Knowledge is Power

Former secretary general to the United Nations, Kofi Annan, once said that knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family. In our world and society, we’ve given a lot of weight to acquiring knowledge. Or to be smarter than the people around us. It’s an idea that has trickled down from generation to generation, even in our kid’s programming. Yogi Bear was even “smarter than the average bear.” Over the years, tremendous weight has been given to education and educational institutions. If you were to really work at it, you could be a professional student acquiring degree after degree. However, if we just stop at the acquisition of knowledge, could it be that we’ve missed something along the way? Isn’t life more than the accumulation of knowledge in our minds? The reality is, life is a learning journey. It’s the practical implantation of the knowledge we have into a learning experience. Where we grow from our mistakes, understand why we do what we do, and to grow as people. We should never give up learning. The same is true in our journey of faith.
Scripture puts a strong emphasis on knowledge. The apostle Peter has even said that His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness (2 Peter 1:3 NIV). According to Peter, all the divine power of God is available to us to live and be godly in this life through knowledge. It’s really incredible when you think about it. But the caveat here is that accessing this divine power that’s available to us comes from more than the acquisition of knowledge. Life and godliness are at stake. Not that knowing guarantees godliness! It doesn't. But it seems that ignorance guarantees ungodliness. Because, Peter says, the divine power that leads to godliness is given through the knowledge of God (John Piper, The Power of Knowledge).
The divine power that leads to godliness only comes from knowing God or having knowledge of Him. This is more and deeper than just knowing about God. Divine knowledge of God is a deep and personal relationship with our Creator and with our Savior. It comes down to taking all that accumulated knowledge we have in our minds and applying it to the practical application of our lives. It’s when we can unlock that pathway and truth in our lives that knowledge really does have power. Where do you fall on that spectrum right now? Just acquiring information? Sometimes applying the truth of Scripture to the life we lead? 
Where can you take a step toward a deeper understanding and knowledge of God this week?