Sermon On Knowledge

Lucius Annaeus Seneka, the younger, a Roman Stoic philosopher once stated: "The time will come when diligent research over long periods will bring to light things which now lie hidden. A single lifetime, even though entirely devoted to the sky, would not be enough for the investigation of so vast a subject... And so this knowledge will be unfolded only through long successive ages. There will come a time when our descendants will be amazed that we did not know things that are so plain to them... Many discoveries are reserved for ages still to come, when the memory of us will have been effaced." Hosea 4:6-7 informs us: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. The more they increased, the more they sinned against me; I will change their glory into shame.”

There is a saying: "Knowledge is great. How you use it is power." These words are so relevant in today's society where ignorance can sometimes prevail over the quality of knowledge. Knowledge not only denotes one's level of education or learning acquisition, but it also gives true power which is not dependent on physical strength. It is independent of any other factors in life. It becomes of paramount importance in many religions, where people often depend on it to explain the world and the ultimate relationship with God. Proverbs 24:5 confirms: “A wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might.”

Obtaining knowledge is one of the fundamental and important processes of life. It opens the gates to understanding and gives new scope in solving prevalent but difficult situations. It can change the world in so many ways, from medicine to technology and much more, it features prominently in our lives. Without knowledge, we cannot progress further. It allows the control of certain elements in nature and human behavior which has previously remained undiscovered. It is defined as: "Facts, information and skills acquired through experience or education and the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject." However, it could also be described as a progression in life. It provides awareness or familiarity gained by experience of a fact or situation. Proverbs 3:1-5 reminds us: "My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments, for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you. Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.”

Ever since the days of his first creation, man has had an in-built thirst for knowledge. It is part of the success story of life. The more one knows, the more fulfilled he becomes, the easier he can make responsible and rational decisions. Entrepreneurs, in general, require the innate ability to learn from the mistakes of others and adapt accordingly. We should consider the same. If a person believes that he can't learn anything else and surmises that he knows everything that there is to know in life, then he, undoubtedly, suffers from both a lack of wisdom and ignorance. Life is a never-ending learning curve that continually feeds us with new facts that give us intuition and insight.

There was once a man who erroneously believed that he knew everything. No-one could tell him anything new.

Others were always considered as wrong or deluded in their conclusions and he was always right. He was not well-liked as he was judged to be arrogant and inflexible. He always knew what the best course of action was in any given situation. People didn’t want to associate with him socially as he consistently bombarded them with his own viewpoints and never listened to theirs. However, his thoughts were often considered irrational and not worthy of merit by many, and as such, he had effectively become a “Mr know-it-all.” Others would ridicule him behind his back and he became a laughing stock with little credibility. He was often the focus of maligned attention in conversations. Perhaps persons of this low caliber should take heed and ponder on the words of Socrates, the Greek philosopher, who once stated: “I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is that I know nothing.”

Misconceptions abound in pretentious people because they lack the intelligence to even contemplate the possibility that they could be wrong and, because they won't listen or consider the thoughts of anyone, that fact will, regrettably, never change. What a pitiful and lonely world they must live in? In addition, and to their detriment, it remains prevalent that they can suffer from delusions of grandeur and exaggeration regularly form part of their conversations concerning incidents about life in general and themselves. Possibly the worst ramification of all is that they believe that what they are saying is true. This often causes irritability and even anger in others through imperiousness which can often be self-imposed and not as a result of a medical disorder. It is deemed by some that they may even lack the true and in-depth knowledge of God.