Chapel of Faith

Clever

Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight! Isiah 5:21 (NASB)

Clever. At its first impression this word is attractive, wanted and perhaps even worn. It’s not at all a bad thing to be called a clever person or is it? It is one of those words that presents itself as respectable, although once possessed and lived takes on a different dimension.

This term and a life wrapped in such is soon seen as superficial and dangerous if not handled properly. After all, the devil is very cunning and a master at the sleight-of-hand and loves to seize and destroy. Quite clever.

Clever is very ingenious in nature as it involves a process of reasoning entirely invented or brought about by something and having nothing to do with anything. It is attractive to behold, although once investigated can quickly corrupt and overcome those who are not careful.

It provides smoke and mirrors, brings about praise, envy, pride and lifts while tearing down. It deals in despair and hopes in wrong things, destroying an individual from the inside while creating a vision of beauty on the outside.

This word is slick, crafty and cunning. It takes away from while under the impression of giving and slowly steals the realization of life and the absolute goodness of God.

Clever creates a desensitization to good and is excellent at perfecting and peddling evil. Clever shifts meaning and moves a life away from God, clouding vision and obstructing goals. It calculates the cost on a soul while keeping the number hidden.

Cleverness is always creating although its path and intention determines its life span as well as value. It is a wound felt and a blow received, togetherness turned into loneliness as well as despair and disgust paraded as success. It hides no past to go back to while producing a future that is just beyond reach and lives for issues that lack identity.

The teachings of the Bible are not clever, but quite clear and intentional. These words are living and reveal the past to produce an eternal future.

They are not cunning or crafty but concise and speak to a heart destroyed and divided. God did not make life to live superficially, but intentionally and towards hope. It is all involved in His Son.

For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 2 Peter 1:16

Submitted by Pastor Dave Jagemann