‘What Do You Know About Jesus?’
9)
For
this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you,
and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all
wisdom and spiritual understanding;
10)
That
ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every
good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;
11)
Strengthened
with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and
longsuffering with joyfulness;
12)
Giving
thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the
inheritance of the saints in light:
13)
Who
hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the
kingdom of his dear Son:
14)
In
whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
|
M |
an will readily do all sorts of
research into scriptures about the birth, life and death of Jesus. In fact, so
much is done that disproving the Bible becomes the avocation of many. Contrary
to what one might think, the questioning is not exclusively by atheists and
agnostics. Bible scholars, in their zeal for “accuracy,” can end up being some
of the greatest doubters. And for all of the studying they do, they end up
actually knowing no more about the Lord than at the beginning.
Most do not know the Lord by
experience. They hear with their ears and read poets
and philosophers. Yet, with all of their getting, they fail to experience the
real Jesus. The best these things can offer is a concept of God.
Not many will corroborate this, but it
is a fact that no one with true experience in Him (or who is allowing Him to be
in control) continues in sin. Yet, people from all walks of life, participating
in all manner of depravity, will declare that they know Him.
Few would argue with the fact that
hearing has an important place in learning and growth. However, hearing, alone,
gains us information, leading us to know Him, does not give us knowledge. Only
the New Birth gives us the knowledge of God that we must have.
The primary method God uses for winning
souls is that of our witness. The only way man can gain this witness is through
the Spirit. Because of the proliferation of all sorts of false and misleading
doctrines, there is a greater need than ever for acknowledgment of the Spirit
of God and more knowledge of the will of God.
Though, obviously, one will be unable
to gain Heaven without knowing what is Overseer requires, usually the last
direction we seek is that of God. However, we usually know what everyone else
wants of us and requires, from church denominations to various pastors, to our
own family. This knowledge we will even put before the certainties we have
concerning the Lord.
Now, if the Lord cares about how
churches and religious organizations are run (and He does), does it not stand
to reason that He will also have a plan for the individual? Problems arise when
we decide that we must help “author” that plan. Such belief actually hinders
the development and our acceptance of our station in Jesus.
Without knowledge of the Lord and His
will, it is virtually impossible to “walkworthy” of
Him. Why? Because man has a tendency to invent knowledge of that which he does
really know. When speaking of God, most often this means he will substitute his
own plan, rules and regulations to replace that which he does not understand.
Another consequence of lack of
knowledge and understanding concerning the Lord is the attempt to avoid
testing. After all, how can one appreciate tests when lacking knowledge, and
how can one obtain knowledge except through testing? This confusion is a main
tool Satan uses to keep us from recognizing our full potential.
There are many fundamental truths of
God and our relationship with Him, but perhaps one of the most significant is
that it will be impossible for us to increase in His knowledge until we learn
to trust Him one hundred percent; unless we become comfortable with allowing
Him to work out all of our situations.
Instead of following scripture (namely,
seeking to learn to “bear” our situations) we look to “escape” as painlessly as
possible. Why? Because we focus more on what we don’t like (or what is
uncomfortable for us) rather than what is going to accomplish the most in us
for the Lord.
It often seems as if we forget that from
the time of Jesus’ birth to His death, He was threatened with losing His life.
Did any threat every deter Him? No. He was determined to do His job. He did
what we all must do: we must keep moving forward under all circumstances.
As we look at our own situations, we
ought to be able to assess what we know about the Lord. What have we allowed
Him to do? What have we allowed Him to work out? From what have we allowed Him
to deliver us? If we can name nothing, chances are, we know nothing about the
Lord.
So, what does the Lord really want us
to know about Him? He wants us to finally learn that we can rely on Him alone.
And how do we get others to know our God? By demonstrating to them the
deliverance He has effected in us. Just think: if no group had every “gone
through” and triumphed, from where would we have every gotten encouragement?
In this season particularly, our
knowledge of the Lord and His will must go beyond the manager scene and the
Magi. Most know that baby Jesus came, but why? He came to save the souls of
men, not just that we might have a winter holiday. The fact
that a child was born meant that all could eventually partake of New Life—a
life free from sin and depravity.
If someone should put us on a witness
stand and question us as to how we know Jesus, what would we say? How would we
start our testimony? These questions need be answered if we would be honest
about our effectiveness for the Lord.
The stand we must be prepared to take
and defend in these Last Days should be one against the World. Too many of
those who profess to belong to God find themselves working against His will.
No one can rebel against instruction and expect to learn anything! We, who
have been vested with the very Spirit of Truth, knowledge, wisdom and understanding,
must begin to lead the world away from death and destruction back to life.