WHAT CAN YOU KNOW? Devotion 29 of 32 "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. THIS IS THE TRUE GOD, and eternal life" (1 John 5:20). -- Tomorrow:
Quickly, the Spirit demolishes any notion that the indispensable knowledge of reference can be acquired in any other way. It must come from the Lord Jesus Christ – the teaching Jesus. Unless the knowledge, or understanding, has come from Jesus Himself, it is not valid – that is, only through Jesus does the knowledge accomplish the purposes of God. All other purported knowledge of God is speculative and ineffectual. Such knowledge cannot enable one to escape the pollution of the world (2 Pet 2:20). Nor, indeed, can it bring to men "all things that pertain to life and godliness" (2 Pet 1:3).
Our acquaintance with God, and position in Him, can only be accomplished through the Lord Jesus Christ – the Anointed One. He is the appointed Expositor of God – the exclusive One through whom we come into fellowship with the Father (1 John 1:3), deriving the benefits of knowing Him and obtaining eternal life. Any purported knowledge of God that does not yield an acquaintance with Him and the obtainment of eternal life has no real value.
The statement, "This is the true God," is another way of saying what Jesus affirmed in John 14:6. "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but BY ME." The expression "by Me" is not a mere legal requirement, as though Jesus was saying "You must use My name to unlock the door to the Father." "By Me" speaks more of Jesus ESCORTING the individual to the Father, leading him there much like a parent leads a young child to a place with which the child if personally unfamiliar. That is involved in Peter's reference to Jesus BRINGING us to God (1 Pet 3:18).
It is ever true, "yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and THROUGH WHOM we live" (1 Cor 8:6, NKJV). All other gods are nothing more than idols, even if they happen to bear the same names as the real Father and Son. Jesus alone can effectively bring us into fellowship with the Father, and a true knowledge of Him.
When the text says "this is the true God," the Lord Jesus Himself is also intended. There is no effectual knowledge of, or identity with, the Father apart from Him. He is our only means of acquiring the saving knowledge of God. He is able to give us this understanding because "all fulness" dwells in Him "the fulness of the Godhead bodily" (Col 1:19; 2:9). Thus we are shut up to the Lord Jesus and His personal instruction for eternal life. Jesus referred to such wonderful knowledge prior to His death. "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him . . . Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him" (John 14:21,23.
ARTIFICIAL KNOWLEDGE
In the technical world, there is, what is called, "artificial knowledge," or "intelligence." It is not personal experiential knowledge, but automated, or programmed, knowledge. Using sophisticated equipment, certain routine tasks can be accomplished by machines. Thus everything from watches to automobiles can be built on fully automated assembly lines, with little or no human skills. Robotic technology is employed to produce a remarkable array of products.
There is a similar phenomenon present in the modern church – a sort of artificial spiritual know ledge. It is obtained through theological positions, creedal statements, and a varied assortment of slogans. There are even religious movements that gain their impetus from these things, without any personal involvement with the Lord Jesus Christ. This approach is used to maintain entire denominational structures, including educational systems, mission programs, congregational creation and maintenance, and evangelistic thrusts. These, and more, are built upon a foundation that is "artificial." They are not built upon the single foundation that has been put in place by the God of heaven Himself. As it is written, "For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Cor 3:11). That is, no EFFECTIVE foundation can be "laid" by men. The ONLY foundation that accomplishes the purposes of God is Jesus Christ Himself.
In these "artificial" foundations and citadels of religious thought, a form of idolatry has taken place. Thus, the glory that is intended to be given to God alone is given to a movement, a position, a slogan, or a theological view. Certain "church fathers" are given homage that is due Christ alone. The Persons of the Father and the Son are no longer the issue. Rather, in the thinking of men, a theological statement ABOUT Them is put into Their place. When, for example, speaking of the return of the Lord Jesus, it is quite common for this "artificial knowledge" to quickly dominate the conversation. Rather than Christ's return itself being the point, the real issue is thought to be which theological position one accepts. Thus men speak of pre-millennialism, post-millennialism, a-millennialism, and preterism. There are even further divisions of theological thought referred to as pre-tribulationism and post-tribulationalism.
Mind you, God has never spoken of any of these positions – not so much as a single syllable! They are all of man, through man, and to man. Yet, they have actually become a basis for dividing the people of God. People have given to them the honor and glory that belongs to Jesus. While it may not be popular to say so, this is a sin of the greatest magnitude. God has declared, "My glory will I not give to another" (Isa 42:8). You may be sure, that includes theological positions, religious movements, and fanciful slogans.
CONCLUSION
Our text addresses these abuses. It rivets into our thinking a fact that we must grasp with both heart and mind. It is Jesus Christ who provides the effective knowledge of God – both of His Person and His purpose. He does NOT do it independently of the Scriptures, but it is He that does it. It is in your personal fellowship with Jesus (into which you have been called – 1 Cor 1:9), that the real God is made known to you.
Jesus has said He reveals the Father (Matt 11:27), and that no man can come to the Father except by Him (John 14:6). It is written that Jesus has "declared" the Father (John 1:18), and that He brings us to God (1 Pet 3:18). Our text affirms He is come to give an understanding that we might "know Him that is true" (1 John 5:20). That God – the One Jesus gives us to understand – is "the true God!" It is our responsibility to take that clear affirmation and work out our salvation with fear and trembling, refusing to give to a position or movement the glory that is due to God alone.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, help me to think more of You than of what men have said about You.