WHAT CAN YOU KNOW? Devotion 32 of 32 Thus we have completed our overview of things that can be known by those who are in Christ Jesus. What a marvelous trip it has been! It has taken us to the very heart of life in Christ Jesus. The accent has been placed upon believing on the name of Jesus and loving the brethren of Jesus. The weight of our faith in Christ rests upon what God has declared about Him in the Gospel. We are depending on the effectiveness of both His death and His life. We are banking upon His advocacy before the throne, and His personal tutelage.
"These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may KNOW that we have eternal life . . . And if WE KNOW that He hears us, whatever we ask, WE KNOW that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him . . . WE KNOW that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. WE KNOW that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. And WE KNOW that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that WE MAY KNOW Him who is true . . . " (1 John 5:13-21, NKJV)
All of this has produced a framework within which a marvelous body of experiential knowledge has been realized. By this I mean that true spiritual knowledge is effected within the context of divine fellowship. The following is a brief recapitulation of the things that can be known while walking in the Spirit, living by faith, and fellowshipping with the Father and the Son.
1. The whole creation grows and travails in pain together until now (Rom 8:22).
2. That all things are being worked together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose (Rom 8:28).
3. That an idol is nothing in the world (1 Cor 8:4).
4. That if the earthly house of this tabernacle (our present body) is dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens (2 Cor 5:1).
5. The Law is good, if a man use it lawfully (1 Tim 1:8).
6. We know that we know Him if we keep His commandments (1 John 2:3).
7. That it is the last time (1 John 2L18).
8. That when Jesus appears, we will be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is (1 John 3:2).
9. That we have passed from death unto life (1 John 3:14).
10. That we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him (1 John 3:19).
11. That He abides in us (1 John 4:24).
12. That we love the children of God (1 John 5:2).
13. That if God hears us, we have the petitions that we desired of Him (1 John 5:15).
14. That whosoever is born of God does not sin (1 John 5:18).
15. That we are of God, and the whole world lies under the power of the wicked one (1 John 5:19).
16. That the Son of God is come, and has given us an understanding (1 John 5:20).
17. That our old man is crucified with Christ (Rom 6:6).
18. That the Law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient (1 Tim 1:9).
19. That the trying of our faith works patience, or perseverance (James 1:3).
20. That no prophecy of Scripture came by the prophets own interpretation (2 Pet 1:20).
21. That in us, that is in our flesh, dwells no good thing (Rom 7:18).
22. The things that are freely given to us of God (1 Cor 2:12).
23. That we are collectively the temple of God, and that the Spirit dwells in us (1 Cor 3:16).
24. That a little leaven leavens the whole lump (1 Cor 5:6).
25. That the saints will judge the world and angels (1 Cor 6:2-3).
26. That the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Cor 6:9).
27. That our bodies are the members of Christ (1 Cor 6:15).
28. That he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit (1 Cor 6:16).
29. That our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19).
30. That our labor is not vain in the Lord (1 Cor 15:58).
31. The hope of His calling, the riches of God's glory in the saints, and the exceeding greatness of the power that is toward us (Eph 1:18-19).
32. The love of Christ, which passes all knowledge (Eph 3:19).
33. Christ, the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings (Phil 3:10).
34. How we ought to answer every man (Col 4:6).
35. That we are appointed to afflictions (1 Thess 3:3).
36. How to possess our vessel in sanctification and honor (1 Thess 4:4).
37. That the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night (1 Thess 5:2).
38. How to behave ourselves in the house of God, which is the church, the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Tim 3:15).
39. Whom we have believed (2 Tim 1:12).
40. That friendship with the world is enmity with God (James 4:4).
41. That he who converts a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and hide a multitude of sins (James 5:20).
42. That we were not redeemed with corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Jesus (1 Pet 1:18-19).
These are all area in which assurance and confidence can be developed. There is not need for the child of God to go haltingly through life, limping feebly from one crisis to another. Just as a person who knows how to swim has confidence in the water, so those who know the things that can be known in Christ derive a certain confidence in life. This cannot be obtained apart from the spiritual; knowledge of reference.
I exhort you to be strong in faith, thereby giving glory to God. Put to death the deeds of the body, and joyfully anticipate the return of your Lord. You are in a state of transition, being changed from glory to glory by the Holy Spirit (2 Cor 3:18). That process will continue as long as you maintain your trust in Christ and your love for the brethren. It will be aborted if your attention is diverted to the world, whether it be the religious world or the world of fleshly indulgence.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for providing such an abundance of confidence-building knowledge.
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