Don’t fool yourselves. Whoever thinks they are wise in this world should become a fool. That’s the only way they can be wise. I say this because the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God.

There is the wisdom of the world and there is the wisdom of God. The wisdom of the world arises from the limited perspective of human beings. It is wisdom that is limited by a vantage point located here on earth The wisdom of God, on the other hand, is wisdom that arises from the unlimited perspective of the infinite God. It is wisdom that is not limited to a vantage point on earth, because it comes from the God who exists outside of creation as its Creator and Sustainer.

Given the commitment to their limited perspective, however, the “wise” of the world reject the wisdom of God. Instead of acknowledging the Creator God as the ultimate source of all things, they elevate mere creatures to the status of gods. Furthermore, instead of submitting to the revealed wisdom of God’s will and ways, they elevate their own will and ways above God’s. At the extreme, what God has declared evil, they declare good, and what God has declared good, they declare evil.

Because the wise of the world regard the wisdom of God as foolishness, it may be tempting for Christians to avoid the scorn of the world by accommodating God’s wisdom to the wisdom of the world. It’s not easy swimming against the stream of accepted worldly wisdom or being regarded as a fool by the wise of this age, dealing with their persecutions, whether small or great.

If you are going to be faithful to God, however, then you must be prepared to be called a fool by the world. The Apostle Paul says we should not fool ourselves about this. The only way you can be truly wise is to become a fool in the eyes of the world. A stand must be taken. A fact of life must be accepted. Instead of appeasing the world, we must accept being fools in their eyes so we can be wise in the eyes of God.

By John Huisman, friend of Bible League International