Some churches are great at Bible knowledge but fail to teach their people perspective. They don’t teach wisdom. I love this paraphrase of Isaiah 55:8 in The Message: God says, “I don’t think the way you think. The way you work isn’t the way I work.” Obviously that’s true! Psalm 103:7 says that the Lord “made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel” (KJV).

At a certain point in my Christian experience, I made a startling discovery: I had an enemy of God in me. Even though I was a Christian, serving God, I discovered that my enemy was my own mind. In Romans 8:7, Paul explains: “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.” You don’t judge the health of an army by how many soldiers sit in the mess hall and eat every week and listen to your Bible study. You judge the health of an army by how many are on frontlines doing battle in the world. We want to be able to bring them in, build them up, train them forward, and send them out. And to do so, we must be able to teach people not only to love the Word but also to do the Word (James 1:22–25). Here are what I call “the five levels of learning”: Thank you for those who have read and engaged this chapter. I pray that you would raise up a new generation of godly intellectuals who know your Word, understand your mind, feel your heart, live out your character, and do your will with skill. Paul says we are living physical bodies in a material world. At the same time we are in a war, but the war is not being fought out in the physical or material realm. It is in a different realm. He explains in verse four: “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds...” But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Suggest a Verse Enter a Verse Reference (e.g., John 3:16-17)A lot of people know all the contemporary books and none of the classics. Jesus did not just begin building his church in the year 2000. He has been working in and through his body for two millennia, and you can save yourself a lot of time if you will avail yourself of the whole tradition. It is wise to learn from experience, but it is wiser to learn from the experiences of others. It is also easier! It saves a lot of time and saves us from making the mistakes of others. Read, Read, Read Second Corinthians 10:4-5 says, The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ (NKJV). We only believe the parts of the Bible that we actually do. You may say, “I believe in witnessing.” Do you do it? No? Then you don’t really believe in it. “I believe in tithing.” Do you do it? No? Then you don’t really believe in it. “I believe in having family devotions.” Do you do it? No? Then you don’t really believe in it. We only believe what we actually do. And our problem is that we know far more than we do and we teach people too much. Mark this. We might be teaching people so much that they aren’t able to apply it. Therefore encourage (admonish, exhort) one another and edify (strengthen and build up) one another, just as you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11”

I believed this promise was just as all inclusive as John 3:16: “Whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Note: Pastors reading this chapter may want to ask questions like the following of their sermons: (1) What is the knowledge of God and the knowledge of his Word that the people are learning in this sermon? (2) What is the perspective I’m teaching them in this sermon? (3) What are the convictions I want to get across? (4) What are the character qualities I want to develop? (5) What are the skills?Nothing] . . . will be able to separate us from the love of God” (Romans 8:39). That’s conviction. It’s not an opinion; it’s a conviction.