Every so often some of the sages of this world come up with a statement that is rich with meaning for them and for us all. One such saying is: "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge." Those words were spoken by Stephen Hawking. This famous man spent his life trying to understand great things like the universe and life. He believed that there must be other planets out there like the earth that could contain life and as many others do, he wanted to prove and support evolution so that there is no need for a Creator. It is not easy for men of this stature to publicly proclaim they believe in God and creation, so they try to find other solutions to understand the marvels of science that they observe. He felt we really could understand the universe and "that makes us something very special." He certainly was right that we are something special within the universe, but understanding the universe is another matter.
For thousands of years humans have been enthralled by the sun, moon and stars. Some actually worship them without knowing anything about the planets, stars or our sun at all. In the days of Galileo which was only about 400 years ago, it was thought the earth was the centre of the uni-verse and everything revolved around the world. Galileo's proclamation that the earth revolves around the sun almost cost him his life. Ignorance certainly was a great enemy of true knowledge at that time as it is now. However, those who boldly proclaimed the world was flat or other such theories, were the true enemies of knowledge because they were so strong and adamant in their statements that no room was left for research and new understanding. It is the firm belief in a falsehood that blocks out the light of understanding. It is the illusion that we know that stops us from looking more deeply into matter and gathering new facts. Stephen Hawking's statement reflects a truth that confronts us in many areas. Something is not what it appears to be.
An illusion is defined as a false conception and pertains to an unreal vision. The word hallucina-tion might be used here and is a distortion of the senses. Illusion can be termed as a misleading perception. You will be seeing something, but the fact is that you see it in a different perspective. Illusion means misjudging the length, direction and shape of objects that are seen - something related to the appearance that one sees but misinterprets. An illusion can be thought of as some-thing that fools the mind. It seems the meaning Stephen Hawking intended in his statement was that when a person has the illusion of knowledge they fool their own mind. Thus it is an enemy of seeking true knowledge. His life's work was in testing and probing the knowledge that had been garnered from the work of other scientists, but with a mind open to new truths. At the same time, he would not believe that there must be a Creator behind the intricacies of life and exist-ence. It is true that once a person thinks they know something, there is a tendency to protect their positions and cease further investigation or questioning of that which attacks their belief. It is difficult to admit we are wrong and to allow a new way of thinking or a new piece of knowledge to enter our minds. So the illusion that we have much knowledge becomes an enemy to the truth. One example might be that on a hot dry desert when thirst and heat are overwhelming, people sometimes have an illusion that they see an oasis on the horizon. An illusion exists in a person's fancy or imagination. It can be innocent or benign. It is a trick of the senses usually.
Delusion is a similar word that has a slightly different meaning and is more dangerous. Delusion is more like something that we perceive to be true even after others prove it to be false. Both words are somewhat related but can be applied to different circumstances of thought. Delusion is defined as a false belief, or deception that is fixed in one's thoughts. We can deceive ourselves by accepting whatever support what we already believe. We can also be deceived when new in-formation massages some deep inner belief we have. For example, deep within, a person does not like being told what to do or how to live, so new information (be it true or false) is readily accepted if it supports our inner belief. An example using delusion is something like a "delusion of grandeur" or the thought that "happiness without suffering is a delusion" as a monk might be-lieve. We believe a delusion, even when it is contradicted. It is dangerous because it misleads a person in a negative way. A delusion is a dangerous deceptive idea.
Humans have been impacted by the thought patterns of Satan's world. They resist the laws and commandments of God. That inner drive made it easy for Satan to deceive Eve and that led to Adam also sinning (Gen. 3:1-7). God had given a clear command with serious results for sin, but the inner thought of Eve was where Satan worked. Adam knew better but did not resist. Mankind has shown God that they do not love the truth that could save them. They are drawn to actions that are more in line with their desires. This is a problem within every person to some degree. Paul cautioned church members about events that could shake their faith. When a person feels threatened or troubled, they can become vulnerable. God wants children who He can trust for eternity to work with Him and Christ in His glorious Kingdom. He tests our loyalty and our strength. Paul stated that God sent a strong delusion by allowing Satan with lying signs and wonders, to deceive all who did not love the truth. They want to believe a lie, if that lie means they do not need to change their beliefs or thought patterns (2 Thess. 2:9-12). Not only does mankind turn from the truth, they also have pleasure in unrighteousness or lawlessness. People do not like being told what to do even if they should suffer for that determination. Paul applauds those who had built a strong house on the truth and who would not be swayed by the deceit or delusion. He said to stand fast and hold the traditions that they had been taught (verse 15). It is good to be stubborn and cling to the truth when that truth originates from God. We find that truth in the gospels that were taught by the apostles whom Christ had educated.
Stephen Hawking observed the illusions of knowledge that some had become mired in. He could see how that hindered further search for truth. All the while, he suffered from his own delusion of evolution which drove him to try to find some evidence, any evidence of any form of life on another planet. This earth has billions of perfectly formed creatures that astonish us by their beauty or way their bodies move. The evidence is so overwhelming that every living thing is a miracle of creation. But when a person does not want to believe that there is a supreme Creator - and especially one who can give commands and laws that must be followed, then that person will commence a life-long search for information that supports his inner belief. Evolution has become so deeply engrained in our concept of life, that we simply cannot believe anything that might contradict that position. We will resist that and join with those who support that resistance. Ste-phen Hawking made some wonderful discoveries about the universe, but those discoveries are not strongly supported with science that can be proven and true. Much of his observations point to a little more understanding of this vast universe, but also leave many unanswered questions. The search for a possible planet similar to earth that might support life carries with it a whole lot of ifs and non-answers. It is not unreasonable to think that some of the many suns out there would have planets circling them as our sun does. Finding planets that might even have a few attributes of earth is a long way from finding planets exactly like the earth. We worry about the slight changes of global warming and fear that life could end on earth. Therefore, any planet that might support life would have to be exactly like the earth in every way. What is missed is the fact that this earth is perfectly positioned and functioning so that life can exist.
We can have the illusion that other earths like ours exist in outer space and driven by our unwill-ingness to seek God, we can see other earths like an oasis. We can delude ourselves or be delud-ed and deceived by accepting unproven information as though it were true and life can exist al-most anywhere. That makes God unnecessary, and life an accident. That is from Satan.