is perfect understanding, and he who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care, 

 

16 because she goes about seeking those worthy of her, and she graciously appears to them in their paths, and meets them in every thought. 

 

17 The beginning of wisdom is the most sincere desire for instruction, and concern for instruction is love of her,(Wisdom of Solomon 6:1-17) 

Lady Wisdom Calls

 1 Listen as wisdom calls out! Hear as understanding raises her voice! 2 She stands on the hilltop and at the crossroads. 3 At the entrance to the city, at the city gates, she cries aloud, 4 "I call to you, to all of you! I am raising my voice to all people. 5 How naive you are! Let me give you common sense. O foolish ones, let me give you understanding. 6 Listen to me! For I have excellent things to tell you.

Wisdom is an ever-present quality, of the larger -- unlimited -- universe that somehow seems to elude our intelligence.  From the beginning this quality has instructed Creator and creation.  

It was not found in The Garden’s tree of good and evil. 

It is not something gained by reading, nor study, of human thoughts and ideas.  

Rather, it is something given through the listening heart, and mind,  to the motion and movement of God’s third-self.  

A Wind -- Spirit -- that blows in and out of our thoughts to correct and instruct.

It is in the air we breathe that fills us with an understanding beyond all knowing.  A knowing that cannot be assessed by proof, nor measured by experimental result.  

Jesus lived and taught by this powerful quality of wisdom.  It was his one and only source of information.  It was what instructed his every word, his every action, his very nature.  

And when it was time to leave this earth it was his source of strength in the terrible leaving.  

The best news, for we human being, is that when Jesus left the earthly body he didn’t take that quality with him.  He left it for all to experience in a very personal way.  Within our skin!  

16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.(John 14:16-17)

1 Listen as wisdom calls out! Hear as understanding raises her voice! 2 She stands on the hilltop and at the crossroads. 3 At the entrance to the city, at the city gates, she cries aloud, 4 "I call to you, to all of you! I am raising my voice to all people. 5 How naive you are! Let me give you common sense. O foolish ones, let me give you understanding. 6 Listen to me! For I have excellent things to tell you. Everything I say is right, 7 for I speak the truth and hate every kind of deception. 8 My advice is wholesome and good. There is nothing crooked or twisted in it. 9 My words are plain to anyone with understanding, clear to those who want to learn." 10 "Choose my instruction rather than silver, and knowledge over pure gold. 11 For wisdom is far more valuable than rubies. Nothing you desire can be compared with it." 12 "I, Wisdom, live together with good judgment. I know where to discover knowledge and discernment. 13 All who fear the LORD will hate evil. That is why I hate pride, arrogance, corruption, and perverted speech. 14 Good advice and success belong to me. Insight and strength are mine. 15 Because of me, kings reign, and rulers make just laws. 16 Rulers lead with my help, and nobles make righteous judgments." 17 "I love all who love me. Those who search for me will surely find me. 18 Unending riches, honor, wealth, and justice are mine to distribute. 19 My gifts are better than the purest gold, my wages better than sterling silver! 20 I walk in righteousness, in paths of justice. 21 Those who love me inherit wealth, for I fill their treasuries." 22 "The LORD formed me from the beginning, before he created anything else. 23 I was appointed in ages past, at the very first, before the earth began. 24 I was born before the oceans were created, before the springs bubbled forth their waters. 25 Before the mountains and the hills were formed, I was born -- 26 before he had made the earth and fields and the first handfuls of soil." 27 "I was there when he established the heavens, when he drew the horizon on the oceans. 28 I was there when he set the clouds above, when he established the deep fountains of the earth. 29 I was there when he set the limits of the seas, so they would not spread beyond their boundaries. And when he marked off the earth's foundations, 30 I was the architect at his side. I was his constant delight, rejoicing always in his presence. 31 And how happy I was with what he created -- his wide world and all the human family!" 32 "And so, my children, listen to me, for happy are all who follow my ways. 33 Listen to my counsel and be wise. Don't ignore it." 34 "Happy are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home! 35 For whoever finds me finds life and wins approval from the LORD. 36 But those who miss me have injured themselves. All who hate me love death." (Proverbs 8: 1-36 New Living Translation)

What Do People See/precieve about Christians?

 “An old man leaned on his cane and with tears in his eyes said, ‘I have seen too much pain in my life between people who call themselves people of faith.  Jacob taught me that people of all faiths are of one faith if their religion is kindness.’” (We Are All Jacob’s Children, p.174)

Jesus left his disciples with this powerful prayer (John 17) before his trial.  He offers them a vision — a vision of how ministry works.  

Live in unity with the Creator so other my see and believe.  A unity that needs just one crucial ingredients for changing the world view  

The only ingredient is 'belief' in Jesus — God came, in the flesh of Jesus',  to model a love that surpasses all divisive suggestions.

Stay together in this one truth: Jesus' way of living, speaking and acceptance  for all people regardless of their Biblical interpretation.

The theme of this great prayer is for something, seemingly, impossible — unity/cohesiveness -- a oneness of mind.

E. Belton Yoyner Jr.  writes:

“The importance of unity among believer is that such oneness leads the world to believe (v. 23).  The counterpoint of that truth is that the world sees partitions among the followers of Jesus….there is to be no second-class citizenship among the people of faith…...Ecumenism — the economy of God by which God organizes the whole world — becomes the single effort to express the unity to which Christians are called.  The ultimate unity of the church is not in human maneuvering but in the oneness of God (v. 21). We find our unity in our common acceptance of Christ. (Feasting son the Word, vol. 2 p.543 )

So, what exactly is Jesus asking for here?

The simple answer would be: Unity of belief.  

Recognizing that Jesus has been created by God.  That Jesus and God are one in being.

This one thing is — the main thing — connects all who call themselves followers of Jesus.

Jesus, who came to change human egocentric attitudes.

However that message, of oneness of mind, gets all messed up by all the other human rules — interpretations  — that have created many divisions among Jesus believers over the years.

Think about this: if the witness of all people, who claim to follow Jesus, adhered to the command to love; there would be much less infighting and confusion.

So what people would see would be a group of people who truly witnessed Jesus kind of being. 

They would witness a way of living that was all encompassing acceptance and harmony.  A welcoming people who actually wanted to know you for who you are.  Not some fake set of values created by society.

Imagine the world filled with the offering of a peaceful existence for all.

I know, I know, a totally unrealistic notion. Right?

How ever, it is what Jesus was/is asking of those who believed in him. 

20 ‘I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, ²¹that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²²The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, ²³I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. ²⁴Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

25 ‘Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. ²⁶I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’ (Jn. 17)