We can Know 

By Brock Hartwigsen 

There are some in the church today who have come to know a false doctrine. They have come to know that no man can know anything. They know that man can have his opinions but he cannot know. I know that this concept contradicts plain simple teaching in the Scriptures.

In the short book of 1 John the Holy Spirit makes it very plain that man can know. Notice what he says we can know:

We can know Jesus (2:3; 5:20).
We can know that we know Jesus (2:3).
We can know we are in Jesus (2:5; 5:20).
We can know it is the last times (2:18).
We can know all things (2:20).
We can know the truth (2:21).
We can know that Jesus is righteous (2:29).
We can know that everyone that does righteousness is born of God (2:29).
We can know that when Jesus appears we shall be like him (3:2).
We can know that Jesus was manifested to take away sins (3:5).
We can know that we have passed from death unto life (3: 14).
We can know that no murderer has eternal life (3:15).
We can know that we are of the truth (3:19).
We can know that God dwells in us (3:24; 4:13). We can know who has the Spirit of God (4:2).
We can know God (4:6).
We can know that we dwell in God (4:13).
We can know when we love the children of God (5:2).
We can know that we have eternal life (5:13).
We can know that God hears us (5:15).
We can know that God will answer our prayers (5:15).
We can know that we are of God (5:19).
We can know that Jesus has come (5:20).
If man cannot know, then the Holy Spirit and John did not know, because they wrote 26 times that man can know 23 different things.

I don't know about you, but if God says I can know and man says that he knows I cannot know because he knows that man can know nothing, I will believe God who knows everything instead of a man who claims to know nothing.


Published August 1996