I cannot tell you the number of times that this verse has resonated within me – Father speaking to my heart - and how useful it has become in my daily walk with Yahweh and Christ. I also cannot tell you how easy it is to rely on your own understanding if you are not very careful and aware and seeking Father’s guidance on every question that comes to mind and at every crossroads you may encounter.
So what does it mean to rely on your own understanding, and why can doing so be so detrimental?
What might have happened to Noah and his family if he’d responded that there was no way the entire earth would flood, simply because he relied on his own limited understanding and chose to believe it would not happen because he could not understand how it could happen?
How might the Israelites been led from slavery to the Egyptians, if Moses had denied what he’d seen and heard at the burning bush, simply because he did not understand how a bush could be consumed by fire and not burn?
And what might have come of Mary if she’d denied the existence of the angel that delivered the message to her that she would bear the son of God, simply because she could not wrap her mind around the existence angels and their parts in Yahweh’s plan?
I bring up these supernatural Biblical experiences because it’s all intertwined with scripture and truth, as you can see from the examples given of Noah, Moses and Mary. Thankfully, none of these people whom Father Yahweh chose to serve Her relied on their own understanding. And because they did not, they successfully carried out the roles that Father asked them to play in bringing Her will into fruition. And not only that, they came to know Father Yahweh in ways that they probably never imagined they would. They experienced the amazing, the miraculous, and what they might have once believed to be impossible made possible.
Supernatural occurrences continue even today, just as they did in Biblical times. And there are many researchers and experts out there who reject the possible because they believe it to be impossible. One type of skeptic in particular follows the “Occam’s Razor” theory which states that: “Of several acceptable explanations for a phenomenon, the simplest is preferable, provided that it takes all circumstances into account.” (Wikipedia)
They discount the truth of the existence of spirits, ghosts and angels and even God Herself simply because they cannot capture them in a jar and study it and because the simplest explanation for them is that if they can’t explain its existence, they discount it and rely on their own understanding instead.
Someone else might have their own ideas and theories and be so wrapped up in them that there is no room for allowing the real truth in. They have done a lot of study on a particular subject and for their own reasons wish to be an authority on that subject – therefore, when a different theory or even truth is presented to them they discount it because it does not match up with what they already know even if what they already know is in fact a falsehood.
So rather than taking another look at the evidence presented to them and opening their minds to different possibilities, they remain stagnant and uninterested and sometimes even quite defensive because they might be proven wrong and prefer instead to rely on their own understanding.
A lot of time has passed since Christ Jesus walked the earth and in this time a lot has been done to muddy the waters of his teachings – of truth. Some of it has been encouraged by spirit realm inhabitants who fight on the opposing side of the spiritual war in misleading mankind, but mankind has also had a hand in encouraging the falsehoods that many believe to be truth when it comes to scriptural teachings and truth.
In today’s day and age, in End Times, we see many who are encouraging others to believe that there probably is no God in major advertising campaigns around the world.
We see those who prefer to believe that there are many roads to God because committing to just one road seems too “narrow minded”.
And we also see those who consider themselves theologians and experts on the scriptures and particularly in these End Times, study the scriptures and prophecy looking for the signs that will tell them when the end will come when in fact what they were taught about the scriptures to begin with was a lie and this lie becomes their foundation.
This is particularly dangerous because the foundation is faulty and because they spend so much time furthering their studies without first seeking Father’s guidance and waiting for an answer. They move forward and they essentially become blinded to truth, while all the while thinking their eyes have been opened.
All of these above examples are ways of relying on your own understanding. It is a blinding of the mind.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4 But if, in fact, our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. Regarding them: the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
Relying on your own understanding not only limits you, but it also places limitations on Yahweh who is in fact and in truth, capable of anything and of all things. Placing limitations on yourself and on Yahweh places limitations on your own spiritual growth and on coming to a fuller and more complete understanding of the truth. It keeps you shackled to this world and the lies and misconceptions that reside within it.
Particularly in this day and age and with the Tribulation upon us, this can be particularly detrimental in that it can come at the cost of your very eternal life. To cling to manmade religious ideals such as water baptism and the trinity as requirements for salvation is yet another example of relying on your own understanding.
The following is from the Kingdom Message of Salvation, which is the message our ministry has been charged with delivering to mankind: “If those people have the right heart condition, they will see the Light. If not, they will remain opposed to what is ministered to them. That is their Free Will choice. Even if they claim to be foot-step followers of Christ, they will be deemed not worthy of Salvation unless they exhibit the Holy Spirit from within them. If they believe falsehoods about Christ, cling to their man-made religious belief systems and reject the truth will be marked accordingly by the Cherubic Order of Angels. All people are judged by what is really in their hearts.”
It is alright that we seek knowledge, but we must seek the knowledge, understanding and wisdom that come from Father Yahweh alone so that we are not deceived as She is the source of all these things. The good news is that Father Yahweh is always there to guide us, if only we seek Her guidance first. If at any point we encounter a view that is new or different from what we have come to believe, it is via Her Holy Spirit that we will be able to sift through this information and determine what is truth and what is not.
Proverbs 4:7 “Wisdom is supreme—so get wisdom. And whatever else you get, get understanding.”