clcgh.org Building The Capacity Of Christian Leaders, Equipping The Saints For The Work Of Ministry, Redirecting Straying Christians To The Sound Knowledge Of Christ
Every born again Christian has a measure of faith. But faith alone is not enough to make anyone a successful Christian. Peter, the apostle, urges believers to make every effort to add knowledge and other qualities to their faith (2 Peter 1:5).
This article, therefore, explores the need for Christians to supplement their faith with knowledge, particularly the knowledge of God’s Word. Throughout the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments, God, through His servants, emphasises the importance of knowledge in the lives of His children.
“An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge” (Proverbs 18:15).
God’s Word urgently calls on all believers to grow in the knowledge of Christ, have their lips guard knowledge, love knowledge, desire knowledge of God, buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
God wants His children who are all priests to have knowledge because He knows that His children can perish for lack of knowledge, and they must serve with it.
“For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts” (Malachi 2:7).
You see, there is one thing referring to Christians as priests to God and another thing equipping them with knowledge to minister. God commands all His children to have deep knowledge of His Word in order to function properly as priests.
It is for this reason, He appoints pastors as it is written, “I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding (Jeremiah 3:15).
True pastors are given as gifts to feed the elect of God with knowledge and understanding of God’s Word. But most pastors and church members, today, pay less attention to the knowledge of the redemptive work of Christ Jesus to establish them in the faith.
Through Christ, a Christian is not unfit but consecrated to serve, not cursed but blessed, not sick but healed, not a sinner but righteous, not an enemy of God but a child, not in bondage but redeemed among others.
Many pastors do not teach about these things; instead they distort some passages of Scripture to present messages of motivation and prosperity to excite people’s intellect and emotions without forming Christ in them.
This has helped false prophets and teachers to succeed in leading many Christians astray and putting them in bondage. A scripturally educated Christian can easily tell the difference between false and true prophets.
He will know that the qualification to be a servant of Jesus Christ goes beyond knowing how to quote scriptures to preach or teach, prophesy, lead prayers, bless marriages, or counsel people.
Paul, the apostle, implores believers, “To test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). But John asks us to “…test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).
As Christians, we should examine every teaching or prophetic direction or fundraising principle presented to us in the light of the written Word of God. Until we test them, we may not know the sound doctrine to accept or genuine man of God to follow or listen to. But the important point is that unless you know the Word, it may be difficult for you to test them.
However, we can know these things only when we read our Bible or have it read to us daily. We should not wait until pastors read it and teach us during Church services. We should make the effort to read it ourselves.
Reading is one way of acquiring knowledge, gaining insight and understanding, exercising the brain and interacting with authors for impartation.
A Christian who reads the Bible interacts with the Holy Spirit, its Author and adds knowledge to their faith. Therefore, begin to cultivate the habit of reading your Bible, other Christian books and articles for the Spirit’s encounter.
By James Quansah
