RPG Adults
A DEMONSTRATION OF WILFUL IGNORANCE
TUESDAY, AUGUST 6
Hebrews 5:11-14
Ephesians 4:17-21
“… ye have heard him, and have been
taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus.”
A DEMONSTRATION OF WILFUL IGNORANCE
The writer told the Hebrews that they were supposed to be qualified teachers, but they lacked understanding. They still needed someone to teach them. The Jews had turned down the gospel of Christ and had opposed Him and at last demanded His crucifixion.
At the time of the early church, there were self-styled sects of the Jews who professed to have full knowledge of the Scriptures. The Pharisees were the most prominent, and then there were the Sadducees, the scribes and elders. They counted themselves to have all authority in the knowledge of the holy writ. Any other person or group that opposed their point of view was rejected, and even physically attacked. Such a stand led them to reject Christ and in the end they had Him put to death. They were also hostile towards the Apostles and they persecuted them and sought to exterminate them.
The writer told them in the text that they needed someone to teach them. One of them who recognized his own inability was Nicodemus in John 3, who as a Pharisee was a certified teacher of the Law. However, he saw something different in Christ early in the Lord’s ministry. He came to Him at night and asked basic questions about salvation. Jesus explained to him and he became a believer. His conversion was genuine as, after the death of Christ, he assisted Joseph of Arimathaea in the burial of Christ’s body. He brought a hundred pounds of spices that were required in Jewish burial. This act was an expression of his faith in Christ. The step of wilful ignorance is easy for any professing Christian to take. Believers today must learn a lesson from these Hebrews of the early days.
THOUGHT: Christ is the true Teacher and Interpreter of the Scriptures.
PRAYER: Father, keep me humble that I may learn from Thy words.