There are certain things that we know that we know that we know. We know that spring will eventually come. We know the sun will come up in the morning and go down at night. We know that a bed or a couch will hold us up. We know that if we are hungry, food will satisfy us. We simply do not doubt these things.
Why?
Because we’ve experienced them. We’ve acquired a knowledge about them.
What about the promises in the Bible? When we read them, are we just as sure that they are true? Can we rely on them in the same way we rely on the fact that the sun will come up in the morning and go down at night? Or do we tend to think, “Hum…That verse must not have been written for me because God just isn’t coming through in that way…”
Maybe you’ve been praying for a financial miracle or for a miracle of healing, or maybe you are waiting for God to pour out to you that “abundant life” that Jesus promised. These things are all promised in the Bible, and yes, you believe; but it just doesn’t seem to be happening. Maybe that promise isn’t for you. Maybe you’ve been “cut off”. Maybe you’ve done something really bad and God won’t–or can’t–bless you in this way. But what have you done? Aren’t we forgiven by the blood of Jesus?
And the doubt continue to flow.
Proverbs 11 gives us an interesting bit of insight: “The hypocrite with his mouth destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.” (Prov 11:9, NKJV)
Did you catch what will deliver the righteous? Knowledge! Our knowledge of God will deliver us!
Knowledge is a word that we use regularly, but out of curiosity, I looked up a quick definition on Wikipedia: “Knowledge is a familiarity, awareness or understanding of someone or something…which is acquired through experience or education by perceiving, discovering, or learning.”
Thus, knowledge isn’t something that we are born with. It’s something we have to work to have. Therefore, our deliverance isn’t just a gift of God. It comes through knowledge, which we have to work to receive.
According to the above Wikipedia definition, we acquire knowledge through experience or education, which comes from perceiving, discovering and learning.
In other words, our knowledge of God is what delivers us, and this knowledge must be acquired through our experience in perceiving, discovering and learning about God. It comes from perceiving His presence, recognizing where He is at work, learning about Him through His Word, through His past record, and discovering personally how He is at work in our lives. It comes from a deep-rooted desire in our hearts to want to know Him more.
What does this mean for us in the face of these promises of the Bible that seem to be passing us by?
Simply this: We are delivered from our trouble by our knowledge. If it seems that God isn’t keeping His promises, it is because we simply have not acquired the knowledge necessary to see things through His eyes.
Let’s put it more simply. While camping last summer in the Upper Peninsula of the state of Michigan, my husband and I spent hours doing one of his favorite activities: Hiking in the dunes.
Now I don’t dislike hiking in the dunes, but I certainly don’t like going three steps forward, only to slide back two-and-a-half, and as we hiked through those seemingly-endless miles of shifting sand, I found myself looking down, keeping my eye out for–Rocks!
Why?
Because I had a knowledge about rocks. My past experience told me that a rock would not slide out from under my foot, and by stepping on rocks, I would expend a lot less energy. There was no doubt in my mind because of my past experience, my knowledge of rocks.
We are told many times in the Bible that God is our Rock (See Ps. 18:2, 31, 19:14, 28:1, 31:2, 42:4, 78:35, 89:26, 61:2,6,7, etc.). The question is, have we acquired the knowledge that God is our Rock? Have we ever experienced Him as our rock? If we have, then we can be assured that our knowledge of God as our Rock will deliver us. But if we have never taken the time or effort to acquire that knowledge of God, then when we read promises in the Bible, we will be faced with doubts such as, “This couldn’t have been written for me;” or “I must have fallen out of God’s grace, because…”
With an acquired knowledge of God, however, we will look at our seemingly hopeless situations and say, “I know that this promise is for me. I choose to stand upon the unmoving Rock of my Lord and Savior.”
Having doubts about God?
Maybe it’s time to begin to work on acquiring that knowledge about Him, because whenever there are doubts about God, it is because we simply are ignorant of Him.
Oh, and if you don’t particularly like walking in sand, seek out those rocks!
In His love,
Lyn
Lynona Gordon Chaffart, Speech-Language Pathologist, mother of two, Author — “Aboard God’s Train — A Journey With God Through the Valley of Cancer”, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian devotionals and inspirational poems, with Answers2Prayer Ministries. Follow Lyn on Twitter @lynchaffart.