First, let me say that I believe God is a logical, reasonable God. He is not arbitrary (as Calvinism implies.) He invites the sinner to come and reason together with Him, in the hope that the sinner–convinced he was wrong–can be forgiven (Isa. 1:18).
Logic can be a beautiful thing. It can be skillfully used to draw conclusions that lead people to the truth. But it can also be used to draw people away from the truth. It all depends on the starting point. If you begin with a false premise, you will end at a false conclusion even if you use perfect logic.
Here is a simple example of a logical syllogism that leads to a lie because it begins with a lie.
There is no God. (lie)
People are moral beings. (truth)
Therefore the morality of people is not answerable to a God. (lie)
Obviously because the first premise is wrong, logic has led to a false conclusion–a conclusion that leads to spiritual death.
Here is another that has two TRUE premises but still comes to a false conclusion due to Christ being God in the flesh:
The surface of water cannot hold a man. (true)
Jesus is a man. (true, but He is also God)
Therefore Jesus could not have walked on water. (false–God is Master of His universe, not subject to its physical laws.)
Obviously, logical thinking cannot solve all of our problems. Having a well-trained mind will not always insure that we are in the Truth.
The wise men are ashamed, They are dismayed and taken. Behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord; So what wisdom do they have? (Jer. 8:9)
If we do not begin with the Word of the Lord, and submission to it, our best “wisdom” is still going to be foolishness.
Frighteningly, it is even possible to be an avid student of the Bible and use it to come to all sorts of false conclusions. If a person has no fear of God, no relationship with God, no real desire for Truth, or some unholy ambition, the Bible will become just another tool by which he denies the Truth and deceives himself. If you have ever had a conversation with a biblically literate atheist, you know how scary it is to see someone know just enough Truth to thoroughly damn himself.
I had a friend who, seeing the apostasy of the American church system, separated herself (not a bad thing in many cases, as we need to pursue righteousness with those who call upon Jesus with a pure heart–2 Tim. 2:22). In time however, it seemed her main message was “everything the Church has ever said is wrong, and I will prove it.” I sensed an undercurrent of bitterness in some of her writings, something that, in my own life, I was working to overcome. After all, we must discern and love the true brethren–wherever they are–or else we have denied the faith. In time, she ended up denying even the divinity of Jesus, churning out paper after paper using logic and Scripture to deny the Truth. (A defense of Christ’s divinity here.)
How did this happen?! It was a real lesson for me. Something had to have been wrong in her heart for her to lose sight of who Christ is.
The very cross was a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Greeks. Both groups had their learned teachers, but all of their learning could not bring them to the truth. And thus not many wise according to the flesh are called, for He will allow no flesh to glory in His presence (our great thinking skills cannot save us.) It is Christ who becomes for us wisdom from God (I Cor. 1:26-30). And to be in Him, we must have humbled ourselves and given up our reliance on our selves. I do not mean that we no longer think, or that we should yield our minds blindly to the control of other men or spirits (as many charismatics do to their own destruction). But our thinking must be governed by Jesus, and our every thought must be obedient to Him (2 Cor. 10:5). Unless there is a foundation of obedience to the Word of God even in cases where the Scripture exposes and wounds us, we will go astray even if we have a grasp of the Bible. Remember that the Jews stumbled over Jesus not because they didn’t have the Scriptures, but because they were disobedient (I Pet. 2:8).
The Proverbs repeatedly tell us to seek wisdom and understanding. These two necessities go way beyond logic! I can logically deduce that water helps my plants, but unless I have the wisdom to understand that overwatering can actually hurt them, I may destroy everything I am working for. I can know that sinners are on their way to death and hell, yet I must have wisdom in reaching out to them (Jesus did not say the same exact words to every person He met.) I can know that the Church is experiencing a terrible apostasy, yet I must have the wisdom to discern the Lord’s body and what course I should take at this time in history. I can know all sorts of things from the Bible, but I must have wisdom to apply those things to my life. And that wisdom is not sourced in my brain cells. My relationship to Jesus, and whether or not I am truly obedient from the heart will determine if I receive wisdom.
Jesus said, “If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.” (Jn. 7:17) The key then to understanding the truth is not mental prowess or verbal skill or superior knowledge. It is willing to do His will.
Thus God has made wisdom available to “children.” A child who knows very little Scripture can love God, desire to do His will, and have the wisdom to know the right path to take in a given situation. While every spiritual “child” should study to show himself approved and become able to rightly divide the Word of God, he must never take for granted that it is only by the Spirit Himself that he can do so.
Any impure motives we have in our hearts will pervert our understanding and application of Truth. Love to God and love to our neighbor are the greatest commandments because they will direct our own obedience to the commandments with wisdom, and direct our judgment of others (that it may be “righteous” judgment). Had the Pharisees loved God and their neighbor more than they loved power and money, they would not have condemned righteous men who “broke the Sabbath” by picking a few grains to eat when they were hungry. They would have rejoiced when a cripple was suddenly able to carry his bed, rather than trying to misapply the Law to condemn the Innocent. They would not have rejected the very Messiah of Whom their Scriptures testified.
Had Peter had in mind the things of God rather than the things of men, he would not have been used by satan to tempt Christ to circumvent His bloody cross (Matt. 6:21-23). Had he later not been afraid of the Judaizers’ opinions, he would not have had to be publicly corrected for perverting the gospel (Gal. 2:11-21). And so we see that even sincere disciples of Christ can go astray if there is some part of them still choosing the ideas of men over God’s wisdom.
The world through its (earthly) wisdom did not know God! It pleased God then, through the foolishness of the message preached, to save those who believe. To those who are called, Christ is both the power and wisdom of God. Our faith must not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. True wisdom never begins with the lying premises men have created, and from which their subsequent reason flows (premises like “the most important thing is my happiness now” for example).
Does it make sense that if a man hates his life, he will get to keep it? Does it make sense that if a man loves his life, he will lose it? Does it make sense that a seed must die in order to really come alive? Does it make sense that a man can be born twice? Does it make sense that we can best overcome an enemy by loving him and turning the other cheek to him? Does it make sense that if we are persecuted, we are blessed? Does it make sense that the King of the universe rode a donkey into Jerusalem, and submitted Himself to a cruel death? The world would say none of this makes sense! But–
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their own craftiness” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” (I Cor. 3:18-20)
Do we “seem to be wise in this age“? Does the world applaud our wisdom? If so, we are already in trouble! The Wisdom from God (embodied in Christ) has been rejected by this world! And if the world hated Him, it will hate us also. Nevertheless, as fools with and for Christ, we are yoked to a Wisdom the world is unworthy of–a wisdom that is pure, peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. (Jam. 3:17) And if in any circumstance, we discover that we lack the wisdom we need, we only need to ask for it, with faith (James 1:5-8).
In summary, we must not trust in worldly wisdom, or in the powers of the mind, including the gift of Logic. The beginning, middle and end of our Wisdom must be Christ. And there are many things about Christ that absolutely transcend, and turn upside down, the best wisdom man can come up with on his own.
God bless you!