Supplementing Virtue with knowledge

Because of our faith in Jesus, we live a righteous life. In order to reap more rewards of our virtue, we need to add knowledge to eat. We need to develop the earnest desire to know him and we shall receive the fruits of his knowledge in abundance.

Jesus asked his disciples who do people say he is and he then asked them, “But what about you, who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15). Peter replied by saying that he is the Christ, the son of the living God.

Because Peter illustrated that he has had the earnest desire to know Jesus, he was blessed and his knowledge was effective and productive. He received all the powers from Jesus and his work after the ascension is well documented in the book of Acts.

Another lesson we learn here is that the more you seek the knowledge of God, He reveals to you the mysteries that are hidden from men. For his knowledge of who Christ is, Peter received this blessing from Jesus;

“Blessed are you Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven,” (Matthew 16: 17-19).

This is it! Because Peter supplemented his virtue with knowledge, he received a powerful blessing that gave him authority to control everything on earth. More than anything he received the keys to the kingdom of heaven. He received the anointing to lead people to the kingdom of heaven.

The knowledge of the heavenly secrets is a blessing given to those who seek the kingdom of God and are walking with Jesus all the time - those who develop a close relationship with him. The disciples asked Jesus why he was speaking in parables to the crowd and he responded by saying that the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has not been given to them.

“But blessed are your eyes because they see and your ears because they hear. For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear but did not hear it.” (Matthew 13: 16-17).

The revelation of the secrets of God was not given to many righteous people because they did not have the privilege of knowing Christ. If you seek to know more about the secrets in heaven, you receive your fruits in abundance. “Whoever has will be given more, and he will have in abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him,” (Matthew 13:12).

You can have faith, live a righteous life but if you do not seek the knowledge of the secrets of heaven, you even risk losing what you already have.