Colossians 2:1-4
(ESV)
"For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at
Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, [2] that their hearts
may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of
full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is
Christ, [3] in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
[4] I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments."
Because of God’s desire for a Bride for His Son who would
rule and reign with Him forever, He created humans according
to His image; that image of God includes the capacity to rule. We humans
are made to govern, and governing includes the need to judge people and situations.
Because knowledge is the grounds by which we rule in our given sphere, the gaining of knowledge is imperative to us. All of us have been given a sphere in which we have influence over someone else; the father and his family, the mother and the home and children, the man or woman at their job, a person and his or her friends, the "pastor" and the flock, the government official and his realm, the king and his kingdom, etc. Knowing particular information gives us an upper hand and a sense that we can make good decisions and cause life to go the way we believe it should go. (For fallen humans, ruling is about controlling rather than about serving; therefore, access to knowledge is access to control.)
Because knowledge is the grounds by which we rule in our given sphere, the gaining of knowledge is imperative to us. All of us have been given a sphere in which we have influence over someone else; the father and his family, the mother and the home and children, the man or woman at their job, a person and his or her friends, the "pastor" and the flock, the government official and his realm, the king and his kingdom, etc. Knowing particular information gives us an upper hand and a sense that we can make good decisions and cause life to go the way we believe it should go. (For fallen humans, ruling is about controlling rather than about serving; therefore, access to knowledge is access to control.)
I believe the early chapters of Genesis give us insight into God's generous sharing of authority with humans and into His intentions for how humans would access the needed information to rule well. The enemy’s subtle slandering of God’s nature planted a
seed of doubt in Adam and Eve’s trust in His willingness to share all the
information they needed to govern well. Along with successfully creating a suspicion
of God in Adam and Eve, the serpent pointed them in the direction of the tree
of knowledge suggesting that here was a sure source of information they could
count on! (After all, God’s instructions to NOT eat of that particular tree suggested that
He was withholding needed information.)
There was nothing inherently evil about the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil. It was created by God and was a way of knowing, but
it was a way of knowing without intimacy, without relationship. The tree of
life, however, was available and had no restrictions on eating from it.
Like our first parents, we have all decided that gaining of knowledge apart from relationship is a safer and more secure way and so have eaten of the forbidden
fruit; in our fallenness, we are born suspicious of God’s intentions and so we all
choose to operate on the basis of that which we can touch and see and control. In order to do a good job of “ruling” in our assigned sphere of
influence, we want to be sure we’re getting all the information needed to do it
well and thereby control our “world”. Trusting a Person that we have innate suspicions about is too
risky.
God intended for Adam and Eve to eat of the tree of life and
thereby tap into His life, enjoying constant union with God in Christ, and out of
that intimate relationship together in Christ to receive all that was needed for governing the domain they were given charge over.
God’s intention has not changed. This age is internship training for governing in the age to come. We practice “rulership” now in the domain given us, and what we learn now will carry over into the next age. Accessing Jesus (the Tree of life), in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, is critical for discovering the wisdom and knowledge needed for ruling well in this age. Our highest goal and priority now must be to grow in the intimate knowledge of God and to govern in our assigned sphere according to His wisdom and knowledge.
God’s intention has not changed. This age is internship training for governing in the age to come. We practice “rulership” now in the domain given us, and what we learn now will carry over into the next age. Accessing Jesus (the Tree of life), in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, is critical for discovering the wisdom and knowledge needed for ruling well in this age. Our highest goal and priority now must be to grow in the intimate knowledge of God and to govern in our assigned sphere according to His wisdom and knowledge.
More on this next week...God bless you!
