A Living Faith: The Book of James 3:13-18 (10/26/25)

Here are a couple of compelling quotations from John Ortberg’s book, The Me I Want to Be. Taken together, they get us thinking about the topic of our text in James this week: God’s wisdom.

Life is not about any particular achievement or experience. The most important task of your life is not what you do but who you become. The world badly needs wise and flourishing human beings, and we are called to bring God’s wisdom and glory to the world.

One of the things I like best about James is that he loves the truth (and us) too much to pull punches. Last week, he hit us in the mouth. This week, he confronts us with how we’re living our lives. 

He reminds us that there are two kinds of wisdom in this world. The first is the kind you want, and the next is the kind you want to watch out for. There is a false, or counterfeit, kind of wisdom that you want to avoid- like poison ivy in your underwear. 

There is, however, a wisdom you want to receive. This kind of wisdom comes from heaven, i.e., God. It’s the wisdom you need because it leads to the life you want, and to the person you want to become.