on seeking knowledge
Why does man covet knowledge to the point of neglecting his soul? Knowledge is sought, often attained, and frequently perverted, misconstrued, and misunderstood. The more pressing question is: what is the value of knowledge outside of the fear of God? Truly, it is better to be a humble man, alone in the wilderness than it is to be an intellectual pillar in a vast population who inadvertently neglects his soul to study discourses that ultimately matter little. He who is indeed wise sees himself as being less rather than more. That is, he understands that at the peak of his intellectual assent, he knows relatively nothing of all that there is to know. He who is indeed wise does not let the well being of his soul rest on the laurels of man.
If one knows all there is to know about everything, surpassing all of his fellow men in the retention of crystallized knowledge, yet is uncharitable, what would they possess that would be of profit to them when it is their turn to face God? Though knowledge is relevant, faith and deed are far more relevant; the aforementioned faith being a honest belief in the being and the deeds of Jesus, the Christ, the Man of Sorrow, our Messiah, and deed being the acting out of that which is a result of living in faith for Him who has rescued those who would surrender all to Him. For in surrendering that which we hold dear, we are unbound and set free by the redemptive blood which Christ shed on the cross in order to pay the debt of our sins. What greater gifts can one seek than that of unmerited redemption and freedom?
Why, therefore, would one covet knowledge over redemption and freedom? That is not to say that the attainment of knowledge is not worthwhile. It is quite to the contrary. Seek knowledge, only seek redemption more, thereby allowing freedom to follow only as a byproduct of the redemption which was won on the cross.
One should shun the desire for knowledge over the desire for redemption. The desire to appear wise brings about frustration and delusion in the hearts of men. Is it not only from selfish pride that one would desire to appear wise before man anyway? There is much that knowledge cannot afford as sustenance to the soul of man. Sate of one’s soul may be found only in redemption. One who does not seek redemption above all seeks all in vein, and is proven unwise. “Many words do not satisfy the soul; but a good life eases the mind and a clean conscience inspires great trust in God.”
In truth, the more we know, the more we will be accountable for when we are judged. The correlation between one’s knowledge and the holiness of one’s life must be positive. Therefore, be humble in your knowledge, and honor your knowledge with your actions. The fruit borne from one’s actions will be the measure of the correlation. Hence, one should not be prideful of their knowledge, rather they should admit their ignorance.
To be unknown and considered as nothing is a worthwhile endeavor when paired with the furtherance of redemption and knowledge. One would be wise to understand the state of their being, which is likely not as high as they might esteem. To think of one’s self as less and to think of others as more is sound wisdom. Therefore, if one were to witness sin, or be faced with ignorance, they would be wise in not considering themselves further than others, and in understanding that they know not how long they will remain in good estate, or to what extent they are ignorant. All men are weak, wisdom is admitting that there is none weaker than one’s self.