There is an old saying that ignorance is bliss. Have you ever heard the little jingle, “If ignorance is bliss, not knowledge, then why do we bother going to college”? The Scripture says that when you increase knowledge, you increase sorrow (Ecclesiastes 1:18); but that is actually a half truth. There is a state of ignorance in which a man is naive, and in this state, there is some bliss. A small child may laugh as he is walking along the edge of a precipice. His ignorance has allowed him to remain in a state of bliss. But someone who is a little wiser would find fear gripping his heart, and he would grab the child away from the precipice. The baby in his ignorance lives in bliss, while the adult with more knowledge is moved by terror as he thinks of what could happen.
Some knowledge will bring joy to the heart; but when more knowledge comes, it brings sorrow. At the beginning of many of its great inventive cycles, the world used its ingenuity to try to do better things. Many of the inventions have made life a little easier. But as scientific knowledge increased, the sorrow of the world also increased with the increasing potential to destroy, to harass, to build kingdoms, and to intimidate. With the increase of knowledge comes the increase of sorrow. But when we come into perfect knowledge and a high plane of spiritual wisdom, then we come into a peace and an efficiency in our fullest effort that we will never have otherwise.
You may have a little joy; but as you begin to receive a little more knowledge and awareness, harassment and sorrow begin to multiply. Face the fact that a walk with God works that way. There is an element of joy at the beginning; then as you go on, the warfare and the battle become more intense. Then you can no longer have joy on a human level; it must be on a divine level. How will that joy come to you? You must come into a deeper wisdom and a deeper revelation in the Lord.
As you move along in the wisdom of the Lord and begin to mature, you pass through periods in which you become very alarmed when you see a state of almost unawareness existing among the babes. They do not realize the dangers in what they do. They do not realize the lack of discipline in their lives, the lack of discipline to feed themselves and to give themselves wholly to whatever God commissions them to do. The babes and the young ones must see that!
If we would give ourselves faithfully to what God says and what He lays upon us, how rapidly we would grow and how quickly the veil would be removed from our understanding. We need to be aware of the openness that the babe has to deception, causing him to question and to have his mind filled with confusion. Paul writes in Ephesians 4:14, “That you be no more babes, tossed to and fro by every wind and doctrine and by the cunning of men, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.” The foundational ministries were given to eliminate the immature state of Christians in which they can fluctuate and be changed by their environment. We must cry to the Lord to bring us into maturity, even if it means that we leave the place of ignorant bliss.
I realize the solemnity of the great battle of the ages. I realize what the assault of the principalities and powers will mean, how the blood will flow within this decade, how the people will go through great harassment, as our modern, enlightened society reverts to animal behavior in their persecutions of the remnant. I am aware also that the judgments of God in the earth will be so tremendous that they will stagger the mind. The slain of the Lord will be many.
When I think of what is about to happen in the earth, I pray for God’s people. We must leave the baby stage and grow up in the Lord. God said that He gave the ministries until we all attain to the unity of the faith, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness and deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the Head, even Christ (Ephesians 4:13–15). We feel the need of that. It is more than a need; it is a driving compulsion to get out of the baby state before the great assault of devil power destroys many.
Time is important. You may think you have many years to grow spiritually and to work out some of the things about which God has spoken to you. If I could do one thing for the people of God that would benefit them more than anything else, it would be to give them a shot of serum that would produce instant obedience. I would like to build within their spirits such a submission to God that there would be instant obedience with no drawing back, so that to hear the Word of the Lord would be to make a move to do it.
Whenever God brings a Word and it is confirmed to our hearts, we must rise up as one and do it. That is what maturity actually means. Maturity is a willingness to do that which in an immature state or on a human level we would not want to do. This is exactly what we see happening. If we look at the ministries from the human level, we will realize that they are doing something they would not normally want to do; but because they have reached a spiritual dedication, they not only want to do it, but they delight in doing it. They prefer doing something for God, even if it is the greatest burden that could ever be laid upon them. They do not consider the greatness or the smallness of the task, but only how it measures up to the perfect will of God for them. They have a desire to please the Lord.
Let us review the important principles concerning knowledge in this walk with God. There is a state of ignorance which includes a certain bliss; then some knowledge of a walk with the Lord comes, and with it comes a joy; then more knowledge and sorrow begin to come. We must come up into the highest level where there is a revelation wisdom of the will of God. Then we will stand and say with the psalmist, …Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God…. Psalm 40:7, 8. That passage is also quoted in Hebrews 10:7.
As we mature in the Lord there comes no greater delight of our hearts than doing the will of God. Many times we may find that life would be a burden if it were not for the will of God. This is no doubt true of all real ministries. If their ministry were taken from them and they were no longer able to do the will of God, then they would have no purpose for living. Being in the midst of spiritual warfare, assaulted in body and in mind by demonic powers, who are trying to prevent us from doing the will of the Lord, is certainly not a pleasure.
We cannot even enjoy recreation as the people in the world do. We can go to the movies without any condemnation at all, yet we find they no longer interest us. Our lives in the Lord are more exciting than anything we find in the unrealistic way of living that is portrayed there. We would much rather be with the brethren and see what God is doing.
I know what Paul meant when he referred to a church as “my joy and my crown of rejoicing in the day of the Lord” (I Thessalonians 2:19). This is very real to me, for the people whom I minister to are a great source of joy to me—not because they are something special in themselves, but because we are doing the will of God together. It is not a matter of worthiness. We do not turn away from one another, not because we have formed a compatible friendship, but because the Lord has made us one and we find ourselves coexisting with a great deal of faith and love for one another.
We must leave the place of heaviness where we are aware of all the problems and move into the realm of perfect joy in doing the will of the Lord. How will that come about? In the first place, we need to give more attention to praying for the increase of wisdom and knowledge that the Lord can bring to us.
Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:15–21 is a good example of how you should pray. For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you, and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers (notice the objective of his prayer); that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom (it is an anointing, a spirit of wisdom) and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened (did you know that your heart has eyes, enabling you to see things that you cannot see with your natural eyes?), so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints (you are what God is going to inherit), and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are (this phrase was not included in the original text and can be omitted) in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.
Let me paraphrase this prayer for you. I pray God to let the Spirit come upon you so that you will have the deep spiritual insight to know what God really did when He called you and what He will have created in you when it is all finished. What God has turned loose towards you now is the same power that He exercised when He reached down into hell and lifted up His Son and raised Him from the dead, seating Him at His right hand to rule over everything. It is this same power that He is turning loose toward you.
You would not be as prone to gripe and to complain as you are when the devil comes at you and the tests are on, if you really knew what God has turned loose toward you. God is allowing many of the difficult things that are happening to you. They will be the making of you. You do not want Him to stop the assault of the devil; you need that pressure. When God gets through with you, you will not recognize yourself. Behind all God’s dealings is the focus of the power of God that is beamed toward you, the same power that raised Jesus up to the right hand of the Father. This is not just a penny-ante operation on the part of God. He is bringing many sons to glory. He does something in your life that you can hardly believe, and the way He is doing it is fantastic!
We want the deep spiritual wisdom for which Paul prayed. This is the level of wisdom that brings us up to the place where we rejoice in the Lord. This is the kind of revelation that made men like Paul and Silas sing and praise God at the midnight hour while in prison, after enduring a horrible beating (Acts 16:22–26). They could see beyond the present scene. With that wisdom we see not only our present circumstances and battles but also a picture of the whole plan of God and our part in it.
There are millions of people in the world who have no place in the program of God today. They do not know what God is doing. They have no concept of what He is bringing forth in the earth. We do; for that we should rejoice. Should we worry about all the battles we go through? No, we should worry if we are not in the battles, if God is not including us in the war. In this time of the greatest conflict the world has ever known, we can be partakers of Christ’s victory; we can be instruments in it, ones who are helping to bring it forth. This knowledge should raise us out of any oppression and make us rejoice. This is the difference between a little knowledge that increases sorrow, and the perfect revelation which brings perfect joy because it shows where we fit in the plan of God.
The days ahead will not be easy, but we will not become discouraged if we come into greater revelation of God’s plan and purpose. When we realize we are a part of the great work God is bringing forth, then we will give everything we have to it, no matter what it costs. In the midst of the smoke of battle, we will stand shouting, “Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” We will be crying for the victory of the Lord to come forth. We will not be worried when satanic powers assault us with everything they have, because we know that this is ordained by God, in order that He can bring forth His glory in us. Are you commissioned to do a work for God? You can either sit back and whine because the bullets are flying and the enemy is coming against you; or you can realize that God has commissioned you to be a soldier in the battle and refuse to be discouraged. Nothing will depress you when you realize your position in God. When you have lesser revelation, Satan can twist the facts; and you can be moved with self-pity. You can feel sorry for yourself, be critical over circumstances, whine, and be a murmurer who will perish in the way. For want of a little more wisdom, you may be miserable. Seek for that wisdom. Ask God to open your heart to see not only the situation you are facing but also what God has in mind.
There is a great deal of difference in viewpoints. Three men who were working on a church building were asked, “What are you doing?” One said, “I am driving nails.” The second man said, “I am earning a day’s wages.” The third man answered, “I am building an edifice in which people will worship God.”
What are we doing? We are building the temple of the living God. We are instruments in His hand, lively stones built to worship God (I Peter 2:5). The pure worship that God has been seeking down through the centuries can come from this remnant; the songs of Zion can come forth as the wisdom of the Lord prevails in battle. Of course, our job is difficult. We cannot do it in our own strength, but God can enable us and sustain us. It cannot be done in the flesh, but it can be done by the grace of God. We must walk with Him. Above all, we must ask the Lord to open the eyes of our hearts, so that we may know what is the hope of His calling, what He has in mind for us, and what are the riches of His inheritance in the saints (Ephesians 1:18). Just think how much God has planned for you and how much He loves you! You do not want to give up do you? You want to go on, even if the going does get rough sometimes and you wonder which way to go next. Do not give up and do not give up faith for anyone else. When someone is running from God, you could focus on what he has done or is doing to himself and on how stupidly he is acting. Instead, pray for him and remember the prophecies of the Lord over him. Remember what the hope of his calling is and make your claim: “Satan, you cannot have him.” When you look at a situation in terms of what God is bringing forth in the world, in the remnant, in individuals, in His own Kingdom, and within yourself, it changes your viewpoint completely. That is the difference between having a little wisdom and more wisdom. You can focus on the battle; or you can rejoice in it, realizing you are in the army of the Lord.
Set your heart on seeking after the wisdom and the revelation of the Lord. Pray for it. If any man lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not (James 1:5). God will not blame you. He knows your limitations, and He has made provision for them. Ask of the Lord wisdom so that you do not struggle without seeing the overall picture. Ask the Lord to show you His blueprint and to give you a telescope so that you can see the things afar off that He will bring forth. As He makes them real to you, you will walk every day sustained by that level of revelation wisdom. If you have that in the day of battle, nothing can defeat you; nothing will ever discourage you; nothing anyone does can ever destroy you. You will stand if you have the picture of God’s goal in your heart.