What It Really Means To "Know"

"Today's Devotion" For May 18, 2005

Read: I John 5:18-21; John 8:1-32

WHAT IT REALLY MEANS TO "KNOW"

"And we are in Him who is true--even in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life." (I Jn. 5:20b)

What we know and who we know are very important issues for human beings. When it comes to accomplishing things in this world there are many who would say "It's not what you know, but who you know" that will get you where you want to go. Still others hold that "knowledge is power." and the more you know, the better off you will be in your quest for success. Still others would note that while it might appear that "knowledge is power," unless you put that knowledge to use nothing good will ever come of it. Regardless of one's position on how to achieve and accomplish in life, the one word that's common to all these positions on how to achieve is "know." Everywhere we go the word "know" crops up in some manner or another. Teachers, driver's license examiners, professional licensing agencies, and other professional and trade organizations and associations are always testing people to find out what they "know" in order to obtain a grade, gain a license, obtain a job, or gain admission. No matter how you slice it, what someone "knows" is an essential part of life and living.

The Apostle John ends his first letter by reminding God's people of what they "know" when it comes to being the children of God. He reminds us that God's children know that being God's children means living, working, and acting in a way that's different from the world around us; in ways that stand out as being different from the "crowd." John reminds us that a child of God seeks to live a God-pleasing life by the power of His Word and Spirit in the face of a world that views life through a different lens and with a different "knowledge." God's children know, John notes, that we live in a world that's under the control of the evil one, who though defeated by Christ, will continue to seek the destruction of God's creation and His children until the Day of Judgment. John provides encouragement in the face of this knowledge by reminding the people of God that Christ has overcome the world and defeated the evil one, Satan himself. This frees us from the power of Sin and Satan to live lives that show we are the people of God, exhibiting our love for our Lord and Savior and for one another, because Christ has first loved us. It's such a life and such actions that stand out as stark evidence that we are the children of God.

We know, John reminds us, that Jesus, the Son of God, has come to earth to reveal the Father to us. He has come not only to bring us salvation by His suffering, death and resurrection, but to help us to know and love our Heavenly Father, just as He has always loved us. Through Christ we come to see and know our Father in Heaven for the Father He truly is and not as an angry Judge, waiting to pounce on our every mistake and sin. Christ leads us to know God's forgiveness of all of our sins, and gives us the hope of eternal life. He who has come into the world to give us life is true. Truth comes from knowing Him and loving Him. For God's children it's what you know, Who you know, and how you live with and use that knowledge that makes all the difference for ourselves and the world around us.

Prayer: Father, I thank You for sending Jesus into my life and heart so that I might know You and Your love for me. Help me to be an effective witness to Your love for the whole world in Jesus. Keep me from focusing on the wrong kind of knowledge and keep me ever faithful to Your Word that I may never be led astray. Lead me to use the knowledge You have given me in Your Word to reach the lost with the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, so that, having heard the Gospel, they might repent and believe, and come to know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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--Pastor Boeck

Copyright © 2005 Rev. Richard J. Boeck, Jr. All rights reserved.