Exodus 31:2-5 “See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. “I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, to make artistic designs for work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, that he may work in all kinds of craftsmanship.”
This passage is intrigueing because it’s not how I’m used to hearing a description of wisdom and knowledge. I associate wisdom with Solomon. He is most famous for the custody issue. He tricked the ladies by telling them he was going to divide the baby in two. They fell for the trap and their real intentions became known.
That is so brilliant on many levels. It demonstrates a great understanding of human nature. These are the skills that the king has in his advisors. I’ve heard it said that wisdom is the skillfull application of knowledge.
Bezalel is wise in a completely different way. He is gifted with craftmanship. He works with his hands. I normally think of these as blue collar skills. We don’t usually exalt the blue collar individual. But the fact that he’s an artist give him a different feel. I don’t associate these with the wealthy. They are a breed apart. They tend to be the influencers of culture.
What I take from this is that God has gifted us in different ways. Solomon was gifted in the conventional sense. I’ve heard dozens of stories of students who struggled in school only to become very successful in life. School is teaching in the conventional way. While a good percentage of students are gifted in different ways.
How do we find our gifts? They tend to be the areas inwhich we get compliments. These areas are natural. It doesn’t feel cumbersome to exercise our gifts. They may not be areas that we appreciate when young. We often want the exciting, more visual gifts when we are young. I was complemented on my gift when I was 17. It depressed me. It took me decades to see its worth.
We need to grow in our gifting. Peter is a great example. One moment he gets it right and he’s complimented my Jesus (Matt 16:16-19). In the same setting, he gets it wrong and Jesus calls him Satan (Matt 16:22,23). In a different setting Jesus tells Peter that he’ll betray him. Peter says, “no”. At Jesus’ arrest, Peter takes a sword and tries to defend Him. Jesus says, not that way (paraphrased). Peter was so despondent that he did deny Jesus several times.
It takes a while to learn to use our gifts in His way. Practice makes perfect. Peter’s first attempts were clumbsy. He got put in his place in both of the above examples. Peter preached a sermon that brought thousands to Christ a few months later.
While we all won’t be publically recognized with our gifts like Bezalel, we will get the appropriate recognition for what we can handle. Jesus said, “Well done thou good and faithful servant”. He likes to give us recognition and it feels good to receive it. Psalm 23 says, “He prepareth a table before me in the presence of my enemy.” He does want us to be honored.
Lord, thank You that You supply all of us with gifts and talents. Help us to learn them and to be skilled in their use. Help us to use them to further Your kingdom.
What I take from this is that God has gifted us in different ways. Solomon was gifted in the conventional sense. I’ve heard dozens of stories of students who struggled in school only to become very successful in life. School is teaching in the conventional way. While a good percentage of students are gifted in different ways.
How do we find our gifts? They tend to be the areas inwhich we get compliments. These areas are natural. It doesn’t feel cumbersome to exercise our gifts. They may not be areas that we appreciate when young. We often want the exciting, more visual gifts when we are young. I was complemented on my gift when I was 17. It depressed me. It took me decades to see its worth.
We need to grow in our gifting. Peter is a great example. One moment he gets it right and he’s complimented my Jesus (Matt 16:16-19). In the same setting, he gets it wrong and Jesus calls him Satan (Matt 16:22,23). In a different setting Jesus tells Peter that he’ll betray him. Peter says, “no”. At Jesus’ arrest, Peter takes a sword and tries to defend Him. Jesus says, not that way (paraphrased). Peter was so despondent that he did deny Jesus several times.
It takes a while to learn to use our gifts in His way. Practice makes perfect. Peter’s first attempts were clumbsy. He got put in his place in both of the above examples. Peter preached a sermon that brought thousands to Christ a few months later.
While we all won’t be publically recognized with our gifts like Bezalel, we will get the appropriate recognition for what we can handle. Jesus said, “Well done thou good and faithful servant”. He likes to give us recognition and it feels good to receive it. Psalm 23 says, “He prepareth a table before me in the presence of my enemy.” He does want us to be honored.
Lord, thank You that You supply all of us with gifts and talents. Help us to learn them and to be skilled in their use. Help us to use them to further Your kingdom.