Why Jesus Taught People to Avoid Sins of Ignorance (Matt 22:29-31)
Illustration: always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. . --2 Timothy 3:7
When Harvard University was founded, its motto was Veritas Christo et Ecclesiae--"Truth for Christ and the Church." Its crest showed three books, one face down to symbolize the limitation of human knowledge. But in recent decades that book has been turned face up to represent the unlimited capacity of the human mind. And the motto has been changed to Veritas--"Truth."
The pursuit of knowledge is praiseworthy, yet learning can quickly lead to pride and a refusal to acknowledge any limits on our mental abilities. When that happens, biblical truth is ignored.
What, then, is the truth about truth? A wise king wrote centuries ago, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Prov. 1:7). We must recognize the relationship between God and truth. Without the help of God’s Spirit and the instruction of God’s Word, man will be ever "learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth" (2 Tim. 3:7). When we acknowledge and obey His truth, however, we will be set free from spiritual ignorance and error (John 8:32; 17:17). That’s why we must be diligent in studying the Bible (2 Tim. 2:15). It is the only book that tells us the truth about truth. --VCG
Holy Bible, Book divine,
Precious treasure, thou art mine;
Mine to tell me whence I came,
Mine to teach me what I am. --Burton
To know Christ the Living Word, study the written Word. (Our Daily Bread)
1. Jesus knew that ignorance of the truth is no excuse for sinning. The Lord said to the Pharisees, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God." (Matt. 22:29) Ask the Lord to help you avoid just having book knowledge of the Bible without having an experiential relationship with its author - God.
2. Jesus knew that ignorance about salvation is no excuse for going to hell. Jesus said to the woman at the well, "You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews_But the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth." (John 4:22,23) Ask the Lord to help you bring people past their presuppositional objections to knowing Jesus as their Savior.
3. Jesus knew the ignorance of the highly religious people who stubbornly clinged to their false intellectual security. Jesus said to Nicodemus, "You are Israel’s teacher and do you not understand these things? I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony." (John 3:10-12) Ask the Lord to give you the wisdom, patience and persuasiveness to speak through the blindness of the self-righteous.
4. Jesus knew that ignorance is usually limited by unbelief. John the Baptist said, "The man who has accepted the truth has certified that God is truthful. For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit." (John 3;33,34) Ask the Lord to show you how to help deliver people from the limiting effects of unbelief, mis-belief or immature beliefs.
5. Jesus knew that ignorance is even found among His inexperienced disciples. One day the disciples said to Jesus, "Rabbi, eat something." He said, "I have food to eat that you know nothing about." The disciples said, "Could someone have brought him food?" Jesus said, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work." (John 4:31-34) Ask the Lord to help you to bring your disciples to a spiritual level where they are satisfied only with doing the will of God.
6. Jesus knew that ignorance comes from sinful self-righteousness. One day the teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say? Jesus said, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." (John 8:3,4,7) Ask the Lord to help you be sure to take the speck out of your own eye before you try to remove the log from another’s eye.
7. Jesus knew that ignorance comes from a rush to judge, blame and accuse others. One day the Pharisees accused the guards of being deceived by Jesus when they were unable to arrest him. They said, "You mean he has deceived you also? This mob knows nothing of the law- there is a curse on them." However, Nicodemus, who has gone to Jesus earlier asked, "Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?" (John 7:48-51) Ask the Lord to help you concentrate on doing God’s will so that you can avoid the sins of judging, blaming and accusing others falsely.
8. Jesus knew that ignorance about Him was based on faulty assumptions about His background. The people of Jerusalem asked, "Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Christ? But we know where this man is from; when the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from." (John 7:26,27) Ask the Lord to help you overcome faulty assumptions and mis-interpretations of historical realities.
9. Jesus knew that ignorance comes from the fact people are yet to experience all of God’s wonderful attributes. The Jews asked, "What did this man mean when he said, "You will look for me, but you will not find me and where I am, you cannot come?" Jesus said, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." (John 7:37,38) Ask the Lord to help you drink and experience all attributes of the Father, the Son and the Spirit to raise your spiritual level of understanding and perceptions.
10. Jesus knew that ignorance of the majority of the world is because the devil has blinded their minds and they refused to trust Christ as their Savior. Jesus said to the Jews, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil and you want to carry out your father’s desire." (John 8:42-44) Ask the Lord to help you deliver people from the blindness of unbelief.
Conclusion: I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness. --John 8:12
In Benjamin Franklin’s day the streets of Philadelphia were dark after sunset. Nighttime pedestrians had to walk cautiously to avoid rocks and holes.
Franklin decided to set a good example for his fellow citizens by placing a lantern outside his home. As people stumbled down his street at night, they would come to that oasis of light and realize what a blessing it was. Soon other Philadelphians were putting up their own lanterns. After sunset the whole village became a place of illuminated safety.
The world around us is dark with spiritual ignorance. For multitudes of people, the aimlessness of their existence leads to unspoken despair.
We can’t single-handedly drive back the darkness everywhere, but we can do something significant. We can let our redeemed, Christ-ignited lives serve as lanterns of light. Our Savior commands us, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Mt. 5:16).
Instead of bemoaning the darkness, we can show the way to those around us. As Christ shines through us, lost souls stumbling in spiritual darkness will be attracted to Him who is the Light of the world. --VCG
We’ve a Savior to show to the nations,
Who the path of sorrow has trod,
That all of the world’s great peoples
Might come to the truth of God. --Nichol
The smallest light still shines in the darkest night. (Our Daily Bread)
