“And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore, so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.” 1 Kings 4:29-30
What is the function of a conjunction?
Volumes surround me; books standing in perpetual attention upon my shelves, clothed in dusty neglect. Familiar titles call out to me:
Process Geomorphology
Organic Chemistry
Applied Numerical Methods
Differential Equations
Probability and Statistics
Corporate Finance
Cost Accounting
The intellect of generations and genius are contained within these tombs of knowledge. I once communed among their concepts. I excavated their principles and deciphered their puzzles. I cursed the forced regurgitation of their laws and theories, consumed in short bursts of intellectual gluttony. Yet, I proved to be competent as an educated man.
I have the diplomas to prove it.
However, each text has found a forsaken place on my office shelf; set aside in a head-long pursuit of a profession. Years have swept aside those inquisitive days of study.
Theory replaced by practice;
Integration and derivation yielding to empirical;
Schedule triumphing over intellectual indulgence.
These books have become more decoration than source. They are a reassurance to visitors that the diplomas and licenses that hang on my wall have a foundation. I have learned my profession through years of practice. Yet, I have lost something through the years. Specific knowledge has faded to general in many subjects; conceptual understanding has replaced hard achieved competence.
Knowledge is not perpetual…at least not in my mind.
I do not have the mind of Solomon but neither does anyone else. God gave Solomon a wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and a breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore. The limits of my wisdom and understanding are easily delineated in a game of “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader”, and the scarceness of my mind is more like the occasional sand dollar on the seashore than the sand.
The typical mind has a very limited capacity for the specific. Time erodes away a mind’s competence, when study is neglected, leaving a hollowed relic to the practical. The scores of educated adults who prove that they are not “smarter than a 5th grader” is testimony to our mind’s inability to retain knowledge absence the reinforcing power of study.
The surrender of the knowledge of a conjunction’s function may be a reasonable acquiescence to the pressures of a busy life.
What about the gospel?
Are you willing to surrender the knowledge of the gospel to the pressures of a busy life.
What is the function of the gospel?
Can you clearly present the gospel to someone who has no knowledge of it?
The ability to clearly explain a principle is demonstration of competent, specific, knowledge of that principle. If you can only generally explain the gospel, it demonstrates a general knowledge.
We have been called to more.
God has revealed Himself through His Bible. We can know our Lord and Savior more and more through the study of His Word. This is why David delighted in God’s commandments and law. It is why David studied.
Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them. (Psalm 111:2)
How are you doing studying the Bible?
Are you demonstrating your delight in God by studying His great works?
We must remember the minds we have been created with. We must remember that every moment that we spend away from the Word of God, time is eroding the razor edge of specific knowledge down to a blunt instrument of a general understanding. We must not acquiescence our time in God’s Word to the pressures of a busy life. We must not forget His Word.
I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word. (Psalm 119:16)
PRAYER: Father, thank you for your Word. Thank you for speaking to us perfectly even though we are imperfect. Thank you for giving us everything that we need to follow you today. Help me to glorify you from the place where I am today. Forgive me for thinking I need a special word from you. Teach me obedience in the everyday. Help me to live upon the nurturiousment of your Word, the Bible. I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen
There is a mysteriously special spot in the US Capital Hall of Statues. We stood upon this spot as our guide crossed the crowded Hall. Tourists meandered about the Hall producing a din of assorted languages that made even close conversations difficult to hear. As our guide stood facing us from across the Hall, we could see the mouth of our guide moving but only the reverberating sound of indistinguishable voices came to our ears. Our guide moved slightly and we could see him speaking but did not hear his voice. He moved yet again and suddenly a quiet, single voice became perceptible above all the noise in our immediate vicinity.
We had found the acoustic sweet spot of John Quincy Adams. It is upon the historic spot where John Quincy Adams sat when this Hall was the floor of the House of Representatives that the perfect acoustical conditions have aligned to allow a voice to be heard from across the Hall. It is a fascinating anomaly of coincidence.
A DEVOTED LIFE 