DO NOT BE IGNORANT!

There are two kinds of ignorance.  There is the lack of knowing based upon one's not being exposed to the facts (Ps. 73:22).   And, there is the lack of knowing because one is too lazy to "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (Isa. 56:10; 2 Tim. 2:15). 

There is no stigma attached to being unfamiliar with things outside of one's experience, but there is tremendous shame in a Christian knowing little or nothing about the Word of God!  That is not just ignorance; it is dangerous!  How is one to evaluate what Pastors and Bible Teachers are saying if he or she does not know how to use God's Word (Acts 17:11; Phil. 4:8; 1 Thes. 5:21)? 

Here are some of the problems caused by my ignorance:

*  It causes me to question God's fairness (Ps. 73:22).
*  It endangers those over whom God has placed under my protection (Isa. 56:10).
*  It makes me think only my church has the truth (Isa. 63:16).
*  It causes me to ignore God's "unqualified messenger" (Acts 4:13).
*  It causes me to be unappreciative of God's ministers (Rom. 1:13; 2 Cor. 1:8).
*  It caused me to be religious; what I needed was His righteousness (Rom. 10:3).
*  It causes me to lack compassion for the "less enlightened" (Rom. 11:25; Heb. 5:2).
*  It will result in me making the same mistakes as did Israel (1 Cor. 10:1).
*  It will prevent me from being blessed by those who are gifted of God (1 Cor. 12:1).
*  It causes me to try to "force feed" knowledge to those not wanting it (1 Cor. 14:38; 2 Pet. 3:5).
*  It can cause me to be susceptible to Satan's tricks (2 Cor. 2:11).
*  It could cause me to lose hope for those who died in Christ (1 Thes. 4:13).
*  It will cause me to give up waiting on the Lord (2 Pet. 3:8).

There is an old saying; "Ignorance is bliss."  That may be true for some in this world, but it can certainly keep one out of the next world (Mt. 9:6; Jn. 10:38; Eph. 1:18; 1 Jn. 5:13; etc.).  Another old saying says, "What I don't know can't hurt me."  The Word clearly disagrees (Rom. 6:16; 1 Cor. 5:6; 6:9, 16; Jam. 4:4; etc.).

 

Ignorance won't win on Jeopardy, but it will definitely put you in jeopardy!