The Best Knowledge

Although not everyone enjoys school, most people want to learn interesting and useful information or skills. Whether intentional or incidental, learning is a life long endeavor which may come from formal education and/or by practical, purposeful “hands on” experience and the benefits of “hard knocks.” Either way, we realize that there is always more to know and understand.

The phrase “knowledge is power” is attributed to Francis Bacon. We think of knowledge as being what we have learned through instruction, observation, experience, and the conclusions we have drawn from them. Knowledge is powerful because it helps us understand and navigate the world in which we live. However, wokeness, deconstruction, AI, news manipulation, social engineering, delusional thinking, political extremism, and “influencers” have blurred the pursuit of truth and have made navigation of ideas increasingly difficult.

Although deception and the spirit of lying have been with us since our beginnings, technology and social media have greatly broadened and enhanced the opportunities for intellectual, emotional, and spiritual scamming. So, discernment is necessary if we are not to be misled by misinformation, greed, and the frailties of our human minds and desires.

Scripture warns us to “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.” (Colossians 2:8) That verse says that there are two conflicting belief “systems” and that there is a battle between the truth and “my truths” which are misguided human ideas and opinions motivated by selfish desires and self justifications and self exultation. It says that Christ is the key to a special life-giving knowledge which imparts meaning and purpose. Cold we hope for better knowledge?

That same scripture encourages us to “walk” as Jesus did. In him are the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3). How much nicer the world would be if we pondered, understood, and followed the implications of those words! However, we cannot understand Christ’s potential impact on us until we look for him where he can be found —in the Gospels.