Are you satisfied with your current knowledge?

Let me ask you a question - just how computer savvy are you? We are living in a generation where we are constantly interacting with our computers, smart phones and PDAs. I know that there are some computer all-stars out there. Some of you are proficient with every program and every software that your computer has installed. But even as computer savvy as our culture is becoming I would still guess that those computer all-stars are the exceptions and not the norm. I would guess that a very high percentage of individuals are just like me. We have some familiarity with one or two types of software and we can navigate around those programs pretty well, but when it comes to the rest of the stuff on our computers we have no power to do anything productive whatsoever. For me, I feel like I have a pretty good grip on Microsoft Word, but that's it. When I try to use anything else I often end up feeling completely helpless. I can make a Power Point presentation but I can guarantee you that it won't be a cool one. In fact most of you would probably laugh at its lameness. I can use Excel to make a pretty mean looking chart but anyone involved in math or finance would shake their heads at me in shame when they realized how little I can do in that program. And I have some software on my computer called Microsoft Publisher, but honestly, I'm afraid to even open it. I know that there are lots of people out there who use that program to create some great stuff, but I've never tried to use it. Here's the fact:

I can't harness the power of these programs because I don't know anything about them.

The knowledge is there to be gained. All of these programs have 'help' tabs that could assist me in learning the software. There are also tutorials and books available that I could use you learn the programs better. If I would take the time to learn about them or if I had someone to teach me about them then I too would be able to do some really fantastic things with them. But until I have that knowledge the power of those programs is useless to me.

So here is my real problem: the reason that I cannot do anything productive with those programs is because I am not learning about them or because I am satisfied with what I have already learned about them.

So what's the point? Why am I talking about computers on a blog that is supposed to be about the church and christian growth? 2 Peter 1:3 has the answer.

" . . . seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him . . . "

I recently finished writing sermons on 2 Peter 1:1-2 and 2 Peter 1:3-4. As Peter begins this letter to a group of believers it is amazing how much important material he packs into the first four verses. But this portion of verse three was particularly challenging to me. The point of verses 3 and 4 is that Christ has made some incredible provisions for believers so that we can live new and godly lives. One of those provisions is His divine power. That's one of those things that we really have to stop and meditate on - Jesus provides for us a power beyond our own to live a new and godly life - His own power. (Spend some time thinking about that. It's a really amazing concept that we all too often take for granted.) But notice that this divine power we need for everything pertaining to life and godliness is provided to us "through the true knowledge of Him."

Allow me to make an observation and then to pose a question. First let me be clear that divine power to live a new and godly life is only available to believers. Peter makes it clear in his introduction (verse 1) that he is writing to those who have put their faith and trust in Christ. In addition to that it is important to point out that "true knowledge" of Christ Jesus is far more than just an intellectual knowledge of Him. The "true knowledge" of Jesus is a knowledge that comes through a growing relationship with Jesus and the presence of the Holy Spirit in one's life. "True knowledge" of Jesus cannot be obtained apart from the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit revealing it to believers and helping them to grow in their relationship with Him. Without faith in Christ and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirt one's knowledge of Jesus will be at best unclear and blurred. If you have put your faith in Christ then the Holy Spirit is dwelling within you and He can help to guide you to the true knowledge of Jesus which grants you access to His divine power to live a new and godly life.

The question we must ask ourselves then becomes a very crucial question: "Are we tapping into all of the divine power that is available to us to live a new and godly life because we are continuing to grow in our knowledge of and walk with Christ?" OR "Are we stagnant in this new life we have been given because we are choosing not to grow in our walk with Jesus because we are satisfied with what we already know of Him?" It is a lot like the computer software problem I struggle with. I can't harness the power of the programs because I don't have a knowledge of the programs. In the same way, we can't use the divine power of Christ to help us live a godly life if we do not know Him well and are not walking with Him closely. Unfortunately many believers are satisfied with their knowledge of Christ and their current walk with Him. They have no desire to continue growing in their knowledge of Him or to grow deeper in their relationship with Him because they are comfortable where they are.

When I think about the greatness of my Savior and how deeply He has loved me and how sacrificially He has given of Himself for me, I don't ever want to become satisfied with how much I know of Him. I want to know Him more fully and walk more closely with Him. But that takes a lot of effort. It takes setting aside consistent times for studying His word and prayer. It takes consistent times of evaluation to determine if we are spending too much time and effort loving and learning about the things of this world. And it takes consistent efforts of putting what we are learning into practice. Do you remember what James says in his letter? "But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was." Practicing what we learn is the best way to remember what we have learned and to grow in our knowledge. When we don't practice what we learn we are very likely to forget it.

When we grow in our knowledge of Christ and in our walk with Him, and when we put into practice the things we have learned from Scripture, then we'll have divine power for everything pertaining to life and godliness. Let's pray that we never become stagnant in this new life that we have been given because we choose not to grow in our walk with Jesus because we feel like we are satisfied with what we already know of Him.