Wisdom That Works

Introduction

Our passage this morning is James 3:13–18 “Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

Let’s pray.

Have you ever known someone who was really smart, but they liked to use their intelligence to show off or make other people feel dumb? Maybe that’s people in class who just have to answer every question or people that argue about everything online just to prove a point.

The world tells us that wisdom or knowledge means knowing the most, winning arguments, or even being successful. And sure — there’s nothing wrong with knowing a lot or being successful. But we should ultimately be concerned with God’s definition of wisdom. And where can we find that? In God’s very word. I would imagine that if I asked you to raise your hand if you want to grow up and have lots of wisdom, most of you would raise your hand. I’ve never really met anyone who didn’t desire to be wise.

And so for us, we need to look at God’s definition of wisdom, found in God’s word. And when we do that, we will see that God’s wisdom looks totally different than the definition offered up by the world.

James is writing his letter to a group of Christians who were struggling with pride, jealousy, and division. These are things that destroy relationships, churches, and even people. So James writes to these struggling Christians and tells them that they need to be wise to overcome their struggle. And I am sure they were hearing this from people outside of their faith as well. And so they are hearing the need for wisdom from different sources. And James tells them how to tell the difference in real wisdom and fake wisdom: How? By looking at what it produces.

Today, our main point is that true wisdom from God changes how we live, not just how we think. As we move throughout the passage, we will see wisdom displayed, wisdom distorted, wisdom described, and wisdom’s destination.

Let’s dive in.

Wisdom Displayed (v 13)

Verse 13 says “Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.”

When talking about wisdom, James doesn’t start with GPA or ACT scores. James asks, “Who is wise among you?” James asks them: “Show me your wisdom by your life.” The Bible’s definition of wisdom is not how much you know — it’s how you live.

If someone says that they are a great basketball player, but never plays, never practices, and always complains about basketball — would you believe them? Of course not! You can’t believe them because they are displaying what it means to be a great basketball player.

Godly wisdom doesn’t talk about itself. The person who is wise typically doesn’t walk into the room and say, “Hey I am wise!” James tells us: Let the wise person show or display that wisdom. In math class, we have to show our work. Wisdom shows its work. And what does that work look like? Meekness, or humility. Good deeds. It’s not flashy. It’s not about showing off.

True wisdom isn’t about having all the answers or attaining the most knowledge — it’s about letting Jesus shape your mind and your heart.

True wisdom is displayed through being humble. Serving others. Honoring God. True wisdom is demonstrated, not declared. It is shown, not spoken. True wisdom is lived, not loud.

While true wisdom is displayed, it can also be distorted.

Wisdom Distorted (v 14-16)

Look at verse 14-16. James says that if you aren’t displaying good works and meekness or humility, and have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, you don’t have godly wisdom. You have a distorted, fake wisdom. And what does fake, distorted wisdom look Iike? James gives it three descriptions:

Earthly: God’s wisdom is described as wisdom that comes down from above. On the other hand is the wisdom that is earthly — that wisdom that doesn’t come from above. This distorted wisdom is not God’s wisdom. Rather, it’s the wisdom of the world. And by virtue of it being of the world, it is concerned with things of this world, not the things of God. It’s focused on preserving the present, not preparing for eternity. Distorted wisdom is earthly.

Unspiritual: James also calls distorted wisdom unspiritual. It comes from humans, not the Holy Spirit. Distorted wisdom comes from imperfect, fallen human beings. Wisdom from God comes from God, who is perfect. He cannot lead us astray. He cannot lie. He is perfect, and therefore the wisdom he gives us in his word is perfect. Distorted wisdom is unspiritual.

Demonic: Finally, distorted wisdom is demonic. When James calls false wisdom “demonic” in James 3:15, he’s making a strong statement about its source and spirit. He’s saying this kind of “wisdom” doesn’t come from God at all — it actually reflects the attitude of Satan himself. Demonic wisdom is driven by pride, envy, and selfish ambition — the same traits that led to Satan’s rebellion against God. It’s clever, persuasive, and even looks successful on the surface, but its goal is to exalt self rather than honor God. Instead of producing peace and humility, it breeds competition, comparison, and chaos. James wants his readers to see that this isn’t just “bad advice” or “worldly thinking”; it’s spiritually toxic. Anytime we use knowledge or influence to control, manipulate, or divide others for our own advantage, we’re operating out of the same kind of wisdom that opposes God’s kingdom. True wisdom, in contrast, always reflects the heart and humility of Jesus.

So he says that distorted wisdom is earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. And what, then does it look like? James tells us: This distorted wisdom will show itself in jealousy and selfishness, and this leads to disorder and vile practices.

So the real question becomes this: how can we tell the difference in distorted wisdom and godly wisdom? Real wisdom or fake wisdom? And the answer is to look at the end result? What is the fruit? If it’s jealousy and selfish ambition, and if it’s disorder and vile practices, then there can’t be real, godly wisdom there. It’s distorted and fake! It may look clever, but it creates chaos and leads to disorder, destruction, and division. Fake wisdom is all about “me” — and everything falls apart.

Have you ever been a part of a group project? And the whole thing falls apart because everyone wants to be in charge and do what’s best for themselves? That’s chaos, right? And that’s distorted wisdom. No one willing to submit to others. No one willing to sacrifice for the greater good of the group. That’s an example of distorted wisdom.

So ask yourself about your motivations when you do something: “Why am I doing this?” Is it to make myself look good, or is it to point others to Jesus? If our wisdom leads to pride, or tearing others down, it’s not from God. It’s distorted.

So what do we do? We’ve seen that godly wisdom is displayed, and is focused on how we live. But distorted wisdom exists and leads to chaos. So how do we know this godly wisdom?

Wisdom Described (v 17)

In verse 17, we see wisdom described. “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and open to reason, full of mercy, and good fruits, impartial, and sincere.”

James now shows us what real wisdom looks like. Let’s quickly go through these:

Pure: Wisdom has clear motives. The opposite is selfishness. Wisdom is pure in its motives. It acts with the best intentions.

Peaceable, or peace-loving: Godly wisdom loves living at peace with those around. Not dramatic. Not stirring stuff up between others. But peaceful.

Gentle or considerate: Wisdom thinks about others above yourself.

Open to reason or submissive: Wisdom is willing to listen and learn. Not stubborn.

Full of mercy and good fruits: Wisdom shows grace and kindness. Wisdom says that I have been shown mercy, so I need to be merciful.

Impartial: Wisdom doesn’t play favorites, but treats everyone with fairness.

Sincere: Genuine. Real. Authentic. Not fake.

This is God’s word’s description of wisdom. Notice that we aren’t given a list of facts to learn. Remember: Godly wisdom is not something you learn, but it’s how you live. And I know what you’re probably thinking. And it might be the same thing I think when I encounter verses like this: How in the world can I do this? Who has ever been pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy, impartial and sincere? Maybe at times we all have, but who can say that they have been perfectly wise, if this is the Bible’s description of wisdom?

It seems like an impossible standard, right? Like, if that’s the test, very few — if any of us — are passing the test of wisdom. But this description of godly wisdom can’t be looked at as a list of rules. We should really look at this as God painting a picture. Each description of wisdom is a brush stroke on a canvas. And when we see the finished work of art — this description of wisdom — we will see Jesus.

Everything that James describes here points us to Jesus:

Pure: Jesus was completely without sin

Peaceable: Jesus was the Prince of Peace who brought us peace with God, even when we were at war with him in our sin.

Gentle: Jesus describes himself as gentle and lowly.

Open to reason or considerate: Jesus came to serve others

Merciful: Jesus’s mercy is displayed in that he forgives all those who have faith in him, even those who nailed him to the cross.

So true wisdom looks like Jesus. And for us, as Jesus followers, we have to know that Jesus gives us his Holy Spirit. Why? To produce this wisdom in us.

When you have conflict with a friend, ask yourself: “What would true wisdom look like here?” And the answer is found here: pure motives, peace, gentleness, open to reason, merciful. When you’re tempted to gossip, or post something rude, or make fun of someone else, remember this passage: true wisdom — wisdom from God, wisdom that pleases God — is pure, peaceful, gentle, considerate of others, merciful.

Wisdom’s Destination (v 18)

We’ve seen that wisdom is displayed, can be distorted, and is described. But where does wisdom lead? James closes in verse 18 with a farming metaphor. He says that wise people — those who are living with godly wisdom — are like farmers planting seeds of peace, and what grows from that seed? A harvest of righteousness. In other words, if you will live a life concerned with the wisdom from above — godly wisdom — your life will be righteous and pleasing to God.

That means that your choices today — how you speak, how you treat others, how you respond when you are wronged — are like seeds. You’re always planting something.

The question you need to ask yourself today: What kind of harvest will grow from your life?

If you plant selfishness and pride and jealously, you’ll grow drama, division, and regret.

If you plant peace, humility, and love — you’ll grow joy, lasting relationships, and a life that honors God.

And this doesn’t happen overnight. Trees take time to grow, right? In the same way, it takes time to become wise as God helps us along the way as we follow Jesus.

Conclusion

I’ve shown you today what it looks like to live a wise life according to God’s definition of wisdom. But here’s the truth: none of us naturally live this way. We all naturally fall into jealousy, pride, envy, or selfishness. So we all need a wisdom that doesn’t come from within us. That would be lead us astray. We need a wisdom from above. Don’t leave here believing that I am telling you to look within yourself for wisdom, for some light from within or to follow your heart. The Bible says that the heart is deceitful above all things. Your heart is not the seat of wisdom in your life. Do not follow your heart.

That’s why Jesus came. That’s why Jesus came to earth to live a perfect life and die a death on the cross. The cross looks like foolishness to the world, but Paul tells us that the cross is the wisdom of God displayed. At the cross, Jesus took our sin: our pride, our pathetic attempts at wisdom, our selfishness and our arrogance. And he gave us his righteousness, and he gave us his peace.

So when we trust him, he gives us a new heart. A heart that is filled with the Holy Spirit and pursuing godly wisdom.

So if you want to grow in wisdom, you can’t do that by trying harder. Start by getting closer. Getting closer to Jesus. Getting closer to the Word of God. Because wisdom isn’t a list of rules to follow or things to know, but a way of life that comes through a person to know, and that person is Jesus.

This week, ask God to help you do the following:

Check your heart: Am I living for God?

Choose humility: Wisdom shows up in service, not pride

Plant peace: What are some ways I can bring peace in conflict?

Let this be a generation that is known not for the things you know, but how Christlike you are, because you’re living for him every day.

Let’s pray.