To view previous lessons click here.This week God has been showing us some of the good things we will enjoy as our knowledge of God grows. On Tuesday, He showed us that Scriptures declares that “the people who know their God will display strength and take action” (Daniel 11:32). That is a great promise. On Wednesday, God showed us something about people who know Him. Peter says, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord” (2 Peter 1:2). His statement reveals that both grace and peace are increased in the believer’s life by the full or thorough knowledge of God.
Wisdom
The Apostle Paul was a man who enjoyed the benefits of knowing God, and he longed for his converts to share those same blessings. He often prayed that they would learn more about the advantages of knowing God. In Ephesians he prayed, “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him” (Ephesians 1:17). The word spirit is not a reference to the Holy Spirit. The Ephesians already had Him dwelling in their lives. Paul was referring to a mental attitude or character of true spiritual understand¬ing which the Holy Spirit alone could create in them, that is, the ability to understand God’s truth and appropriate it. He wanted them to be able to take hold of spiritual truths and the purpose of those truths to their lives.
Some people may lack in spiritual understanding. They read the Word of God without grasping what it says, and they completely miss its suggestion for us. They would like to have what Paul prayed for, a spirit of wisdom and revelation, the capacity to discern godly truth, but they never seem to reach it. Paul tells us it is to be found in the knowledge of God. People who thoroughly know their God have spiritual understanding that far surpasses their formal education. The time they have spent with Him has given them more insight into the purpose of life than any university could ever supply.
Peter and John were men like that. They were preaching Christ in the temple courtyard and the Jewish religious leaders became angry. They took the two disciples into custody and questioned them about their activities, demanding that they reveal by what power they carry out their miracles. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, brought a powerful testi¬mony to the person of Christ that confirmed not only his knowledge with recent events in Jerusalem, but also his grasp of Old Testament Scripture (Acts 4:8 12). It was an astonishingly eloquent expression of faith from a very uneducated fisherman. Where did Peter get that kind of wisdom? The record goes on to tell us: the Jews “began to recognize them as having been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). They had come into a personal and intimate knowledge of the living God through His Son Jesus Christ. They had walked with Him and talked with Him for three and half years. As a result they had an understanding of spiritual truth that those religious rulers could not begin to match with all their theological training and self-righteous religiousness. People who intimately know God have wisdom.
Isn’t that what we really want? Not so we can astonish our friends with our knowledge of Scripture or our grasp of theological truth. But so that we can know what life is all about, and make an impact on lives for the glory of God as others observe the certainty of Christ in us. This will happen when we get to know Him intimately.
Wisdom
The Apostle Paul was a man who enjoyed the benefits of knowing God, and he longed for his converts to share those same blessings. He often prayed that they would learn more about the advantages of knowing God. In Ephesians he prayed, “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him” (Ephesians 1:17). The word spirit is not a reference to the Holy Spirit. The Ephesians already had Him dwelling in their lives. Paul was referring to a mental attitude or character of true spiritual understand¬ing which the Holy Spirit alone could create in them, that is, the ability to understand God’s truth and appropriate it. He wanted them to be able to take hold of spiritual truths and the purpose of those truths to their lives.
Some people may lack in spiritual understanding. They read the Word of God without grasping what it says, and they completely miss its suggestion for us. They would like to have what Paul prayed for, a spirit of wisdom and revelation, the capacity to discern godly truth, but they never seem to reach it. Paul tells us it is to be found in the knowledge of God. People who thoroughly know their God have spiritual understanding that far surpasses their formal education. The time they have spent with Him has given them more insight into the purpose of life than any university could ever supply.
Peter and John were men like that. They were preaching Christ in the temple courtyard and the Jewish religious leaders became angry. They took the two disciples into custody and questioned them about their activities, demanding that they reveal by what power they carry out their miracles. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, brought a powerful testi¬mony to the person of Christ that confirmed not only his knowledge with recent events in Jerusalem, but also his grasp of Old Testament Scripture (Acts 4:8 12). It was an astonishingly eloquent expression of faith from a very uneducated fisherman. Where did Peter get that kind of wisdom? The record goes on to tell us: the Jews “began to recognize them as having been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). They had come into a personal and intimate knowledge of the living God through His Son Jesus Christ. They had walked with Him and talked with Him for three and half years. As a result they had an understanding of spiritual truth that those religious rulers could not begin to match with all their theological training and self-righteous religiousness. People who intimately know God have wisdom.
Isn’t that what we really want? Not so we can astonish our friends with our knowledge of Scripture or our grasp of theological truth. But so that we can know what life is all about, and make an impact on lives for the glory of God as others observe the certainty of Christ in us. This will happen when we get to know Him intimately.
Question:
Have you experienced God's power, peace, or wisdom this week? Share one of those experiences with us.
4 comments:
Hi, sister. Thanks a lot for sharing your Bible study today. Here in the Philippines it's already "Thankful Thursday". Kindly visit my post if you have time. Shalom, dear!:$
By the way, when I opened your site, I realized how much I missed my regular hopping here prior to my children's hospitalization. After that event, we went to my maternal province to give my kids a doze of fresh air. Thank you for your prayers, dear sister. God bless you!:$
I will visit you again next time!
Sweet love and blessings to you.
Michele, great post! Hope you are feeling better! Blessings!
HIS,
Bobby http://healingchronicles.blogspot.com/
Thanks for sharing. I started a new little book called "walk with God" and it has one thought for each day. It started off talking about wisdom and how we get wisdom.
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