The Faith-Wisdom Continuum Meets Truth

THREE OF THE MOST ALLURING CONCEPTS TO LIFE ARE TRUTH, FAITH AND WISDOM.

These three placed together can be seen holistically as the very meaning of life; they all point to God, individually and collectively.

Faith and wisdom reside at opposite ends on an unconventional 3-dimensional continuum. Faith is that ability to take risk and live riskier as far as we’re personally concerned. Wisdom, on the other hand, is the ability to foresee and reduce risk. Faith is living diligently and trustfully. It is spiritual and relational shalom. Wisdom is living prudently and respectfully. It is spiritual and relational balance. These are both considered thus using a biblical model from Proverbs.

Taken further, real wisdom is the combination of faith and wisdom toward the amelioration of risk i.e. its improvement. This is the co-existence and use of ‘the best bits’ of both risk-taking and risk-avoidance—both on the moral stage.

The final result we’re after in our living is we learn quicker and better taking risks, yet we astutely leave well enough alone. We know what risks to take and what to avoid, from the moral compass of our being. Again, the norths and souths of our compasses are diligence and prudence, and secondarily, trust and respect are our easts and wests.

Shalom and balance are the outcomes of this, the above—an otherwise beautiful life.

Now, this is when the model gets interesting.

I mentioned an unconventional continuum. Upon most continuums we simply land at ‘a place’ and are hence characterised. With the Faith-Wisdom Continuum we start notionally at points close to the centre of the continuum (i.e. in the middle [low-faith and low-wisdom, where we’re afraid of taking risks, yet we make common mistakes showing we don’t know what risks to avoid]) and we’re seeking to grow to the outskirts of both ends simultaneously.

We want our faith to be strong—we’re taking wise risks. And we want our wisdom to also be fervently operant—we’re avoiding traps, which are always morally-based traps for the best of living.

Truth only enters the equation as we imagine this flat-lined continuum is actually a disc. We turn the line over on itself about 30 degrees to see a “pie” (as in a pie chart) and find that there lives on top, a circle of truth—the ever-expanding circle of truth.

This is an outstanding vista. With faith and wisdom both engaged maximally, we’re realising exponential spiritual growth as the rising of the gaze meets this disc of truth; a bird’s-eye view.

Looking down upon this disc of truth we see both faith and wisdom growing ever outwardly—contingent on God’s Presence with us—and this ever-expanding circle of truth is the absolute highlight of life, besides God himself. Indeed, God is truth.

Our job in life is to become so in amid with the truth that we will always die to ourselves and therefore always give way to the truth—no matter the personal and relational costs. Only this way can we continue to grow in both faith and wisdom at the same time.

If we’re able to sincerely achieve this i.e. always be conformable to the truth, we will find that we will have everything we will ever need.

© 2010 S. J. Wickham.