Knowledge is great but knowledge with understanding is wisdom. As an artist part of my formal training was not just in the how of creating art but understanding what is happening on the canvas. There is a lot more to a painting than what you see up front. The way lines lead your eyes, shapes and space frame the subject, how color influences the way you interpret the painting. Until you understand these things you can’t truly know the intent of the artist and the message he wants to convey. There is the appearance of what the painting and subject are and then there is the underlying meaning. Some things are hidden by intent and require study and training to discover, you have to have intentional intimate moments with the art to appreciate its deeper true intent and meaning. With understanding I have real wisdom.
Another way of putting it, let’s say, we take a walk down the street, during our walk we smell a pizza being cooked, we walk a little further and walk right up to the window of the pizza parlor, stop, watch the pies being tossed in the air to be shaped, see them put the sauce on, the cheese, all the various toppings and into the oven they go, we see them pulled from the oven, even see them cut into slices and served. We can see folks buying slices and sitting down and enjoying the food. Sure I have knowledge at this point, I can tell others where to get pizza, I can even tell them what toppings they have and how good it smells, but I have a very limited understanding, unless I go in and partake of the pizza myself, I can’t speak with any real authority about it, sure I can talk about what it looks like, how others love the pie, how affordable the prices are, I can sound like I know everything about the pizza to others, I can even talk with folks who have had the pie and they probably think I’ve had it too because I know so much about it. But I only have knowledge, not understanding what it means to have some pizza. Sure I have a form of knowledge but when I eat the pizza I now have a new appreciation and relationship not only with the pizza joint, but others who have eaten pizza from there as well, and I can tell you first hand what its like to eat and enjoy the pizza. Again I can speak with wisdom about the pie, not just talk about something I have only seen.
How many times have we all just listened as the T.V. or radio reports on some happening, not taking it in but simply passing the time. There we are listening without understanding what is really being said. It’s become a normal thing for folks to do, not that they are trying to not hear what is being said but simply caught up in the activity going on around them, the kids acting up, driving the car, doing some sort of work. Point being we are hearing but not understanding the importance of what is said. If we know a tornado is coming and don’t take shelter, what benefit did the knowledge of knowing such a thing benefit us? We knew certain destruction was coming but we didn’t make or take the precautions needed. We are because of our own indifference a victim of circumstance in the aftermath of the storm. This is what a lot of us do when we go to church or read the Bible, not that we’re trying to ignore what is being taught but we’re not fully committed to understanding and applying that knowledge to our lives. And that is a very dangerous place to be, we can find ourselves having a form of Godliness but denying the power there of.
Knowing about God and knowing God are two different things. We are called to know Jesus with understanding of what He did for us in a personal sense. Salvation is knowledge realized. Take the time today and listen and understand what He has done, what He is doing and what He has planned. Once you have knowledge make sure you get understanding and be wise.
2 Timothy 3:5
Mat 7: 21-23
James 1:19-27