International Gospel Hour

Jeff Archey: Let's grow in the knowledge of God. That is the best way to avoid ignorance. Let's embark on another biblical study today from the International Gospel Hour. Stay with us.

J. Webb: It's time for our broadcast from the International Gospel Hour. I'm J. Webb and welcome to our study today as we embrace God's word to help us meet the challenges of today. Let's open our Bibles and open our hearts for this time of Bible study with our speaker Jeff Archey of International Gospel Hour, a broadcast of the churches of Christ. Here's Jeff.

Jeff Archey: Well, thank you always to our J. Webb, and it is so good to have all of you join us today as we embark on another journey in a study of God's holy word, the Bible. The psalmist said in Psalm 119:105, "Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." So may God's word lighten our paths this day and lead us where He would have us to go.

From God's word, let's consider a text from Acts 17:30-31, when the Apostle Paul said, "Truly these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead."

When I read these two verses in the context of Paul standing on Mars Hill, dealing with their idolatry and praising God and Christ, I believe we have enough reason to avoid ignorance. In the Greek language, ignorance simply means not to know or rejection. Webster defines the word ignorance as lacking knowledge, education, or experience, caused by showing lack of knowledge, uninformed, or unaware.

When we dig deeper into the Greek meaning of the word, not only does it mean not to know or to be uninformed or unaware, but it also means rejection. When one sins due to ignorance, it is still sin and sin separates one from God, as noted from Isaiah 59:1-2. When our lesson text of Acts 17:30-31 says God overlooked ignorance, it means rather than immediate punishment, God allowed their sin, their idolatry, in days gone by to destroy them because it was their choice. They didn't know nor did they want to know, and if they knew it, they rejected it. How tragic it is to choose ignorance. Friends, today let's avoid ignorance. Our study will continue in just a moment.

Guest (Male): For over 30 years, the Gospel Gleaner has brought forth sound biblical articles for your reading and study. It is published online four times a year and subscriptions are free. Just go to gospelgleaner.com and sign up and let them know you heard about it from the International Gospel Hour. That's gospelgleaner.com.

Jeff Archey: Friends, good sound material such as the Gospel Gleaner and other articles and periodicals that we often offer here from International Gospel Hour are designed to help one grow in the knowledge of the word of God. Quite obviously, they will not take the place of God's word because God's word is inspired of God, penned by holy men of God as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20-21).

Therefore, we should take that word and compare what men may write today, and we are confident that your study from the Gospel Gleaner will help you to grow and to avoid ignorance. To avoid ignorance, first of all, let us be warned. Ignorance produces ignorant worship. Going back to Acts 17, specifically verses 23-31, Paul is there in Athens on Mars Hill standing at the corner of idolatry and ecumenism.

He's standing right there with every kind of thought that can be imagined, and Paul's conclusion was God's conclusion: they needed to repent. Ignorance produced the crucifixion of Christ, according to Acts 3:13-19. Of the Prince of Life whom they had killed, that being the Christ, Peter acknowledged they did so in ignorance. The conclusion in verse 19: "Repent ye therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out."

Ignorance produces selfishness, as we would note in such passages as Romans 10:3 and Romans 11:25. Ignorant of God's righteousness, one will go about establishing his own righteousness, which is not a righteousness. Friends, I guess you could say that would be a "wrongness." Now, I know what you're thinking, "Mr. Archey, there's no such word as wrongness," well, it is now. Maybe that'll help us to remember the importance of God's righteousness.

An individual that would establish his own would create a wisdom only in self and a spiritual blindness that would produce a blind heart. Please listen to Ephesians 4:17-19 when Paul says, "This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness."

Friends, that's not the kind of righteousness we want to establish because it is not righteousness at all. Ignorance produces disobedience due to a lack of knowledge. How the prophet Hosea spoke, and how God spoke through him and declared how the people, God's people, were destroyed for a lack of knowledge. Ignorance stagnates knowledge, it stagnates godly knowledge, and nothing good comes from one who is ignorant. Let's grasp these warnings and let's think of number two.

Not only to be warned, but let's be informed. To avoid ignorance, let's be informed. Let's be informed by knowing the scripture, for therein we will avoid ignorance. 2 Timothy 3:16 says all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. When you grasp the scripture and we study the scripture and apply the scripture, we see the profitability of scripture and how it will correct us and instruct us. Friends, the word of God will get the job done in dealing with ignorance.

By trusting in the Lord, we avoid ignorance. Listen to Proverbs 3:5-6: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths." Well, how can we acknowledge God and allow Him to direct our paths if we do not turn to His word to do so? Third, when we apply scripture and live according to God, we avoid ignorance.

Listen to 1 Peter 1:13-16: "Therefore, gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance." Don't do that, you're obedient children now. "But as He who has called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct because it is written, be holy for I am holy."

When knowledge increases, friends, ignorance decreases quickly. The more we know, it chips away at ignorance of the subject. So let us grasp such knowledge and apply it therein. And remember the word: repent. Those times of ignorance God overlooked but commands all men everywhere to repent. Change your thinking toward what you desire, change your thinking toward what we want, because repentance is a change in decision that results in a change of direction.

With that being said, maybe we've talked about and challenged you today with our study that we don't want to be ignorant. We love to offer a number of Bible study tools to help us in our knowledge of the word of God. So I'm going to defer to our J. Webb with our awesome Back to the Bible study that's available online with our friend Rob Whitaker. Well, here is our J. Webb with the details, then I'll come back to wrap up our broadcast today.

J. Webb: Let's go back to the Bible, shall we? On International Gospel Hour, we always desire to go back to the Bible for our studies, and now we are delighted to offer a special video series through our friends at World Video Bible School. It's called "Back to the Bible" with our friend Rob Whitaker. A simple yet thorough study that deals with authority in religion, the church, and your salvation.

It's free, friends. Call us at 855-444-6988. Tell us your email address, say "Back to the Bible," and we will send the link to you. It's that easy. You can go to our website at internationalgospelhour.com, click on the contacts tab, leave us your email, type "Back to the Bible" in the message box, and we will send the link right away. We look forward to hearing from you.

Jeff Archey: Friends, we hope that study will be of your advantage. We're grateful, and I believe if you'll go online and let us know and reach out to us, let us send you that Back to the Bible study link. It is one of the finest studies and will help you in your knowledge of the word of God. If you are studying and you're questioning things, I believe this study will help to open your eyes and your hearts to things of which you would find of interest.

Through International Gospel Hour, we want to call people out of the world, we want to call people out of denominationalism. We want to call people to come, indeed, as stated, back to the Bible and to study those things that are of importance to God. We cannot afford to walk through our lives ignorant of God's will when He has provided for us everything possible to grow.

As Peter would say in 2 Peter 1, He's given us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, and how grateful we truly are. Friends, we want you to help us in our studies here at International Gospel Hour and here's how you can help us: just tune in, turn scripture, and let's study together. We don't want your money, everything we offer is free. We'll continue our studies together at another time, but for now, thank you for joining me today here on the International Gospel Hour broadcast. I am Jeff Archey and, friends, keep listening.

J. Webb: Thank you for listening today. To God be the glory, and we hope that our study today will draw you closer to His word to walk in His way. Feel free to listen to our other programs at our website at internationalgospelhour.com and join us next time.