Ignorance is bliss. Have you ever said that or thought that? I don’t want to know the truth because I’ll be responsible for that knowledge. There is a prevailing thought in this information age. “Knowing something is enough.” Historically, that has not been the definition of “to know.” To know something should compel us to action.
I’ll give you an example of how that works. Suppose you’re at your home and minding your own business. In the middle of your day, you hear loud screams from next door. “Help me! He’s hurting me. Call the police!” To simply and only know the information that someone is in trouble next door is not enough. Your information makes no difference if you don’t act on it. You have to make a decision and act on it. You yell back, you call the police, you go over, you do something.
Josh Billings was the pen name of 19th-century American humorist Henry Wheeler Shaw. He was a famous humorist and writer, perhaps second only to Mark Twain. His statement “As scarce as truth is, the supply has always been in excess of the demand” speaks to the heart of this. People don’t seek the truth. Perhaps it’s more comfortable to “stay in the dark.” “I don’t want to know because I don’t want to do anything.”
Jesus tells us that to know the truth and the truth will set you free in John 8:31-32“So Jesus said to those who believed in him, ‘If you obey my teaching, you are really my disciples; you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” Just knowing the information is not enough. To know the truth of God’s Word must move us to action. Don’t stick your head in the sand. Seek God’s truth. It will set you free.