Reading The Proverbs With Timothy And Kathy KellerSample

 Discernment

Another aspect of wisdom is insight (Hebrew bina). This means the ability to notice distinctions and shades of difference where others see only a blur. Kathy can see small but significant differences between the performances of ballet dancers that Tim can’t perceive, and he can notice fine differences in the quality of a curveball that are lost on her. We are, as it were, wiser than each other in the fields of dance and sport.

Biblical wisdom, however, brings discernment to the skill of the daily living of life itself. To be wise is to recognize multiple options and possible courses of action where others can imagine only one or two. Wisdom discerns multiple dimensions to people’s motives and character, rather than putting everyone into the binary categories of “good people” and “bad people.” Discernment is also the ability to tell the difference not just between right and wrong but also among good, better, and best. Christians find that as Christ’s love in our hearts grows, so does “depth of insight” (Philippians 1:9). His love heals the self-absorbed ego and enables us to notice and be sensitive to others around us.

Where has God been enabling you to see fine distinctions that you didn’t see before?

Prayer: Lord, our world seems divided between the people who see everything as black or white and those who see everything as gray. Deliver me from both legalism and relativism—neither is wise. Give me the humility and discernment that is necessary for having a wise heart. Amen.

Excerpt from God’s Wisdom for Navigating Life: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Book of Proverbs by Timothy Keller and Kathy Keller

Reprinted by arrangement with Viking Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, A Penguin Random House Company. Copyright © 2017 by Timothy and Kathy Keller