Moses challenged us to live with purpose in Psalm 90:12, “Teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom.” When your life is over, what you present to God will be determined by how you chose to walk in wisdom before a dying and needy world. One would think that applying this would be easy because it is straight forward and we are a people who love God and His truth. But it won’t always be easy. There is a pull from the world that can be resisted if you look above (Col 3:1-4) for the motivation to live a wise and purposeful walk.
A great deal can happen in a second. A hummingbird’s wings flap two hundred times, light travels 186,282 miles, 10.4 million liters of water flow from Victoria Falls, we send 3.4 million emails, and Facebook users create forty-one thousand posts. But, if we increase that time slightly to 1.8 seconds, something exponentially more significant takes place.
Every 1.8 seconds someone dies and enters their eternal destination. By the time you’re done reading this article, over four hundred people will have died. And most will spend an eternity separated from God’s glory and instead experience eternal suffering (Matt 7:13-14).
This gives even a short amount of time, like 1.8 seconds, great significance in our daily lives and decisions. May we all, as Paul says, make the “best use of the time” by walking wisely in the world as lights in the midst of darkness. Let’s see how the apostle describes the life of wisdom in Colossians 4:5-6:
Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Wisdom in the World
Balanced Wisdom
Scripture is very clear concerning our relationship to the world. We are not to be like it, love it, or find satisfaction with its offerings. We must prepare for the world to hate us while living in such a way that our lives give testimony to our faith. This spiritual balance calls us to avoid and even hate the world system while at the same time loving the lost souls who are bound by their sinful nature and the evil influence in society. Paul calls believers to walk in wisdom toward outsiders because finding this spiritual balance requires a great deal of wisdom. And if we don’t discover it, we may fall into the trappings of the world we are to speak against and fail at rescuing sinners from them. Our influence is a spiritual one as we proclaim the gospel as the only means of hope and purpose worth achieving.
Motivated Wisdom
The context of our passage directs us to this purpose. Colossians 3:1-17 acts as the motivating instruction to fulfill the relationships in 3:18 and following. Christ is the supreme example and motivation (vv. 1-4), the past habits are to be put to death (vv. 5-11), the virtues of the new life must be prominent (vv. 12-17), the family codes offer practical direction (3:18-4:1), and the prayers for grace and focus are needed for Paul’s final statement in 4:5-6 (4:2-4). His statement is the ultimate expression of a life motivated by Christ’s example, work, and our transforming salvation.
Purposed Wisdom
The New Testament definition of wisdom is consistent with the Old Testament. It is to live or walk through life with skill. The word carries the idea of having a particular skill and wisdom for life (Ex 28:3; 31:3; 35:31; Dan 5:11). So, to walk in wisdom means to walk skillfully for the glory of God and our benefit. The theme of wisdom is consistent in Colossians (1:9; 2:3, 8; 3:16), and the New Testament provides a comprehensive view of walking with God (Newness Rom 6:4; Faith 2 Cor 5:7; Governed Gal 6:16; Ro 8:4; Eph 5:8; 2 John 6; Predetermined Eph 2:10; Forsaking Eph 4:17; Loving Eph 5:2; Honoring Col 1:10; Col 2:6; Growing 1 Thess 4:1; Emulating Phil 3:17; 1 John 2:6). These nine features are descriptive of our spiritual journey which lead us to an ultimate objective—to glorify God by living with wisdom toward outsiders.
Ordered Wisdom
After instructing the Colossians in family life, he helps them understand their relationship to those in the world. It is essential that you appreciate the order. The qualifications of an elder illustrate this.