James 3:17 offers a wisdom test for us to evaluate the credibility of a piece of “wisdom.” It says:

“But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”

Based on the guidelines in this verse, wise advice should elicit the answer “yes” to the following questions:

Is it pure? Godly wisdom is never unethical, immoral, off-color or morally questionable.

Does it promote peace? Godly wisdom seeks to reconcile people, rather than divide them. The mercy Christ has given us should govern our decisions and relationships, even when people disagree. Godly wisdom is not violent or hateful. It is restorative and loving despite serious conflict or disagreement.

Is it humble, submissive and impartial? Does this wisdom consider everyone who may be affected by the course of action? Does it positively impact only a few? Someone following godly wisdom is looking out for the best interests of all others as well as himself. Furthermore, a seeker of godly wisdom is willing to set aside things like denomination, political party and personal opinion when God asks. The wise person will sacrifice their own will and preferences for God’s will and the benefit of others.

Is the teacher living it out? Can you see the results, or fruit, of this godly wisdom in the life of the person who is delivering it? Are you listening to someone who you believe makes decisions and chooses their course of action based on godly wisdom? If not, why are you listening to them? If the teacher is not living out what they teach, they are speaking out of pride and insincerity, even if they’re talking about a good principle.

What about you? Do you follow some kind of “wisdom test?” What about when you are asked to give godly wisdom?

10 Signs that We Don’t Believe in the Power of the Holy Spirit

1. We are experiencing anxiety and bitterness in our lives rather than joy and kindness. (Galatians 5:22-23)
2. We can’t remember the last time we prayed for the people we lead. (Romans 8:26)
3. The churches we lead aren’t growing and reaching more people. (Acts 9:31)
4. The churches we lead aren’t outreach focused. (Acts 1:8)
5. We think it’s our responsibility to convict people of sin. (John 16:8)
6. We are stuck in sinful patterns rather than pursuing the things of God. (Galations 5:16:17)
7. We think we have the power to change people. (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)
8. We are more concerned about the rules than we are our freedom in Christ. (Galations 3:2-3)
9. We think we can explain the mysteries of God. (1 Corinthians 2:10-12)
10. We are creating division and aren’t promoting unity within the Church. (1 Corinthians 12:12-13)

It might be good to begin the week and this next season of ministry by studying and praying through this list. My prayer is that your life and your ministry would continue to experience its fullest potential in the power of the Holy Spirit.

• Part of my role as a leader is to model this: “agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.” (1:10)
• God will use ordinary men and women to accomplish his work. (1:28-29)
• When Paul said he did not come with “superior wisdom,” I wonder if that was more about his approach to sharing truth rather than his lack of wisdom. (2:1-5)
• Paul demonstrates a key leadership lesson–there are instances when it’s wise to acknowledge our limitations. (1:18-2:5)
• God makes things grow. We should expect growth. (3:6-7)
• The true test of a leader’s impact is revealed under fire. (3:10-15)
• “Those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.” (4:2)
• I need to live a life worthy of imitation. (4:16)
• The health of my marriage directly impacts my strength as a leader. (7:33-35)
• Is my intention to impart knowledge or demonstrate love? (8:1-3)

• If faith comes from hearing the message, someone needs to step up and preach the message so those outside the faith hear it. (Romans 10:14)
• “I make much of my ministry in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them.” I have a responsibility to inspire others to fulfill God’s purpose in their lives. (11:13-14)
• I’m glad God values wisdom and knowledge, but I’ll never know what he knows. (11:33-34)
• Am I a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God? That’s real worship. (12:1)
• God gifts us differently. Which is another way of saying it’s silly for all of us to think we’ll have the same gift. (12:6-8)
• “Honor one another above yourselves.” (12:10)
• God establishes leadership authority including the government. And, one specific way that we’re supposed to submit to God’s authority is by paying taxes. (13:1-7)
• “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.” Imagine how the world would view the Church is we embraced that statement. (14:19)
• God wants unity within his Church. (15:5-7)
• Faith produces hope. (15:13)
• I love it that our faith embraces the leadership role of women. (16:1-5)

• Paul was first a "servant" of Jesus before he was a leader that helped establish the Church. (1:1)
• "At whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things." But it’s so easy to point out the shortcomings of others…especially in blog world. (2:1)
• Character is defined when no one but God is looking. (2:16)
• I find it interesting that come people accused Paul of evil because of his ministry approach including his teaching on God’s grace. History tends to repeat itself. (3:8)
• We can’t earn God’s friendship. Sometimes that’s a hard truth to comprehend for a control-freak like me. (4:2-3)
• Where there is suffering, there’s an opportunity for hope. (5:3-5)
• If God has an "abundant provision of grace," why do some think very few people can experience that gift? (5:17)
• It’s interesting that even after Paul decided to follow Christ, he was honest about his propensity for sin. That ability to be real certainly helps those of us who face similar challenges. (7:7-25)
• When I don’t know what to do or pray or even think, the Holy Spirit is there to step in on my behalf. Weakness is actually good. (8:26-27)
• "If God is for us, who can be against us?" That’s where we find strength. (8:31)

• Jesus was able to narrow it all down to two statements: "Love the Lord your God" and "Love your neighbor as yourself." Can you state your mission in only ten words? (22:36-40)
• I find it interesting that Jesus would sometimes ask questions to make a point rather than using statements. (22:41-46)
• To have influence, I have to embrace humility. (23:11-12)
• Jesus pointed out that there are parts of the law that are more important than others. Does that suggest that there are parts of the Bible that are more important than others? And, if so, should that be the focus of our teaching? (23:23-24)
• Jesus didn’t appreciate the religious leaders of his day. He frequently called them "hypocrites." They tried to obey the rules and traditions but forgot to obey God. (23:27,33)
• Do you sense an urgency? (24:44)
• Everything belongs to God. (25:14)
• I will have to give an account for how I steward my leadership gifts. (25:19)
• As leaders, we need to encourage people ("Well done, good and faithful servant"), position people for success ("I will put you in charge of many things") and celebrate with people ("share your master’s happiness!"). (25:21)
• Leadership requires risk. Leadership requires action. God doesn’t reward the cautious. (25:26-30)
• "The disciples did as Jesus had directed them." Am I doing what Jesus has directed me to do? (26:19)
• Jesus has all authority. He has the power to do anything–to fix anything. Yet, his primary mission for us on earth is to make disciples. (28:18-20)

• If we’re not careful, we can end up worshiping traditions instead of following God’s direction. (15:3)
• You can tell a lot about the condition of someone’s heart by how they talk. (15:18)
• The local Church is the one entity guaranteed to withstand the test of time. (16:18)
• I must acknowledge my position in Christ before I can experience my potential in Christ. (16:24-28)
• With faith in Christ, nothing is impossible. That’s where confidence develops. (17:20)
• Greatness begins with humility. (18:2-4)
• Lost people matter to God. (18:14)
• God designed ministry to happen in relationship with other people. (18:19-20)
• Crowds will gather when life change begins to take place. (19:2)
• Success begins with obedience. (19:16-17)
• The worship of money and possessions can get in the way of fulfilling God’s purposes. (19:21-24)
• Jesus promoted servant leadership (20:26-28)
• There are times when it’s appropriate to assert authority and reveal anger. (21:12)
• I need to pray for everything I’m facing as a leader. (21:22)

• All leaders face fear. Having faith doesn’t eliminate fear. God is still in control, though, so we don’t need to be paralyzed by fear. (8:23-27)
• Jesus modeled building relationships with those he was trying to influence. (9:11)
• I’m supposed to pray for God to send those that will serve beside me. I wish he’d send them faster. (9:37-38)
• The team is more important than the tools. (10:9-10)
• If people don’t listen, I need to move on. (10:14)
• Good leaders find the right balance between being "shrewd" and "innocent." (10:16)
• To go with that, in parts of this book I’m called to be "meek," and then there are times when God wants me to "forcefully advance" the mission. (11:12)
• Organizations will will not be successful or last where division exists. (12:25)
• My words will always reflect the condition of my heart. (12:34)
• Though I find strength and encouragement and accountability in my relationships with others, I still need to prioritize the time when I’m alone with God. (14:13)
• Sometimes I need to risk comfort and safety to get closer to God. (14:22-36)

• Leaders make mistakes. God can redeem leaders. (1:6)
• It’s all about obedience. Joseph "did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him." When was the last time you heard from God and did what he told you to do? (1:24)
• I may have positional power, but God is always more powerful. (3:11)
• The way I live my life is dictated by the amount of time I spend in the Word of God. It is my sustenance. (4:4)
• Time is running out. I need to embrace the urgency. (4:17)
• Part of my responsibility is to look for the ministry potential in others. (4:19-20)
• My leadership should produce peace. (5:9)
• My actions will speak louder than my words. (5:16)
• God doesn’t like it when there’s division and anger between leaders. (5:22)
• I need to follow through with my commitments. (5:37)
• People will persecute me. I need to pray for them. That’s difficult for me. (5:44)
• God wants me to be me. He wants us to be real–not fake. (6:5)
• There are some actions people don’t see, but God still does. (6:18)
• What I do with my money will impact my heart. Interesting that God didn’t say it the other way around. Makes me think disciplines with time and money impact the condition of my heart. (6:21)
• As a leader, I need to prepare for tomorrow, but I shouldn’t worry about tomorrow. (6:34)
• If I’m a good leader, my ministry will bear good fruit. The measure of my success is not the input but the outcome. (7:17)
• The win isn’t for people to hear the message–the win is life application. (7:24)

• I serve the God who is, who was and who is about to arrive. That’s pretty cool.
• John wrote to seven very different first century churches–all of which had their unique strengths and weaknesses.
• "Don’t fear: I am first, I am Last, I’m Alive. I died, but I came to life, and my life is now forever."
• "Don’t quit, even if it costs you your life. Stay there believing."
• God doesn’t care about the outside. He’s only interested in the inside. "Appearances don’t impress me."
• "You’re not cold, you’re not hot–far better to be either cold or hot! You’re stale. You’re stagnant. You make me want to vomit." Sounds like God wants action, passion and full-devotion from me.
• "I stand at the door. I knock. If you hear me call and open the door, I’ll come right in and sit down to supper with you." Isn’t that an amazing picture of a God that desires a personal relationship with each one of us?
• They sang lots of new songs in the Bible. Seems like churches tend to sing a lot of old songs. Even non-traditional churches tend to gravitate to the familiar worship songs. I wonder if God prefers us singing new songs of worship.
• "God’s holy people passionately and faithfully stand their ground."
• Heaven will be very different than life as we know it. "He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good–tears gone, crying gone, pain gone."
• God said, "I give freely to the thirsty." He gives freely. I’m responsible for the "thirst" part.
• "Don’t seal the words of the prophecy of this book: don’t put it away on the shelf. Time is just about up." Do you feel the urgency? I do.