Some Have Not the knowledge of God • Deshen Daily

Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame (1 Corinthians 15:34, KJV)

Paul was appalled that some believers in Corinth were ignorant of God. What would his reaction be to the knowledge of the scriptures amongst believers today, including you and me?

If completing a church doctrinal screening exam or earning a seminary degree were the goals in focus, one could question why Paul bemoans the ignorance or biblical illiteracy of some Corinthians. However, his lament echoes a well-known divine groan prophesied by Hosea: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…”(Hosea 4:6 KJV).

God’s message is clear: our knowledge of His Word correlates with our Christian experience; His knowledge brings grace, and ignorance invites unnecessary suffering.

Paul uses the adjective “some,” which implies only a fraction of the Corinthians were ignorant. But he does not specify what fraction—few, about half, majority, many, etc. Like the Corinthians, the Church today, as a whole, has a problem of many saints not having the knowledge of God. And the statistics are dismal: A classic 1999 article from Christianity Today describes anecdotes and surveys that reveal how little most Christians know about the Bible, not to mention a deeper revelation of Jesus.

Although we encourage believers to read the Bible, reading the Bible is not what God wants, as we have detailed in the article “Why Do We Read or Study the Bible?”. Reading or studying the Bible is simply a trigger to acquire the knowledge of God, which in good hearts leads to divine experiences and encounters.

Grow in your knowledge of God.

Meditate

How would you describe your knowledge of God?

Apply the Word

To increase our knowledge of God, we must intentionally read and study the Bible. Check out our free online resources to help you start or grow in your Bible reading and research to grow in your knowledge of God.