There is nothing remarkable about selfishness, nothing particularly attention-grabbing in the seven deadly sins of greed, sloth, gluttony, extravagance, wrath, envy, and pride.

In our wicked world these defects are elevated as virtues.  It is the evidence of the folly and foolhardiness of our human nature.  Extravagance is called the American dream.  Arrogance is called school spirit.  Gluttony is called free enterprise.  Meanwhile there is almost no taste for the one grand virtue of wisdom celebrated in Scripture. 

Wisdom, though more precious than the Hope Diamond and more to be desired than any dream, is almost never written as an objective in a corporate mission statement or made the aspiration of a generation.

Parents considering a school for their children rarely ask if wisdom is taught.  They want their children to gain the "practical" skills and forget there is nothing more handy and useful than wisdom.

An interviewer once asked G. K. Chesterton, the gifted English writer and Christian apologist, what single book he would like to have with him if he were marooned on a desert island.  The reporter suggested, "Would it be the Bible?  Perhaps a volume of Shakespeare?"

"No," Chesterton answered, "I'd like to have a manual on boatbuilding."

Many make a grave mistake by imagining that God is abstract and otherworldly, that His concern is essentially a kind of pie-in-the-sky, by-and-by, when I die sort of thing.  No, God isn't perched out on some transcendent cloud.  True wisdom is not surreal.  It is personal and practical.

The fact is that God is more practical than any of us.  Bruce Larson writes, "He is always concerned about our predicament and our circumstances, and He always has a relevant word."  Wisdom isn't a romantic, idealistic notion left to mystics and seers with no real functional value on the pavement of our world.

No.  Wisdom is more sturdy and levelheaded than any other advantage.  Hands down, wisdom outstrips capital, credentials, credit, or competence.  None of these things secure life.  Nothing but wisdom supplies honor or peace. 

How practical is it really to have a luxurious house?  And I'm not talking about how much it takes to heat it.  How practical really is all the grabbing accumulation of our world when it can't really change your or my basic immorality?  What usefulness is there to being skilled, well-heeled, or celebrated if it can't get done the one thing I really need?

One word from wisdom, however, transforms death to life and gives the greatest gain.  Wisdom, you see, is Christ crucified. (1 Cor. 1:23-24)  Christ is the wisdom of God.

The most practical virtue ever given to men is Christ.  His cross was no-nonsense and His death and resurrection were eminently real. 

To those who lay hold of the cross, it is the tree of life.  Even if we could obtain all that lust, envy, materialism, or gluttony seek, the end of it is impractical.  Sin finally only delivers death.

But wisdom is the knowledge of Christ.  It is the indoctrination of the Gospel.  The good news headline over you today is that Christ Jesus was crucified and risen for you.  The banner over you is His love.  Living history records that His life was lived for you and that your baptism obtained the substance of his victory over sin and death. 

This wisdom and intelligence, this understanding and counsel of God which devised and accomplished our salvation is beyond measure and beyond price.

Every word of this wisdom is pleasantness and peace.  It is the singular virtue to be coveted above all else because in the wisdom of God we receive the most practical and useful of gifts.  We are given Christ.

His practical, hands-on wisdom for us is better than gold.

You can stake your life on Him, hands down.