Life-Formation vs Information

Those who chase after great amounts of knowledge and information about God often seek to satisfy their reasoning rather than their hearts. They desire to attain to God through external means — through intellect, books, or debate — rather than through the quiet inward life of the Spirit. Yet in no such manner can a person come to a truly passionate and intimate relationship for the Lord.  

The mind may apprehend ideas about God, but only the spirit can know Him. There is a vast difference between knowing of Him and knowing Him. Those who seek after God merely through the accumulation of information about Scripture or theology become scholars of religion rather than lovers of God. They may handle holy truths, but they have not touched the Holy One.  

Such people have not yet entered the unseen realms. They do not realize that the hidden things of God can only be found within the spirit — in that secret inner place where God reveals Himself to the humble and the surrendered. For the true mystery of the Christian life is not external — it is Christ in you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). The indwelling Christ is not a doctrine to be understood but a divine reality to be experienced.  

He lives within us, not merely to be admired, but to be formed in us. The Apostle Paul travailed in prayer, saying, “My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4:19). This is the essence of spiritual formation: not learning about Christ, but becoming like Christ because He lives within.  

Surprisingly, some even condemn this idea of inward discovery, dismissing it as mysticism or emotionalism. But this rejection arises because they neither understand it nor desire it. The theologian who never finds an internal way to his Lord misses the very heart of the faith. He searches for knowledge but not communion, information but not intimacy. He stands at the door of divine mystery but never enters in.  

The Apostle Paul speaks of this when he says: 

“If any man thinks he is wise among you in this world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise.” — 1 Corinthians 3:18 

True wisdom begins when one lays down self-reliance and intellectual pride to

approach God in simplicity and humility. It has become a sacred principle

among those who walk the inner path that practice must come before theory —

that living experience must precede abstract understanding.  

The Proper Place of Knowledge 

We must not despise education, for God Himself is the source of all truth. Learning, study, and sound doctrine are essential tools for the believer. The Scriptures urge us to “study to show yourself approved unto God” (2 Timothy 2:15) and to grow in “the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). The mind, when surrendered to the Spirit, becomes a noble instrument through which divine truth can be expressed and applied.  

But there is a grave danger when information and education get ahead of spiritual formation — when what we know surpasses what we have become. Knowledge without transformation leads to arrogance; revelation without humility breeds deception. If our learning outpaces our love, our wisdom becomes a stumbling block instead of a light.  

Jesus never condemned learning; He condemned lifeless learning — knowledge detached from relationship. The Pharisees knew the Scriptures with precision, yet missed the Living Word standing before them. They had mastered the text but not met the Author. In contrast, the disciples, though untrained in the eyes of the world, were recognized as men “who had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). Their power came not from intellectual mastery but from spiritual intimacy.  

When Information Outruns Formation 

Whenever the pursuit of knowledge replaces the pursuit of holiness, the soul becomes unbalanced. It is possible to have a library full of theology yet an empty heart. The danger lies not in education itself, but in the pride that often accompanies it — the illusion that knowing about God is the same as knowing Him. When this happens, information becomes idolatry — a substitute for transformation.  

The Holy Spirit was sent not merely to inform us but to form us — to conform us to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29). Knowledge must become encounter; truth must become transformation.  Every teaching, every doctrine, every study must ultimately lead us back to the living Person of Jesus Christ.  

Therefore, let education serve devotion, and let knowledge bow before intimacy. Let theology fuel worship, not replace it. When the intellect kneels before the Spirit, learning becomes illumination; when the mind submits to the heart’s devotion, wisdom becomes worship.  

The Call to Inward Reality 

Do not rush to accumulate information about divine things before you have encountered the Divine Himself. Let your first pursuit be inward — to sit quietly before Him, to seek His voice in the silence of your heart, to let His Spirit illuminate your inner being. Once you have touched His presence, every word of Scripture will come alive, every doctrine will glow with meaning, and every act of service will spring from love rather than duty.  

For in that secret place — that holy chamber of the heart — God still speaks, reveals, and reigns. And to those who enter there, He imparts not only knowledge, but life itself.  

“And this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” — John 17:3