know won't hurt you.' Or will it? The tendency to want to avoid being confronted with
uncomfortable situations or bad news of any kind fuels this mentality. None of us looks upon
painful situations or unpleasant news with pleasure. We prefer to ignore rather than to contend,
to block out rather than to accept reality. Such thinking can cost us our lives, but more
importantly, it can cost us our souls!
The apostle Paul encountered such thinking in the city of Athens. In Acts, chapter 17, as he
walked through the city, beholding all of the shrines to manmade gods, he discovered the altar to
the "Unknown God." Paul accused these Athenians of "ignorantly" worshiping the God of
heaven. The irony of that statement is the fact that they were not worshiping the God of heaven
at all! The word in the Greek translated "ignorantly" in the KJV is "agnoeo," meaning, according
to Strong, " 'not to know through lack of information or intelligence', by implication, 'to ignore
through disinclination.'" In other words, the Athenians erected an altar to a God they knew
nothing about and who they had heretofore been disinclined to know anything about. Their
"worship" was "not according to knowledge" (Rom. 10:2). Notice that they admitted their
ignorance of God by correctly referring to Him as "the Unknown God." Yet they felt compelled
to offer some kind of obeisance to this God, for fear their ignorance of Him and lack of
acknowledgment of Him might bring some retribution. Even they, in their round about way,
recognized that "ignorance" is not bliss.
What about you? Are you ignorant of that which God requires of you? The kind of ignorance under consideration, you see, is that of choice. Do you choose to be ignorant of God's plan of salvation? Or, as a Christian, do you choose to be ignorant of God's plan for you to mature as a faithful servant? Would you rather not know (choose to ignore through disinclination) what your responsibilities are to the local church, her elders and members. One might reason, "If I don't know, God won't hold me responsible.... Right?" What did Paul tell the Athenians? To paraphrase, 'I'm going to tell you about this God who you ignorantly worship!'
The Holy Spirit found it necessary for those folks to know everything they needed to know about
God and their responsibilities to Him. Do you really believe God expects any less of us today?
Ignorance is not bliss. Ignorance will not bring bliss in this life, nor in eternity. Choosing not to know what you need to know can hurt you! "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" Ps 107:8 KJV