Hello and welcome back to The Up Daily Devotional. I’ve been taking some vacation time but am now back five mornings a week to your email inbox, social media and podcasts feeds, and radio airwaves.

I also return to teach and preach at Westminster this coming Sunday.

Okay, here we go.

I often say that September is the real New Year’s. It’s when people tend to lock into schedules and patterns that will shape their lives for the next twelve months.

What better what to begin September than Jesus’ own definition of wisdom. Do you want to be wise? Do you want your wisdom to bless others? If so, read on.

Jesus told a parable often called ‘the wise and foolish builders.’ Here is how he describes a wise person: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

There it is. It’s so simple it’s easy to miss. According to Jesus, wisdom is hearing his words and putting them into practice.

‘Hearing,’ however, isn’t just about listening. It includes accepting, agreeing and knowing. Therefore, if you hear (i.e. accept, agree and know) what Jesus says, and then if you put those teachings into practice, you will be wise.

Here it is again as a formula: Knowing + Doing = Wisdom.

But there’s more. This wise person will have “built his house on the rock,” which was a way of saying that he or she will be steadfast through the storms of life.

Steadfastness is about perseverance through hardship. Steadfastness is about standing up for the grace and truth of God no matter what. Steadfastness is about being prepared for spiritual war. Steadfastness is about moral muscle. Steadfastness is about being dependable for others.

With that in mind, we can add something else to our wisdom formula: Knowing + Doing = Wisdom = Steadfastness.

I know, I know, easier said than done. 

So ask for God’s help and trust that moving forward he will make you successful. As the (real) New Year begins, know that he will make you increasingly wise as you put Jesus’ words into action. In the process you will become more steadfast to face the storms of life.

Notes:

-“What is the biblical definition of wisdom, and how do we live that way?” Click here. Sermon.
-Bible quotes are from the NIV.