A.God is gracious, merciful, and forgiving toward all people, especially toward those who act ignorantly in unbelief (1Tim. 1:13).
B.However, those who are ignorant by their own choice have no excuses.Let us consider the strange but common sin of willful ignorance.
II.A HISTORY OF WILLFUL IGNORANCE
A.The Gentiles chose to be ignorant of God.
1.The text of Romans 1 demonstrates the willful ignorance of the Gentiles.
a.They could not excuse themselves by saying they did not know about the Lord, for they did know of Him.Notice verses 20-21 – "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”
b.They willfully turned away from God, so God let them go their own destructive ways.Notice verse 28 – "And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper…”
c.Although they did not receive the Law of Moses, they were still knowledgeable of His moral law and willfully chose to defy it.Notice verse 32 – "…and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.”
2.Even though the Gentiles willfully forgot God, He remembered them.Now the time of willful ignorance must come to an end.
a.Paul spoke to Gentiles of the former times in Acts 14:16-17 – "In the generations gone by He permitted all the nations to go their own ways; and yet He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good and gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.”
b.In Acts 17:30-31, Paul spoke of a new age of repentance for the Gentiles that came with the gospel of Christ.He said, "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”
B.Likewise, the Jews chose to be ignorant of God’s will and their own faults.
1.Israel was blessed to receive the Law of Moses, but they chose to forget God’s word and suffered the penalty.
a.Moses warned Israel that they would forget God and His Law in Deuteronomy 8.Joshua did the same in Joshua 23-24.
b.Many years later when Josiah was king of Judah, he rediscovered the discarded book of the law in the temple.When it was read to him, he tore his clothes and said, "Go, inquire of the LORD for me and the people and all Judah concerning the words of this book that has been found, for great is the wrath of the LORD that burns against us, because our fathers have not listened to the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us” (2Ki. 22:13).
c.Josiah’s restoration of Judah was brief, and soon the people chose to forget God again.Notice the prophecy of Jeremiah 5:31 – "The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule on their own authority; and My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?”
d.Both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah suffered captivity because of their love of ignorance.
i.Notice the prophecy of Hosea 4:6 against Israel – "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.”
ii.A similar prophecy was given concerning Judah in Isaiah 5:13 – "Therefore My people go into exile for their lack of knowledge; and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude is parched with thirst.”
2.Worst of all, the Jews chose to reject God’s Christ in spite of the many proofs and prophecies that demonstrated who Jesus was.
a.One of the saddest statements of Scripture is found in John 1:11 – "He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.”
b.Jesus explained the Jews’ willful ignorance concerning Him in John 3:19-20 – "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.”
III.CHOOSING TO BE IGNORANT
A.Knowledge, wisdom, and understanding bring great blessings to their owners.
1.The book of Proverbs is filled with the promised blessings of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.These form the central theme of the whole book (see Prov. 1:1-7).
2.Both the Scriptures and experience tell us that those who will live by wisdom have better lives.They do not suffer the penalties of their own folly.
B.Why then would anyone choose to be ignorant?
1.In 2Thessalonians 2:10-12, Paul wrote of those who "did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.”
2.Many people will seek preachers and prophets who will tell them what they want to hear rather than the truth.
a.This happened in ancient Judah.Notice Isaiah 30:9-10 – "For this is a rebellious people, false sons, sons who refuse to listen to the instruction of the LORD; who say to the seers, ‘You must not see visions’; and to the prophets, ‘You must not prophesy to us what is right, speak to us pleasant words, prophesy illusions.’”
b.It still happens today.Notice 2Timothy 4:3-4 – "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”
3.Often when trying to prove themselves to be right, people will be willfully ignorant of anything that proves them wrong.Peter wrote of those who denied the second coming of Christ in 2Peter 3:5 – "For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water…”Other translations say "they willingly are ignorant” (KJV), "they willfully forget” (NKJV, ASV), and "they deliberately forget” (NIV).
4.People choose to be ignorant for various reasons, and all of them are foolish and faithless.
a.Some are filled with pride.
b.Some are do not want to change.They are comfortable with their ignorance.
c.Some are afraid.
d.Some are simply evil and seek to justify their evil deeds.
e.All of them are fools who "despise wisdom and instruction” (Prov. 1:7).
IV.CONCLUSION – LOOK AT YOURSELF
A.While we consider those who are willfully ignorant and think, "That is how they are,” let us also look at ourselves and ask, "Is that how we are?”
B.Are you choosing to forget any of the wisdom, knowledge, and instruction from God’s word?
1.Do you find yourself trying to refute any of the plain teachings of Scripture?
2.Do you desperately search for excuses and exceptions so that you don’t have to comply?
3.Do you compare yourself with others to justify false beliefs and bad behaviors?
C.If any of us find ourselves to be willfully ignorant, then let us repent, change our hearts, and receive the love of the truth.When we do, our lives will be transformed by wisdom, knowledge, and instruction.
