Day 150, Year 1

Do Not Stray Away from True Knowledge

“Cease listening to instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge.” (Proverbs 19:27 NKJV)

“Knowledge” here is da’ath in Hebrew, meaning “discernment, understanding, or skill.” On the faith journey, it is extremely dangerous for believers to stray from spiritual knowledge and God’s instructions. This could happen for various reasons, such as being influenced by unbelieving knowledge, being disappointed with God when facing difficulty or illness, or seeing that the cost of obeying God is too high. These factors could lead them to have poor discernment and fall away from the faith. But the truth is, regardless of the reason, if we do not value or apply the spiritual knowledge we have received, we will quickly lose it. Those who read the Bible will eventually realize that we either highly value the spiritual knowledge in the Bible, or we will end up forgetting all that we have learned. In my opinion, this addresses the issue of those who want to hear teachings but do not want to follow them. They can choose not to listen to God’s instructions at the very first. Not listening means not following, which is less sinning. But hearing God’s words and refusing to follow them is a grave sin.

Contrarily, we who seek spiritual knowledge always put it into practice. While we continually learn and practice more, we allow ourselves to go deeper and walk in alignment with God’s instructions and His truth. As mentioned earlier, spiritual knowledge either increases and deepens, or decreases and distorts in people’s minds. Hence, you can reflect on the past—do you remember and practice the valuable truth more firmly and joyfully, or forget it soon after you read it? So, we need to memorize God’s words, while examining our attitudes toward His Word and our habits, such as diet and rest, eradicating our worries and anxieties, but reflect and keep on improving, so that we do not stray away from His knowledge and related skills.

I suggest you review the scriptures in the past hundred days and see whether there are any parts you have not yet fully understood and obeyed. Make a note of them, ponder them repeatedly, and pray earnestly for God’s help and strength so that you can enter into His truth. In fact, when we continually put effort into meditating on God’s words and the related spiritual knowledge, it is as if we are entering a world unlocked by His knowledge. Embracing His knowledge is not about directly seeking a path to salvation, but intentionally seeking to know and obey His guidance in daily life. In this way, we are always under God’s care and deliverance, including in times of difficulty.

Reflection questions:

1) Do you have a desire to know and follow God’s knowledge? If not, how would you improve your attitude toward His Word?

2) Have your learning and practice of the scriptures led to a deeper understanding, a more abundant life, and greater joy? If not, how would you rely on the Lord to improve?