The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
Summary: Some kinds of knowledge are good for us. Other kinds a bad, even poisonous. Learning to tell the difference requires that we rely on Jesus to guide us.
In yesterday’s meditation, we introduced the concept of a “knegg.” A knegg is a unit of measure. It quantifies one unit of human knowledge. Like a real egg, it is hard to tell the quality of a knegg by its looks.
Let’s take two kneggs and gently set them on the table. One is rotten on the inside, and the other is good. How do you tell them apart? With eggs, this is an easy problem to solve. We can crack open the egg and the smell will tell us if it is bad or good. With a knegg, the process of cracking them open is a bit more complicated.
To test knowledge, we have to use the knowledge and see what happens. If it works, it is a good knegg. If it doesn’t work, or if it hurts us, it is a bad knegg.
Some kneggs are easy to check. “One plus one equals two” is a good example. Pick one apple off of the tree and you have one apple. Pick another apple and you have two apples. But what about life choices? If I tell you not to touch a hot stove, will you accept my knegg? When we touch the hot stove ourselves, we are making our own knegg. (Ouch! – Yes, that hurt!)
Some kneggs will not be proved right or wrong until we die. Is there life after death? To test that ourselves, we have to die to find out. If there is life after death, what kind of life is it? Again, we have to die to find out. With these types of kneggs, there is no second chance.
So how do we tell the good kneggs from the bad?
This is an important question. Kneggs are handed out “free” by every Tom, Dick, and Harry with a blog, a Twitter feed, a podcast, or a media show. Newspapers, magazine, and websites of all kinds all promote their kneggs. They want you to accept them as “good kneggs” without checking. So how is one to know?
Because of what happened thousands of years ago in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3), our built-in knegg detector is broken. When it comes to moral choices, we cannot tell a good knegg from a bad one. We can guess, but we can’t know until after we die.
So what are we to do?
Our Creator has not left us to wander through life alone, only to die and discover our life choices were built on bad kneggs. He has inserted himself into human history over and over again, reaching out to us and leaving a written record of his encounters with us. Eventually, God became one of us to do the unthinkable; he paid the price to purchase the antidote to the poison kneggs the devil has been feeding us.
Knowing our Creator is not an abstract imagining. It is a real thing. It is something that we can experience for ourselves. It is a knegg we can rely on. When it comes to surviving eternity, God is our only hope.
Application: Read the Bible every day. It is our gateway to gaining knowledge of the Holy One.
Food for Thought: If someone you loved more than life itself were to be poisoned by an enemy, how much would you pay for the antidote to that poison?
If someone I loved more than life itself were to be poisoned by an enemy, how much would I pay for the antidote to that poison?
An interesting thing occurred while I was pondering this questions. I found myself thinking about specific people and “paying” for an antidote. At first I thought about “paying” with earthly goods, but what if the “payment” was a life of servitude? It is one thing to give up all your money or even go into debt to save someone’s life; it is another to give up your life to save someone else. Also the thought occurred to me, if I am willing to give up all “this” for an antidote, why don’t I spend better time with them now? People I love are being poisoned by an enemy everyday, but the price for the antidote has already been paid. Not only has it been given to me as a gift, but given with the expectation that I share it.
Romans 10:14-15 “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!'”
Chris,
Your meditation is convicting! (Why don’t I spend time with them now?) If you are like me, there are a lot of excuses. Yet, I agree… if we love them, we need to spend time with them. Quality time. Loving time. Time talking about important things in loving ways. Listening to their concerns, sharing. Thank you for sharing your thoughts this morning.
If one of my children were poisoned I would give every cent and my life for the antidote.
Jesus gave it all. The difference is that I cannot give enough to afford the antidote for my sin yet alone others. Jesus actually has what it takes to pay for my sin and everybody else who receives the gift. He had both the ability and power to provide what was needed.
Now I can sit down every Christmas and have a cup of kneggnog with Him.
Rich,
Thank you for sharing today.
But “kneggnog?” 🙂
04-07-2022, Proverbs 9:10, If someone you loved more than life itself were to be poisoned by an enemy, how much would you pay for the antidote to that poison?
If someone “I loved more than life itself “, which would be my wife or children, where in danger of death, I would without question give my life instead.
All familiar with the Bible will first think of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross to atone for the sins of mankind. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, gave His life as the sacrifice for the sins of all humanity. The life of the creator of humanity, a far greater value than the sum total of all human life, was given to pay the the penalty for every human being’s sins.
Titus 2:14, 1 John 2:2, John 3:16, Romans 8:32
During His ministry on earth, His entire life was a sacrifice as He confined, restrained Himself to human form, and served all mankind with His Glory cloaked by flesh, His life has been exalted by God as the perfect pattern for our own lives, and we are commanded to continue His ministry on earth by the power of the Holy Spirit. Let others see Jesus Christ in our lives as He ministers to those within our sphere of influence.
John 13:15, John 17:5, Philippians 2:1-10, Galatians 5:22-23
Ron,
Great verse references! Thank you!
Knowing you as I do, I believe you would do exactly as you say.
The irony for me has been that in mediating on this today, I think about the times when what is required is not giving up my life, but instead giving up my ego. Sometimes the enemy’s poison is such that it causes separation in families and friends. The solution I’ve experienced requires patience and healing, and that takes time. At these times I find that the price for healing is my silence so that the relationship can grow and make room for credibility and trust.
Wow, todays blog came out of knowhere!
A …
Thank you. That’s knice! 🙂
There is no love grater than to give ones life for a brother.😥