Wisdom of This World by Judson Taylor

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jul 22, 1886

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 12, No. 28.

Wisdom of This World.

By Judson Taylor

I TELL you the "wisdom of this world" always was a rival of God, standing over in the kingdom of Satan; for it is the most important organ of a heart totally depraved. This world has been digging against the throne of God, to undermine the same, ever since it heard the Lord claim to know more than men. To stop this mad-wise riot, the Lord came down and confused Babel, sent the flood of old, opened up the Dead Sea, and ground Jerusalem utterly to powder, just to stop the rage of the "world's wisdom!"

The earth is to-day reeling and staggering under its load of human traditions piled to the skies, by minds that meddle with God rather than obey his heavenly mandates. "Is the world getting worse or better?" The world never was in such a condition as it is this very moment. And well do I know all the pulpits of this age have in them a set of religious puffs that "pull all the stops," to pour with full force on the organ of human speech, when they come to compliment the attainments of the human family. Secular editors, scientific would-bes, and literary primps, all clamor to tell us, "man is morally good, and the world is getting better every day." "Narrow and few" describes the upper route; but "broad and many," the lower route.

There may be more education, but education is not Christianity. Greece was full of colleges, but, after all, rotted out with moral corruption. Ancient Egypt devised learned arts this insufficient age cannot reproduce, but, after all, she worshiped frogs for gods. All the religion in America to-day can scarcely keep some of our colleges in the bounds of the Bible; for our literary chairs are often filled by learned infidelity.—Judson Taylor, in Baptist Flag.