“According to the Time He Had Learned”
Knowledge is value neutral; how we choose to use knowledge is not.
The wise men and Herod had the same knowledge concerning the general time frame within which Jesus was to be born, although the wise men had it first and then shared it with Herod.
The wise men used their knowledge to find Jesus and worship him; Herod used that same knowledge to try to find Jesus and kill him.
Some use their knowledge about germs to wage war against disease; others use their knowledge about germs to develop germ-based weapons for people to use in waging war against each other.
Some use their knowledge of nuclear physics to make advances in the production of energy; others use their knowledge of nuclear physics to make advances in the production of bombs.
Some use their knowledge of information technology to enhance the flow of information; others use their knowledge of information technology to increase the flow of disinformation.
O God, inspire us to use our knowledge for good and not for evil, for help and not for harm, for building up and not for tearing down, and for love and not for hate.
May we apply our knowledge graciously and ethically; may we always be thinking about how you would have us use it and about how we can do the most good with it.
Amen.
“When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men” (Matthew 2:16).
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