Destroyed For The Lack Of Knowledge
Pastors Leslie & Adeline Chua
“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.”
We are living in a time of a massive proliferation of knowledge. 2,600 years ago, the prophet, Daniel, foresaw our time when “knowledge shall increase” (Daniel 12:4). This increase in knowledge is nothing short of spectacular. It is boosted by the Internet. The amount of information and data available to the average person today with just one click of the computer keyboard far surpass that which were contained in the most prestigious and well-stocked libraries of yesteryears.
I am now reading a book entitled 2084 written by John Lennox, who is a Christian apologist as well as a professor of Mathematics at Oxford University. In the book, he surveyed the scientific advances made in the fields of technology, bioengineering, and artificial intelligence. The pace of development in these and related fields is so shockingly rapid, to the extent that humans may one day find themselves subjected to the tyranny of the intelligent robots they build. Elon Musk, the billionaire technology entrepreneur and founder of Tesla and SpaceX, warned of this grave risk.
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Jesus also warns professing believers
against practising lawlessness
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However, Hosea was not talking about scientific knowledge. Neither was he referring to philosophical knowledge of great civilisations past and present. The ancient prophet was warning God’s people concerning the knowledge of God - not knowing God and His law. It was a dire warning with repercussions for future generations.
In the same way, Jesus also warns professing believers against practising lawlessness (Matthew 7:21-23). That is, living and doing things contrary to God’s law - commands and instructions - found in the Word of God. Otherwise, they will find themselves barred from entering the Kingdom of God.
The Israelites Reject God’s Law
The Israelites in Hosea’s time found themselves in such a situation. God declared to them that they would perish for a lack of knowledge. They were ignorant of God and His ways.
This begs the question. Why did they lack the knowledge of the LORD? There are a few possible reasons. However, we do not have to speculate. God gave the reason - “because you have rejected knowledge.” The people lacked knowledge because they had rejected knowledge.
The word, rejected, in the original Hebrew has the connotations of despising and abhorrence. In other words, the Israelites found the knowledge of God to be loathsome, disgusting. These are strong sentiments against the law and authority of God.
Rejecting & Forgetting God’s Law
It is important to note that to reject something requires a conscious and deliberate effort. The rejection of God’s law and authority is an act of the will and understanding. It is not the same as to forget. To forget is to neglect. Forgetting is not intentional.
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Rejecting will lead to forgetting. ____________________________________________
However, there is a connection between the two. Rejecting will lead to forgetting. I have often pointed out that nobody wakes up one day and decides to backslide from their faith in Christ. It always begins with the rejection of God’s Word for various reasons, usually in relatively small matters. Little compromises here and there will result in a certain pattern of thinking that conveniently dismisses God’s will and ways. Sooner or later, it becomes a habit. You do not intentionally disobey anymore. You simply forget that it is wrong to engage in those acts and activities.
Whenever you are boarding or disembarking from a train in the London Underground, you would be greeted with the catchy announcement, “Mind the gap.” The small gap between the train and station platform can prove to be deadly if you are not careful. As the English proverb goes, a small leak will sink a ship.
Therefore, we must be mindful to consistently obey God and walk in His ways. Make it a habit not to turn to the right or left, even in small matters. In this way, we keep ourselves safe from rejecting and forgetting God’s commands.
Cultural Incursions
There are many ways a Christian can compromise and end up rejecting the knowledge of God. The areas posing the highest risk at the present time, especially to younger people, are the cultural incursions such as the hyper-grace gospel, the issues relating to homosexuality and abortion, and the popular social justice movement. These attacks are serious, incessant, and damaging. The ramifications on a believer’s faith in Christ are broad as well as deep.
I run the risk of sounding like a broken old record using these same few examples again. But these are the societal issues that the devil and the world are using to attack the church in a big way currently, and they have been extremely successful. The church, in general, has become fragmented in different ways as a result. Some churches have tragically fallen into Satan’s deceptive traps. You are sleeping if you have not noticed.
The Hyper-Grace Gospel
The hyper-grace gospel is a cultural gospel. It is a false gospel though it bears resemblance to the true gospel. All its dominant features possess familiar marks of postmodernism except that they are dressed in Christian terms.
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This cultural gospel bridges the divide between
the counter-cultural demands of the authentic gospel
and the attractive but worldly values of the prevailing culture.
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The deception is subtle. It is a mixture of biblical truths and distortions. While most pastors reject the hyper-grace gospel outright, many Christians embrace it enthusiastically. The reason is simple. This cultural gospel bridges the divide between the counter-cultural demands of the authentic gospel and the attractive but worldly values of the prevailing culture. It interprets the gospel of Jesus Christ in such a way as to blend with the worldly values.
Carrying the cross is replaced by becoming relevant to the culture. Obedience to God is attacked as legalism. Grace means a Christian does not need to repent of his sins since he has already been forgiven. Conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit is considered unbiblical. Easy spirituality is promoted. Discipline, sacrifice, and suffering are erased from New Testament Christianity. These are just some examples.
You get the drift. You get to enjoy the benefits of salvation as well as keeping your worldly lifestyle without having to feel guilty. No change in your life is demanded. It is so attractive. No wonder many Christians gravitate toward it and embrace it wholeheartedly. Sad to say, the hyper-grace gospel is now the mainstay of mainstream Christianity for many Christians.
The truth is if you accept the hyper-grace gospel and its pattern of thinking, you are essentially rejecting the knowledge of God. Your faith will be destroyed eventually.
Abortion & Homosexuality
The Word of God is clearly against the killing of the unborn and all manners of homosexual practices. These are sins. You shall not murder (Exodus 20:13). Those who practice homosexuality will not inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
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They interpret the Word of God
through their cultural lenses
and make that which is considered sin
acceptable.
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Yet, many Christians aged 35 and under have a different opinion from the bible regarding these issues. They interpret the Word of God through their cultural lenses and make that which is considered sin acceptable. They try to rationalise away the sinfulness of these grievous sins to ease the tension they feel within them arising from cultural and peer pressures.
In doing so, they are unwittingly esteeming the cultural standards and peer opinions while despising the biblical standards of God. Essentially, they are rejecting the knowledge of God and practising lawlessness. The consequence is the eventual destruction of their Christian faith.
Social Justice & the Woke Culture
Social justice and the woke culture are the rage now. They rear their ugly heads in many ways. The speed in which they have infiltrated the churches in the U.S. is astonishingly fast. At the rate that things are going, these ideologies will subvert the gospel. In fact, it is already happening.
The social justice movement is even more subtle than the hyper-grace deception. The ideologies associated with it are varied and fluid, and it still evolving.
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Social justice and the woke culture
are the rage now.
At the rate that things are going,
these ideologies will subvert the gospel.
In fact, it is already happening.
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They borrow biblical ideas and use biblical terms such as mercy, compassion, and justice. They claim to fight prejudice, discrimination, and injustice, which sound like what Christians should be doing as salt and light of our society. However, their underlying motives are sinister, and their goals are destructive. Fundamentally, these ideologies are rooted in cultural Marxism.
I said all these to make the point that it is not easy to refute the social justice movement and its underlying philosophies. Most pastors and Christian leaders are going to struggle to convince their youngsters not to embrace it. I predict it is going to be an uphill task. Somehow, social justice appeals to young people, including Christians. I believe that strong spiritual forces of darkness are at feverishly at work.
To embrace the social justice movement is to embrace lawlessness and reject the knowledge of God. This latest deception is highly destructive. Be careful!
My Greater Concern
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With each successive assault,
the devil is training Christians
to reconcile God’s law
with the cultural standards
until finally,
this pattern of compromise
become the default thinking mode. ____________________________________________
Embracing and accepting these issues tantamount to practising lawlessness and rejecting the knowledge of God. It will produce destructive effects on your faith.
My greater concern is the conditioning of a believer’s mind to think in a certain way. With each successive assault, the devil is training Christians to reconcile God’s law with the cultural standards until finally, this pattern of compromise become the default thinking mode.
A Christian with a compromised mindset is held hostage by the devil. You do not know when he will capitulate completely. Do not forget, the level of deception will get increasingly worse in terms of subtlety and intensity as we edge toward the end of this age. Therefore, Christians who reject the knowledge of God repeatedly are setting themselves up for a massive failure. They will fall from the faith sooner or later. It is a given.
Warning to Church Leaders
In the context of the passage, Hosea’s charge was levelled against the priests, Priests were supposed to know God and His law well. Instead, they had also rejected and forgotten the law. This was not the only occasion when God pointed his finger at the priests. In Jeremiah, God accused the priests, “Those who handle the laws did not know me” (Jeremiah 2:8)
Priests in the Old Testament are the equivalence of pastors and leaders today. Do we as shepherds of God’s people know God? Do we stand boldly for biblical truths in the face of the ferocious and unrelenting assault that is happening now? Is our salt still salty and our light shining?
Ramifications on Future Generations
To be clear, the attack on our culture is also an attack on the church. What happens in our culture and society affect our young people, youths, and children. Do not miss the chilling warning - “And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.” The influence and impact of the culture on our young are more critical than you think.
Civilisations rise and civilisations fall. Almost invariably, it is the rejection of basic common-sensical values underpinning civil societies and public institutions that started the rot. The rejection of God’s law in the human hearts and consciences will produce serious ramifications.