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Who has known the mind of the LORD? (Rom. 11:33-36).  Let us begin in an attitude of humility.  Humility is lowliness of mind and heart before God.  Humility is an attitude of submission before God whereby we recognize His greatness and glory.  O the depth of the riches of both the wisdom and knowledge of God! (Rom. 11:33).  How unsearchable are His judgments.  His ways are past finding out.  The finite mind fails when attempting to probe the infinite mind of God.  Who hath been His counselor?  Paul quotes from Isaiah 40:13.  Isaiah 40 is devoted to affirming the superiority of the LORD and the sovereignty of the LORD. Isaiah declares boldly for Israel to “Behold Your God! (Isa. 40:9).  The LORD is the incomparable One.  “To whom then will ye liken God?” (Isa. 40:18).  We must know God.  The goal for us is to know something of the wisdom and knowledge of God so that we can live our lives in full view of that wisdom and knowledge.  Knowing God is the beginning of knowing ourselves in relation to Him.  This is the reason we begin with the deepest and heartfelt humility.
What is Wisdom?
The wisdom of God tells us that God will bring about the best possible results, by the best possible means.  Wisdom is based upon knowledge and God is omniscient (all-knowing).  God knows the past, present and future.  He knows the intricate details of the entire universe including our own human nature and physical and spiritual being.  Isaiah asks, “Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?” (Isa. 40:12).  Each probing question emphasizes the limits of human knowledge and ability.  But, what human prowess cannot do, God can do!  Isaiah mentions that God created the stars and knows them all by name (Isa. 40:26).  God is the creator.  Human beings are His creatures.  The error of  modern man is to humanize God and deify self.  This act of arrogance attempts to invert the relationship between ourselves and the one, true, and living God.  When we give up our knowledge of God, we will plunge into the darkness and corruption that has been created by the god of this world–Satan himself (Rom. 1:18-32).  Humility of heart recognizes the superiority of God and produces the fear of the LORD that respects God’s wisdom over the wisdom of this world.  Wisdom is not only knowledge, it is know-how.  Wisdom entails the skillfulness to formulate the best plan and to carry it out in the best and most effective manner. Wisdom sees the end from the beginning.  Only God can do this.  Thus, the need to guess or conjecture is eliminated.  This makes God’s knowledge and wisdom absolute.
Characteristics of God’s Wisdom
God is naturally wise.  This means that wisdom is part of His nature.  Wisdom is the essence of His being.  God is wholly, completely wise.  Nothing God does fails.  Nothing God does is self-defeating.  Nothing God does is NOT the BEST!  God’s wisdom represents the best of the best when it comes to guidance and instruction.  God’s wisdom is unsurpassed.  God is invariably wise. God never makes a mistake.  His judgments are perfect and right altogether.  Consequently, human beings are not in a position to correct God.  We might ask, “Why did you create me thus?” Or, “Why do you permit suffering?”  These types of “why” questions must be resolved in absolute trust of God’s superior wisdom.  We ask these questions because we do not know the answers and, in these instances, only God does.  We began in humility and we must continue in humility.
The Manifestation of God’s Wisdom
There are four areas where we can readily see God’s wisdom.  The first is creation.  Everything that God created was very good (Gen. 1:31).  God created human beings male and female.  God created human beings in His image (Gen. 1:27).  God is the ultimate reality.  God’s created order is part of our reality.  Any attempt to change God’s created order is foolishness.  When people rebel against God there is going to be a clash between God’s wisdom and the wisdom of this world.  Instead of humility, we become arrogant and desire to supplant God’s will with our own will thus making ourselves into a god (Ps. 104:24-26; Proverbs 3:19-20).  The second is God’s commandments.  The LORD giveth wisdom (Prov. 2:6).  Out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.  God gives us sacred knowledge through the revelation He has given us in His Word.  This knowledge is the only basis for salvation.  God’s Word is unique because it comes from Him and instructs in righteousness.  It gives guidance and direction for our own lives.  The Bible fool is the one who rejects the wisdom from above for the wisdom of this world (Matt. 7:24-27).  Those who hear and obey God’s Word are truly enlightened and characterized as wise. The third is Christ Jesus our Lord.  Paul declares, “But we preach Christ crucified, not the Jews a stumbling block and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God” (I Cor. 1:23-24).  Through Jesus Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself (II Cor. 5:18).  Through Jesus Christ, the resolution of man’s sin dilemma (condemnation before God) is accomplished.  Jesus makes justification possible (Rom. 5:8-9).  “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.”  The fourth is the church of Christ.  In Eph. 3:10-11, God’s Word teaches, “To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God.  According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  The church of Christ is made up of those who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ (Acts 20:28).  The church is the spiritual body of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23).  The church is the spiritual sphere where all spiritual blessings are to be found (Eph. 1:3).  The church is comprised of the saved (Acts 2:41,47). The church makes spiritual union with Christ and all of those of like precious faith possible.  The church has the grand spiritual purpose of guarding the truth and proclaiming the truth to all nations and tongues.  The church is glorious, spotless, and holy (Eph. 5:27).  The church strives to imitate Christ. The church is comprised of those who are God’s children (Gal. 3:26-27).  When we are baptized into Christ, we are baptized by one Spirit into His spiritual body–the church (I Cor. 12:13).
The wisdom of God is unsurpassed!  It is the best of the best.  It is set in strong contrast to the wisdom of this world (James 3:13-18).  When we humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD, we will walk in His wisdom.  We will walk in His love, truth and righteousness. We will follow the wisdom from above and reject the wisdom of this world.

The human mind is a terrible thing to waste!  We can fill our minds with mundane information that will not enhance our lives.  Or, we can fill our minds with useful, magnificent truths that will guide us through life and prepare us for eternity.  Almost everyone has heard the phrase, “just google it.”  The word google is used as a verb in that phrase.  But, Google is a noun that describes a search engine on the internet.  The noun Google is derived from the word googol which was named by Milton Sirotta, the nephew of the American mathematician Edward Kasner.  Kasner was working with very large numbers and in particular the number 10 to the 100th power (a 1 with 100 zeroes after it).  Kasner felt it deserved a name and so he asked his nephew to invent a word for the large number.  Milton made up the word googol and so the enormous word was given this descriptive term.  The name Google signifies how much information the originators believed they could catalog.  The information on the internet is a large collection of data that is not cohesive.  Information that lacks meaning.  Knowledge on the other hand is different.  Knowledge is information that has been processed into a cohesive whole.  We can further divide knowledge into two groups:  secular and sacred.  God’s Word is knowledge of God.  It is knowledge of the holy (II Tim. 3:15).  It is knowledge of truth (John 17:17).  It is essential knowledge (John 12:48) because it will be used in Judgment.  Knowledge of the sacred holds a higher place and is more significant than secular knowledge.  A person can know much information about various aspects of the world that we live in but that information does not save the soul from the servitude to and consequences of sin.  Only the knowledge of the sacred informs us of God’s plan of salvation and our part in that plan (II Tim. 3:15; James 1:21).  The Christian mind is rich with the sacred truths from God that will guide it to heaven.  The Christian mind is the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5-11).  There are three aspects of the mind of Christ that are worth considering.
First, truth vs. relativity.  If you don’t know the truth, you don’t know anything!  The opposite of truth is lies.  Lies can fill the human mind with a lot of information, but it is worthless and useless.  The basic idea of postmodernism is that you can create your own reality or your own truth.  Truth becomes subjective and is self-determined.  This leads to moral relativity and a redefinition of what it means to be human.  Some information is evil and detrimental to the human soul.  The human mind can become corrupted and deceived.  The corrupted mind is reflected in our present culture when we have lost the ability to define a man and a woman.  We have lost the basic ability to discern gender identity.  Gender identity has become fluid and limitless in the postmodern mindset.  The truth of God’s Word declares that there are only two genders:  male and female (Mark 10:6).  The corrupted mind is seen in that we have lost the ability to determine right from wrong.  Moral relativity prevails in our present culture.  However, the Word of God is clear about what constitutes sin and what comprises righteousness (Gal. 5:19-23-the works of the flesh contrasted with the fruit of the Spirit).  The mind of Christ was saturated with truth. Truth is synonymous with the Word of God (John 17:17).  This body of sacred knowledge comes from God and is objective -not self-determined.   Jesus used the Scriptures authoritatively and decisively (Matt. 4:1-11; 13:1314-15; 22:29-32).  Jesus did not equivocate on gender identity (Mark 10:6).  He did not call evil good and good evil (Matt. 5-7).   God has spoken unto us through His Son (Heb. 1:1-3).  Jesus is the Son of God and possesses the authority to bind and loose.  Jesus is truth (John 14:14).  His life and His teaching give us knowledge of the sacred that can save us from condemnation and give us hope beyond this life.  Truth is corrective of the profane mind and transforms the mind so that it conforms to the thoughts and ideas of God (Rom. 12:1-2).
Second, spiritual vs. a carnal mind.    The Christian mind is spiritual not carnal.  The carnal mind pursues the flesh (lusts of the flesh) while the spiritual mind is led by the Spirit and follows the sacred things of God.  The carnal mind is worldly, sensual, devilish (James 3:15).  The carnal mind pursues the works of the flesh (Gal. 5:19-21).  The works of the flesh are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such like.  Paul further exposes the carnal mind in I Cor. 3:1-3.  Strife, envyings and divisions flow from the carnal mind and are obstacles to the spiritual mind.  The spiritual mind is led by the Spirit of God through the word of God (Rom. 8:14).   The spiritual mind knows God.  It knows the truth revealed by God.  It knows Jesus Christ the savior of the world.  Jesus’ mind was saturated with spiritual promises and precepts.  He knew the will of God and acted on it with humility of heart and obedience (Phil. 2:5-11). This produced selflessness and service in sacred acts of sacrifice.  The Christian mind is selfless and sacrificial.
Third, righteous vs. reprobate.   In Rom. 1:28, Paul describes the profane mind that has rejected God as reprobate.  The word reprobate means morally reprehensible.  A mind that is sin-sick because it is sin-saturated.  If we reject God, God allows us to pursue every sinful, wicked and evil thing imaginable.  Later in Romans 1, Paul enumerates 23 sins (Rom. 1:28-32).  In contrast, the mind of Christ was holy, pure, and just.  Jesus’ mind is aptly described by Paul in Phil. 2:5-11 and in Phil. 4:8, he indicates the Christian mind which focuses on: “whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report…”  These things are virtuous.  These are the things that the human mind is enriched by and that enhance life now and prepare it for eternity.  Jesus lived a sinless life.  His mind had to be pure to produce a virtuous life of holiness (Heb. 4:15; I Pet. 2:22).  Only the pure in heart will see God (Matt. 5:8).
In 2005, the most popular Google searches were: Janet Jackson, Xbox 360, Brad Pitt, Michael Jackson, American Idol, and Angelina Jolie.  You can have a lot of information about these people, but it doesn’t rise above the mundane.  The human mind must be illuminated by the word of God in order to benefit from the wisdom which is from above and experience the sublime truths given to us from God.  All information is not profitable.  Some information is evil.  Knowledge of the secular may help you get a job.  But, only knowledge of the sacred will save your soul!

Moral relativity consists of making moral or ethical choices based upon one’s own internal feelings and opinions (subjectivism).  Thus, morality becomes relative to the person who holds the moral view.  The only “standard” is the individual’s own need for recognition and dignity–to be true to himself/herself.  In this study, we will show that moral relativity is false and must be rejected.  A call for moral truth based upon the Word of God is greatly needed in our culture today.
When you abandon truth, you abandon rationality.  We are living in the age of irrationality due to the fact that many people now believe in moral relativity.
Moral Relativity is False
We can show that moral relativity is false in many different ways.  For instance, if we ask, “relative to what?”  It can’t be relative to the relative ad infinite, since there would be nothing to which it is relative.  This reduces the concept to an absurdity.  The Law of Rationality states that we must gather all of the evidence, reason about the evidence correctly and draw only such conclusions as are warranted by the evidence.  The correspondence principle of truth means that truth conforms to fact or to reality.  From a biblical point of view, truth corresponds to reality as God defines that reality.  God’s Word is truth (John 17:17).  Truth is not self-determined.  Truth is determined by a sovereign God.  Every moral issue is relative to an absolute principle and so is either true or false based upon the standard of truth that originates with God.  The idea that truth is self-determined is an abandonment of God and His Word.  This type of unbelief is at the heart of moral relativity.
Secondly, we can show that moral relativity is false because value judgments would be impossible.  If someone says, “the world is getting better” or “the world is getting worse” –these value judgments require a standard by which the comparison is made (better or worse).  Good, better, and best are comparative terms that require an objective standard in order to distinguish among them.  Thirdly, moral disagreements would be impossible.  Those who affirm moral relativity must affirm that both sides of a moral issue are acceptable even if they are contradictory.  For example, if someone says, “Hitler was not an evil man” or “Hitler was an evil man” can both statements be true at the same time?  The answer is no.  Any proposition/statement that involves self-contradiction is a false statement.  Only by rejecting the Law of Rationality could one say, “yes” to both.  The moral relativist affirms a contradiction.  Moral absolutes are unavoidable.  When someone says, “you should never say never”, he/she affirms a contradiction.  When someone says, “there are no absolutes”, he/she affirms a contradiction (he/she has stated an absolute that there are no absolutes).
Five Consequences of Moral Relativism
First, moral relativism denies God and God’s Word.  God is supplanted with self (this is deification of self).  The denial of God is unbelief.  All unbelief is irrational since it involves a rejection of the truth which results in the belief of a lie.  Rejection of the truth and acceptance of a lie will lead to eternal damnation (II Thess. 2:11-12; Mark 16:16).
Second, moral relativism destabilizes society.  Social order is tied to sacred order (God’s laws and commandments).  Destroy the sacred order (God’s moral law) and the result is moral chaos and the destruction of the social order.  Moral relativism moves us in the direction of social chaos and collapse.
Third, moral concepts would be in a constant state of flux.  This means that every imagination of the hearts of people would be permissible.  Nothing would be forbidden.  The sense of “normal” would disappear.  The very laws by which society determines good from evil and right from wrong would collapse.  No one could be defined as a “criminal.”  The rule of law would collapse.
Fourth, the notion of freedom is redefined.  Licentiousness becomes freedom.  Those who accept moral relativity do so in the name of freedom–the freedom to be me.  If you do not permit me to do what I want to do, then, you are oppressing me and limiting my freedom.  Licentiousness is freedom from restraint.  The unbridled lusts of the flesh are not freedom, but rather, servitude to sin (Rom. 6:16, “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey: whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness”).  Lasciviousness is condemned by God in His Word.  It is a work of the flesh (Gal. 5:19).  It is a sin of the unregenerate heart that is hardened against God (Eph. 4:19; I Pet. 4:3; Jude 4).
Fifth, moral relativity results in amorality, i.e. no morals whatsoever!  Crime and violence will increase.  Every form of corruption is permissible.  Satan rules the hearts of men and women.
The Call To Moral Truth
In the face of God’s impending judgment, declared by God’s prophet, Jonah, the king of Nineveh called his people to turn away from every evil thing and to repent in sackcloth and cry mightily unto God for mercy (Jonah 3:8).  This is a proper example of what needs to be done today.  The gospel call is a universal call given by the Lord Jesus Christ to come unto Him (Matt. 11:28-30).  It is a call to obtain salvation (II Thess. 2:13-14).  It is a call to repentance of sin (Acts 17:30; 2:38; 3:19).  It is a call to self-denial and to sacrificially follow Jesus Christ (Matt. 16:24).  It is a call out of darkness into his marvelous light (I Pet. 2:9).  It is a call to spiritual union with Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:26-29) and all of those of similar faith in Christ and obedience to His commandments.  It is a call to holiness (I Thess. 4:7).  The moral law of God’s Word reflects the holiness of God Himself.  In as much as we keep God’s commandments, we reflect His holiness and glorify His name.

Spiritual insight is indispensable to spiritual discernment.  Spiritual discernment is the ability to utilize God’s Word in order to make judgments about all of life.  Jesus said, “Judge not according to appearance, but judge righteous judgment” (John 7:24).  A righteous judgment is not merely an opinion drawn from experience.  A righteous judgment is a spiritually informed judgment (decision).  A righteous judgment is formed by considering the revelation that God has made to man through the holy Scriptures.  A righteous judgment is formed only when it is guided by spiritual insight.  Paul mentions the righteous judgment of God in Rom. 2:5, “But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.”  Paul states, “Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead” (Acts 17:31).  Righteousness is defined by God.  Ultimately, it is God’s nature and God’s Word that determine what is righteous.  This is the standard upon which judgments (decisions) must be made regarding personal conduct.  Spiritual discernment is mentioned in Heb. 5:12-14.  “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.  For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.  But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”  Spiritual discernment is dependent upon God’s Word (God’s wisdom) and a Christian’s spiritual maturity which comes by knowledge of God’s Word and implementation of that Word in the heart and life of a Christian.  Outside of Christ, the understanding is darkened.  “This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind.  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. 4:17-18).  Ignorance of God’s Word produces darkness and blindness.  Ignorance of God and His Word is not beneficial for spiritual discernment.  This should tell us much about the lack of spiritual discernment on the part of those who are in sin, engulfed in worldliness and religious error.
Spiritual Hindsight
Hindsight is the ability to understand and realize something about an event or events after it or they have happened.  We commonly say, “hindsight is twenty-twenty.”  When we look at an event after it has happened, we have a historical view and are in possession of the facts of history which help educate us about what has happened.  Yet, even with this historical view, many people do not make better choices that would preserve their souls and prepare them for eternity.  A knowledge of sacred history, sacred revelation, and sacred heritage should inform spiritual insight and help us make righteous judgments.  In Acts 7, Stephen makes his defense before the Sanhedrin. He rehearses the history of Israel beginning with Abraham.  He mentions Isaac, Jacob and his sons regarding the promises of God to them.  He tells about Moses and how the fathers of the Jews to whom he spoke rejected Moses.  Moses prophecied about Christ (Deut. 18:18, Acts 7:37).  He mentions Joshua and the conquest of Canaan.  He refers to the promise God made to David (II Sam. 7:13-14)). He refers to Solomon who built the temple.  Stephen reveals that the father’s  of the Jews had persecuted the prophets.  Finally, he tells them that they had taken the Just One (v. 52) and betrayed and murdered Him.  The sacred history of the Jews led to Jesus.  The revelations (promises) led to Jesus.  The significant people in their heritage led to Jesus.  But, they rejected Jesus!  They made a judgment about Jesus, but it was not a righteous judgment.  Spiritual hindsight is indispensable to spiritual insight and spiritual discernment.  Spiritual hindsight goes all the way back to Adam.  It gives us a clear view of God’s purposes, promises, prophecies, and precepts.  Spiritual hindsight also informs us about Jesus.  The sacred history of the life of Jesus is found in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  From these books of the New Testament, we learn about Jesus’ pre-existence, Virgin birth, baptism, temptation, ministry in preaching and teaching God’s Word, power demonstrated in wonders, signs, and miracles, transfiguration, parables, prophecies, trials, death, burial, resurrection and ascension into heaven, and his present reign in heaven over His kingdom.  We also have the history of the church given in Acts and contained in the epistles of Paul, general epistles and even the book of Revelation.  The sacred revelation of God informs us about how God makes men righteous through Christ as well as the way God desires that we live our lives in reflection of His holiness.  The sacred heritage from the New Testament includes the apostles, prophets, evangelists, and servants of the Lord Jesus Christ too numerous to list.  Altogether, the Old Testament and the New Testament provide us with a body of knowledge, revealed by God, that informs spiritual insight which is indispensable to spiritual discernment.  Spiritual hindsight informs about God, Christ, our need to know our own sinfulness, the need to change (repent), the need to be saved, the need to be in Christ through an obedient faith, and the need to be faithful servants of Jesus Christ.
Spiritual Foresight
Spiritual hindsight informs spiritual insight.  Spiritual foresight also informs spiritual insight.  Spiritual insight is indispensable to spiritual discernment.  Foresight is the ability to imagine or anticipate what might happen in the future.  It involves care in providing for the future.  It is discernment, perception, and good judgment in practical matters.  Spiritual foresight is based upon the wisdom of God and knowledge of the truth regarding future events.  the Bible contains promises of significant future events.  Consider the following:  the Second Coming of Jesus (John 14:1-3; Acts 1:10-11; I Thess. 4:13-18); the resurrection of the dead (John 5:28-29); the end of the world (Ii Pet. 3:10-11); the judgment of all men by God through Christ (Rom. 2:4-11; II Cor. 5:10); and eternity or the world to come (Matt. 12:32; II Pet. 3:13).  Based upon the promise of the Second Coming of Jesus, we should lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven (Matt. 6:19-20; I Tim. 6:17-18).  Christians should live in hope (Phil. 3:13-15), anticipate their glorification with Christ (Rom. 8:16-18); and long for heaven (I Pet. 1:4-5).  Because Jesus is coming again, we must perfect faith (I Pet. 1:7); be resilient in the face of persecution and suffering (I Pet. 1:7); walk in love (I Pet. 1:8); and look forward to the reward of faith (I Pet. 1:8-9).  Paul states that if there is no resurrection of the dead, we should eat and drink for tomorrow we die.  However, there is a resurrection of the dead and so “Awake to righteousness and sin not” (I Cor. 15:34.  In view of the end of the world, Peter states, “what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness?” (II Pet. 3:9-13).  The Holy Spirit declares, “Follow peace and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord (Heb. 12:14).  Moral integrity is essential to pleasing God and being with God eternally.  Spiritual foresight informs us that we should be involved in good works (Matt. 6:19-20; 5:16; Gal. 6:10).  God will judge the world by Jesus Christ (Acts 17:31).  Judgment is the execution of justice by God on the basis of the truth revealed by Jesus (John 12:48).  Our words and our deeds will be judged by God (Rom. 2:6; Matt. 13:37; Eccl. 12:14).  We should turn from evil and serve the living God (Acts 17:30).  Spiritual foresight leads to repentance and acceptance of God’s terms of pardon.
Spiritual Discernment
Spiritual hindsight and spiritual foresight inform spiritual insight.  Spiritual insight (enlightenment by truth) is indispensable to spiritual discernment.  When Jesus said, “judge righteous judgment”, He instructed His hearers to make decisions based upon the sum total of the sacred history, sacred revelations, and sacred heritage that is revealed in His Word.  Spiritual discernment is much more than a human opinion.  It is a righteous judgment based upon the sum total of the revelation God has made of Himself and His Will for us.

Michael Card wrote, Inexpressible: Hesed and the Mystery of God’s Lovingkindness. This book is an informative and inspirational study of the Hebrew word hesed (pronounced Khesed).  This word is found nearly 250 times in the Old Testament.  It is found in every division of Old Testament books including the Law, the Prophets and the Writings.  It is found more in the Psalms that any other book of the Old Testament (127 times).  This word is a “golden thread” that runs through the Old Testament.  It reveals the heart of God.  Card has produced a word study that is an effort to capture the essence of the meaning of a word that is beyond definition.  On the opening page, the author gives us 110 different words and phrases that attempt to capture its meaning.  This book is a resource of biblical information and it inspires us to imitate God’s lovingkindness to help repair the corruption that is within us and in the world.  I have uploaded a book review of this title on my Book Reviews page.

Some of the essential elements involved in sustaining physical, human life are:  food, fresh water, air, sunlight and soil.  Without these, we simply could not live.  Have you ever considered the spiritual essentials to life?  Hosea reveals three spiritual essentials to life (both physical and spiritual) in Hosea 4:1, “Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, no mercy, and no knowledge of God in the land.”  What would it mean to live in a world without truth, mercy, and the knowledge of God?  Consider the following questions.  Aren’t many attempting to create a world without truth, mercy and the knowledge of God?  When we abandon God, we are creating such a world.  Are we more concerned about the physical environment than we are about the spiritual environment that we are creating?
No Truth
Without the truth, we would be in darkness.  We would be ignorant.  In order for a belief to be considered knowledge, it has to be true.  If it is information that is not true, it is a lie and not worthy of belief.  Without truth, we would be living in the vanity of the mind.  Paul said, “This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, 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.  Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness” (Eph. 4:17-19).  Truth may be defined as that which conforms to reality as God defines reality.  God’s Word is truth (John 17:17).  Truth is the basis for morality.  Without truth, there would be no morality.  There would be no standard of righteousness whereby we could discern between truth and error or right and wrong.  The consequence would be that anything and everything would be permitted.  Truth is the basis for justice.  If there is no truth, there is no justice.  The word just refers to that which is right according to the righteous standard that God has given to us through His revealed word.  A world without justice means that no one would be guilty.  There would be no restraint against the lusts of the flesh.  Lawlessness would result. Truth is the basis for freedom.  If there weren’t any truth, there would be no freedom.  The alternative to freedom is slavery.  Slavery to sin is the worst form of slavery (John 8:31-34).  Wouldn’t the absence of truth result in self-destruction?
No Mercy
Mercy is compassion for the human predicament that is expressed by lovingkindness, empathy, and tenderheartedness.  If there were no mercy, there would be no love of neighbor.  There would be only hatred and violence.  There would not be any hospitals or people to work in them.  Judgment without mercy would mean that there would be no mercy from God.  We would be left to face the wrath of God.  The absence of mercy would corrupt the human heart and set it on fire with wicked imaginations that would reach new heights of cruelty to others.
No Knowledge of God
Without the knowledge of God, we would be left with godlessness.  Evil would abound unchecked by anything good.  Every sexual perversion would be permissible.  Idolatry and Satanism would abound.  If there were no knowledge of God, then, there would be no good (Mark 10:18, God is Good).  There would be no life (John 1:1-5, God is Life).  There would be no Light (I John 1:5, God is light).  There would be no Love (I John 4:8,16, God is love).
The results of no truth, no mercy, and no knowledge of God would be:  chaos, self-destruction, corruption, violence, and every evil thing (the absolute control of the world by Satan without the possibility of redemption).  Such a spiritual state would result in the destruction of much of human life.  Would it be possible to live under such spiritual conditions?  If we abandon God, we will have no truth, no mercy and no knowledge of God producing the fear of the LORD which provides the restraint from the absolute indulgence of the flesh.  Without God, we would be miserable and hopeless.  Perhaps with this brief consideration of what life without God would be like, we can accept with complete gratitude what God has done for us through the revelation of His love in the unspeakable gift of His Son–Jesus Christ! “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). There is hope because there is a redeemer.  Jesus Christ is the hope of the world because He is the savior of the world (John 4:42, I John 4:14). There is hope for each of us because there is truth, mercy, and the knowledge of God!

False interpretations of God’s Word bring a horrendous cost to the spiritual lives of those who teach those doctrines and to those who hear and believe them.  False doctrine cannot save!  However, it does condemn.  Only the truth delivers from the bondage of sin including the lies of Satan (John 8:32).
There are many examples of false interpretations of God’s Word both in the Old Testament and the New Testament.  We will appeal to some of these examples as we consider the spiritual cost to false interpretations of Scripture.

The Cost of Personal Shame
The individual who fails to correctly interpret God’s Word will shrink back in shame in the face of God’s judgment.  Paul declares, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (II Tim. 2:15).  The false teacher bears the shame of failure to acquire the skills necessary to interpret God’s Word correctly.  False interpretations are a personal embarrassment to the one who commits this sin of tampering with truth.
The Cost of Shoddy Workmanship
Have you ever purchased an item that disappointed you in how it looked or functioned?  Shoddy workmanship disappoints no matter where it is found.  False teachers (Matt. 7:15) are guilty of shoddy workmanship.  A workman is someone who claims skill and professes accomplishment.  False teachers often practice to deceive.  Some work for money (II Peter 2:1ff).  They make merchandise of the ignorant and the innocent (weak).
The Cost of Advancing Error
All false doctrine is deceptive and distracts from the truth.  Those who are deceived thereby entertain false hopes. Every false doctrine advances error.  If more and more people believe a lie, the lie grows in its power to deceive.  Consider the following lies.  The life in the womb of a woman is not a human being, but just a blob of cells.  Abortion is premised on a lie (see Luke 1:36-44).  This lie has been integrated into our culture and supported through legislation costing millions of lives of the unborn.  Macroevolution is another lie.  This theory holds that life spontaneously generated and formed a single cell that divided and mutated over time to produce all living things that we encounter today.  This theory contradicts plain passages in the Scriptures including:  Gen. 1 and 2 and Exodus 20:11.  The theory of theistic evolution is also a false theory based on  a misinterpretation of Gen. 1-11 changing historical reality into myths.  Macroevolution is advancing atheism and agnosticism in the world today.
The Cost of Self-Ruin
The false interpreter of Scripture damns his own soul.  False doctrine distorts reality.  It poisons the mind and heart and destroys the soul.  The Sadducees taught that there was no resurrection of the dead (Matt. 22:23-33).  Jesus rebuked them and said that they erred not knowing the scriptures nor the power of God.  Those who do not know God and obey not the gospel will be damned eternally (II Thess. 1:7-9).
The Cost of Ruination of Those Taught
Hymenaeus and Philetus taught error concerning the resurrection and overthrew the faith of some (II Tim. 2:15-18).  Paul said that they made shipwreck of their faith.  Paul had dealt with Hymenaeus before (I Tim. 1:20) delivering him to Satan so that he would learn not to blaspheme.  However, Hymenaeus did not correct his teaching or his ways.  One has to wonder how many people were deceived by these false interpreters of God’s Word.
The Pharisees taught that if someone gave a gift to God that he/she would be free from the obligation to take care of his/her mother or father (Matt. 15:1-9).  This false doctrine led to violating a command of God and vain worship.  The Pharisees also violated the law of God concerning marriage, divorce and remarriage, holding that indiscriminate divorce was commanded by God (Matt. 19:1-9).  This doctrine had a detrimental impact on the sanctity of marriage.
The Cost of Enlargement of Satan’s Kingdom
False teachers always make converts to Satan’s kingdom not God’s kingdom.  As Satan’s kingdom increases, advancing God’s kingdom becomes more difficult.  The way of truth is hindered by false teaching.  When truth is suppressed, iniquity abounds. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness” (Rom. 1:18).  To “hold the truth” is to suppress the truth while advancing error.  Evil cannot redeem itself!  Only Christ, the Light of the Word, can dispel the darkness caused by religious error.  Only Christ can redeem us!
No one should think that doctrinal or moral error is innocent.  Error destroys and damns the soul.