Part 5
I hope that you have taken the opportunity to read the previous 4 blogs in this series. The thought is progressive and has been very repetitive as necessary.
I believe there is a shaking coming to our nation and to the nations of the world.
Am I a doom and gloom prophet? I do not believe so. I will leave that to your opinion. I am certain that the Lord shared with me a few months ago that there would be an ‘unprecedented unrest’. I have seen that unfold since He spoke it. I am also persuaded that the Lord showed me that Psalm 64 outlines what has been, and is, taking place in our nation. In many ways it summarizes a previous set of posts that were composed about our nation being a ‘A Nation Of POW’s’, meaning A Nation Of Prisoners of Words. (emphasis mine)
Please understand that I am not predicting what the outcome of the ‘unprecedented unrest’ will look like. I don’t know. Have I thought about it? absolutely. But we know that our thoughts, and God’s thoughts don’t line up unless He makes them known to us.
Let me proceed.
I have a concern for those who name the name of Christ as their personal Savior. I am not questioning anyone’s salvation. Knowing (edoi) Christ as your personal Savior guarantees your eternal salvation. That is an absolute.
Note: [The inserts of ‘edoi’ or ‘ginosko’ are my inserts throughout this post]
This concern was first made evident to me 40 plus years ago. At that time the Lord impressed upon me that prior to His return there would be a mighty outpouring of His Spirit, and a visitation of God that would leave the world with out excuse regarding the existence of God and the truth of the Gospel message in Christ.
I am becoming convinced that now is the time that I will see the fulfillment of what I believe the Lord showed me many years ago. Part of that knowing (edoi) was that there would be many believers who would need personal care and encouragement when this visitation of God took place because they have not been taught the Word of God in a way that would prepare them for such a visitation. What I am saying is that I am concerned that a lot of the factual knowledge (edoi) believers in Christ have been taught, and have embraced, as spiritual knowledge will be found to be insufficient in their time of trial and tribulation, in the ‘unprecedented unrest’. Factual knowledge (edoi) is not personal relational knowledge (ginosko).
What’s the difference?
Simply put, I have factual knowledge (edoi) that I am a direct descendent of John Cooke who was a passenger on the Mayflower, who survived the brutal beginnings coming to this land; but I do not know (ginosko) him personally, I only know (edoi) about him.
I am not seeking to be judgmental. What I am concerned about is the level of spiritual growth and maturity in the Church. Are we, as believers, solid in our knowledge (ginosko) and experience in walking with the Lord that when a level of ‘unrest’ arises will it disrupt our relationship with the Lord? Or, saying this, another way, if the spiritual atmosphere and/or tension, elevates around us and affects us personally so that the level of stress becomes, in our estimation, too much to cope with, what will we do? how will we react? to whom will we turn?
I am sure that all of us at one time or another have faced stressful situations in our lives. How did you fare going through it? What was your attitude toward God? Did you blame God? Or did you seek God to understand the significance of the ‘unrest’?
Have you ever considered the level of stress the nation of Israel encountered when God brought a series of ten plagues to Egypt? It would not surprise me, at all, that many people in the nation of Israel experienced a high level of anxiety and extreme worry as they lived through those plagues. I wonder what the heart palpitation rate was in the Israeli households the night of the tenth plague? Had they been fully convinced having witnessed the first nine plagues and experiencing the word of God as spoken by Moses to be true, so that they could confidently apply the blood of a lamb to the doorposts of their dwellings, believing, that the death angel would ‘passover‘ them? Israel was living through an ‘unprecedented unrest’ that had come upon them because a new Pharaoh had boasted, “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice and let Israel go? I do not know(edoi) the Lord, nor will I let Israel go.” (Exodus 2:2, NKJV) This Pharaoh had no personal knowledge (ginosko) of the God of the Hebrews. And in reality, neither did the nation of Israel at this point in their history. They knew(edoi) enough to cry out to God; but they really did not know(ginosko) Him. That is a major part of the drama surrounding the ten plagues.
God responded to Pharaoh’s boast ‘who is the Lord?” and revealed Himself to Pharaoh, to Egypt, and to Israel. God turned factual knowledge (edoi) into personal knowledge (ginosko) through an ‘unprecedented unrest’.
Does humanity today have a factual knowledge (edoi) of God? Or is God just a concept or idea that is bantered about? Does the Church just know the facts (edoi) about God or does it really have a living relationship based upon a living (ginosko) knowledge?
[I recommend the website, ezraproject.com. Find the title Ginosko–Knowledge that Goes Beyond Information‘ January 24, 2021, please read the article.]
As followers of Christ, I call to your remembrance these words of Jesus’ in Matthew 5:10-12 NKJV, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
This type of interaction has been going on in the world against believers since the time of Christ. The reality is that it has been and is escalating throughout the world. The Church is beginning to experience this type of behavior toward it’s existence being raised to a new heights in our nation.
What if we (you and I) had to ‘live’ out these words? Does the Church have the mental fortitude to walk in that accusatory atmosphere? Am I, are we, is the Church prepared to walk in ‘unprecedented unrest’?
Please read Matthew 24:4-14. Jesus’ words are hard.
Will we be, like His disciples reacted in John 6, when they heard Jesus’ words about ‘eating His flesh and drinking His blood’, say ‘this is hard’, and choose to walk away? [John 6:59-60, NKJV “These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum. Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”]
Jesus continued to speak to His disciples other words and eventually the moment came when “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.” “Then Jesus turned to the twelve , “Do you also want to go away?” ” (John 6:66-67 NKJV).
What if, as the level of the ‘unrest’ increases, we found ourselves wavering in our commitment, and Jesus turned to us and asked “if we, too, are going to leave? ” What would be your response? I trust that you and I, like Peter, would respond, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, we have come to believe and know (ginosko) that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (John 6:68 NKJV).
Regarding those who walked away in John 6 Jesus knew that they had not been called by God, the Father.
How do we know (edoi) that?
John 6:64b, NKJV, “For Jesus knew (ginosko) from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.”
When there is ‘unprecedented unrest’ and stressful spiritual challenge, will we be like those to whom the Epistle to the Hebrews was written and contemplate falling away? Or will we be “…anxious for nothing … and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:5b-7 NKJV)
What makes the difference?
In Christ, we have peace with God because of our justification by faith through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Roman 5:1) That is our position(edoi) in Christ.
Question: As a believer, have you experienced that positional (edoi)peace experientially(ginosko) in your walk with the Lord as Paul described in Philippians 4:7?
In Philippians 4:5b-7, Paul is saying that peace is not just a factual knowledge (edoi) but also a relational personal experience (ginosko) given to you by the Lord when you need His peace in the trial, the tribulation, the ‘unrest’ that you are walking through and/or experiencing.
This is a lot to comprehend. This is a lot to pray about. But the time in which we are living demands that we be ready in Christ Jesus.
Listen to Jesus’ words to His disciples the night in which He was betrayed. Jesus is preparing them for an ‘unprecedented unrest”. Seeking to quiet their inward ‘unrest’, He says to them, “Indeed the hour is coming , yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. These things I have spoken to you, that in Me, you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:32-33 NKJV.
Jesus knew that what was about to happen to Him would completely ‘undo’ the disciples personal understanding (edoi)of Him, and whatever personal relationship (ginosko) they thought they had with Him. Their knowing (edoi/ginosko) was going to be severely shaken.
Again, I am NOT saying that true believers will lose their salvation. However, I do believe the ‘unprecedented unrest’ will shake (separate) the false from the true. And I believe that the ‘unrest’ will require that true believers in Christ will undergo a radical change in their mentality to be able to peacefully move forward. For some believers this might be a very hard and a stressful process?
In the midst of this teaching that will unravel the disciples’ understanding, Jesus includes these words, John 14:10 NKJV, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”
I would like to schedule a stop here and have you take a reflective break. I recommend that you go back and re-read what you have just read. Maybe you need to prayerfully put your thoughts before the Lord and ask Him for guidance and understanding? A simple prayer might be something like this. Lord, am I ready for a shaking of ‘unprecedented unrest’?
Selah.
I trust that you took a break to think and pray about what you have just read.
Looking backward to 2019-2020, the world had an ‘unprecedented unrest’.
It was called Covid.
Question: Did Covid cause mental stress in your life? How did handle it? cope with it? process it? Did it bring changes in your relationship to the Lord?
On the CBN news app, 11-12-23, I read an article about a theologian who is concerned about the lack of Biblical knowledge among believers. The article was entitled, ‘Biblical Illiteracy’ Harming American Christians’ Understanding of the Old Testament. I want to quote from the article.
“To make his case, Youssef referenced the American Bible Society’s latest State of the Bible survey, which revealed a mere 9% of Americans read their Bibles on a daily basis. Only a quarter of respondents said they open the Scriptures each week. Thirty-eight percent said they never use their Bibles.”
Question: How often do you read the Word of God?
Taking this survey at face value, it is easy for me to justify my concern that professing Christians will have difficulty coping mentally with ‘unprecedented unrest’ in this nation or in any other nations in the world.
Why? If Christians are not availing themselves of reading God’s Word (edoi) then how can they be growing (ginosko) in a personal relationship with the Lord?
I can visualize the following happening in the time of ‘unprecedented unrest’.
I John 2:18-23, NKJV, the Apostle John writes, “Little children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know (edoi) that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest that none of them were of us. [Sounds like John 6 when some of Jesus’ disciples left Him because they said His sayings were hard.] But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know (ginosko) all things. I have not written to you because you do not know (ginosko) the truth, but because you know(ginosko) it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is a liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the the Son has the Father also.” (insert mine)
The shaking, the ‘unprecedented unrest’, will reveal who really knows (edoi/ginosko) Christ and who is of the truth.
Can we agree, let the shaking come! It is for the good of the Body of Christ.
Jesus said, “You shall know(ginosko) the truth and the truth will make you free.” John 8:32 NKJV
To whom did Jesus speak these words?
John 8:31-32, NKJV, “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed (edoi) in Him. If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know(ginosko) the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
You may be pondering? Ok, you say that a shaking is coming. You are saying that it will separate those who falsely say they know the Lord from those who really do know the Lord. Then what is your concern, deo?
Let me strongly say again.
I am not saying a person will lose their salvation. The ‘unrest’ will shake out the false from the true.
But understand this principle, it will also shake out what is false in a true believer.
What am I saying?
Is the Body of Christ mature in its relationship with the Lord to experience a season of hardship that will probably be harder than most Christians have had to personally experience in their Christian life? And that includes me.
Have I, has the Church, grown in its discipleship ‘in Christ’ to weather a storm of ‘unprecedented unrest’?
Why am I presenting this concern? Because, I am concerned for my fellow believers(edoi) in Christ, who have walked with Him, served Him, and ministered to others, who, when their daily life as a believer faces a serious challenge, wonder how they will respond? Do they have a solid experiential ‘knowing’ (ginosko) of Christ as their personal Savior beyond just being saved? And, if these same Christians are not spending time in the Word of God, I believe that will greatly impede their ability to face ‘unprecedented unrest’.
I ask, are we, the Ekklesia, the Body of Christ, the Church, mature enough in the Lord (have we embraced the process of discipleship or have we ignored the process of discipleship?) to be prepared for the coming tribulation/trial of ‘unprecedented unrest’?
That is meant to be a wake up call. A reality check. What I am implying is that church as we know it may not be church as usual; but a church that is going to be different because of ‘unprecedented unrest’.
We may experience Hebrews 10:23-25 (NKJV), “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”
In a time of ‘unprecedented unrest’, the previous verses may take on a whole new, different dynamic and significance.
I know Jesus as my Savior (edoi). I seek to know (ginosko) Him as my Lord.
The bulk of the New Testament was written to believers for their instruction in personal growth to walk with Jesus as Lord and to become mature in Christ here on earth before they go to heaven.
Is it possible to spend so much time emphasizing being saved, and maintaining one’s salvation, that a believer does not grow and properly mature ‘in Christ’ according to our Father’s purpose?
I believe the answer to that is yes.
I encourage you to read Philippians 3. The thrust of Paul’s encouragement and exhortation is “…I press on…”
Are you ‘pressing on’?
Why am I concerned? It comes from what I believe the Lord showed me 40 plus years ago, that in a heightened visitation of the manifest Presence of God, there would be many believers who would be shaken in their relationship to the Lord because they would be experiencing and witnessing things they were not prepared to comprehend.
I am concerned for believers, who love Christ, but will need help to get through the ‘unprecedented unrest’, i.e. the tribulation, the trial, the distress, the uncertainty…whatever comes, as that ‘unrest’ becomes a daily experience and expectancy.
It sounds daunting; but the Lord in His grace has been preparing a people to stand in the gap and help these believers in their time of need.
I am convinced that the Lord has been preparing many believers that will be ready to help struggling believers in the Body of Christ. Those who will need someone to put their arm around them and help them through the turbulent times.
That is what family ‘is’, and that is what family ‘does’.
It may be that you, who are reading this post, will bear witness to what I have just said, and will be used mightily by the Lord to come alongside a struggling believer (family member) in the ‘unprecedented unrest’.
As I said previously, in Part 3, of this series, the Epistle to the Hebrews is as relevant to the Christian community today as it was then to the Hebraic community.
Today’s Christian community must hear, embrace, and resolve to remain steadfast in the midst of the ‘unprecedented unrest’.
Hebrews 12:25-29, NKJV, says, “See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised , saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.” Now this, ‘Yet once more’, indicates the removal of those things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and fear. For our God is a consuming fire.” (emphasis mine)
There will be a shaking; but we abide in a Kingdom that cannot be shaken. (emphasis mine)
This post is entitled, KNOWING IS NOT KNOWING: EDOI IS NOT GINOSKO.
And so, I summarize my concern. Is it possible for a believer to have a lot of knowledge about the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word (edoi) and have a minimal personal, experiential knowledge (ginosko) regarding the understanding of God’s Word?
I believe the answer to that question is yes.
Simply put, we can be saved and posses a lot of factual knowledge(edoi) about who Christ (edoi) is, which is a positional understanding of our salvation, and not have a practical, understanding of the teachings, the doctrine, and the Word of God experientially (ginosko). In short, what we know(edoi), we have not experienced. We have a lot of objective understanding with little or no subjective understanding that has become real life to us in our walk with Christ. What you have been taught is not false; but it hasn’t been made alive to you. Again, it’s factual, but not part of your Christian life experience. That does not negate your salvation but it reflects not having grown in your relationship with the Lord.
How does the transition from ‘edoi’ to ‘ginosko’ take place? By the work of the Cross.
Question: Have you grown as a disciple of Christ by just listening( hearer ) to the Word of God? Or, have you become a doer of the Word that you have been taught, applying and obediently seeking to live God’s Word to the extent that you become disciplined by that Word? Is the reality of your Christian maturity based upon your obedience to God’s Word making it an integral part of your daily life?
Jesus said If you want to be My disciple and follow Me, you must deny yourself, and choose to take up your cross daily, then follow Me. That is what a disciple must do. When you faithfully do that the principle of the cross is applied to your life. You deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Him. That following begins with being immersed in His Word. The Word will center you in Christ. The Spirit of God will apply that Word to you as you follow the Lord. What is worked into your life is what Paul preached, ‘Christ crucified’.
What I am sharing is the reality of Jesus’ words to the Jews who had believed in Him, when He said to them, “If you abide in My word (edoi), you are My disciples, and you shall know (ginosko) the truth (Objective Doctrine) and the truth(Subjective Duty) shall make you free.”
Some of you may be saying, you are being too repetitive, I get it. Good, that’s edoi, you have heard the facts; now ask the Lord to make it real in your daily life, that’s ginosko. Ask the Lord to change your objective teaching into subjective doing. Let your ‘doctrine’ become ‘duty’. Live what you have learned, that’s discipleship.
The Apostle Paul said to the Ephesian Christians, “Therefore, I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus(edoi) and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him (edoi), the eyes of our understanding being enlightened; that you may know(ginosko) what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power.” Ephesians 1:15-19 NKJV
What did Paul share with us about how God did this in his life?
“But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach among the Gentiles…” Galatians 1:15-16a, NKJV
Guess what? This is what the Father wants to do in each of us, His children. He wants to “reveal His Son” in you. God wants to change what you know (edoi) and make it alive (ginosko) in you. Revealing His Son in You becomes the witness of Christ through you to a darkened world.
On the evening of His betrayal, Jesus said to His disciples in the Upper Room, “A little while longer and world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. And that day you will know(ginosko) that I am in My Father and you in Me, and I in you. He who has my commandment (edoi) and keeps them (ginosko), it is the one who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest to him.” John 14:19-21 NKJV.
Note: definition of manifest: cause to shine, to appear, come into view, reveal, exhibit, make visible, present oneself to the sight of another...emphanidzo is the self-revelation of Jesus to believers. A secondary meaning of the word is to declare, make known(Acts 23:15, 22; 24:1;25:2,15). [Spirit Filled Life Bible, Word Wealth 14:21 manifest, emphanidzo (em-fan-id-zoe) Strong’s #1718].
What did Jesus just tell them? The Father and the Son desire to make themselves personally known to you, not just knowing about them (edoi) but experiencing them personally (ginosko).
I want to stop here and encourage you to pray and think through your relationship with the Lord.
Ask the Lord to take what you know (edoi) about God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and ask God to give you a spirit of wisdom and understanding to know them in a more personal way (ginosko).
May the Lord richly bless you as seek the Him, a brother in Christ, deo
end of Part 5
TBC
a brother in Christ, deo
Part 5 has been long, and probably for some very tedious. However, I encourage you to consider the importance of having an ‘up-to-date dynamic’, living relationship with the Lord that transcends just hearing about him, but actually results in fellowshipping with Him on a daily basis. We need Him. He will be our refuge in the midst of the storm of ‘unprecedented unrest’.
Remember, Christ is our Ark, and the Ark rode out the storm.
Living Words of Encouragement 