My Education lacked understanding.
Though both my BA and my MA degrees are in education, I must confess that I am not a proponent of the form education has taken at the elementary or high school level whether public or private. To me education seems more a tool for socialization and propaganda. We learn to walk in straight lines, speak only when spoken to, always be on task with the teacher’s schedule, and God forbid that we do not have the correct answer when called upon. We have been trained never to question the teacher, pastor or anyone in authority.
Students today, and even when I was a boy, are graded on how accurately they can regurgitate the information that the teachers set forth and damn the actual learning. I do not want my children to throw-up what they are learning, I want them to hear it, digest it and form their own opinions based upon careful consideration of the truth.
As a former administrator of a christian school I noticed that many students who had been home-schooled prior to their arrival at our school often had the ability to think critically. This inability for critical thought is not encouraged in either the private or public sector, and is the main reason we have so fully accepted the doctrines and traditions of men as truth in our lives. We have been taught to live lies.
It was Samuel Clemens who said:
“It ain’t so much what you know that gets you into trouble. it is what you know for sure, that just ain’t so.“
It is this erroneous knowledge, based on the doctrines and traditions of men, that is keeping us on the broad road that leads to destruction and preventing us from discovering the way that leads to life. We saw last time in “Knowledge Precedes Understanding – 2” that the knowledge we need to be successful in this life has nothing to do with the periodic table, engineering or anything we can learn in higher education to become great on the earth. For true success, Yehovah’s people need knowledge of His words given to us through Moses and His other prophets. Paul said:
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of Yehovah, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to Yehovah, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of Yehovah.” (Rom 12:1-2)
Renewing our minds begins with getting correct knowledge of Yehovah’s word, but truly “knowing” Yehovah requires a deepening of our understanding.
“Whom will he teach knowledge? And whom will he make to understand the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just drawn from the breasts? For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.” (Isa 28:9-10)
Understanding Comes By Putting The Bits And Pieces Together
Understanding the message is why we search Yehovah’s word as one who searches for silver and fine gold; you find a little here and a little there, but the mother lodes and the really precious gems are found by putting all the pieces together.
While knowledge comes to us through the mind. And it appears that Yehovah gives the understanding to a man’s heart. Many times I have invested days of study on a particular subject and then, usually in the early morning hours just as I am waking, Yehovah will give me a new insights concerning what I have meditating or mulling over in my mind.
“Trust in Yehovah with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” (Pro 3:5-6)
“Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your Torah; indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.” (Psa 119:34)
“I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation.” (Psa 119:99)
“My son, if you receive my words, and treasure my commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding“.(Pro 2:1-2)
“The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness.” (Pro 15:14)
“O you simple ones, understand subtlety, and you fools, be of an understanding heart.” (Pro 8:5)
There are many subtleties in Yehovah’s word that we miss because we lack knowledge. Understanding comes from a large knowledge base; by relating precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little and there a little we form even deeper understandings concerning Yehovah’s message. But these understandings are foolishness to those who impatiently and in ignorance say, “just show me the verse.” These people do not have eyes that see, ears that hear or a heart that understands. It is for this reason that many of my deeper and meatier articles get very few likes and comments; and why people who previously supported my work have stopped. This lack of understanding is why persecution arises on those who want to follow only Yehovah’s words. It is why the prophets were killed.
“These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble. They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers Elohim service. And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor me.” (Joh 16:1-3)
“The righteous perishes, and no man takes it to heart; merciful men are taken away, while no one considers That the righteous is taken away from evil.” (Isa 57:1)
The message taught by all of Yehovah’s yasher (upright) men like Enoch, Methuselah, Noah, Shem, Eber, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was, and still is, kingdom. Repent, leave the kingdom of your birth and join yourself (both the man and his family) to a new kingdom, people and Elohim (lawmaker and judge). It is hard to see this message in any one verse. But it is just one of many understandings that I teach and live every day.
What are elohim (gods)? They are lawmakers and judges in all the kingdoms of the earth. A lawmaker makes statutes and ordinances, and a judge makes judgments. If we are Yehovah’s men then He is to be our only lawmaker and judge. The first commandment says,
“You shall have no other elohim [lawmakers and judges] but Me.” (Exo 20:3)
Why do Israel’s seed wear tzitzit?
“Again Yehovah spoke to Moses, saying, – ‘Speak to the sons of Israel: Tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of Yehovah and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your Elohim. I am Yehovah your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your Elohim: I am Yehovah your Elohim.'” (Num 15:37-41)
The harlotry that Yehovah is speaking of is His men following the statutes, ordinances and judgments of other elohim.
Why don’t women wear tzitzit? Because they follow their man, not Yehovah!
“To the woman He said: – ‘I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth sons; your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.'” (Gen 3:16)
None of the upright men listed above had covenants with any other kingdom of the earth. Nor can the sons of Israel or the ger that dwell with them serve elohim of other nations. They all dwell on the earth as in a strange country; they dwell in the heavenly kingdom.
“These all died in faith [faithfully keeping Yehovah’s statutes, ordinances and judgments], not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly, if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return; but now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore Elohim is not ashamed to be called their Elohim, for He has prepared a city for them.” (Heb 11:13-16)
I like what Joshua said while he was dwelling in the land of the Amorites, just like I dwell in the land of the US citizens.
“Now therefore, fear Yehovah, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the elohim [lawmakers and judges] which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve Yehovah! And if it seems evil to you to serve Yehovah, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the elohim which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river, or the elohim of the Amorites [enter your government], in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house [the man and his house], we will serve Yehovah.” (Jos 24:14-15)
In part 4 we will see that wisdom is the outward expression of the understanding that is found in the heart. The man who “says” he understands kingdom and still remains a citizen of any other kingdom on the earth only demonstrates that he does not have either understanding or wisdom.
Here is the overview of this series
Fear Of Yehovah Precedes Knowledge 1
Knowledge Precedes Understanding 2
Understanding Precedes Wisdom 3
Wisdom Is This – Serving Yehovah Wholly – 5