2 Corinthians. 8:7 NIV
But since you excel in everything— in faith in speech, IN KNOWLEDGE, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
One of the most common scriptures on knowledge is Hosea 4:6 which states that “My people perish because of lack of knowledge!”
But what is knowledge? It can be defined as facts/ truth information and skills. It is the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject.
The Bible tells us that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.. To know God and to reverence him and seek him and walk in his ways is the beginning of knowledge.
Without the fear of the Lord then we may have knowledge, but it will not be based on the truth because truth comes only from God.
Think about this, we attend school, and we are given knowledge on several subjects. We study huge textbooks and at the end of the learning period we sit for a test. The purpose of the test is to test our Knowledge based on our understanding of what we have been taught.
As believers in Christ, we have been given one text book, and it is the bible. How much knowledge do you have on the word of God? We take the word of God so casually, forgetting that it is God’s word and our manual to life. We don’t take the time to read through it and for those who read, a good number of us only read the passages that we love and ignore the other parts, forgetting that all scripture is inspired by God and is profitable.
The bible has a lot to say about knowledge and wisdom, One of my favorite verses is this;
Proverbs 8:10 NKJV
10 Receive my instruction, and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold;
As Paul told Timothy, may we study and do our best to present ourselves to God approved, workmen tested by trial who have no reason to be ashamed, accurately handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth. Amen.
Reflections
How much knowledge do you have about God’s word and the Christian faith?
How are you consistently seeking to grow in your knowledge base of the things of God?
What is your understanding of this verse?
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
