O how crucial, how beautiful, how life-giving, how satisfying is the right kind of knowledge. How dangerous, how hardening, how brother-ruining, how pride-puffing is the wrong kind of knowledge.

The right kind of knowledge is like this…

“But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.” 2 Corinthians 2:14

and like this…

“For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 4:6

and like this…

“but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” 2 Peter 3:18

The wrong kind of knowledge is like this…

“Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies.” 1 Corinthians 8:1

and like this…

“For through your knowledge he who is weak is ruined, the brother for whose sake Christ died.” 1 Corinthians 8:11

and like this…

“O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called ‘knowledge’” 1 Timothy 6:20

We ought always to grow in the right kind of knowledge. We should persist, pursue, abound, and delight in the right kind of knowledge. For in it is hidden the wisdom, glory, and revelation of God. We ought always to resist, root out, and destroy the wrong kind of knowledge for it is Godless, speculative, demonic, and hardens the soul toward sin and against God.

And so Jesus, in his rebuke to the Pharisees and Lawyers, scolds them harshly for taking away from the people the “key of knowledge.” O how badly we need this key. There is much in the world called knowledge. There are many teachers – brilliant, persuasive authors, all spreading what they believe to be knowledge. But without the key, any knowledge locks up, rather than sets free. Knowledge, without the key, hardens the heart and blinds the eye. The mind gets puffed up with lofty thoughts as the soul shrinks and sin reigns. Many of the most brilliant professors have so much knowledge that they all but deny the very existence of the soul – demonstrating for us that the deeper the knowledge, without the key, the darker and harder the soul becomes to the light of God.

O how badly we need the key of knowledge. For with the key our eyes are opened to the glory of God in the face of Christ. With the key we gain wisdom that is sweeter to the taste than honey. With the key we see light that softens the heart, produces love, strives against sin, the gives us strength and endurance.

The key is not a hermeneutic – a method for interpretation. No method, no process can open the heart to the glory of God. No, the key is Christ Himself. Christ our key that unlocks the Word, and allows its light to enter our eyes and fill our souls. Without Christ the Bible itself may impart the wrong kind of deadly knowledge. The Pharisees and Lawyers certainly had the Bible. Even the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, though they had knowledge of the Bible, did not have the right knowledge of it. It wasn’t until Jesus explained the Scriptures to them, showing them that from Moses through the Prophets, the Bible spoke about the Christ, he showed them that He had to suffer before entering His glory and then their eyes were opened – unlocked by using the key. While the Old Testament had a mystery in it, the key to solving it was Christ. And the New Testament, the message of the gospel of Christ, is itself a mystery, concealed to the wise and knowledgeable of this world, and revealed only in Christ. But with Christ as our key we gain understanding into the very person of God, and not just understanding but involvement. By growing in the right knowledge of God we get closer to God. And by this means we grow up and we draw closer to Him.

“…that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Colossians 2:2-3

Amen Lord. Guard and protect, deepen and enrich the true knowledge of the gospel in my soul. By your grace and mercy grant me the light of the knowledge of the glory God in the face of Christ.

I wonder how the gospel was preached prior to the crucifixion? Throughout Jesus’ ministry He and His disciples preached the gospel of the kingdom of God. Whatever allusions to the cross contained in these messages were lost to its hearers. Yet the gospel was preached. Certainly, there are many things that can be said about the gospel without direct reference to the cross. For example: righteous requirements for human conduct, promises for future rewards, hope for peace, and standards for justice. Such facets of the nascent gospel were understood best by Jews – because they had the law and prophets as context. Even so the Jews struggled to comprehend the basic aspects of the non-cross centered gospel – how much more perplexing would a cross exalting gospel be to them.

Yet the gospel, in its fullness, was ordained from eternity to be manifest through the cross of Christ. The gospel about the greatness of the glory of God was never designed to be understood primarily through any historical context, but rather through the revelation of a hidden mystery. The pinnacle of the gospel was plunked down, as it were, in the midst of history. For who would have imagined the cross? Who could comprehend the innocent and pure Lamb of God would be slaughtered for corrupt God-haters? The cross had no historical antecedent. It did have some vague foreshadowing and symbolic representation in the Old Testament, but such hints of a God slaying gospel were never established in human expectations.

The cross-centered gospel of Christ transcends all earthly historical context or rational ground for understanding and grasping the glory of God. It is the ultimate spiritual enigma.

True, there are many aspects of the gospel which can be spoken of, explained, and preached which have common ground in human understanding. For instance we can speak in depth about the gospel’s effects on family relationships in a way just about anyone can grasp and appreciate. But ultimately it is the gospel of grace, seen in a cross, which establishes and explains every aspect of existence. The gospel’s cross exalting core rests not on human wisdom, but on hidden wisdom. The wisdom of the cross is a mystery which no human ruler has ever understood. It is foolishness to the so-called enlightened and distained by the human-centered mind.

But the mystery of the gospel is wonderful to those who are called, to those whom God has been pleased to reveal it. The cross perfectly connects earth and eternity. It brings the greatness of the glory of the gospel of Christ into view thereby halting all arrogant speculations and humbling all before the inexplicable mercy of God. The knowledge of such a wonderful redeeming God does not come through an understanding of historical precedent. On the contrary the self-authenticating, supernatural, spiritual revelation of the gospel in the soul comes through the power of the Spirit of God. It is the spiritual impartation of the gospel that enables right understanding of history. History, in this sense, begins at the cross and works backward and forward from it. For no one could have guessed from the beginning, what God would do. And no one coming after the cross can grasp the wisdom of the cross unless he is given new eyes and a new heart.

I praise you Lord for the glorious gospel of grace in the message of the cross. For by it your righteousness is exalted and by it I have life. Lord set the eyes of my heart on the glory of the cross and let your Spirit flow with power to proclaim and adorn the gospel – to the glory of Christ above. Amen.

Which, among all the great things that Jesus has done for me, should I describe? For if my eyes are open and my heart is responsive to the tender mercies of God, I will see a thousand great things every day that God does for me. Even trials, which sometimes cloud my view of God’s blessings, can be counted among the great things God does, since they flow from His throne of grace. Times of testing are brief in the balance of eternity and Jesus will turn each test and every pain into servants for my good.

The demoniac suffered greatly under the oppression of a legion of demons. But when Jesus freed him, he testified not about the details of his past torment, but rather of the grace, mercy, and power of God which came to him through Christ. He described his new freedom and proclaimed the blessings restored to him.

What great things should I proclaimed today? I could speak of the many lovely things God has granted to me in His mercy. With little effort I could quickly list a dozen prominent blessings of home and health. And with a bit of focused thought I could list a hundred more common graces that bless me throughout my days, all of which are among the great things God does for me.

Yet I desire to speak of just one great thing God has done, the one thing that matters most, the one thing through which every other blessing has been secured. Jesus went to the cross for me. The demoniac testified to some great things he received, but the greatest thing had not yet been done for him. Greater than freedom from demons is freedom from sin. Greater than the blessing of restored sanity is freedom from the just wrath of God.

What great things will I proclaim? I will proclaim the cross of Christ which brings into view the glorious gospel of God’s grace: God’s righteousness and upheld, God’s justice satisfied, God’s wrath emptied, my adoption into his family, my transfer into His kingdom, and my eternal blessing secured through Christ.

O Lord what great things you have done for me. Every one of them has been purchased by your blood. Therefore your blood, your death, and your victory by resurrection are my greatest good. Let me be satisfied to proclaim the greatest thing – the gospel, which reveals the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. Amen.

O Poor Pharisee, stuck in your old ways of performing righteousness – making much of your displays of prayer and fasting. You think such efforts will make you acceptable to God. You have drunk your old religion of law for so long that Jesus’ words are impossible for you to understand. Your legalistic ways offer no categories for this new wine of gospel grace. You question why Jesus’ followers don’t act like other religious people? The Lord’s answer comes back in riddles, stories, and parables you cannot understand by your categories of duty and performance.

Understanding this new wine – the gospel of grace – requires a new heart, one that delights in mercy, not one that boasts in self-righteousness. The gospel of grace cannot be ascertained from a mindset of works. It is perplexing, unworkable and paradoxical to such an approach to religion. Even the fundamental practices of religion such as prayer are altogether different, and fasting is turned inside out and upside down. All things are made new. Prayer changes, they are not coins of merit tossed, as it were, onto scales of self-righteousness – rather they become responses of joy in the presence of the Bridegroom – or equally poignant cries of longing for His return. The paradox of the new gospel heart is that it is full only when it is emptied and it trusts solely in the faithfulness of God to fill it. Old wineskins try to preserve meager quantities of religious effort, which quickly run dry.

O my soul, do you not see the sin of the Pharisee in your own heart? Do you not see how often you make the fruit of God’s grace into your own meager attempts to gain God’s approval? Spit out that old wine! Throw away that useless garment! Yes pray, and fast – but not as a pitiful performance to be seen by man, or to make yourself feel like your duty has been done – but only to see and rejoice in more of the Bridegroom’s glory.

O God you have taught me that prayer and fasting are not self completing actions – they have another end beyond themselves, a goal they strain toward. They seek out the presence of Christ. Jesus, make me pray – make me fast such that I might have more of you. More joy in your Word, more anticipation of your return, more desire for heaven and the eternal rewards that will come from your own hand.

Sustain the means of grace in my soul, in Jesus’s name I pray, amen.

What? Shall the Redeemer be redeemed by a couple of pigeons? Such irony! Jesus, who would redeem us by His own blood, was, if such a thing were possible, redeemed according to the Law of Moses with a couple of birds. Not even a proper lamb, but rather the poor man’s provision of two pigeons. Little did Joseph and Mary know that this baby they were redeeming with inexpensive birds was Himself the perfect Lamb of God. As the necks of these birds were nipped, and their blood ran down upon the altar, so too this child’s blood would run, for the Lord was providing Himself a Lamb for the offering.

It was both proper and required by the Law of Moses to offer these two birds. Required though it was, the author of Hebrews reminds us that the blood of animals was never effective in itself. The spilling of such blood merely foreshadowed the blood of the one and only Lamb which takes away the sins of the world.

On the one hand, these two birds were perhaps the most unnecessary, and ineffectual sacrifices ever made. For what sacrifice can be made for the perfect son of God? And how shall God’s perfect and eternal high priest be redeemed from the Lord’s service? If ever a firstborn was sanctified to the Lord, Jesus was fully and entirely the Lord’s. Offering or no offering, Jesus was set apart for the Lord.

Yet on the other hand, these two birds where perhaps the greatest, most honored sacrifices ever made. For if every animal sacrifice was intended to point to God’s one and only true sacrifice, how much more directly can such appointed sacrifices point to Jesus than these two birds did with their blood? How fitting too, that such an honored sacrifice as these should take the form of the humble, substitute, poor man’s offering. As the King of kings came into the world within a meager stable, so His “redemption” was to be a meager sacrifice.

O my soul – do not think highly of the sacrifices you are called to make as you follow Christ. Are such sacrifices any more than a couple of pigeons to the Lord? Are they any more impressive to God? Do not think that the living sacrifices of your life have any more merit before the Lord than the sacrifice of these two birds. The Lamb Himself has been offered for you, what will your two birds add? Yet, in as much as a small, humble, insignificant and ineffectual sacrifice of two pigeons can point so clearly and directly to the one true Lamb of God, let your sacrifices point to Jesus. The blood of pigeons cannot redeem the Son of Man but they can testify of Him. So too, let the humble sacrifices of your life testify to the one glorious and all powerful sacrifice of God’s own Lamb. Amen.

Angels are the Lord’s messengers; they do his bidding. This angel, in the empty tomb, had words for the women to give to His disciples… and Peter. Peter is singled out. He was a disciple so the general instruction certainly applied to him, but the Lord appended the address for this message to Peter, by name. And no wonder. I’ve experienced emotional turmoil in my life, but nothing compared to the heights and depths that Peter experienced over these few days. His heart rose with the joyous shouting of “Hosanna” at the triumphal entry and sank as Jesus cried out “my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” on the cross. Peter’s sorrows were intensified since he had boasted of his loyalty only to deny him three times right in Jesus’ view while He was in the midst of His trials. Peter’s soul must have dropped with a thud when he caught Jesus’ eye following his third insistence that he did not even know the man. He wept bitterly.

But oh, what high hope, what lift when he heard that the Lord’s instructions to meet Him in Galilee were addressed to him in particular. What healing words. What comfort. Yes Peter, you arrogantly boasted of your loyalty, you violently struck out with the sword without call, and in cowardice you denied the Lord three times. But listen, the Lord has risen and is calling His disciples… and you! You may have been faithless but He is remaining faithful to you. You are not cut off. The Lord still speaks your name. You are still chosen and called. The time for bitter tears is over – run, see for yourself – Jesus is alive, and He is calling you to Himself by name. He is calling you to His presence and He will have words for you, words to cement your humility, words to confirm His love, words to call you into service for His people. Wipe away your tears Peter and run to meet your savior – He loves you by name, and His love is everlasting!

O Lord personalize your grace to me – help me to hear my name in your promises. Let me hear my name so that my soul might be lifted and my heart may exult in being called to Jesus. Amen.

This year my wife discovered and introduced me to at a terrific show on the Food Network called “Good Eats” It’s a cooking show. It’s informative and instructional like other cooking shows but it is so much better because its host, Alton Brown, provides extremely interesting historical and scientific information about the process of cooking. On top of that, the show is very entertaining, fun, silly, and captivating.

But what I think is most compelling about the show is that Alton Brown really loves “Good Eats.” His passion for good food is evident in every show – and he’s not afraid to make his personal tastes and preferences known. He treats food with such enthusiasm that he almost makes me willing to eat artichokes or blue cheese - almost.

In some respects Alton’s job is easy. That’s because food really is good eats. We all have appetites and we all love food – it tastes good. Making me want to eat chocolate chip cookies is like shooting fish in a barrel.

God made food to be good. He made me like the taste of food – especially sweet food like honey. Proverbs 24:13 says “My son, eat honey for it is good.” Okay! Here’s a command that’s easy to obey. Honey is good, and I’m willing to speculate that God allows substitutions in this recipe. “My son, eat chocolate for it is good… My son, eat steak for it is good,” mmmmmmm steak. God is the one who made honey good eats. But He doesn’t stop there. God is good and His good gifts, like tasty food, are to be enjoyed, but something else needs to happen when I eat tasty food. I need to know something else when I enjoy the taste of honey on my tongue. I need to know that wisdom is to my soul, as honey is to my taste. Proverbs reinforces this truth.

“Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise,
And apply your mind to my knowledge;
For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you,
That they may be ready on your lips.
So that your trust may be in the LORD,
I have taught you today, even you.
Have I not written to you excellent things
Of counsels and knowledge,
To make you know the certainty of the words of truth
That you may correctly answer him who sent you?

Tasting wisdom, eating wisdom, is “good eats” for the soul. Eating good food is pleasant on my lips, but eating wisdom is pleasant deep within. Eating food is a pleasant, but not very long lasting – I consume a dish of ice cream in maybe five minutes – if I try to make it last. But wisdom, when eaten and digested can be pleasant forever. God’s councils and knowledge are excellent and they have the spiritual capacity to increase my trust in the Lord – which is eternally nourishing.

The wisdom of God is vast and comes in many forms, flavors, and dishes. The wisdom of God can be enjoyed in bite sized snacks, or dined upon in elaborate feasts. But whatever its form, or however it is prepared, the effective ingredient is always Christ. Jesus is the wisdom of God,

“But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, ‘LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.’” 1 Corinthians 1:30.

Considering Jesus Christ in all His glory is the eating of wisdom – and it is Best Eats!

Lord thank you for your goodness, your kindness and your generosity. Thank you for making honey sweet to the taste. Please help me to enjoy food as a sweet reminder that wisdom is such for my soul. And grant me a tongue that has the capacity to taste and enjoy that which is truly good. Destroy, I pray, my lively taste buds for worthless things that compete for my appetites. Change me to enjoy the wisdom of God – the glory of Christ – so much that competing desires would no longer appeal to me. Give me truly good eats to satisfy my soul in Christ. In His name I pray. Amen.

Mark 4:24-25

Whoever has what?

Jesus said, “Whoever has, to him more shall be given.” What’s worse, not to “have” in this verse means to lose everything. What is it that someone must “have” in order to receive more or keep from loosing everything? What an urgent puzzle to solve! Can there be anything more important to me this morning than to inquire of God concerning what this “have” could be?


Of course the answer is simple, so much so that a young child could provide it. The answer is Christ. Whoever has Christ shall receive more, whoever does not have Christ, even when he has in this world will ultimately be lost. However, as simple and true as this answer is, I think Jesus is saying more about it. He seems to be deliberately not filling in all the blanks. If you did not already know the gospel, the answer would not be so simple. There is a degree of intentional obscuring going on in this parable. In fact, just a couple verses earlier, Jesus says… “nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it should come to light.” He then exhorts us “he who has ears to hear, let him hear” and then again “take care what you listen to.” Jesus talks about hidden and secret things that are to be revealed, then urges us to listen carefully, then He speaks a parable in the form of a riddle. Is there not something hidden in these words that can be revealed? Have we not been set up to look for a secret that can be brought to light?

The answer to the riddle is simple. The reason for making it a riddle in the first place makes me think that there is more to it. Far be it from me to try and solve such a riddle completely. It is enough for me to find some facet of revelation through which my soul might be “given more besides.”

It seems that “my standard of measure” is one of the chief concerns of this passage. First, I have been exhorted twice in a row with regard to how and what I listen to. I would presume that my “standard of measure” relates to this hearing and listening. There is an urgency, therefore, not only that I hear something, but that I “consider carefully” (NIV) to what I am hearing. Specifically, I need to consider “the measure” (i.e. the quantity and quality) with which I am listening. I need to give heed to Jesus’ exhortation and consider the measure with which I listen. If I neglect His exhortation I will not listen very much or very often. If I have a small scoop, so to speak, and only occasionally read the word and consider it briefly, my measure will be small and what I receive will be less. If I have a voracious appetite for the word and come to it with big baskets and heavy duty sacks, “my measure” will be large and I will receive more. The promise of Psalm 81 comes to mind, “open your mouth wide and I will fill it…”, “oh that My people would listen to Me… I would feed you with the finest of the wheat, and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

The “what” that Jesus speaks of having, in answer to the riddle, is Christ Himself. The reality of whether I have Him or not, or the degree to which I receive Him relates to “my measure.” No measure; no Christ; lose everything. Some measure; some Christ; (by His grace) gain more. Great measure; more Christ; even more besides.

Psalms 119:129-130

The Bible is chock-full of references to light. From the beginning of Genesis of all the way through, God uses light as a means of describing and identifying Himself to us. The Apostle John sums it up in 1 John 1: 5 “God is light.” Jesus pointed out one fundamental characteristic of light in the “sermon on the mount.” Light shines forth, reveals, draws attention to, illuminates, and focuses attention. When a play begins the house lights are turned down and often one very strong light is centered on the stage calling all attention to just one person. The Bible is such a spotlight, it draws attention to one character – it shines intensely on Jesus Christ. As thoroughly saturated as the Bible is in its references to light, so thoroughly does it call our attention to its main subject – God. God never stops calling attention to Himself all throughout His Word.

It astounds me how blind mankind is to such a powerful spotlight. We either disregarded the light altogether, or perhaps worse, we walk in its light but pay little attention to its source and its chief purpose. How often I have read the Bible looking for help in how to live my life, how to be a better husband, how to be more effective in ministry, how to plant a church – all very good things to do – yet so often I read past the words that strongly and constantly shine on the chief subject. Instead my attention rest on subjects which are consequential to the main subject, not the main subject itself. I fear that the frequency and constancy of phrases like “in Christ,” “grace of God,” “light of knowledge,” “glory of God,” “thanks be to God,” “of the Spirit,” “glory that surpasses,” or “from the Lord,” (because they are sprinkled through almost every sentence and passage of scripture) become like furniture in a room that we sit down on and rest things on in order to do something else. And yet these words and phrases are the chief subject – all other subjects hang on them. God should always be utmost in view, when we read the Word. Secondary subjects can only be truly understood when they are viewed in reference to the main subject. This is why 2 Corinthians 4: 6 has become one of my favorite verses. This verse contains no secondary subjects. It is a string of God-centered phrases, a series of spotlights all shining directly on Christ. “For God who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ is the one who has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”

God has shown in our hearts to give us this wonderful light. Yet we can still miss it or be blinded to it. This is why God has said to us “The unfolding of Thy words gives light.” God has given us a means by which we can continue to be filled with the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. It is the means of “unfolding” His words. The act and effort of “unfolding” gives off the light we need to see the glory of God. When we take time to unfold it, it shines, and it as it shines light is cast on the subject and we see more clearly the object of it all – the face of Christ.

Oh soul I beseech you – be unfolding the word of God. Not as an end in itself, but that by unfolding it, light will shine forth, displaying for you more brightly, more clearly the face of Christ.

Consider: (Biyn 995); to discern, act wisely, cared, explained, gain understanding, understand, gaze, give understanding, give heed, interpret, investigate, learn, observe, pay close attention, perceived, ponder, regard, show.

Listen soul, be diligent to study and absorb all that you can from the Word of God. Obey Proverbs 22: 17-22…

“Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise,
And apply your mind to my knowledge;
For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you,
That they may be ready on your lips.
So that your trust may be in the LORD,
I have taught you today, even you. Have I not written to you excellent things
Of counsels and knowledge,
To make you know the certainty of the words of truth
That you may correctly answer him who sent you?”

Spend time in the Word. Read, ponder, absorb, look into, analyze, interpret, marvel and be captivated by the scriptures.

But listen, soul, don’t be like the Pharisees who searched the scriptures because they thought that by them they had the eternal life. No don’t be like that. Rather, study diligently in such a way that the object of the scriptures, He to whom they bear witness, is the one who is being studied, considered, perceived, pondered and discovered. Remember Paul’s exhortation that these words are not taught by human wisdom but they are those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. Remember the Apostle Peter’s encouragement that we have this prophetic word made more sure, to which we do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. Jesus is the word made flesh, he is the morning star. Diligently consider the word in such a way that Jesus is seen and exalted in your heart.