Are You Wise or Foolish?

This passage sets out the standard that divides the wise from the foolish among believers, and points out that longing for past glory or complaining about present hardship is folly. God has set the day of prosperity side by side with the day of adversity so that people cannot find out what is to come, which shows that sovereignty over life belongs to God. Believers must obey God's righteous judgment rather than boast of their own righteousness or wisdom, and must guard against the pride of being overly righteous or acting overly wise.

The sermon warns that human righteousness in the end brings ruin, and makes clear that exalting oneself by the world's measure is an act that brings God low. Believers must acknowledge their weakness and live with honest faith, cutting off the sprouts of sin and fending off Satan's attacks. So as not to walk the path of the fool who may die before the time God has set, they must judge carefully with the wisdom of Christ and devote themselves to the salvation of souls.

The sermon asks whether believers boast of their own righteousness, or judge the world's problems with God's wisdom and devote themselves. It reminds us that if our human righteousness is not revealing the Lord's righteousness, it is something that must be cast away. When believers meet problems, they must discern why God has given them this situation, and seek not human wisdom but the wisdom of God.