Focus: Ignorance

Text: Jh.8:32

"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

What is ignorance? For me, it is lack of awareness - not knowing what one is supposed to know, or simply lack of willingness to know - ignoring or not bothering to know what one should. It is either not knowing or not caring enough to know. People live in ignorance for not being curious or hungry enough to know. They seem content with life as it is. They have no idea of life as it was meant to be, let alone desire it.

*The darkness of ignorance 

Knowledge really abounds, but the knowledge of truth is very scarce. As Jesus talked about truth, Pilate asked, "What is truth?" All we know comes to nothing until we know the truth. Pilate knew a whole lot, except knowing the truth. Worldly people say that truth is neither here nor there. They see truth as being relative, not absolute. They believe truth is subjective, not objective. For them, truth is what you think or how you see it. They tell you that all religions lead to God. What matters to them is believing in something; whatever is believed is beside the point, for as long as one feels good about it.

See how Paul describes such people, "Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart" (Eph.4:18). In another place, Paul says that they are ever learning, but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (2Tim.3:7).

We know so much that is not the truth. Truth is more than a proposition or even a supposition; truth is a person. Indeed truth is a trinity. Jesus Christ says, "I am the truth," and He calls the Holy Spirit, "the Spirit of truth." In Isaiah 65:16, God is described as "the God of truth," that is, God who is truth - the Amen. You can't know truth until you encounter God through Christ and by the enabling of the Spirit. To know God is to embrace truth and live by it.

Knowing God in a personal way is essential to worship. Paul said that the Athenians worshipped God in ignorance (Act.17:23). Jesus Christ said that the Samaritans worshipped what they knew nothing about (Jh.4:22). So, for the Athenians, it was a problem of 'who' - the WHO of worship; and for the Samaritans, it was the issue of 'what' - the WHAT of worship. You can be an ignorant worshipper - not knowing the God you worship and what the terms and conditions of worship are. That is simply worship and passion without knowledge. Ignorance is blindness.

*The danger of ignorance

Ignorance is dangerous. Jesus says, "If thou hadst KNOWN, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes" (Lk.19:42). This is like having wealth without knowing it.

Paul met a number of disciples in a worship service, and asked them, "Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost" (Act.19:2). They had no idea of anything or anyone called the Holy Spirit in existence. They had not been taught. We have the same situation today of being Christians, and yet, knowing little or nothing about the Spirit of God.

With pain in His heart, God declares, "My people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge" (Isa.5:13). Ignorance results in bondage.

Again, God says, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge" (Hos.4:6). Ignorance results in destruction.

Jesus says, "Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God" (Mt.22:29). Ignorance opens doors to error - erroneous beliefs and behaviors. Ignorance makes us believe in a lie like it is the truth, and even hold on to it with so much tenacity.

Once again, God declares, "The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgement in their goings" (Isa.59:8). Ignorance creates confusion and misdirection, and deprives us of peace along the way.

But I am glad to announce to you that "you shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free." Knowing truth will get us out of bondage and deliver us from destruction. Truth frees us from the fetters and negative effects of ignorance.

Satan uses the truth he knows that we know not to keep us in bondage. The yoke of ignorance is broken by the knowledge of the truth, especially the truth of Christ, of which the Father is the source and the Holy Spirit is the revealer. If you truly cherish freedom, then embrace the truth of Christ.

by Bishop Moses E. Peter