Do we really know Christ like we say we do? Are we as close to God as we need to be? Are we willing to get closer to him?   Many times in serving the Lord we have been challenged by others who think they know so much about God or the Word of God. We are challenged by their willingness to doubt what we know about Christ and yet they seem to know very little about Christ.  

 

Many times when you read the Word of God, words or phrases sometimes jump out at you. In the second part of the message of dealing with doubt, we “know” was mentioned three times in verses 28 thru 30 of chapter nine. When God repeats himself or the use of a Word, the Holy Spirit has taught me to pay attention. 

 

In today’s message, we all have been challenged by what others think they “know”.   This word “know” has shown up quite frequently in the book of John. As a matter of fact, 67 times in the King James Version of the Bible do we see the word “know”. Like many words in the English language, when you look into the origin of the word, you find different meanings.  

 

In John 9:28-30, we see three times where the word “know” is used.

1.                   In verse 29, where the Pharisees say we “know” God has spoken to Moses….

2.                   Also in verse 29, it states, “we do not “know” where He (Jesus) is from.”

3.                   Finally in verse 30, “Well, here is an amazing thing that you do not “know” where He (Jesus) is from, and yet He opened my eyes.

For doubters and Christians alike, the depth of what we “know” depends largely on our relationship with God through Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. In the book of John, we see the word “know” used in various ways having various meanings and also indicating various levels of relationships with Christ.

In today’s message, I looked at the same word “know” and how it is used in three other verses: John chapter 8 verses 28, 32 and 37. 

1.                   John 8:28, states, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will “know” that I am He,

2.                   John 8:32, states, “you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

3.                   John 8:37 states, “I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me.”

Sometimes in order to see the meaning of a word in a text, we need to look at the original language. For the New Testament, the original language is Greek. If we do a word study in our concordance, we see that the word, “know” in chapter 9 has a completely different meaning than the word “know” in John chapter 8. 

In chapter 9, the word “know” comes from the Greek word “eido” translated means to see or to know. It refers more to what we see, perceive or understand. Our perception is attained by physical conditions and circumstances. For this word we get the Latin or English word “video” which focuses on what is seen. For the Pharisees, they could only judge Jesus on what they could see or know. They did not have an intimate, spiritual relationship with Christ.

In contrast to John 9, we see in John chapter 8 a more spiritual approach to the word “know”. The Greek word is translated “ginosko” and is defined as knowledge gained through an intimate personal relationship with Christ. . 

For many who doubt Christ, they do not have an intimate personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. For doubters and many immature Christians, God is calling us to come closer to him in our walk.  Come closer that we might be His disciples. Come closer that we might know the truth and truth shall set us free. 

There are a few points I would like use as a reminder from today’s message:

A.     We should expect that doubters will doubt:

1.       Based upon what they don’t know and ;

2.       Based upon what you do know.

APPLICATION: Know that until people understand differently they will defend what they know.

B.     We should expect that doubt will cause individuals not to acknowledge the obvious workings of Christ, God or the Holy Spirit.

APPLICATION: Pray that doubt won’t cause us to miss seeing Christ in our lives.

I close with this prayer, “Lord, bring us close enough that we will not doubt your word or your works. Thank you, Lord for confidence that comes through personal relationship and personal experience. In Jesus name we pray. AMEN!