A man had three sons. He wanted to test their ability to discern; so he gave each of them a piece of an apple with a rotten spot on it. The first ate the whole apple; the second threw it away; and the third separated the bad and ate the good. The father noted that the third was the wisest, and explained, “When we receive instruction, some of us believe everything we hear; others reject everything because some is bad; but the wise separates the bad from the good and benefits from the good.”

The Bible strongly urges the pursuit of wisdom. Proverbs 3:13 says, “Happy is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding …” (cp. vv. 14-15, 21-22). Wisdom is more valuable that all of the comparable worldly riches (gold, silver, rubies, etc.). Wisdom allows one to take a deep look at life, and at the ramifications of apathy and indecision. You need to separate the kind of counsel that would say that obedience to the gospel is ludicrous and do what God asks. We earnestly appeal to people to be wise and obey God.

Kyle Campbell