The Knowledge of a Pilot
A pilot of a commercial aircraft knows a lot about flying. In order to become a pilot, there are several steps that must be taken. A person must have a degree, they must accumulate hours flying, they must earn a pilot’s license, and they even have to undergo further training and take other tests. Because an official pilot needs to know so much in order to fly, you might assume that a pilot would not need help to fly a plane. But despite all the knowledge they possess, a pilot cannot successfully fly without aid from the tower. In the tower, the air traffic controller guides the planes in safety, keeping them from colliding with each other and out of the path of hazardous weather. Without the help of the tower, plane flight would be a dangerous, unpredictable means of travel.
The reason I’m talking about planes and towers is that there is a clear correlation to the life of a believer. Some of us are traveling along down the path of life, and we have gained a book full of knowledge that we can reference when needed. But the problem with knowledge and experience is that they can’t possibly unveil the unexpected. Though we imagine we know how life is supposed to work, we still manage to run into things. It’s not because we’re missing out on the knowledge. It’s because we aren’t listening to the tower. If a pilot chose to only refer to the manual book and yet never flipped on the communications switch with the air traffic controller on the other end, he wouldn’t have a clue as to what was coming up next. Some of us are treating our walk with God like a test that we’ve studied for, and not like the relationship it was meant to be. If we aren’t allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us, how can we get upset when we run into the unexpected?
Some of us have hit a delay, or we’ve flown right into a storm. Some of us may even feel like the plane is going down. It’s because we’ve turned communications off. I’m not saying that God is going to keep you from running into every storm that’s out there, but He is going to guide you down the best path if you will open communications with Him.
The Spirit Who Is From God
In 1 Corinthians 2:12-13, Paul says “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”
Paul is talking about something greater than knowledge. He’s referring to the wisdom that can only come from God through His Spirit. In this chapter, he is specifically referring to the revelation of the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the cornerstone. If you don’t hear that, then it’s not worth you listening in for anything else. The work of the Spirit will always point back to the work of Jesus Christ.
Who Are You Listening To?
Not listening to the Holy Spirit is going to make for a rough trip, but there’s something that will make for an even worse trip. Some of us are tuned to the wrong channel. If you are relying on someone else out there to know what God is saying to you, then you’re sometimes going to hear the truth and you’re sometimes going to hear a lie. A lot of people will tell you God told me this or God wants you to do that. Fortunately there is an easy way to filter what we hear. If God really is speaking to you, then what He says will be verifiable in His Word. God is never going to say anything that contradicts His Word. But some of us are listening to preachers or teachers who are contradicting the Word of God, and yet we don’t know it because we don’t know the Word. And when you are in the Word, God will also confirm His word to you through the Holy Spirit at work in your own life. That’s why Paul says later in verses 15 though 16 of 1 Corinthians 2, “But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.”
We’ve been given a great gift through the Holy Spirit, but it is still possible to miss the mark. Even if you are saved, the mind of Christ will do you no good if you choose to operate under the mind of the flesh. You and I must learn to humble ourselves and ask God to replace our own thoughts with His higher thoughts. We don’t know everything. He does. We don’t get everything right all the time. He does. Without humbling ourselves and truly seeking Him with our whole hearts, it is easy to accept the wisdom of another voice instead of the wisdom that comes only from God. Turn off the other channels, open communications with Him, confirm it with the Word of God, and get that plane back on track.