The wisdom of Jesus

Nine centuries after Solomon, and 400 years after Plato, Jesus came on the scene in Palestine. He was teaching crowds of people there and healing all kinds of sicknesses almost exactly 2,000 years ago. In his teaching he alluded more than once to king Solomon, one of his ancestors (Matthew 1.7).

He spoke of Solomon’s grandeur in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6.29). In Matthew 12.42, he reminds his listeners of the time when “the Queen of the South… came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom”, but then Jesus adds this astounding claim: “now one greater than Solomon is here”! Jesus is saying that the wisdom that he brings is wiser than that of the greatest wise man of old!

The New Testament says that “in Jesus are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2.3). It even calls Jesus “the wisdom of God”: in the divine incarnate Son of God, we have access to the infinite wisdom of God himself. By his revelation, we can learn what wisdom is: how to live a life that is both totally fulfilling and at the same time pleasing to God. This is the key to what human life is all about! God has revealed his wisdom, which is a worldview that no human being could have discovered unaided. Jesus’teaching is essential for us to grasp. 

Jesus re-emphasised the “fear of God”, but he also spoke of the love of God. He faithfully warned us of some bad news. “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul,” he said; “Rather fear him [God] who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10.28). By this allusion to the “fear of God”, Jesus means that we must realise that one day we will have to stand before the ultimate Judge of all the earth and give account of our lives. And he forewarns us that there will be a potential terrible penalty if our sins are not forgiven – hell. This is the ultimate eternal loss. 

But Jesus in his wisdom tells us we can avoid that by understanding that God is also loving: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that whoever believes in him should not perish [in hell] but have eternal life” (John 3.16). Jesus calls us all to a fulfilling lifestyle when he gives what he called the two most important commandments: “To love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and secondly, to love your neighbour as yourself” (Matthew 22.37-39). To commit to obeying these two divine commandments means a radical change of life for us who love ourselves more than anyone else! But how to love God? It can only come when we realise how much God has loved us. “God demonstrates his own love for us,” writes the apostle Paul, “in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5.8). God loved us despite our unworthiness as sinners; he sent his Son to die for us, bearing our punishment in our place, guiltless though he was, so that through faith in him we may receive forgiveness and a new life, eternal life. This is the Good News of the Gospel.

He forgives us as we respond in grateful faith, so we no longer fear his judgment.  We begin to love God as the Holy Spirit of God “sheds abroad in our hearts the love of God” (Romans 5.5). This is the true way to happiness.

Clive Every-Clayton