Has Education Taken a Turn for the Worse? Academic Overload, Common Sense, and Biblical Wisdom for Financial Stability
Abstract
In a culture that often equates degrees with wisdom and titles with leadership, there are many situations where the “lesser educated” person is actually best suited to lead. This is especially evident in areas of financial stability and wealth creation, where common sense, courage, and applied wisdom often matter more than formal credentials. Using the example of an economics and finance professor alongside an insurance broker and business owner, this article explores why highly educated individuals sometimes struggle to convert knowledge into practical gain, while those with less formal education step into effective leadership. Drawing from economic and behavioral concepts, and grounded in biblical principles of stewardship, discernment, and humility, the article argues that true leadership is not determined by education alone, but by wisdom, character, and action.
Introduction: When the “Lesser Educated” Leads
Conventional thinking says: the one with the higher degree should lead. By that logic, an economics and finance professor should automatically be seen as the visionary, strategist, and primary decision-maker in any partnership. Yet in real life, it is often the so-called “lesser educated” person—the insurance broker, the small business owner, the practitioner with years of lived experience—who actually sees the clearest path forward and has the courage to move.
One might expect that two educated people, with overlapping skills and knowledge, could quickly generate ideas to build wealth and achieve financial stability. But this doesn’t always happen. At times, the one with fewer credentials is the one with more clarity, practicality, and leadership.
This raises important questions:
- Has education become disconnected from practical wisdom?
- When does too much research and analysis overwhelm common sense?
- Why does God sometimes elevate those who are “less educated” in the world’s eyes to be the actual leaders?
From a biblical perspective, this is not surprising. God has a pattern of using those the world underestimates to bring direction, provision, and breakthrough.
1. Education, Expertise, and the Illusion of Automatic Leadership
1.1 Credentials vs. Capacity
Modern education systems often equate credentials with competence and assume that the most educated person is automatically the best leader. Yet, leadership requires more than knowledge; it demands:
- Decision-making under uncertainty
- Emotional intelligence and people skills
- Courage to take risks
- Practical problem-solving
A professor in economics and finance may understand models, theories, and macro-level dynamics, but a business owner and insurance broker often understands real-world consequences, client behavior, and day-to-day cash flow in ways that textbooks do not capture.
Biblically, we see that God does not anoint titles; He anoints people. David was chosen as king over his more impressive brothers, even though he was just a shepherd boy:
“But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’” (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV)
In today’s context, “appearance” can include degrees, positions, and institutional status. Yet God may choose the one with fewer credentials to lead a household, a business, or even a financial strategy, because of their heart, character, and willingness to act.
1.2 When Knowledge Becomes a Barrier to Action
Formal education often trains people to analyze, critique, and research. These skills are valuable, but they can also become obstacles when overused. Endless data, papers, and models can cause a form of analysis paralysis, where the educated person knows so many possible risks that they struggle to move at all.
Meanwhile, the “lesser educated” person may:
- See the obvious, commonsense solution
- Be willing to start small and learn by doing
- Have a higher tolerance for reasonable risk
Ecclesiastes offers a caution about excessive study:
“Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.” (Ecclesiastes 12:12)
Study without action can tire the soul and block progress. James gives a parallel spiritual warning that also applies practically:
“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22)
Likewise: do not merely research and plan—decide and build.
2. The Strengths of the “Lesser Educated” Leader
2.1 Common Sense and Practical Wisdom
The “lesser educated” leader often excels in common sense and practical wisdom—skills developed through experience rather than textbooks. They may be the ones saying:
- “We don’t need another report; we need a decision.”
- “Let’s start small and see how it goes.”
- “We have bills due; we need cash flow, not another theory.”
Proverbs honors this kind of grounded wisdom:
- “The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, but those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty.” (Proverbs 21:5)
- “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.” (Proverbs 14:23, ESV)
A less formally educated business owner who diligently works, manages money wisely, and takes consistent action may outpace a more educated partner who only talks, critiques, and hesitates.
2.2 Emotional and Spiritual Discernment
Leadership is not just intellectual; it is emotional and spiritual. The lesser educated leader may:
- Read people more accurately
- Sense timing and risk intuitively
- Know when something “looks good on paper but feels wrong in the spirit”
The Bible calls this discernment—a spiritual capacity that doesn’t require a degree:
“But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” (Hebrews 5:14)
A person who has walked with God, suffered, learned, and prayed may have a sharper sense of direction than someone with advanced academic credentials but little spiritual grounding.
3. Why God Often Elevates the “Lesser Educated”
3.1 God’s Pattern: Using the “Foolish” to Confound the “Wise”
Scripture is explicit that God does not choose leaders the way the world does:
“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:27, NIV)
From fishermen becoming apostles, to shepherds becoming kings, to overlooked individuals becoming prophets and reformers, God often uses those who don’t fit the world’s profile of leadership. This includes those with less formal education who still walk in:
- Faith
- Obedience
- Integrity
- Courage
These qualities are indispensable for financial leadership as well: taking wise risks, honoring God with wealth, and using resources for kingdom purposes.
3.2 The Parable of the Talents and Misused Education
In Matthew 25:14–30, Jesus tells the Parable of the Talents. One servant, out of fear, buries what he is given instead of investing it. He knows his master’s expectations—he has “knowledge”—but he fails in action and stewardship.
This parallels the highly educated person who:
- Knows market theory but never starts the business
- Understands risk models but never partners to build wealth
- Is aware of opportunities but always finds reasons to delay
Meanwhile, the “lesser educated” person:
- Takes the talent (or degree, or skill set) they have
- Acts in faith
- Accepts responsibility for outcomes
- Multiplies what God has given
Jesus commends the ones who acted and multiplied, not the one who “understood the master” but did nothing. Education, when buried in fear or pride, is no more fruitful than the unused talent in the ground.
4. Financial Gain: When the Lesser Educated Must Lead
4.1 Re-centering on Stewardship, Not Status
From a biblical perspective, financial gain is about stewardship, not status. Leadership in financial decisions should go to the person—educated or not—who:
- Honors God with resources (Proverbs 3:9–10)
- Practices integrity (Proverbs 11:1)
- Plans diligently (Proverbs 21:5)
- Seeks wise counsel (Proverbs 15:22)
- Is willing to act
If the lesser educated partner is the one who can do that consistently, then they may rightly need to be the leader in financial matters, even if the more educated person plays an advisory or supportive role.
4.2 Practical Division of Roles
An economics professor and an insurance broker/business owner could, in a healthy partnership, divide roles like this:
- The professor:
- The “lesser educated” business leader:
This mirrors the biblical model where different members of the body have different functions (1 Corinthians 12). Leadership is not always about who “knows more,” but about who is called and graced to carry responsibility.
5. Biblical Principles for Financial Leadership and Stability
To bring education, experience, and faith into alignment, the following biblical principles are crucial:
- Seek Wisdom Above Status
- Act, Don’t Just Analyze
- Honor Diverse Gifts
- Stay Humble and Teachable
- Use Wealth for God’s Purposes
Conclusion
There are many times when the “lesser educated” person must be the leader—not because education is bad, but because leadership requires more than knowledge. It demands:
- Courage to act
- Common sense and practical wisdom
- Emotional and spiritual discernment
- Humility and stewardship
In God’s kingdom, a person with fewer degrees can be the very one He chooses to lead families, businesses, and financial decisions toward stability and abundance. When education is honored but not idolized, and when leadership is assigned according to wisdom, not ego, partnerships between the highly educated and the lesser educated can become powerful vehicles for wealth creation and kingdom impact.
In that alignment—where knowledge serves wisdom, and both serve God—financial gain becomes not just possible, but purposeful.
Gift of Discernment (G.O.D.) LLC Personal, Professional, and Spiritual Growth for a Purpose-Driven Life
Founder & CEO: LaTrice M. Hughes-Obrimah
Gift of Discernment (G.O.D.) LLC is a faith-centered professional development company dedicated to helping individuals, leaders, and organizations grow in emotional intelligence, spiritual discernment, and practical wisdom. Through trainings, workshops, devotionals, and consulting, we equip people to make better decisions, build healthier relationships, and walk boldly in their God-given purpose.
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