Intoxication

[VictoryinJesus]

On the way home the other night a man spoke on how if we read Gods’ word solely for knowledge without any application towards our life and actions…the knowledge becomes intoxicating. Or at least that is what I took away from what he spoke on. How if there is no learning or teaching gathered of application personally from what we learn, then we obtain head knowledge and not heart knowledge.

he quoted from below. What does it say to you? Because I’m not sure since the language in the quote is sort of over my head.
“This is the truth of the matter. In every human being there is a capacity, the capacity for knowledge. And every person - the most knowing and the most limited - is in his knowledge far beyond what he is in his life or what his life expresses. Yet this misrelation is of little concern to us. On the contrary, we set a high price on knowledge, and everyone strives for this knowledge more and more. "But," says the sensible person, "one must be careful about the direction one's knowing takes. If my knowing turns inward, against me, if I do not take care to prevent this, then knowing is the most intoxicating thing there is, the way to become completely intoxicated, since there then occurs an intoxicating confusion between the knowledge and the knower, so that the knower himself will resemble, will be, that which is known. If your knowing takes such a turn and you yield to it, it will soon end with your tumbling like a drunk man into actuality, plunging yourself recklessly into drunken action without giving the understanding and sagacity the time to take into proper consideration what is prudent, what is advantageous, what will pay. This is why we, the sober ones, warn you, not against knowing or against expanding your knowledge, but against letting your knowledge take an inward direction, for then it is intoxicating." This is thieves' jargon. It says that it is one's knowledge that, by taking the inward direction in this way, intoxicates, rather than that in precisely this way it makes manifest that one is intoxicated, intoxicated in one's attachment to this earthly life, the temporal, the secular, and the selfish. And this is what one fears, fears that one's knowing, turned inward, toward oneself, will expose the intoxication there, will expose that one prefers to remain in this state, will wrench one out of this state and as a result of such a step will make it impossible for one to slip back into that adored state, into intoxication. p. 118“ — Sören Kierkegaard

 

[David H.]

knowledge and wisdom puffs up the individual who strives for them. It is Human (sinful) nature that this occurs, and the counter to this is to come into the presence of an almighty and omniscient God. The ultimate result of this is an unteachable spirit in the person who is puffed up with wisdom and knowledge, and the most prone to fall victim to this are teachers themselves, whether that be college professors or Bible teachers.

For the Christian, the puffed up teacher results in a callous hard heart towards anyone who diverts from or disagrees with them, to the point of judgment and condemnation.... I think we all know a few who are like this, including ourselves at times.... The Bible itself should counteract this, when Paul says; "we all know in part and prophesy in part" Or just a good reading of of the first three chapters of 1 Corinthians will show us how much we know.... but many just skim past this stuff and think it does not apply to "me". The Intoxication Kierkegaard is speaking of is the self deception that this knowledge causes that makes us unable to see that we could be in error ourselves, and not the one who we have a disagreement with. The hardest three words to say sometimes are "I am wrong", and the next three are "you are right"....

God wants us to have faith like a child, part of that is to receive teaching from him like a child, which is to be like a sponge absorbing rather than a rock having that revelation roll off of. A teachable spirit is vital to the Christian in their process of sanctification of the Spirit. He cannot reveal truth to a hardened rock.

I Hope this helps.... this is how I understand what Kierkegaard is saying here. I Am sure others will see something different....

 

[VictoryinJesus]

The ultimate result of this is an unteachable spirit in the person who is puffed up with wisdom and knowledge, and the most prone to fall victim to this are teachers themselves, whether that be college professors or Bible teachers.

Thank you for sharing your perspective. I was thinking what are some of the signs of being drunk or intoxicated, then you gave one: An unteachable spirit.

God wants us to have faith like a child, part of that is to receive teaching from him like a child, which is to be like a sponge absorbing rather than a rock having that revelation roll off of.

love “to be like a sponge absorbing rather than a rock having that revelation roll off of”!

A teachable spirit is vital to the Christian in their process of sanctification of the Spirit. He cannot reveal truth to a hardened rock.

I’ve been thinking a lot also about the word “provocation” or "place of strife," with “harden not your heart”
Psalm 95:8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: