What God Conceals From Smart People
Monday, March 3, 2014 at 04:03PM 
Here’s a vivid image: Jesus dancing with delight, rejoicing at the success of his disciples and the cluelessness of the “wise and the learned.” What kind of God celebrates when smart people are clueless?
At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. (Luke 10:21)
An omniscient God is not impressed with the size of our intellect, but he is impressed by the size of our heart toward him. Sometimes we are tempted to believe otherwise, especially when the smart kids always seem to be running the church. But what if our approach to following Jesus is fueled by the world’s idea of wisdom? Have we chosen a worldly method to serve an other-worldly kingdom?
The spirit of this age respects knowledge. It’s a given. Knowledge trumps ignorance. Knowledge is power. Knowledge is self-authenticating. Yet when we bring the spirit of this age to our study of Scripture we emphasize the texts which serve the value of knowledge. “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge . . .” How many Christian books have opened with Hosea 4:6 as a call to study?
We have loved knowledge since the Garden of Eden. Perhaps we have loved knowledge more than we have loved our Creator. In our day the western church presents a view of discipleship based upon ever-increasing knowledge, and Christianity becomes a subject to be mastered. As a result those who are smartest become the “best” disciples. The spirit of this present age tells us knowledge is good because it is knowledge. But what if the smartest among us know nothing of love?
Yet woven into the fabric of the Biblical witness is the still small voice of relationship. It warns of the dangers of knowledge. “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” comes the whisper. Later on the voice grows: "Where there is knowledge, it will pass away.” We discover the voice coming from Paul’s prayer closet interceding on our behalf, “I pray that you . . . may have power . . . to know this love that surpasses knowledge.” Perhaps we can learn from Paul--one of the greatest minds in history--that knowledge can never drive us to love.
Even since the Word, full of grace and truth, visited the earth, his voice echoes: “True knowledge grows from love, and apart from love, knowledge cannot be true.”
Reader Comments (3)
While I am still puzzled by the "need to know" drive of those with superior intellects who dismiss Christianity, I am also aware that it is a smoke screen no different than any other smoke screen people use. Until I accepted Christ, I used smoke screens too. The question is how to communicate that child-like faith is not dumbed down faith...to people who think they know better...and the answer is, that is the job of the Holy Spirit.
I love this phrase, Ed: "child-like faith is not dumbed down faith." It suggests to me that there is more than one way of "knowing" something (or someone).
until you accept that people are differently gifted -- and differently enabled -- you will always dismiss those people whom God has called to *understand* things. And it will be to your detriment, pastor.