“Biblical Knowledge”
Apostasy
John 8:31-32
31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you
continue in My word, then you are truly My disciples; 32 and you will know
the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
When people leave other religions for
Christianity, it’s because they have discovered the truth.
When they leave Christianity for
another religion, it’s because they never KNEW the truth.
“Biblical Knowledge”
Accountability for the Knowledge of
God
2 Kings 22 and 23
There are many things that are done
by society that conflict with what God expects from His people. Since we are unaware of the origin of many
things, we are not always aware of things that may insult or offend God. We have incorporated many things in our
worship of God and we have done so out of ignorance. As Hosea 4:6 informs us, God’s people are
destroyed for a lack of knowledge. The
“lack of knowledge” that Hosea is referring to is rejected knowledge, not
ignorance. The question may arise,
“where do we draw the line in what we alter in our lives that may be an offense
to God?” When we become aware or
knowledgeable that our way is in conflict with God’s way, we need to make the
necessary adjustments to ensure that we are lining up with God’s way. In 2 Kings 22:11 King Josiah discovered that Judah was in
opposition to God’s laws and his actions after that signaled that he was
repentant for the actions of the citizens and the actions of his predecessors that
were against God. In verses 22 and 23 he
sent men to inquire of God concerning their sins. In chapter 23 Josiah made a covenant with God
to obey His commands. Then he removed
and destroyed every image in God’s house that was an idol to another god. He removed all of the idolatrous priests who
had taken up residence in the house of the Lord. Josiah destroyed every altar to a false
god. He removed the male and female
prostitutes from within the house of the Lord.
Everything that could be burned was burned. Everything that could be ground into powder
was ground. He completely destroyed everything
that was an offense to God. As a result
of Josiah humbling himself and repenting when he discovered that he was in
error, God promised not to punish him but He would punish Judah for their many
offenses and rejection of God.
God has provided us with the Holy Bible
to teach us what He approves of and disapproves of. He has also gifted us with men who are
qualified to expound on His Word in order to gives us better understanding of
what God desires of us. Therefore, God
has eliminated every excuse that we could use to justify our actions when it
comes to things doing things that He disapproves of. If we are repentant for our offenses against
God when we become aware of them, God is faithful and just to forgive us of all
of our sins.
“Stewardship of Health”
Spiritual Health
Our flesh and our spirit
are in constant warfare with one another. The success of both is determined by what we
feed our spirit. If we allow negativity
from the things we view, what we listen to, and the people we associate with on
a regular basis to constantly enter our spirit, our spirit will become weaker
and weaker. When we allow sound and
wholesome things to enter our spirit from the things we view, what we listen
to, and the people we surround ourselves with on a regular basis, our spirit
will stand up and dictate our words, actions, and thoughts. Our spirit is affected by what enters it
regularly; just as our bodies are affected by the food that enters it on a
regular basis. Eating a healthy meal
ONCE a week will not cancel out the effects of eating unhealthy meals 6 days a
week. Neither will a healthy spiritual
meal once a week cancel out the negative effects of an unhealthy spiritual diet
6 days a week. An unhealthy spiritual
diet will breed the “can’t help its.”
Fasting, prayer and the study of the Word of God will help strengthen
our spirit.
We need to be
vigilant in protecting ourselves from the negative indoctrination of
others. The internet is full of images
and ideas that can create a range of emotions in people. Viewing visual mediums such as cell phones
and computers on a consistent basis can have a damaging effect on us. We can lose our ability to think critically
and to reason rationally. This change
may not always be noticeable to us, but others may observe it in us. In like
manner, as our thinking can be negatively impacted by what we view, our spirits
become weaker in the battle for dominance over our flesh. One of
the most difficult things for people to do is to resist the urge to use their
cell phone or computer for an extended period of time. This is an indication of how much of a hold
these items have on us as a society.
Another threat to the
strength of our spirit is having close associations with individuals whose
thinking conflicts with the teachings of the Bible. Paul warns us in 1 Corinthians 15:33 that
“Bad company corrupts good morals.” It
is essential that we reserve our close connections for those who are like
minded toward Christ. While we should to
maintain a good reputation with everyone, it is important that we do not place
ourselves in a position to mimic the wrong actions of others. Ephesians 5:11 says, “Do not participate in
the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them.”
In closing, the Bible
gives us assurance by acknowledging that the Holy Spirit has been given to us
in order to aid us in our walk with Christ.
We must exercise caution in who we allow ourselves to be surrounded by. There is plenty of content online that do not
benefit our lives in Christ. It is
important that we identify it and avoid it.
Philippians 4:8
8 Finally,
brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable,
whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is
commendable, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, think
about these things.
“Stewardship of Health”
Mental Health
As good stewards over
the bodies that God has given us, maintaining mental stability should be a key
focus. One valuable lesson that we
learn from 2 Timothy 1:7 is, that God did not give us a spirit of fear but He
has given us power, love and the ability to think soundly. Having a sound mind allows us to be effective
in every area of our lives.
In order to function
properly, it is essential for us to ensure that part of our schedule includes
us getting rest. When we do not receive
sufficient rest, our view of the world can become extremely distorted. Sleep deprivation has a major impact on how
we function mentally. Many mood
disorders, such as irritability, are also directly related to a lack of
sleep.
Lack of sleep may
have a deleterious effect on our brains as well. Our brain is a self-repairing organ and while
we are asleep, old cells and dead cells are discarded and new cells are
formed. When we fail to get sufficient
rest, the new cells can form on top of the dead cells, leading to the
development of brain tumors. Symptoms of
these tumors can range from developing severe headaches to having difficulty
walking.
The mind is a
battleground and Satan is always engaged in battle with us to conquer this territory
because creating a stronghold in our minds allows him to have success in wreaking
havoc in our lives. In 1 Kings 19,
Elijah was on the run from Jezebel after she threatens his life. His fear caused him to flee into the
wilderness for a full day. After
stopping to rest from exhaustion, Elijah prayed for God to allow him to die
because he had come to the end of his road.
When fear is combined with fatigue, even the bravest warrior can become
faint of heart. Elijah fell asleep under
a tree and an angel woke him up and told him to eat the meal that had been
prepared for him. Once he had eaten,
Elijah fell asleep again. The angel
returned with a second meal and once more instructed Elijah to eat.
Elijah’s need for
rest and proper nourishment caused him to have a distorted perspective of the
current events. The reason Jezebel had
threatened his life is because Elijah had just killed all of her Baal
worshiping prophets. Having a proper perspective
of the situation would have resulted in Elijah standing his ground. He would have realized that the same God that
made him victorious against Jezebel’s prophets would have made him victorious
against her.
It is important that
we develop a proper balance rest and other activities. God allows us sufficient time to rest, in
addition to other activities. Allowing
our minds to have time to rest and reboot gives us more of an opportunity to
function with a sound mind.