Spiritual Maturity: Moving Toward KNOWLEDGE
Updated: Feb 21
"But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge..." (2 Peter 1:5)
The first recorded words of Jesus in His earthly ministry were "Come and see" (John 1:39). It was an invitation to learn of Him and to study His ways and was directed to certain fishermen who would become the first disciples of the Lord. If anyone is to follow and grow in the Lord, they must start with a knowledge of who Jesus actually is.
We learn about the nature and attributes of God by reading the Scriptures that reveal Him. We soon learn that the volume of the book is written of Jesus and that to know Jesus is to know God. Without reading and learning the Scriptures, we would not be able to test what we are hearing or learning if someone were to talk about God.
The knowledge that Peter is encouraging the believers to grow in has to do with knowing God in a personal, intimate, and experiential way. Spiritual maturity is an ongoing increase of Christ where we intentionally grow in the life of Christ and see Him with fresh eyes each day and then rely on His Spirit to further teach and train us. In all of our learning, we must learn about the holiness of God and the way that He desires us to live as His redeemed people on this earth.
It is this kind of experiential knowledge of God that also comes forth in times of revival where our hearts are stirred by God to draw closer to Him. Knowing God experientially and having our minds renewed day by day leads to our hearts repenting and responding to Him. This is like having a daily revival.
The Lord spoke through the prophet Hosea that, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children" (Hosea 4:6).
Therefore, we need to have a healthy fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom.
The right kind of knowledge leads us to live in light of the knowledge that is understood.
There is a knowledge of holiness and there is a knowledge that is limited to this world only. Worldly knowledge only serves to puff up our heads but doesn't reach our hearts or transform our lives spiritually. This is why the posture of our hearts must be humble and teachable continually that we might learn the way of Christ.
Daniel once prophesied that "knowledge shall increase" (Dan. 12:4) and we are truly living in a day and age where knowledge is more accessible than ever before. We can search up just about anything we want to learn about on our smart phones on on the internet but this is also very dangerous. We do not always consider the source of the knowledge or the spirit behind the information we are receiving. This is why the Apostle Paul said, we must learn how to "cast down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God" (2 Cor. 10:5). We must grow in knowledge and all discernment so that we can approve the things that are excellent (Phil. 1:9-10).
The enemy of our souls would love for us to gain knowledge in the things that only arouse our flesh or that leads us to have an arrogant attitude or a selfish spirit that looks down on other people or becomes more divisive. It is for this reason that Paul prayed, "For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding (Col. 1:9).
In summary, the Right Use of Knowledge Leads to the Right Kind of Living...
Knowledge — An accumulation of truth
Understanding — An absorption of truth
Wisdom — An accurate application of truth
Therefore, let us first GET IT…then GRASP IT…and then GO DO IT
...that we might GAIN Christ, LEARN Christ, and Live Christ.
HEART WORK
The Lord is always available and desiring for us to seek Him and is ready to reveal Himself to each of us more and more. He will always draw near to us as we draw near to Him that Christ might increase in our lives.
Let us meditate on the following questions and pray into each of these areas...
- Do you have an experiential knowledge of God? - Do you have a knowledge leading to wisdom? - Do you have a hunger to know God’s Word? - Do you know God’s will for your life?