Are We There Yet?

Philippians 3: 12 - 14, Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. NKJV

Paul teaches us in the LOVE chapter found in his letter to the church at Corinth that knowledge vanishes. When it comes to having knowledge, there are two types that I'm aware of. First, there is the knowledge of man that we gain through our experiences and from one another. Secondly, there is the knowledge that comes from God. It is only through this knowledge that we are able to grow.

I've been a student of God's Word for a long time. There's something about it that is intriguing. The more we learn from the Word of God about God and His kingdom, the more we need to learn. The knowledge that we can glean from God's Word can never be exhausted. 

So how is it that we can read and study the Bible and never arrive at a final destination in our quest to know God? Jesus gave us a key in the gospel of John. He said that the Words which He speaks, "They are Spirit, and they are life." Unlike man's knowledge or wisdom which evaporates likes fumes from fuel, the knowledge that we gain from studying and devouring God's Word contains life and causes us to grow into the image of Christ.

 I have been teaching and writing almost every day of the week, and yet it only recently dawned on me: the more I learn from God's Word, the more I to want to learn. While I don't pretend to remember every truth that God has shown me, I can say that we have definitely grown from what we have learned as a body. 

Is there spiritual growth in your life? If you have a steady diet of the Word of God, whether it is through reading or being taught, there should be growth as a result. Like Paul, we haven't obtained all that Christ has apprehended us for, but also like Paul, we are to press on toward the goal. No one will reach the place of tapping out the truth that is contained in the Word of God on this side of heaven. Consequently, we must continue to be committed students of the Bible. Knowledge will vanish, but the truth will give us life. If we have Life, living and dwelling in us, then we won't be as apt to seek death or its pleasures. O taste and see that the Lord is good.

Feeding from the Master's table,
Pastor Asa Dockery