CHAPTER 11: Growing in Knowledge

c HAP t E r 11

GROWING IN KNOWLEDGE

“Apply your heart to instruction, and your ears to words of knowledge.”

Proverbs 23:12

The simplest definition of wisdom in Hebrew is “skill in living.” Billy Graham said this: “Knowledge is horizontal, wisdom is vertical.” What he means is that you can get knowledge from people, from a book, or from schooling. Wisdom, however, does not come from around you. It comes from above, from God, and we need wisdom to guide and guard us. So often we want an event, a special seminar, or even a single prayer to instantly make us wise. Wisdom, however, is not an event. It is a process, and wisdom comes daily from God to those who seek it.

You can think of it this way: wisdom does not go where it is needed; it goes where it is being sought. Jesus reiterates this truth for us, saying, “Be careful what you are hearing. The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure [of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you—and more [besides] will be given to you who hear” (Mark 4:24, AMP). What He is saying is that you need to spend time seeking God. You need to spend time in His Word because the more you attention you give to the revelation of God’s truth the more revelation you will receive.

This is an important concept that many Christians either don’t understand or simply ignore. A fantastic example of this is in Acts 10 where we find the account of Cornelius, a Roman Centurion who has accepted Judaism. He is praying and fasting when an angel appears to him and says, “Send men to Joppa and have them bring back Simon Peter because he will tell you words by which you and all your household will be saved.”(Acts 11:13) It is interesting that, when Cornelius did everything he knew to do, God made sure he learned more.

Author Joel Rosenberg tells of not just hundreds but hundreds of thousands of people throughout the Middle East coming to Jesus. The reports tell of how these people are actually having visions of Jesus coming to them and saying “I NISSA” which means “I am Jesus; the Messiah, I am the Savior.” And these hungry “Muslims” are getting saved by the droves. How can this be? I believe these people sincerely walked in what light they had and God made sure they received more.

Far too often I hear people say, “I just don’t think God is telling me anything, He seems so far away.” I always ask them, “What is the last thing the Lord told you?” They usually tell me “I felt God said to do such and such.” When I ask them, “Are you doing such and such?” they answer, When you walk in what predictably, “Well no, not you currently know, really.” It is not reasonable to think that God is going you will not lack for to keep revealing more and more truth and wisdom to God’s direction for you if you haven’t done any- your next steps. thing with the instruction He previously gave you. When you walk in what you currently know, you will not lack for God’s direction for your next steps.

The wisdom God has for you is not some “divine trivia” you can easily do without. Job 28:15-19 expounds on the value of wisdom telling us, “It cannot be purchased for gold, nor can silver be weighed

for its price. It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire. Neither gold nor crystal can equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewelry of fine gold. No mention shall be made of coral or quartz, for the price of wisdom is above rubies. The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, nor can it be valued in pure gold” (Job 28:15-19). This tells us that wisdom is more valuable than anything else on the planet!

Remember, we learned earlier that wisdom is the principal thing; therefore, we should get wisdom. Similarly, Proverbs 25:2 tells us that “it is the glory of kings to search out a matter.” It should be our glory to seek after wisdom, too. God has hidden wisdom for you to find. He didn’t hide wisdom so that it would remain undiscovered. Really, you could think of God as a parent who plays hide and seek with a preschool child. The parent hides just barely out of sight so that, as long as the child puts forth even a little effort, he is sure to find them. That is what God does with wisdom. God says if you seek wisdom, I will ensure that you will find it. However, I need to see some effort from you. You need to seek wisdom. Here are four ways that we can “seek wisdom”: 1. Pray for it. James 1:5 says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, Who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” Remember, God appeared to Solomon and asked him what he wanted, and Solomon said. “I want wisdom.”

Boy, did he get it! We also have God’s promise that, if we ask for wisdom, He will deliver it to us. 2. Meditate on the Word of God. We just looked at Mark 4:24 “The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure [of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you—and more [besides] will be given to you who hear” (Mark 4:24, AMP). As you spend time meditating, knowledge and virtue will come to you. That is wisdom. 3. Walk in the light you already have. That may sound simple, but it is one of the biggest things stopping many Christians from

growing any wiser or any stronger in their faith. Somewhere along the line they learned what God wants them to do, but they are unwilling to do it. Perhaps you have imagined that God wants you to do something big and extremely sacrificial like leaving everything you know to become a missionary in a third world country. Let me say this: usually it is something far less elaborate than that.

Like Naaman the leper, we are psychologically prepared to make big sacrifices, but when God asks something little of us, we feel justified in saying no (see 2 Kings, chapter 5). Most often, the thing that we failed to do is more like letting go of a grudge, or giving of your time or money. None-the-less, the reality is that as soon as we choose to withhold our obedience, no matter what the issue, we shut off the flow of wisdom and further revelation.

4. Through our associations. Proverbs 13:20 says, “He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.” The people we choose as our friends and constant companions will significantly affect our growth. Do the people you have surrounded yourself with spur you on to seek

God and His truth? Or do your friends encourage you to feel comfortable with spiritual stagnation?

Right voices in your life lead to right choices.

Most of us know people who, year after year, never seem to grow. They have kept the same dreams, but they never got past the same problems and the same excuses, the same alibis. They continue to ignore the same opportunities. They behave as if someday, through little or no effort of their own, they will win life’s lottery and all their dreams will come true.

Right voices in your life lead to right choices.

Nearly everyone desires success, but the difference is found in the willingness to pursue it, to seek wisdom. The apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 3:13, “not that I count myself to have apprehended.” In other words, “I know that I have not arrived, but I am still seeking, still learning, still growing.”

A wonderful example of willingness to pay the price of seeking knowledge can be found in the life of Dwight L. Moody. Perhaps you recognize his name. In the nineteenth century, Dwight L. Moody was one of the greatest evangelists in America. To this day, many schools and ministries still bear his name. However, during the height of his ministry, while in the middle of enormously successful campaigns in Great Britain and the United States, he realized he had become spiritually and intellectually malnourished. John Pollackwrites, “At the moment of reaching the height of influence in the United States, he stood in a dangerous spiritual insolvency. Moody realized that he had told people everything that he knew and that he had nothing new to say.”

In a move that proves why God had trusted him with so much influence in the first place, Moody moved to Northfield and refused to accept major speaking engagements until he felt he had studied enough to have fresh, new insights from God’s Word. He set a rigid schedule including six hours of study every morning. Even when he resumed his rigorous travel and speaking schedule, he began the practice of carrying a small library with him. He was determined that, in spite of the time-consuming press and the responsibilities his ministry required, he could not afford to stop learning if he expected to remain an effective spiritual leader.

Solomon reminds us that knowledge should be a lifelong pursuit. It is something we must intentionally and continuously seek to do. Will Rogers summed it up well when he said, “Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there.”