The Quantitative and Qualitative Dimensions

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UV 1604/10000 The Quantitative and the Qualitative Dimensions
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die
Genesis 3 v 3
We have increased in knowledge but declined in wisdom. Mankind has collectively and individually climbed the wrong tree- the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We have made life an admixture of good and evil. But God intended that we climb the tree of wisdom, that we will be filled with a love for God, a hatred for evil and a desire for good, a desire to do only good to others. From generation to generation, mankind has indeed increased in knowledge, the knowledge that is creative as well as destructive, a double edged phenomenon.
Wisdom is the distillation of knowledge. When a ton of knowledge is analysed or squeezed, we get an ounce of wisdom. It comes from an intimate knowledge of God who alone is absolutely good and perfect. Knowledge is the leader’s edge but it is only the boundary of the domain of wisdom. The Kingdom of God is all about wisdom- about being wise in heart. Knowledge gives us the urge or itch to always attempt what is forbidden. It is said that every human being has this embedded negative in his or her mind to breach the boundaries and trespass into what is not permissible, legitimate or right in the sight of God. Wisdom will enable us to recognize the boundaries of legitimate action and not transgress it.
We get grafted to the “good root” again when we begin to believe in Jesus and to follow His commands and understand as well as apply His teachings. As we grow in our knowledge of God, of good by imbibing His word, we begin to shoot up, bear branches and leaves for healing and blessing as well as fruit or Christ-like traits. He is the tree of eternal life that God removes from the Garden of Eden lest man eats of it and lives forever. Now the tree of eternal life is restored to us and we can take and eat of it and live free of evil, free of the sting of death- its permanence, free to live the abundant and eternal life, implying the quantitative as well as the qualitative dimensions. If a man is climbing and eating only of the tree of knowledge, he might live only the quantitative dimension and ignore the qualitative. The quantitative dimension implies that our need will be met adequately while the qualitative dimension implies that we bear the fruit of the character of God- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, self control. The root of such fruit is not knowledge but spiritual wisdom. If we represent the quantitative versus qualitative dimensions on a graph, the quantitative dimensions will be on the X axis since it will all end in naught one day while the qualitative dimension is represented on the Y axis and it will be rewarded as it grows.

Prateep V Philip