You Can Know Scripture & Still Miss the Point

By Summer Martin

I love theology. Yep, I’m a nerd, but that’s okay.

I love studying Scripture, digging into the meanings behind the original words, examining historical context, discovering where biblical history intersects with the history I was taught in public school, and seeing how the entirety of God’s Word fits together.

Give me a theological rabbit hole, a cup of Sonic ice, and absolutely no interruptions, and I’ll be perfectly content.

However, something has been weighing on me lately.

We can know an awful lot about God without actually living like we know Him.

Somewhere between memorizing Scripture, studying doctrine, and learning to articulate what we believe, I think it’s possible that we become so focused on having the right answers that we forget what those answers should be producing in us.

We can explain the doctrine of sanctification while refusing to acknowledge our own sin. We can defend the sovereignty of God while anxiously attempting to control every detail of our lives. We can articulate the doctrines of grace while showing remarkably little grace to the people around us. And we can quote Scripture about loving our neighbors while treating those same neighbors like they’re an inconvenience.

Ouch. Yep, that one stepped on my toes, too.

Knowledge Is Good. Pride Is Not.

Let me be clear: biblical knowledge is not the enemy.

In fact, Scripture repeatedly calls believers to grow in their knowledge of God and His Word. We are called to study, discern truth from error, and become increasingly grounded in sound doctrine.

Hosea 4:6 warns about the destruction that comes from a lack of knowledge. Paul instructs Timothy to rightly handle the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15). And Peter tells believers to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18).

So please don’t think I’m advocating for less theology.

I’m advocating for theology that actually makes its way from our heads into our hearts and out through our hands.

In 1 Corinthians 8:1, Paul writes:

“This ‘knowledge’ puffs up, but love builds up.”

Now, Paul isn’t suggesting that knowledge itself is sinful. He’s addressing the arrogance that can develop when knowledge becomes disconnected from love.

And isn’t that worth examining?

Because it is entirely possible to win a theological argument and lose an opportunity to demonstrate Christlike character.

It’s possible to be correct in what we say but sinful in how we say it.

And believe it or not, it’s possible to become so enamored with our own understanding that we stop recognizing how desperately we still need the grace of God.

The more we learn about the holiness of God, the more aware we should become of our own sinfulness.

Not less.

The Pharisees Knew Their Scriptures

Want to get a little more uncomfortable?

No?

Well… here we go.

The Pharisees weren’t ignorant of what the Scriptures said. They studied them diligently, knew the Law, understood religious traditions, and could debate theological matters.

But when the promised Messiah stood directly in front of them, many refused to recognize Him.

In John 5:39–40, Jesus says:

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.”

Let’s think about that for a minute.

They were studying the very Scriptures that testified about Christ, yet they rejected the One to whom those Scriptures pointed.

Let’s also be careful about casually labeling every Christian we disagree with a Pharisee, because that’s become an awfully convenient accusation in modern Christianity.

However, we would also be foolish to ignore that warning.

Religious knowledge, outward obedience, and familiarity with Scripture do not automatically equal saving faith.

People can become experts at discussing the things of God while neglecting communion with God Himself.

When Theology Becomes a Competition

Have you ever witnessed how quickly a conversation about Scripture can turn into a competition of “I know more than you, see!” and “No, I know more, see!”?

Someone mentions a passage, and suddenly we’re off to the great debate, discussing Greek verb tenses, theological terminology, historical confessions, and so much more.

I thoroughly enjoy these types of conversations, but sometimes I wonder whether we are genuinely seeking to understand God’s Word or simply trying to establish ourselves as the most knowledgeable person in the room.

Those are two very different motivations.

James 3:13 asks:

“Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.”

Did you read that thoroughly?

Not by how many theological terms he can pronounce.

Not by how quickly he can correct someone.

Not by how effectively he can dismantle another person’s argument.

But by his conduct.

Stew on that.

Wisdom demonstrated through meekness.

That should humble every single one of us. The goal of biblical knowledge isn’t to make us impressive; it’s to make us increasingly conformed to the image of Christ.

Being a Hearer Is Not the Same as Being a Doer

My good buddy James says in James 1:22:

“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”

Ooph. Did you read that last part?

Deceiving yourselves.

James doesn’t merely say that hearing without obeying is unproductive. He says it’s self-deception.

We can sit through sermons, attend Bible studies, and take in information until we’re overflowing with it, but if that knowledge never produces obedience, we’re missing something fundamental.

I’m not talking about earning our salvation through good works.

There’s nothing we could ever do to earn it. Salvation is a free gift of God’s grace. We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.

Our obedience is not the foundation of our salvation but a fruit of genuine faith and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit.

That distinction, though, should never become an excuse for remaining unchanged.

When Tragedy Strikes, Do We Still Believe What We Know?

It’s one thing to know Scripture when life is going relatively well, right?

But can we agree that it’s another thing entirely when life falls apart?

When the phone rings and the news on the other end changes everything.

When the diagnosis isn’t what you prayed for.

When your marriage is struggling, your family is hurting, or something happens that leaves you questioning everything you thought you understood.

When someone you love dies.

Suddenly, all that theology you’ve spent years studying isn’t just something we’re casually discussing over coffee or tea.

It’s being tested in the middle of our suffering.

We can discuss and explain the sovereignty of God until we’re blue in the face. We can quote Romans 8:28 without hesitation. We can confidently proclaim that God is good, faithful, just, and unchanging.

But what happens when our circumstances don’t feel like those things are true?

Do we still believe what we’ve been so confidently proclaiming?

Or do we allow our circumstances to become the lens through which we interpret God’s character?

And before anyone comes at me with pitchforks, I’m not suggesting that grief, sorrow, or even wrestling with difficult questions means someone lacks faith.

Scripture is full of faithful people who experienced profound suffering.

Job grieved deeply.

David cried out in anguish.

Jeremiah lamented.

Even Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus.

The Christian life does not come with an exemption from heartbreak, and knowing sound doctrine doesn’t make us immune to suffering.

But here’s where I think we can miss the point.

We can become so consumed with trying to understand what God is doing that we forget to rest in what He’s already revealed about who He is.

We know God is sovereign, but when tragedy strikes, we demand an explanation.

We know God is good, but when life becomes painful, we begin measuring His goodness by our circumstances.

We know God is faithful, but when prayers aren’t answered the way we hoped, we struggle to believe He hasn’t abandoned us.

And, well, sometimes we know all the right verses to give someone else who’s suffering, but when suffering knocks on our own door, we discover that quoting Scripture and actually clinging to its truths are two very different things.

The purpose of knowing Scripture isn’t to guarantee that we’ll understand every tragedy. It’s to anchor us in the character of God when we don’t.

Sound Doctrine Should Produce Sound Living

Paul repeatedly connects sound doctrine with godly conduct.

In Titus 2, he doesn’t simply instruct believers to hold to sound doctrine; he explains how that doctrine should shape the lives of older men, older women, younger men and women, and servants.

Theology was never intended to remain an intellectual exercise.

What we believe about God should influence how we live before Him.

If we believe God is sovereign, that truth should shape our trust in His providence.

If we believe we have been forgiven an immeasurable debt through Christ, that truth should shape our willingness to forgive others.

If we believe salvation is entirely of grace, that truth should leave absolutely no room for spiritual boasting.

And if we believe the Holy Spirit is actively sanctifying believers, we should be willing to acknowledge the areas of our own lives where we still need to grow.

Theology should make us more worshipful, more humble, more discerning, and more obedient.

Not more argumentative.

Don’t Stop Studying. Start Applying.

I don’t want anyone to walk away from this article thinking they should spend less time studying Scripture.

Quite the opposite, actually.

Study more.

Dig deeper.

Ask the difficult questions. Learn about church history. Understand doctrine. Examine the context of passages rather than pulling verses out of thin air to support whatever point you’re trying to make.

Please, for the love of all things hermeneutical, study your Bible!

But don’t stop at understanding what it says.

Ask yourself what obedience to that truth looks like in your life.

When Scripture confronts your pride, repent.

When it exposes bitterness, repent.

When it reveals selfishness, repent.

When it challenges your assumptions, be willing to submit your understanding to the authority of God’s Word.

Let it lead you to worship.

Because the purpose of studying Scripture is not simply to accumulate information about God. It’s to know Him and be transformed as the Holy Spirit works in us through His Word.

A Final Thought

I think one of the most dangerous places we can find ourselves spiritually is believing that because we know the right answers, we must be living the right way.

And I’m just going to go ahead and say it: those two things, well, they aren’t synonymous.

None of us are immune to temptation.

Not pastors, ministry leaders, biblical counselors, theology students, and certainly not the woman sitting here writing an article about it.

I need this reminder just as much as anyone else.

Because I don’t want to become someone who can beautifully articulate the attributes of God while failing to reflect His character in the way I live.

And I don’t want my love for theology to ever become greater than my love for the God whom that theology reveals.

So, by all means, know your Bible.

Study it diligently. Defend it faithfully. Handle it accurately.

Remember that the same Word you’re so eager to explain to everyone else is the Word you must first be willing to submit yourself to.

Because knowing what Scripture says is not the same as living in submission to the One who gave it.

And if all our studying makes us more impressed with ourselves rather than more amazed by Christ, well, perhaps we’ve missed the point.