On the Prophet of this Age, Part II

I Corinthians Chapter 2 makes it clear that wisdom is directly from the Spirit of God, who makes clear to us the thoughts of God.  How amazing!  Read that again: the wisdom only accessible to believers is from the Spirit of God, revealing to us the innermost thoughts of God.  Incredible.  I just can't get over that.

God is love, so the wisdom that comes from Him can be characterized by nothing other than love.  If it lacks love, then it may be knowledge, intellectualism, intelligence, perception, or any number of things -- but not wisdom.

There is a guy I know who has a brilliant mind.  Most of his observations about American Christianity are dead on. But he expresses them in such a cynical, scornful way that most people are seriously offended.

Offense is not always a bad thing; sometimes it is necessary (ever met a person glad to hear about their sins?).  But the offense here is not in his message-- it is in his words, his bitterness. 

He was once railing on about an issue (which I agreed with him on), when someone told him that cynicism was just as bad. The response?  People called Jeremiah a cynic, too.

Hold it right there.  If you're going to compare yourself to a prophet of God, then your life had better emulate that prophet. Jeremiah suffered deeply because of his position.  He was beaten, threatened, slandered.  He was not allowed a wife or children.  And he grieved his heart out over the fate of his country.  He pled with God for mercy and grace on their behalf.  He pled with his people to change their ways for their own sake.  He genuinely suffered in the midst of his "cynicism" because of his love for the people.

Jeremiah translated his connection with God into harsh words of truth.  The truth hurts sometimes, but it has to be said.  However, there's a HUGE difference between speaking the truth out of scorn and speaking the truth because your heart is burning within you.

Let the prophet of this age note: if the truth that you have recognized is not accompanied by love on your part, then you do not have wisdom.  Keep your mouth quiet, because you are no prophet of God.  The true prophet of God -- and the only one who should be speaking on His behalf -- is the one who has the love of God in his soul and the wisdom of God in his heart.