Knowledge With No Understanding

"Too Smart to See"

‬This is a photo of Richard Dawkins signing one of his books. In preparing for this sermon, Richard Dawkins came to my mind because he was in the news this week for a comment he made about Islam and Christianity. I don’t want to get sidetracked, but Richard Dawkins is one of the most famous atheists in the world. His book “The God Delusion” has sold over three million copies since its release in 2006. In the book, Dawkins argues that belief in God or gods is a delusion akin to other mistaken beliefs. He presents scientific evidence and philosophical arguments to support his case.

This week also got me thinking about the statistics on high school students who, when they graduate from high school, say they are Christian, but after they finish college, they have moved away from Christianity. The data from Lifeway Research from 2017 indicates that 66% of high schoolers stopped attending church regularly for at least a year after turning 18. Actually, this number is better than the 70% number from 2007.

What about higher education leads people to turn their back on God? We know that the Bible says knowledge is actually good:

Psalm 18:15
An intelligent heart acquires knowledge,
and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.

So, what is happening here?

Well, guess what? Jesus has a little bit to say about that today as we continue following Him in His earthly ministry chronologically. Where He will make the point this week that we can have “Knowledge With No Understanding.”