May 10, 2026
Earthly, Sensual, Demonic—The Wisdom Running Culture
- 1 Kings 3:16-28
- Josh Akin
Someone asked Elon Musk who was the smartest person he’d ever met. He paused. He thought. He mumbled a bit, and then settled on two names — Larry Ellison and Jeff Bezos.
Now think about that. You’d think he was asked who’s the richest man you know. Or who’s built the biggest business. The question was about intelligence, not money.
I admire these men. They’re inventive and industrious. They’ve built robots and rockets, and online kingdoms. But they demonstrate perhaps the difference between being smart, or being wise. For example: he married Larry Ellison the founder of Oracle. If you have ever stored files online—that Larry. He has been married 6 times, his current wife is 48 years younger. He loves love, but perhaps he’s not very good at it. It is possible to be very smart, but not wise. Wisdom of the Lord is not the Wisdom of the world. You see, Larry Ellison owns an entire Hawaiian Island. Wisdom of the world has filled his mansions with treasure, but robbed him of love.
There’s a wisdom in the world. We love it. We praise it. We lust after it. But it is at war with the wisdom of the Lord. One is earthly. Sensual. Demonic. God’s wisdom brings life.
In 1 Kings chapter 3, a young man named Solomon has just been crowned King. And the first thing he does is ask God for wisdom to rule God’s people well. God blessed Solomon with more wisdom than any man who ever lived. In the next passage, God puts that wisdom on display. And it doesn’t look like the wisdom of the Great men we hear so much about: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, or Larry Ellison. It looks like Jesus.