Begin with two minutes of stillness and silence before God.

You probably know someone who can rattle off obscure facts about everything—the college friend who memorized every line from The Office, the coworker who knows baseball statistics from 1987, or your uncle who's undefeated at family trivia night. They've turned information hoarding into an art form.

But here’s the thing about collecting facts: knowing everything about something doesn’t mean you actually understand it. And when it comes to our faith, the difference between knowing about God and actually knowing God can leave us spiritually impressive but relationally empty.

The Prince of Granada spent thirty-three years in solitary confinement with only one book: the Bible. By the time he died, he had memorized incredible details—like which verse contains every letter except 'j' and where to find the longest verse in Scripture.

Apparently, he never actually met the God those pages reveal. He became the ultimate Bible trivia champion while remaining spiritually unchanged.

Knowledge without application is just expensive storage space in your brain.

Paul warned the Corinthians about this exact trap: "While knowledge may make us feel important, it is love that really builds the church" (1 Corinthians 8:1). Knowledge has a way of inflating our spiritual ego while deflating our actual spiritual life. We start believing that knowing about God is the same as knowing God.

While working on my master’s degree in clinical Christian counseling, I had a theology teacher who could quote entire chapters of Scripture from memory but treated his students like we were interrupting his personal kingdom. His display of the fruit of the Spirit was anemic at best. He had downloaded the information but never installed the transformation. His theological knowledge was impressive; his resemblance to Jesus was not.

Jesus said simply, "If you love me, obey my commandments" (John 14:15). Not "if you know about me" or "if you can explain me to others," but "if you love me." Love shows up in action, not just in theological discussions.

James 1:22 challenges us: “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.”

Let me encourage you to identify one area where your biblical knowledge hasn’t translated into actual obedience. Perhaps you know you should forgive someone, serve others, or manage your finances differently. Stop studying that topic and start practicing it. God isn’t impressed by how much you know about His will—He’s waiting for you to actually do it.

Take two minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

Use the S.O.A.P. Method to study God’s Word.

• SCRIPTURE: What stands out to you in today’s passage?
• OBSERVATION: What is this text saying? What is the context? How does it fit with the verses before and after it? Are there any commands, instructions, or promises? 
• APPLICATION: How can you apply this verse to your life? What does this mean today? What is God saying to you? 
• PRAYER: Respond to the passage in prayer. Ask God to help you apply this truth to your life and spend some time listening to what He may be telling you.