Imagine being told of and then given a small deposit of gold with a map to a sure vast treasure. The map consists of learning truths and discovering that things you thought were true are misconceptions and lies that, if held onto, will keep you from the great vast treasure.
Quickly, you obtain knowledge and you begin feeling good about yourself. You begin to look at others and think, “If you only knew the lies you live. If you knew the truth, it would set you on the path to the vast treasure I am seeking. The knowledge I now possess has made me greater than you.” Such was the mentality of some in the Corinthian congregation.
Paul shared with them the rich gospel truth and the hope of eternal life with God and his Son, Christ Jesus, a few years earlier. God sent them the Holy Spirit as a down deposit. The Spirit revealed to them truths through the apostles Paul, Apollos, and perhaps others.
The knowledge the congregation obtained puffed them up. They did not build others up in love. Because they did not practice love, they did not know what they ought to know. They did not love their fellow believer.
Jesus said if we love his little ones, we love him. Since those puffed up by knowledge did not practice love for neighbor, they did not love God. Did God know them?
What is more important to me? Knowledge is easy, for it does not harm me. Love for people is hard because they can and probably will harm me. Love is better than knowledge. By practicing love, I can know God, Christ Jesus. Do I want Jesus to say when I stand before him, “I do not know you. Go away from me.”
