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Reach for the Highest Standard of Personhood, April 5
Do not let the wise boast in their wisdom, do not let the mighty boast in their
might, do not let the wealthy boast in their wealth.
Jeremiah 9:23
, NRSV.
God is the source of all wisdom. He is infinitely wise and just and good. [Apart
from Christ,] the wisest people that ever lived cannot comprehend Him. They
may profess to be wise; they may glory in their attainments; but mere intellectual
knowledge, aside from the great truths that center in Christ, is as nothingness....
If men and women could see for a moment beyond the [range of] finite vision,
if they could catch a glimpse of the Eternal, every mouth would be stopped in its
boasting. People living in this little atom of a world are finite; God has unnumbered
worlds that are obedient to His laws and are conducted with reference to His glory.
When human beings have gone as far in scientific research as their limited powers
will permit, there is still an infinity beyond what they can apprehend.
Before humans can be truly wise, they must realize their dependence upon
God, and be filled with His wisdom. God is the source of intellectual as well as
spiritual power. The greatest people who have reached what the world regards as
wonderful heights in science are not to be compared with the beloved John or the
great apostle Paul. It is when intellectual and moral power are combined that the
greatest standard of personhood is reached. Those who do this, God will accept as
workers together with Him in the training of minds.
To know oneself is a great knowledge. The teachers who rightly estimate
themselves will let God mold and discipline their minds. And they will acknowledge
the source of their power. For “what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now
if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (
1
Corinthians 4:7
). Self-knowledge leads to humility and to trust in God, but it does
not take the place of efforts for self-improvement. Those who realize their own
deficiencies will spare no pains to reach the highest possible standard of physical,
mental, and moral excellence.—
Special Testimonies On Education, 49, 50
.
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