Wisdom

Wisdom Is a spiritual gift. It is connected to discernment and includes pure intelligence and understanding. Wisdom gives us the ability to use correct knowledge in righteous ways—it is the proper application of knowledge (D&C 46:17-18). 

True wisdom is to know the mind and will of God and to make decisions based on that knowledge. In this way, we become more like our Savior and Father in Heaven. Wisdom includes judging righteously and being able to see things as they really are. (D&C 93:24)

Those who have wisdom are obedient to God and do all they can to follow Him; out of the ten virgins, only five were wise (D&C 45:57). This scripture teaches us that they were wise because they had received the truth and taken the Holy Spirit as their guide and had not been deceived. This shows they had the discernment to "Hear Him". This ability demonstrates the foresight to always ask the Lord what His will is then follow it, and the commitment to study the doctrines put forward by God and understand the truths therein.

The commitment to study the words of God includes listening and following the words of our Prophets and the willingness to act on their instructions

As we hear the words of our Saviour and view the concerts of clarity by past and present Prophets, the truth that stands out most strongly to me is the warning and pleading to overcome the world and flee from Babylon. 

And verily I say unto thee that thou shalt lay aside the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better. (D&C 25:10)

For after today cometh the burning—this is speaking after the manner of the Lord—for verily I say, tomorrow all the proud and they that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and I will burn them up, for I am the Lord of Hosts; and I will not spare any that remain in Babylon. (D&C 64:24)

Today many members of the Church are too focused on worldly treasures, pleasures and affluence. We are seduced by large and spacious homes and having the latest of everything so not only both parents need to work, but our priorities are back to front and we are neglecting the things of greatest worth. I cant help but wonder why the 5 wise virgins suggested to the 5 foolish to go to the 'market' to buy their oil if the oil represent spiritual righteousness, however, I can see a parallel with the idea of trying to purchase that which holds no eternal value. (I think there is more to this parable to understand).

Elder Faust had this to say on this subject:

"The parable of the ten virgins, five wise and five foolish, has both a spiritual and a temporal application. Each of us has a lamp to light the way, but it requires that every one of us put the oil in our own lamps to produce that light. It is not enough to sit idly by and say, “The Lord will provide.” He has promised that they who are wise and “have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide” will have the earth given unto them. (D&C 45:57–58.) It is further promised that “the Lord shall be in their midst, and his glory shall be upon them, and he will be their king and their lawgiver.” (D&C 45:59.)" The Responsibility for Welfare Rests with Me and My Family (Faust, 1986)

We know the Second Coming is imminent and we need to be prepared spiritually and temporally.

These quotes by Neal A Maxwell are worth pondering:

"While casual members are not unrighteous, they often avoid appearing to be too righteous by seeming less committed than they really are—an ironic form of hypocrisy." -Maxwell (Settle this in your hearts, 1992)

" Let us once and for all establish our residence in Zion and give up the summer cottage in Babylon (see Neal A. Maxwell, A Wonderful Flood of Light [1990].

These quotes show that it is foolish to consider we can have a foot in both camps. We are warned in Revelations 3 that if we are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold we will be spewed out of the Lord's mouth. God is not happy when we try to straddle both God and Babylon and Zion cannot be redeemed while we do.

Elder Oaks in 2001

"As regards property, Jesus taught that “a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth” (Luke 12:15). Consequently, we should not lay up for ourselves “treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal” (Matt. 6:19). In other words, the treasures of our hearts—our priorities—should not be what the scriptures call “riches [and] the vain things of this world” (Alma 39:14). The “vain things of [the] world” include every combination of that worldly quartet of property, pride, prominence, and power. As to all of these, the scriptures remind us that “you cannot carry them with you” (Alma 39:14). We should be seeking the kind of treasures the scriptures promise the faithful: “great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures” (D&C 89:19). All around us we have the good examples of those who seek permanent treasures—those who “hunger and thirst after righteousness” (Matt. 5:6) and put the kingdom of God first in their lives."

Elder Franklin D Richards in 1976 GC made this observation: 

"It might be interesting to note that frequently, even when we seek after wisdom rather than riches, the Lord blesses us with wisdom and riches as he did King Solomon. When this occurs, we have the great opportunity and responsibility to use our material wealth in the building up of the kingdom of God."

“Seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich.” (D&C 6:7; see also D&C 11:7.)

Loved these thoughts on this matter written by a friend of mine,

"King Solomon is another great example... We often talk of the tragedy that was "the fall of David", yet Solomon fell just as hard exactly for this reason- the allure and love of wealth and riches was too much for even the "wisest of us all- wisest there ever shall be", but yet we ALLLLLLL feel like we could handle the riches properly and not build ourselves up and aggrandize our living standards... The Savior taught "it is easier for a camel to literally pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into heaven" and Solomon the wisest of us all couldn't handle it... but yet we all seem to feel like "all is well in Zion! yea, Zion prospers!" 

I want to steer clear as far as possible, not because I think I'm "better than the wealthy", but because I know I am weak... I know I'm no Solomon, etc. so what chance would I have? Nah... I'm good thanks!"

-Micah Sept 2023

Pres Nelson, our current Prophet has exhorted us much on this topic and I would like to share some of his counsel from Oct 2022.

"What does it mean to overcome the world? It means overcoming the temptation to care more about the things of this world than the things of God. It means trusting the doctrine of Christ more than the philosophies of men. It means delighting in truth, denouncing deception, and becoming “humble followers of Christ.” It means choosing to refrain from anything that drives the Spirit away. It means being willing to “give away” even our favorite sins….

Overcoming the world does mean that your resistance to sin will increase. Your heart will soften as your faith in Jesus Christ increases. Overcoming the world means growing to love God and His Beloved Son more than you love anyone or anything else."

"Each time you seek for and follow the promptings of the Spirit, each time you do anything good—things that “the natural man” would not do—you are overcoming the world. Overcoming the world is not an event that happens in a day or two. It happens over a lifetime as we repeatedly embrace the doctrine of Christ. We cultivate faith in Jesus Christ by repenting daily and keeping covenants that endow us with power. We stay on the covenant path and are blessed with spiritual strength, personal revelation, increasing faith, and the ministering of angels. Living the doctrine of Christ can produce the most powerful virtuous cycle, creating spiritual momentum in our lives. As we strive to live the higher laws of Jesus Christ, our hearts and our very natures begin to change."

"When you yoke yourself to Jesus Christ and do the spiritual work required to overcome the world, He, and He alone, does have the power to lift you above the pull of this world."

"As I have stated before, the gathering of Israel is the most important work taking place on earth today. One crucial element of this gathering is preparing a people who are able, ready, and worthy to receive the Lord when He comes again, a people who have already chosen Jesus Christ over this fallen world, a people who rejoice in their agency to live the higher, holier laws of Jesus Christ."

And then he left us with this powerful blessing:

"With the power of the holy apostleship vested in me, I bless you in your quest to overcome this world. I bless you to increase your faith in Jesus Christ and learn better how to draw upon His power. I bless you to be able to discern truth from error. I bless you to care more about the things of God than the things of this world. I bless you to see the needs of those around you and strengthen those you love. Because Jesus Christ overcame this world, you can too."(Overcome the World and Find Rest, Oct 2022)

 I testify that the spiritual gift of wisdom is to know the mind of God and to think and act as He would. I know as we fast and pray for this gift that the Holy Ghost will be our guide and we will not be deceived by the temptations of the world. I pray that we may discern what is needful in every situation and strive to prepare as the 5 wise virgins and qualify for the impending marriage. In the name of Jesus Christ amen.