07/17/18 - 1Cor 8

July 17, 2018

We know that "We all possess knowledge." But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. 1Cor 8:1

Instead of trying to tell people what you know, help them discover it for themselves.

I was in a conversation with an acquaintance years ago, and the topic eventually turned to raising children.  Being a new dad in my recent marriage, I was struggling with the challenges of parenting and feared making mistakes or doing something wrong.  As I opened up a little about my struggles, the man I was talking to started giving me advice and correcting me on a few things.  He went on and on about how to parent my child, and what I should be doing, and some of the things were not sounding practical nor appropriate.  Somewhere in the conversation, I think God whispered into my spirit to ask a question, so I did: “how many kids do you have?”  His answer was a bit defensive: “well, none, but I know what I am talking about.”  Somehow, his advice seemed to carry a lot less weight after that.

Humans have a tendency to turn knowledge into arrogance.  We are taught things in college and think we have the expertise now to advise other people.  We learn stuff in our own life and start using it as a hammer to fix everyone else’s problems around us.  It’s amazing how quickly we can take something we have seen and turn it into expertise for ourselves.  All of that becomes a bit arrogant when we start asserting opinions as facts, and start pushing our ideas in areas we were not knowledgeable or responsible for.

Knowledge is a good thing if used properly. When we offer something as an idea, or a question, or a possibility, it allows the receiver to think through the scenario and consider how the idea might work.  But when we assert it as truth, we are stealing the person’s own experience and judgment away, making our thoughts the standard.  Offering knowledge can help build up the receiver, but pushing knowledge only builds up the sender. 

Paul tells the Corinthian church that we should build each other up.  The best learning is not done through instruction, but through experience.  Love offers its help in whatever way the receiver needs.  Pride pushes its help in whatever way the sender needs.  Be a person of love instead of a person of pride.  Turn our knowledge into questions, curiosity, and options.  Allow the person the chance to analyze and grow themselves in the process.  Who knows … we ALL might get a little wiser if we learn together instead of trying to assert our own opinions.

God has full knowledge, yet He chooses to reveal it slowly at a pace we are ready to learn.  He has the ability to advise us on everything, but waits until we are ready to seek the answers.  Because God is love, He chooses to use ways that build us up instead of beat us up. 

And He should know … since He has been there before.