Knowing & Doing

“I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father.” II John 4

A couple of years ago, I preached a Sunday morning message that I entitled, “The Knowing / Doing Gap.” I cited studies that had been done by researchers showing the breakdown in peoples’ lives between what they know to be true and how much of that they actually put into action. I can give you an example from my own life. I know that a 20 ounce bottle of Coke contains 65 grams of sugar, which is about 15 teaspoons! But when I am eating a slice of pizza, there’s nothing I want more than a Coke! Why? I know better, but there’s a gap between what I know and what I do.

Of course, I am giving you this example to make a spiritual point. Many of us have spent years listening and learning, being taught the Word of God. We have read it ourselves. Yet, what matters is not what we know, but what we are doing with what we know! In the brief letter of II John, the apostle writes to some of the folks he had taught and fellowshipped with in the past. It caused him great rejoicing to hear that some of the people in that church were “walking in the Truth.” They were living out their faith. They were putting their knowledge of God’s Word into action. They had closed the “Knowing / Doing Gap.”

I’m going to ask you to consider two questions. First–how long have you been a Christ-follower? How many months or years or decades have you been taught? Secondly, how much of what you have learned are you actually putting into action?

-Pastor Mike