tirsdag 8. november 2016

It is about a fruit that is also a gift

NORSK
May be it would have been sensible to move on to another theme after yesterday having finished Paul’s list of qualities of the fruit of the Spirit (1), but I continue. That is because there are more qualities of the fruit which deserve a focus. This verse is an example:
From the mouth of the righteous comes the fruit of wisdom
Proverbs 10:31
An experienced Bible-reader is likely to immediately see that wisdom is also a gift of the Spirit. There will also be some who straight away see the connection between God’s Spirit and God’s wisdom, which are more or less used as synonyms in the Old Testament. And – in principle there is next to nothing that separates righteousness from holiness.

I do not think that it is important to make a distinction between wisdom as fruit and wisdom as a gift of the Spirit, but if I should dare a very simple explanation, it will be as follows:
All fruit, including the fruit of wisdom, come as a natural consequence of the intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit, whilst one who ‘is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom (2) receives the gift as a kind of revelation in a given situation.

Either way, wisdom is one of the qualities that God cherishes (3), and that which he cherishes, is also my uttermost desire.

‘Manna’ for today:
Holiness is about the fruit of God’s wisdom
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(1) Gal 5:22-23
(2) 1 Cor 12:8
(3) Here are a couple of examples:
  • When God said to Solomon: “Ask whatever you want me to give you” – Solomon prayed for wisdom, and the prayer pleased God. The passage is found in 1 Kings 3:5-15
  • See also: ‘God’s Wisdom Revealed by the Spirit’ in 1 Cor 2:6-16

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