Love and Knowledge
(week 52/04)
Olubi Johnson
As we come to the close of 2004, we share with you the vital importance of developing agape or divine love by your knowledge of God’s Word, as this will be necessary to survive the flood of judgment and glory that will be coming to the church in 2005.
Love, like Noah’s ark, will be the standard the Spirit of God will use to raise you up and as it were, to ride in glory, the tidal wave of judgment that is coming:
Isaiah 59:19 NKJV: So shall they fear The name of the LORD from the west, And His glory from the rising of the sun; When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him.
Jude 20-21 NKJV: But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
1 John 5:18 NKJV: We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him.
Divine or Agape love is an inner heart attitude of underserved good will towards men; it is exercised by wisdom and patience and shown in acts of kindness (most of the time) and discipline (when necessary).
Since divine love is exercised by wisdom, knowledge is an essential part of love and in fact divine love cannot be developed to maturity if there is not a corresponding increase in the knowledge of God’s Word:
Philippians 1:9-10 NIV: And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best
1 John 2:5 NKJV: But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him.
Now there are 3 levels of the knowledge of God’s Word, typified in the Tabernacle of Moses:
1. Natural, or sense knowledge of the Word in which the Word of God is understood only literally and historically by natural human reasoning. This is typified by the water in the brazen laver, which acts like a mirror, in which the priests would see their faces, in the light of the natural light in the outer court.
2. Revelation knowledge of the fundamentals of the faith: new birth, baptisms, healing, deliverance and prosperity. Here, the Word of God is understood by personal first hand information revealed in the heart by the Holy Spirit, who plays back, as it were, a spiritual ‘video’ in your mind of God’s thoughts behind what is written in the scriptures. The candlestick and the shew-bread in the Holy Place of the Tabernacle typify this.
3. Revelation knowledge of perfection and personal destiny: Here hidden truth is revealed in the symbols, examples and types in the written Word and how it applies to the Church today corporately and individually. This is typified by the hidden manna inside the Ark of the Covenant in the most holy place of the tabernacle.
To develop in divine love you must be able to relate to all Christians at their different levels of knowledge, by using your increased knowledge, understanding, wisdom and thus discernment to do what is best for them in difficult situations especially when they do not deserve it and are behaving carnally. This is what the Holy Spirit is saying in:
Ephesians 3:17-19 NKJV: that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height– 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
1 Corinthians 8:1 NKJV: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies
Romans 14:1 NKJV: Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things.
Romans 15:1 NKJV: We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
So to develop divine love by knowledge you need to as a daily habit:
1. Set your will to maintain an inner attitude of good will to all men especially when they do not deserve it. (Mat. 5.44)
2. Pray diligently in the spirit to receive revelation knowledge.
3. Read, study, confess, meditate and practice the written Word.
Doing these diligently as a daily habit, as we go into 2005, will cause us to be filled with all the fullness of God according to Eph. 3.19 quoted above.
