Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK
Nov. 14, 2011

“Know What You Do Not Know”
“Don’t assume you know it all..." – Proverbs 3:7 (The Message)

Christian comedian Jeff Allen in one of his routines says; “I believe teenagers are God’s revenge on mankind. It’s as if God said, ‘Let’s see how they like it to create someone in their own image who denies their very existence.’” He goes on to say; “Nowhere in the Bible does it mention how old the devil was when he rejected God’s authority. My guess it would be fifteen. I don’t even know why kids are made to go to school when they turn 15. Is there anything that a 15-year-old doesn’t already know?”
I love the humor in that but then at the same time I sit back and think how often we (yes, we adults) treat the grace, love and knowledge of God as well. I would not necessarily call it flat-out “rebellion,” but it certainly leads to it. As a child I never questioned my parent’s authority or their knowledge. It does not mean I understood it or was perfect in my obedience toward them but I did not consider for a moment that they could be wrong. When I became a teenager with the ability to begin thinking on a more abstract level I began to consider that there were things that I had a better grasp on. Then, once I had my own children I understood exactly how my parents felt when my “authority” was questioned or disobeyed.
Verse 5 of chapter three says, “Trust God from the bottom of your heart.” What I think this means [for me] is that I must do my absolute most and best to “know what I don’t know.” I realize my limitations – that I cannot know it all and to be quite honest that is just far too much responsibility and I am not strong enough to handle it all, but that should not prevent me from seeking more of who God is!
Compartmentalmindedness (an actual word) is seldom used anywhere these days. One reason may be that most of us cannot pronounce it!! It means separating one’s spiritual life from one’s secular life. People who do this are not schizophrenic, but they are a bit crazy if they think they can maintain two totally separate lives and never bear the consequence of such behavior.
Religious history is filled with people who have done this. I think immediately of two writers of great hymns. John Newton once trafficked in slaves but ended up writing “Amazing Grace.” How could such behavior be justified? “Just doing his job,” as many might offer as an explanation for such thinking today. Newton also wrote the hymn that begins, “How sweet the name of Jesus sounds, in the believer’s ear!”
Then there was John Bowring who, during his term as Governor of Hong Kong in the mid-1850s, pushed for free trade between England and China that led to the introduction of opium in China, resulting in millions of Chinese people becoming addicted to the soul-destroying habit. Many today might reason that Bowring was merely operating under orders from British lords. But it is hard to reconcile his choices with the words he wrote to perhaps his most famous hymn:
In the cross of Christ I glory, towering o’er the wrecks of time; All the light of sacred story gathers round its head sublime. When the woes of life o’ertake me, hopes deceive, and fears annoy, Never shall the cross forsake me; lo, it glows with peace and joy. When the sun of bliss is beaming light and love upon my way, From the cross the radiance streaming adds new luster to the day. Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure, by the cross are sanctified; Peace is there that knows no measure, joys that through all time abide.

Did these men come to regret the part they played in promoting two of the worst social evils that have plagued our world? Yes. Would they have taken a different direction if they had known in advance the outcomes of their decisions? I believe they would. But choices always lead to inevitable consequences.
King David’s highest ambition was to build a Temple to honor the God of the Israelites. But he had been responsible for the deaths of thousands of Israel’s enemies. God said, “You have killed many men in great battles you fought. And since you have shed so much blood before me, you will not be the one to build a Temple to honor my name.” (1st Chronicles 22:8). David’s son, Solomon, would eventually lead in the construction. David designed it; he purchased construction materials and assigned to others the job of cutting stone and gathering choice wood for the building. Solomon would supervise the construction. David’s final words to the assembly were prophetic (1st Chronicles 22:19): “Now seek the Lord your God with all your heart. Build the sanctuary of the Lord God so that you can bring the Ark of the Lord’s covenant and the holy vessels of God into the Temple built to honor the Lord’s name.”

Perhaps Jesus had David’s words in mind when he said (Matthew 6:33): “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Trying to separate the sacred from the secular is difficult, if not impossible. How much better to put God and his will first in your life, and let everything else you do flow down from that priority. You might not end up writing great hymns, but you will end up orchestrating a great life. Jesus said it, so it must be true.
Pastor J. T. Carnell