The Mind of Christ in His World: Part 1 (7)

Does not wisdom cry out,
And understanding lift up her voice?
She takes her stand on the top of the high hill,
Beside the way, where the paths meet.
She cries out by the gates, at the entry of the city,
At the entrance of the doors:
“To you, O men, I call,
And my voice isto the sons of men.” Proverbs 8.1-4

Get wisdom!
We expect to encounter the wisdom of God as one aspect of His glory and mind. We expect to know God’s wisdom from the study of His Word, and we expect to know it from observing and meditating on His world. Indeed, wisdom is one of, if not the principle thing we should be seeking in all our study of God’s revelation. As Solomon explains in Proverbs 4.5-7:

Get wisdom! Get understanding!
Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you;
Love her, and she will keep you.
Wisdom is the principal thing;
Therefore get wisdom.

This is especially so because, as Paul explains, Jesus Christ is the treasury of wisdom and knowledge (Col. 2.2, 3). To get wisdom, to gain knowledge of the glory and mind of Christ, is to get Jesus Christ Himself.

Wisdom cries out
Jesus Christ is the Wisdom of God. The voice of Wisdom, crying out in Proverbs 8 – in the streets, around the corners, at every crossroads, in all of creation – is the voice of the Word of God, even our Lord Jesus Christ. (Don’t be put off by the fact that Wisdom, speaking in Proverbs 8, has a female form; all abstract nouns in the Hebrew language are feminine, but this has nothing to do with gender.)

Jesus Christ is the Wisdom of God. He is what we expect to experience, learn, and grow in as we seek the mind of Christ in His Word and His world.

And one thing we know about the Wisdom of God: He simply will not keep quiet! Wherever we encounter Wisdom, He calls out to us: “Here I am! Look at Me! Learn from Me! Be blessed in Me!” And wherever we find the Wisdom of God, our duty is to become His voice, crying Him and His benefits to everyone who will listen.

Full circle
The work of creational theology is not complete until, spurred on and enlightened by our encounter with God, we proclaim the glory of Christ and His saving work to the people in our Personal Mission Field. “This is my Father’s world: the battle is not done; Jesus who died will be satisfied…” And Jesus is satisfied when He and His wisdom and glory are made known to others (Hab. 2.14).

The revelation of God that comes to us in the creation and culture will speak to us of the glory, goodness, grace, truth, and wisdom of God, as these are revealed to us above all in the Person of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our task of creational theology comes full circle when what God has proclaimed to us of Himself, we proclaim to the people to whom He sends us each day.

Jonathan Edwards, the great Puritan preacher of the mid-18^th century, used to go on sorties of creational theology. He’d get on his horse with little slips of paper in hand, as well as a pocket full of straight pins. Every time something in the creation spoke to him, he’d write it down on a piece of paper and pin it to his coat or hat. At times, he would return home from these retreats into the woods looking like he was covered with snow. Then he would head to his study and think through all his observations. At last one or more of his experiences with the revelation of God in creation would find its way into one of Edwards’ sermons, where it would focus the minds of hearers on the Person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ.

All revelation from God – whether in creation or Scripture – finds its ultimate meaning in Christ; He is the key to Scripture and the point toward which all creation moves. Our work of creational theology is finished when we have connected what God has shown us from the world around with the finished work of Christ, His exalted reign in glory, or His imminent return. Thus the world and everything in it, which were called into being by the Word of God (Jn. 1.1-3), achieves its own unique fulfillment, with the help of God’s people, to honor and glorify the One Who made and sustains it all day long.

Christ the Wisdom of God calls to the hearts of men and women from every nook and cranny, every niche and corner, of the vast creation. Our task is to see for them what they will not see for themselves, then to help them discover the One Who cries out to them, so that they might turn to Him and live. Thus the work of creational theology moves from observation and association, through integration and meditation, to celebration and proclamation as a seamless cloth of glorious encounter with the living God, by which we are renewed in the mind of Christ to serve His Kingdom and glory.

For reflection
1.  What is wisdom? Why is Jesus the treasure of all wisdom and knowledge? Why should we pursue all our observations – whether in the Word or world of God – until they lead us to Jesus?

2.  How might you go from some encounter with the wisdom of God in creation to beginning a conversation about Jesus? Use the observations you’ve been making in this series to try a transition or two.

3.  How would you like to see yourself be more consistently used as a mouthpiece for the Wisdom of God?

Next steps – Preparation: Find a prayer partner or soul friend who will agree to pray daily for you as you work at the disciplines of creational theology. Share your progress with your prayer partner from time to time.

T. M. Moore

This is part 6 of a multi-part series on the Christian mind. To download this week’s study as a free PDF, click here. To learn more about creational theology, order a copy of T. M.’s book, Consider the Lilies (click here).

Brush up on your Christian worldview, and stretch your mind to think about life and the world as Jesus does. Our free online course, One in Twelve: Introduction to Christian Worldview, can provide the categories, terms, and framework for you to begin nurturing a more expansive Christian mind. For more information and to register, click here.

How’s your knowledge of the Bible, as to its primary themes, overall development, and Christ-centeredness? Order a copy of our workbook, God’s Covenant, and spend 13 glorious weeks working your way through the whole of Scripture, examining key themes and tracing the development of God’s precious and very great promises (click here). Or sign up for our course, Introduction to Biblical Theology, and discover the best ways of getting at, getting into, and getting with the Word of God. The course is free and online, and you can study at your own pace and depth. For more information or to register, click here.
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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.