… knowledge and depth of insight,
Summary: Knowledge and insight are related but different. Understanding why we need both can greatly enhance our relationship with God.
Before we move on, we need to spend a few more minutes exploring what “knowledge and depth of insight” mean. To review, Paul starts this passage with these words:
“And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight …”
It sounds nice, but what does Paul mean by love abounding in knowledge and insight?
Perhaps we should ask how God’s love abounds in knowledge and insight. (As we discussed earlier, the love Paul refers to is agápē. This is the kind of love God shows for his creation.)
One way God’s love abounds in knowledge is that he knows our shortcomings (1 John 3:20). If we know that God knows our shortcomings, something amazing happens: We see a living example of love abounding in knowledge. Despite our shortcomings, God shows his affection for us by offering us forgiveness through his Son, Jesus Christ.
When our love (agápē) for others is able to flourish despite their offenses and shortcomings, we, too, are able to love in spite of knowing that those we love are flawed.
The kind of knowledge Paul is talking about requires actual awareness of who and what is involved. God is not just an “idea,” God is our Father. We see him in the person of Jesus. We feel his Holy Spirit within us.
While we can know God, know ourselves, and know how others treat us, knowledge without knowing is simply a guess. To understand the difference, we need insight.
The phrase “depth of insight” comes from the Greek “aísthēsis,” which means “perception.” Strong’s Concordance (G144) adds that this word includes the concepts of discernment and judgment. Keep in mind there are different kinds of judgment, and Jesus tells us to “judge correctly” (John 7:24).
We know how the people around us fall short. We know what we see and what we experience. We know what we hear from the lips of those who talk to us, talk about us, and talk about others. Most of all, we know ourselves. We know what we have done, what we have thought, and how we have fallen short.
We also know God’s promises in his Word.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:16-17)
Depth of insight is knowing that, despite who I am or what I have done, God loves me. Applying that insight is loving God back by loving those around me.
Application: Pray for knowledge and understanding (Proverbs 2:6).
Food for Thought: How does knowing that God knows our thoughts impact us?
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Continue reading “Philippians 1:9b – Godly Love – Part II”
