The Wisdom Of God

Adapted From A Sermon By

George Burder

To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.

Romans 16:27

To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.

With these words the apostle Paul closes his most excellent and useful epistle to the Romans. Having expressed his good will towards the Christians then living in the city of Rome, he prays for the establishment of the Gospel among them; for which Gospel he ascribes glory to that infinitely wise God, who is the author of the Gospel, through Jesus Christ his Son, the great preacher and the great subject of it. “To the only wise God be glory”

Our focus this morning will be to explain and unfold the following truth:

God is a being who possesses infinite wisdom.

Wisdom, in man, is that ability of his mind whereby he is enabled to control and direct all his actions in the best possible way; to choose the best object, and to pursue it by the best means. It is the application of good knowledge to good purposes; it is acting according to a correct judgment; for there is a difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge resides in the understanding; but wisdom relates to practice. Knowledge is therefore the foundation of wisdom. A man may have knowledge without wisdom; but he cannot have wisdom without knowledge, for wisdom is the right use of knowledge.

But knowledge and wisdom in the blessed God are inseparable. The apostle Paul puts them together, when he cries—“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!” (Romans 11:33) His knowledge is infinite. “Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.” (Psalm 147:5)

Now God knows himself, and he only knows himself perfectly, for only he is infinite. He also knows all other things, whether they are past, or present, or to come. His judgment of all things is perfectly correct and complete, and this regulates all that he does. He directs all things to their proper end, the end for which he gave them being; and this is his own glory: for, as he is the most excellent being, nothing can be so excellent an end as his own glory; and his wisdom so directs all beings and all occurrences, that this end will be fully and finally accomplished. “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” (Romans 11:36)

In our text God is termed “only wise;” and in another place he is called “The only wise God;” (Romans 16:27) for God alone is perfectly, universally, and constantly wise. In very ancient times, men who stood out for their great learning and knowledge, were called Sophoi, that is, wise; but Pythagoras and Socrates, two of the most eminent of them, thought this too high a title to be given to any but God; and from that time they were known by the more modest name of lovers of wisdom, (Philo-Sophoi) or Philosophers. Wisdom is indeed “The divine Royalty.” Strictly speaking, it belongs to God alone. As “no one is good except God alone;” (Mark 10:18) so there is none wise but him.

Men have often boasted of their wisdom; but “the wisdom of this world is folly with God;” (1 Corinthians 3:19) and he “knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile,” (1 Corinthians 3:20) especially when they are opposed to his Gospel; and, on the other hand, “the foolishness of God,” that is, the Gospel of Christ, profanely so called by some, is “wiser than men”(1 Corinthians 1:25)—far wiser than any of the schemes devised by the wisdom of man.

And now let us see, in a few select instances, how the wisdom of God is displayed.

1. It is natural, in the first place, to refer to the works of God which we can see with our eyes; and the briefest consideration of their nature and design will constrain us to say with the psalmist, “In wisdom have you made them all!” (Psalm 104:24)

Observe their variety, and say with the Psalmist, “O Lord, how manifold are your works!” (Psalm 104:24) From the same original matter, the infinitely wise God has produced a vast variety of creatures and things. “Let the earth,” said he, “sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth. And it was so”. (Genesis 1:11) “And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens:” (Genesis 1:20) “let the earth bring forth ... livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” (Genesis 1:24) “And God said, Let us make man;” (Genesis 1:26) “and God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31) How different are the forms, the qualities, the colors, and the uses of the creatures of God! How numerous are the heavenly bodies; the inhabitants of the earth, of the air, and of the water: they are all unique; but they all display the wonderful wisdom of their great Creator: a wisdom we cannot comprehend, for no man can “find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

The remarkable fitness of everything which God has made, for its intended purpose, is another proof of his wisdom. It is impossible not to see the most evident marks of design in the works of God. Everything has its proper use, and everything is perfectly adapted to that use. He has formed the sun to give us light by day, and the moon by night; he causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and the herbs for the service of man: that he may produce from the earth.

That every tree and plant should produce its distinct and proper seed, to perpetuate the same species for future years, is an admirable provision of divine wisdom. “The sea also is his“ (Psalm 95:5) the great and wide sea, in which are countless creatures. “There go the ships,” (Psalm 104:26) which make the sea the means of uniting the most distant nations, although it seems to separate one country from another; for, by navigation and commerce, the produce of different countries become widely available, and wonderfully increase the comforts of man, while it employs the skill and industry of multitudes, facilitates friendly exchanges, and extends knowledge, especially that best kind of knowledge, the Gospel of Christ, which is the wisdom of God.

The changing seasons of the year are a wise and gracious appointment of Heaven, and provide wonderful variety. The soil and water table are refreshed in winter and the first snows are beautiful and can light up the night. The returning spring renews the face of the earth, and inspires the heart of man with cheerfulness and pleasure. The warmth of summer ripens the produce of the garden and the field; and the autumn crowns the year with fruit and corn to reward the care and toil of the farmer. The succession of night and day is pleasant and useful to man; he welcomes the day as the proper time for work, and the night is no less welcome as the season of rest. All night would be intolerable, and all day would be extremely inconvenient. “Yours is the day, yours also the night; you have established the heavenly lights and the sun.  You have fixed all the boundaries of the earth; you have made summer and winter.” (Psalm 74:16, 17)

The bodies of animals and all other living creatures, display the wisdom of God in a wonderful way. Some are formed to live in the water, an element that would destroy others. Birds are furnished with wings to soar aloft in the air; some animals live beneath the surface of the ground; but they all have organs suited to their destination; proper food is provided for their support, and they have wisdom to find it, and stomachs fitted to digest it. All this comes from him who is excellent in counsel and wonderful in working.

The human body is itself a world of wonders. Consider some of its parts. The bones are so firm that they support the whole body, yet so wonderfully joined that we can perform a vast variety of motions. The muscles, which are more than six hundred in number, have all their particular uses, yet never interfere with each other. The eye is an organ of such astonishing design, that anatomists have called it “a sure cure for Atheism.” The ear is no less wonderfully adapted to its role. The process of digestion is surprising; the power of the stomach and other organs to turn so many different substances into the energy we need is truly amazing.

The circulation of the blood is equally admirable. The heart has the power of forcing the blood into the arteries, and receiving it back from the veins, after it has visited the most distant and minute parts of the system; for this purpose it contracts and dilates its muscles, thousand of times every hour, making over one hundred thousand strokes every twenty-four hours; and continuing to do this, without weariness or disorder, for seventy or eighty years or more.

This wonderful machine is, generally speaking, kept in perfect order; for health requires the exact performance of every function. Little do we consider how much must go to produce the ease we generally enjoy. We should not be surprised if at any time we are unwell; but, knowing the complicated machine of the body, we may wonder at a single hour’s comfort and activity. Well may each of us say with the prophet, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.” (Psalm 139:14)

2. The wisdom of God is no less apparent in the work of providence than in that of creation. It requires the same skill to govern the world as to make it. The order and harmony of the universe can be ascribed only to the constant influence of the eternal mind; without which neither an empire rises, nor a sparrow falls. The world is like a vast machine, in which there are many millions of movements; some of which, to our mistaken view, seem to contradict each other; but, by the wisdom of the Creator, they all work together to accomplish his design, and to promote his glory.

But it is to man, and to man as a fallen creature, that we should chiefly direct our attention. How remarkable is the wisdom of God in conferring upon men those different abilities and inclinations, which tend to the general welfare of society! How wonderful is the restraint which he lays upon the wicked, without which, their ungoverned appetites and ferocious tempers would flood the earth with misery and blood! but he “stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples.” (Psalm 65:7)

The envy and cruelty of Joseph’s brethren, led the way to his advancement in Egypt, as did also the wickedness of Potiphar’s wife. God turned the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness; so that what was proposed for the destruction of David, became the means of his safety. The luxury of some of the rich, provides labor and food for the poor; and the worst of human actions give occasion to the enactment of the most excellent laws. Persecution itself; the vilest effort of human depravity, tends to the promotion of the Gospel, and “the blood of the martyrs becomes the seed of the church.” (Apologeticus, Tertullian) Thus, even “the wrath of man shall praise him; the remnant of wrath he will put on like a belt.” (Psalm 76:10)

3. But the wisdom of God is most of all illustrated in the grand affair of human redemption: Other displays of it, however excellent, are as the first morning rays compared with that of the noonday sun shining at its brightest.

To restrain or lessen human evils, and make them tolerable, is no small effort of the wisdom of man; but the wisdom of God has brought out of greatest possible evil, the greatest possible good. He has made the apostasy of angels, the malice of devils, and the rebellion of man, the occasion of exhibiting all his glorious perfections, and especially his wisdom, to the utmost advantage. Nothing in all the world can be so evil, so detestable as sin; nothing so hurtful and horrible as its effects: and yet it has given occasion for the manifestation of divine wisdom, holiness, justice, patience, and mercy, beyond what we can conceive would have been possible, had not sin entered into the world.

Here then is the “hidden wisdom of God;” (1 Corinthians 2:7) wisdom which the light of nature could never have revealed; and which our feeble intellect so imperfectly understands, that it still remains “the mystery of godliness.” (1 Timothy 3:16) it is "the manifold mystery of God” (Ephesians 3:10) —displayed, not in a single act, but in a variety of counsels; the union of the most excellent ends and of the most excellent means. The plan of redemption“he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight." (Ephesians 1:8)

Nothing less than infinite wisdom could have devised a way whereby “mercy and truth” (apparently contrary to each other) “should meet together; righteousness and peace,” (Psalms 85:10) equally hostile to each other, “should meet and embrace.” The claims of justice and of mercy are so opposite that human wisdom could never have reconciled them.

We may suppose justice to plead in the following way:—“Awesome Majesty of Heaven, I arraign, before your awful tribunal, the rebel man. Made in your image, richly favored by your blessings, placed under an easy, righteous, and reasonable law,— bound by ten thousand ties to love and serve you, he has listened to the tempter, wilfully transgressed your commandments, dishonored your government, and filled your whole creation with folly, and sin, and woe. I demand his life. It is forfeited. He well deserves to die: and die he must; or what becomes of your truth, which declared that he should die? What becomes of your holiness, should he not die? Who will ever believe that you are holy, or just, or true! I demand therefore that he die.”

But Mercy, smiling, comes forward. “I too,” says she, “have my plea to offer. It is true, man has sinned, and deserves to die. But is there no room for the exercise of pity and compassion? Justice is already displayed in the punishment of fallen angels; let that suffice. Permit mercy also to be exhibited to the universe. Now there is an admirable opportunity for it, for without misery there can be no mercy. Show pity, then, to miserable man. Shall devils forever triumph! Shall they boast that, by one daring stroke, they have spoiled the six days’ labor of a God; and this beautiful world, filled with a profusion of your wonderful gifts, become a mere wilderness of woe, a desolate field of destruction, and nothing more than the porch of hell? O listen to Mercy, and let the rebel sinner live!”

Now who can reconcile these contradicting claims? If one is gratified, it must be at the expense of the other. If man must perish, what becomes of mercy? If man is pardoned, what becomes of justice?

Only the wisdom of God could devise a way out of this dilemma. The wisdom of God said, “I will satisfy you both. The pleas of justice will be satisfied in the punishment of sin; and the pleas of mercy will be satisfied in the pardon of sin. Justice will not complain for lack of punishment; nor mercy for want of compassion. I will provide a sacrifice which will satisfy justice; and the virtue of that sacrifice will gratify Mercy. Justice will have punishment to accept, and Mercy will have pardon to bestow. The rights of both will be secured; and the demands of both will be fully satisfied in punishment and pardon, by transferring the punishment of the sinner to his Surety. Justice will be met in his shed blood, while life and salvation will be granted by Mercy to the sinner, without the expense of one drop of his own.” Behold, therefore, the goodness and the severity of God! The riches of grace are entwined with the terrors of wrath. God is righteous without being cruel, and merciful without being unjust. His righteousness unstained; and the world recovered. (These thoughts, with many others in the course of these sermons, are borrowed from the admirable Charnock on the Attributes of God. See particularly volume i. page 383, &c.)

How wonderful is the wisdom of God in the provision of a Savior in the person of his Son Jesus Christ! Who so proper to restore the world as he who made it? Who so qualified to renew the divine image, as he who first impressed it! Who so fit to intercede with God, as his dearly beloved Son? Who so proper to redeem the forfeited inheritance, as the “Heir of all things?”

The union of the two natures, human and divine, in the person of Christ, appears to be perfectly suited to the great purpose intended. “He is Immanuel—God with us;” (Matthew 1:23) he was therefore qualified, as a mediator, to lay his hand on both parties. By the one nature, he was fitted for “things pertaining to God,” (Hebrews 5:1) by the other he was capable of sympathizing men. He had a nature capable of suffering, and a nature which could make his sufferings infinitely worthy. Had he not been man, he could not have suffered and died; had he not been more than man, his sufferings and death could have been of no help to us.

In the death of Christ we see the righteousness of the law perfectly fulfilled (Romans 8:33) so that “as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous.” (Romans 5:19) And in this way, God manifested to the world, in one act, the strongest hatred to sin, and the greatest love to the sinner. Here is infinite love and infinite hatred condemning with awful severity the sin to what it deserved, and advancing the sinner himself to undeserved, unexpected, and everlasting happiness; consuming the sin, and recovering the sinner; and doing all this by instruments who had no such intention. Satan is overthrown by his own hands; he that had “the power of death,” (Hebrews 2:14) is himself destroyed “by death;” by his cross, Jesus takes away the prince of darkness’ crown; Satan is altogether baffled, and the agents he inspired to carry out his plans, are completely disappointed. It was “by the hands of lawless men” that Jesus was crucified and slain; but in this way “the definite plan and foreknowledge of God” (Acts 2:23) were fulfilled, and the church of God ransomed by the blood of his Son.

Nor is the wisdom of God less conspicuous in the ways and means by which the redemption of Christ is applied to the hearts of men. How simple and plain is that glorious gospel, which is the power of God to salvation, to everyone who believes! The great salvation was not published by men famous for worldly wisdom; it was not by the force of human eloquence, or by the influence of human authority, that men were converted; but “this treasure was put into jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to man.” (2 Corinthians 4:7) For the same reason, Faith is appointed to be the instrument of our justification; for Faith assumes no merits of its own; it simply and humbly receives the divine testimony, and with it the blessings promised, “without money and without price;” (Isaiah 55:1) and “that is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace.” (Romans 4:16)

The wisdom of God has adapted the Gospel to promote, in the most powerful way, the practice of holiness and good works. While a salvation of pure grace is bestowed upon men, and becomes the ground of their confidence and the source of their hopes, they are powerfully induced and enabled to glorify God by their holy obedience. A true acquaintance with the gospel produces in the heart love both to God and men. Nothing is so powerful as love; and the love of God to us, if “poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit,” (Romans 5:5) must and will produce a return of love and gratitude to God; and if we love him, we will keep his commandments, for this is the proper fruit of faith, and the best evidence of our sincerity.

Conclusion

Let us grow from a meditation on this subject in three ways:—Adore the wisdom of God; Rely on the wisdom of God; and Implore wisdom of God.

1. Adore the wisdom of God. Where can you turn your eyes without seeing it? Behold it in every object around you. Look at creation with this purpose, that the Creator, infinitely wise and good, may be adored. In this way the whole world becomes a temple, and life itself is one continued act of adoration. But it is in the new creation that wisdom most brightly shines: it is “through Jesus Christ,” as the text expresses it; through him, as the light of the world, God shines upon us; and through him, as our Mediator, let our honors be paid to God.

2. Rely on the wisdom of God. In the common affairs of life we often need advice; and we gladly seek out the wisdom of a friend, of a physician, of a counsellor: but O! what a privilege is it to a Christian, that the God of wisdom oversees the world, the church, and his own private affairs! Commit then your way to the Lord. Trust in him at all times, even at the worst of times. He knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation: he knows how to make all things work together for good. “The Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.” (Isaiah 30:18) Finally,

3. Ask wisdom of God; this is what he directs us to do. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” (James 1:5) We need wisdom in all that we do and should seek direction in the management of all our affairs; but above all, we need it for our souls; for mistakes in religion are of all others the most dangerous. God has blessed us with the Bible, which is his own book of wisdom, and it is able to make us “wise for salvation;” (2 Timothy 3:15) but we also need “the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation,” (Ephesians 1:17) to guide us into all truth, and to glorify Jesus, by revealing him to us as the way, the truth, and the life.

May we know, and love, and serve him on earth! increasing in true wisdom every day, and rejoicing in hope of a more excellent state, where our faculties will be expanded, and our knowledge improved; and where, with infinite gratitude, we will adopt the doxology in our text:—To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ!