Each morning on my way to class, I walk by a myriad of posters in UND’s Merrifield Hall, the liberal arts building. As I walk by the bulletin boards of the 2nd floor, I see colorful posters advertising the variety of courses offered in the Fall 2012 semester. Introduction to Logic. Feminist Philosophy. Tragedy and Comedy. Metaethics. Women in Hinduism. Religious Inquiry.
There’s a lot of breadth of knowledge out there, I think to myself. These are all topics I know very little about. As I ascended the final flight of stairs at the end of the 2nd floor hallway, I remembered that there’s a difference between breadth and depth.
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy which depends on basic human tradition and the principles of this world rather than on Christ” (Col 2:8).
There is much to be known and much to be studied. It’s not bad or wrong to have a wide understanding of how the world works. What’s dangerous is when we start to think that the breadth of knowledge is somehow deep, when it’s actually very shallow – hollow. There’s truly only one area of study that is so deep that we can’t ever reach the bottom:
“For in Christ all the fullness of the deity lives in bodily form” (2:9).
There’s but one true depth, and it’s in knowing Him. And the amazing thing is that we have access to this fullness – this depth.
“And you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority” (2:10).
I’m all for studying the way the world works and the way humans function (I’m taking an anthropology course right now, and it’s fascinating to me!), but we need to be careful that the patterns of this world’s thinking and basic human traditions don’t capture us. The reality of Christ goes far above the reality of this world.
“And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ” (Phil 1:9-10).
Knowledge is not bad, but without the depth of Christ, it is futile, because we’ll never be able to discern what is best.
Oh, to know Him more! To understand the depths of Him!