In Search For Divine Wisdom

THU Evening Prayer Reflection 091720 (Job 28; Acts 16: 25-40)

Job has something of value to teach us in chapter 28. It is that kind of teaching any parent would want their kids to hold on fast. Job began with a story of miners. Miners dig deep. They create labyrinths and underground walkways that connect deep down below the earth surface. Miners search for diamonds, gold, copper and other precious minerals well prized by humans. They make a risky sacrifice in this search because they hope to find the precious objects of their quest. [Now this is my side note: Unfortunately, the ways of the world can be cruel because with humans, the powerful feeds on the weak. From what is often observed, the more wealth the powerful find, the poorer and sicker the weak become, and this situation makes God angry. We see this mostly in the book of Amos. I was thinking of the movie blood diamond highlighting the exploitation of children in the mines]

Job looks at this obsession of humans in search for these precious stones and realizes something: (v.4 They open shafts in a valley away from human habitation; they are forgotten by travelers, they sway suspended, remote from people.) In other words, while they are working under, their focus is ultimately finding their highly prized precious stones, and no bird, no land animal would ever see those underground walkways. Job continues (v.9-11 ‘They put their hand to the flinty rock, and overturn mountains by the roots. They cut out channels in the rocks, and their eyes see every precious thing. The sources of the rivers they probe; hidden things they bring to light.’) With all this dangerous and risky toil, would they ever toil as much to find wisdom, in the same way they search for their livelihoods? I am under the impression that Job is making such comparison. [I am actually assuming it] Free enterprise is a great idea, so long as wisdom is applied. Think of it this way: If the only way to get rich means to kill and degrade others, then the sense of free enterprise has lost its meaning. Hence the need for wisdom.

Paul and Silas found themselves in prison because someone’s hopes of wealth was shattered. A young slave girl who was possessed by a demon to be a fortune teller was delivered by Paul. She was now free from being used by her master and from malicious spirits/demons. In all these stories, there is always someone benefiting the system [in this case the slave owner] and someone who is a victim of it [in this case the young slave girl]. Paul comes in the story with the wisdom of God and realizes that the girl was in bondage! Paul acted with divine wisdom: a child of God was being exploited and needed to be free!

Job asks a relevant question: Where shall wisdom be found? Paul and Silas had this divine wisdom and understanding. First Paul realized that the young slave girl was possessed by an evil spirit and delivered her. When they were thrown in jail, they didn’t panic, they began to pray and sing hymns, praising God, then a miracle happened: all their chains broke and prison doors flew open. Wisdom from God! These events cannot be explained with earthly ways or understanding. Job realized that wisdom was hidden from the eyes of all living, and concealed from the birds of the air. (v.21)

Like miners, we can get so obsessed with getting our livelihoods. Without wisdom, we can only create problems in the process. Our search for wisdom should be as important as our search for livelihood. History is full of people who have tried to create a perfect society. They have tried. We haven’t seen a system without problems. Obviously, some economic systems are better than others but all of them are far from perfect. This is what caused Job to say in verse 28 “Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” That is what any parents would want to leave as a legacy to his/her children.

When we depart from the Lord’s path, we forfeit God’s help. I recently heard a few people say that when we remove God from our business, we can’t expect our business to need God! Proverbs 9: 10 says: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Wisdom is as hidden from our view as the precious stones are hidden. When I look at periods of our history with gold rush, I see a determination to work towards a goal. We can look back at some successes but also, some failures. I am of the opinion that these treasure hunters have so much to teach us about our own outlook on life, about our non-felt need for divine wisdom. Job tells us that you can’t go wrong if you incorporate wisdom. Begin with the fear of the Lord and also depart from evil. 

Be blessed!