The Knowledge of the holy is an evangelical piece of literature based in the Twentieth Century. The book consists of a deep exploration of God’s attributes and character. Tozer explains that the attribute of God refers to what God reveals as true about Himself. He explains that it is mandatory for the church and Christians to understand God. He further describes that the cause of downfall for the church is a failure to understand the character of God. He claims that a person who has the correct knowledge of God is delivered from many temporary problems. Tozer also introduces the concept of sin and claims that the biggest sin is not idolatry, but it is building an image of God that is false, he explains that creating an idol in the mind is a sin to God which is similar to creating a physical idol.
Tozer elevates the view of God and also confesses that he is somehow ignorant of the divine. He also claims that Christians in the twentieth century have placed God at a charity level. People are ignorant and do not understand why they are necessary to God. Christians measure the power of God through their limitations. Tozer states that Christians would see the difference if they looked at God without limitations. He further explains that people would be amazed if they discovered the acts of God that He carries out in secret.
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Tozer concludes his book by emphasizing on the favors bestowed on human beings above all creatures. Human beings have the privilege of God’s goodness in deriving their welfare, with God’s wisdom and power to achieve anything. He discusses the sovereignty of God and how human beings have been granted free will. He states that God has the ability to remain sovereign and at the same time allowing people to have the free will.
A.W Tozer is a unique author whose is famous for his work on Christianity, orthodox teachings, and God. He is passionate about God and his work mostly leaves the readers thinking differently about certain concepts. The author begins the book by stating the reason for putting it down. The states that the source of problems of humanity is that there is diminishing knowledge of the holy. He further states that when Christians understand strongly the knowledge of the holy, then this becomes the cure for these problems. Tozer states that it is not possible to practice moral deeds when the internal attitude and idea of God is full of errors and insufficient. The nourishment of spirituality begins from conceiving the correct nature and character of God by who He really is. The book consists of short chapters which are packed with quality information regarding God and certain concepts that Christians ignore yet they are very crucial in worshipping God the right way.
The aim of ‘The Knowledge of the Holy’ is to educate the readers on the attributes of God. The aim of Tozer writing the book comes from the complaint that Christians do not remember the teachings of great writers such as Augustine and Anselm. Christians do not regard God highly as he is supposed to be treated. The advice from Tozer is that Christians are supposed to worship God using his correct image. Failure to do this makes Christians create their own ideas about God that are not informed and complete and this forms the root of idolatry. Christians are required to have the correct understanding of God, scriptures, and Christianity and this ensures that they worship God in the way it is supposed to be.
Another concept borrowed from Tozer is that when Christians define God, they are defining only one being. This implies that God does not have different aspects to His character and therefore human beings are required to differentiate the character of God from the understanding based on literature and linguistic variations. One point of concern is that Tozer describes God as being simple. This fact is difficult to quantify because if human beings are created in God’s image, then the word ‘simple’ does not fit to define the character of God. Human beings are very complicated in terms of character and also their ways of thinking. Understanding humanity is also exhausting and there is no one way of explaining why humans do things the way they do them. Therefore, explaining God as simple is questionable because there is also an aspect of His character being mysterious.
Tozer’s work is thought-provoking because it opens the minds of the Christians and allows them to understand the correct way of referring to their creator and the source of their existence. The author explains the meaning of idolatry and educates the readers that idolatry is not just creating physical representations of a supreme God but it starts from the mind. When people claim to be Christians and yet they have a misconceived understanding of God, then this is idolatry. He further explains that knowing God does not just implying preaching about a personal understanding of the scriptures during Sabbath. If such a person does not refer to God the way it is required, then this arrogance is categorized as idolatry. Preachers and Christians are obliged to take some time to analyze and understand the power of God before they even engage other people in the discussion of Christianity. This gives rise to a group of believers who are focused on one goal of worshiping God in the right way.
In terms of explaining the meaning of God, Tozer’s tone seems to lean on the side of explaining God as being more powerful compared to Jesus. In addition to this, the concept of the Holy Spirit is not represented in his book. According to the scriptures, the Trinity consists of God the father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. All these elements of the Holy Trinity are equal and there is no member of the Trinity that is powerful than the other. This implies that Tozer depicting that God is more powerful compared to Jesus is somewhat misleading. This is contrary to the Christianity where Jesus is required to be as powerful as the father. Tozer’s instruction of superiority and inferiority of the Trinity is a questionable matter.
Tozer’s book is informative and educative in terms of comprehending God, his powers and what is expected of Christians. It is aligned with the scripture which states that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom and also by a section that states that foolish people fail to understand instructions and knowledge. Christians are obliged to seek the right knowledge of God which results in wisdom. ‘The Knowledge of the Holy’ is a book that consists of the right knowledge regarding God and his role in the lives of Christians. The book also deviates from the shallow understanding of religion and Christianity to the deep details regarding what believers should focus on so that they do not perish. The book can be recommended to all the Christians to help them renew their minds regarding the existence of God and the right way of walking in the Christian journey. The readers are provoked referring the interpretation of the scriptures and helping them not to deviate from the true concept of God, the church, and the Bible. The author dives deeply into the real issues facing Christians in the modern church and every Christian should definitely find this piece of literature useful.
