Action vs. Apathy

Paul commands the believers in his letter which began to the believers in Ephesus to not think like the unbelievers or Gentiles, but instead to “put on” the new self. Therefore, action is a necessary part of our faith and inaction is the seedbed for apathy and eventually spiritual atrophy. Paul’s understanding of the new life in comparison with the old way of thinking has clear connections to . In this Proverb, the writer applauds turning and softening at God’s reproof and promises his spirit and security to those that hear him. Also, Paul and the author of proverbs outline the futility of the minds of unbelievers and those who ignore the word of God.

Ephesians 4:17–24 ESV

Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

English Standard Version Chapter 1

23  If you turn at my reproof,1

behold, I will dpour out my spirit to you;

I will make my words known to you.

24  eBecause I have called and fyou refused to listen,

have gstretched out my hand and no one has heeded,

25  because you have hignored all my counsel

and iwould have none of my reproof,

26  I also jwill laugh at your calamity;

I will mock when kterror strikes you,

27  when terror strikes you like la storm

and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,

when distress and anguish come upon you.

28  mThen they will call upon me, but I will not answer;

they will seek me diligently but will not find me.

29  Because they chated knowledge

and ndid not choose the fear of the LORD,

30  hwould have none of my counsel

and idespised all my reproof,

31  therefore they shall eat othe fruit of their way,

and have ptheir fill of their own devices.

32  For the simple are killed by qtheir turning away,

and rthe complacency of fools destroys them;

33  but swhoever listens to me will dwell secure

and will be tat ease, without dread of disaster.”

is the call of Wisdom that Paul connects with the person of Christ in “who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,” It is clear that Paul sees the personification of wisdom in the Old testament with the person of Christ and manifested in his redeeming work through his death and resurrection. Therefore, at the core of the new life that Paul speaks of is the practice of the wisdom described in the book of proverbs.

What we observe in Proverbs and in Ephesians is that turning or repentance upon hearing the word of God is followed up with the Spirit of God and the security that comes with it. What we can also see that the hardness of heart and an unwillingness to respond to the word of God is followed up with calamity and destruction. It is worth noting that the destruction that falls upon those who ignore the word of God is something that they have created for themselves.

Most of the book of Proverbs describes the parental instruction toward the young people of ancient Israel. Young people today, I would be wise of you to spend significant amounts of time in this book. As you read this book in God’s Word, what you would discover is that a few times in the book, a different voice chimes in. Where the admonitions go beyond the parental instructions to wisdom, but statements from wisdom herself. This personification of wisdom does not say to the reader to submit to the Lord, but to submit to her. An astute reader will see as well as what other passages of scripture make clear is that this mysterious voice is very essence of the wisdom of God.

After looking through the 148 occurrences in the OT for the word typically translated wisdom, there are two clear dominant senses behind the meaning – (1) wisdom in the sense of knowledge (11 occurrences in proverbs), and (2) wisdom in the sense of ability to apply knowledge (28 occurrences in proverbs). Therefore, OT wisdom is not theoretical knowledge but practical; a working understanding of what is right and living what is right out in one’s daily life.

Therefore, knowledge of what is right and doing it is biblical wisdom. This highlight the idea that action is at the heart of God. On the flip-side, from a biblical standpoint refusal to hear the Word of God and inaction are hand in hand in the definition of a fool and the will be our understanding of apathy.