The Way of Gratitude: “When Know-It-All’s Miss It All”

The Way of Gratitude 

Introduction

Good morning Eastern Shore Baptist Church. I am so glad that you are here today worshiping with us. My name is Stuart Davidson, and I am the pastor here. Today we are continuing a 4 week series entitled “The Way of Gratitude”. Throughout this series, we have been reminded that gratitude is far more than a response to good circumstances. Gratitude is the mark of a mature Christian. It is the heart that remembers who God is, what God has done, and how God continues to sustain us every single day. A grateful believer is a growing believer.

As followers of Jesus, gratitude reshapes everything about us. It changes our attitudes, it steadies our emotions, and it strengthens our faith. When we give thanks, we are actively choosing to trust God’s character rather than our own understanding. We are choosing to see His hand in the blessings and even in the burdens. Gratitude becomes the soil where spiritual maturity grows.

A Christian who is maturing in Christ cannot walk around acting like a spiritual know it all. You cannot grow in grace while pretending to be the genius in the room. You cannot chase humility while playing the expert, the authority, or the one who has everything figured out. 

Pride talks loud. 

Humility listens deep. 

Pride assumes. 

Humility receives. 

Pride misses what humility sees. 

And the moment we act like we already know everything, we set ourselves up to overlook the very truth God is trying to show us. Even the brightest people in the world can miss what is simple and obvious. 

Let me show you what I mean.

In 1999, NASA launched the Mars Climate Orbiter, an incredibly advanced and expensive spacecraft designed by some of the smartest engineers on the planet. The team behind it included graduates from MIT, Caltech, and some of the brightest scientific minds in the world. These people were not short on intelligence. They were brilliant.

But as the spacecraft made its way toward Mars, something surprising happened. The orbiter drifted off course. It began descending far too quickly. Then, suddenly, it disappeared. The entire mission was lost.

When NASA investigated what went wrong, they discovered the mistake. It was not a major computer failure. It was not a damaged thruster. It was not a complicated systems error.

It was simple.

One team of engineers used the metric system.

The other team used the English system.

Feet instead of meters.

Pounds instead of newtons.

And because no one slowed down long enough to double check, because everyone assumed they already knew what they were doing, the mismatch caused the orbiter to enter Mars’ atmosphere at the wrong angle. It burned up, ending a 327 million dollar mission because of a basic oversight.

In the official report…

NASA wrote that the failure resulted from, quote, “a failure to use common sense checks.”

Think about that. Brilliant people, world class experts, lost an entire spacecraft because what they assumed they knew kept them from seeing what was right in front of them.

It is a living picture of what Jesus describes in Matthew 11, our passage for this morning.

Sometimes the people who think they know the most actually miss the most. 

Pride blinds us. Humility reveals truth.

When we slow down, when we listen, when we come to Jesus with childlike trust instead of know-it-all confidence, we finally receive what He alone can give. Wisdom. Relationship. Rest.

In fact, friends that leads me to introduce my message this morning, it’s entitled, “When Know-It-All’s Miss It All”. 

Today’s Message: 

“When Know-It-All’s Miss It All”

This morning, we will be reading from Matthew chapter 11, verses 25 through 30. In this passage, Jesus offers a challenging reminder that pride blinds us, but humility opens us to His wisdom. It’s that humble heart that allows us to have a doorway to his father. It’s humility that says that we are tired of working, that we are tired of the rat race, that we are tired of all the exhaustion that the world throws on us. It’s our humility that creates a bridge to the blessing of Jesus’ rest.

Do me a favor this morning and fill in the blanks under today’s thought. “The Arrogant Overlook Wisdom, But The Weary…If They Are Obedient, Receive Rest.”

Today’s Thought:

The Arrogant Overlook Wisdom, But The Weary…If They Are Obedient, Receive Rest.

John Mark Comer is a pastor and writer who has spent years helping believers slow down, simplify, and follow Jesus with intentionality. He is best known for his teaching on spiritual formations and for challenging our culture with a call to unhurried discipleship. Listen to what Pastor Comer says in his book, “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry”. 

Today’s Quote:

“We rush through life thinking we know everything we need, yet the faster we move, the less we actually see. Pride convinces us we have it all figured out, but Jesus keeps inviting us to slow down, to surrender, and to let Him teach us a different way. When we finally stop trying to run the world on our own strength, we discover the quiet wisdom and deep rest that only come through walking with Him.”

-John Mark Comer’s “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry”

Scripture Background And Context:

When we come to Matthew 11, beginning in verse 25, Jesus prays a surprising prayer. He says, Father, thank you for hiding these things from those who think they are wise and clever. And the natural question is this. What things is Jesus talking about? What has been hidden? What have the “know it alls” missed?

Jesus is talking about the truths He is about to explain in the rest of the passage. He is going to dive into the heart of the gospel. 

The truth of who He is. 

The truth about His relationship with the Father. 

The truth that salvation is revealed, not achieved. 

The truth that spiritual pride shuts the door to understanding, while humility opens it wide. These things are the invitation to know Him, to learn from Him, and to receive rest from Him.

So before Jesus ever says, Come to me, all you who are weary, He makes it clear who will actually hear those words. Not the self sufficient. Not the self impressed. Not the self proclaimed wise. But the humble. The childlike. The ones who admit they need Him. Jesus is showing us that the greatest truths of heaven are not discovered by human brilliance, they are received by a willing, trusting heart.

Before we go any further, I would like to remind you that...

Statement of Belief:

“We are opening the living and powerful Word of God…truth without error, breathed out by Him, and fully sufficient for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness. It is our authority, our guide, and our hope. In honor of the God who gave us His perfect Word, I invite you to stand with me as we read it together.”

Today’s Scripture:

Matthew 11:25-30 NLT

At that time Jesus prayed this prayer: "O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. [26] Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way! [27] "My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." [28] Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light."

Pastor: “This is the Word of the Lord.”

Congregation: “Praise His name praise His holy name.”

So…What’s The Problem With “Know It Alls”?

First…They Refuse His Revelation vs. 25-26

So this morning as we dive into today's outline, I want to ask you a really important question. What's the problem with “know-it-alls”? Do you know any “know-it-alls”? Have you ever been a “know-it-all”? Well, this morning, there's no room in heaven's economy for anyone who is a “know-it-all”.

Our first point this morning is, “know-it-alls” refuse Jesus' revelation. 

We see this from verses 25 and 26, which says…

 “At that time, Jesus prayed this prayer, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.”

Simply put…

“The proud overlook wisdom, but the humble receive what God reveals.”

The root problem with being a “know it all” is not actually intelligence. 

It is not insight. 

It is not wisdom. 

The real problem is arrogance. 

It is ignorance dressed up as expertise. 

It is foolishness disguised as knowledge. 

A know it all is someone who believes they already see clearly, so they stop listening. They stop learning. They stop receiving. And when a heart stops receiving, it becomes closed off to what God is trying to reveal.

Atheists, for instance, often pride themselves on being educated, enlightened, and intellectually superior, yet they deny the most obvious truth in the universe, the truth of an intelligent Creator. Everything around us shouts design. 

A building has an architect. 

A painting has a painter. 

A sculpture has a sculptor. 

An airplane, a computer, a watch, every one of them has a designer. 

Yet somehow we are told that the most complex design in the universe, the human body and the world it lives in, appeared by accident or by explosion. That is not wisdom, that is pride pretending to be insight. 

In the same way, our culture defends abortion under the label of choice. Everyone loves to have choices, but choice becomes a mask when it is used to hide the taking of an innocent life. A child in the womb is not a potential life, it is a life with potential. It is a separate, developing human being made in the image of God. Yet our world calls what is clearly life something less than life in order to justify ending it. These are the kinds of contradictions pride creates, and they reveal how easily the human heart can mistake darkness for light when it refuses what God has clearly revealed.

This is exactly what Jesus is dealing with in Matthew 11, 25 to 26. He says that the Father has hidden these things from those who think themselves wise and clever. Jesus is not praising ignorance, He is exposing pride. He is revealing the danger of a heart that believes it already understands spiritual truth without needing God to illuminate it. A know it all is not someone who knows too much, it is someone who refuses to admit how much God has to teach them. 

Proverbs 3:34 says, “Toward the scorners he is scornful, but to the humble he gives favor.” 

That is the dividing line. God resists the proud because the proud resist Him. But He gives grace, favor, and revelation to the humble, because the humble are the ones who come with open hands and open hearts. Jesus is teaching us that spiritual truth is not discovered by brilliance. It is received through humility.

So the real danger of being a know it all is not that you think too much, it is that you trust yourself too much. It’s that you lean on your own understanding and miss what God longs to show you. 

Pride blinds our eyes, but humility opens our souls to revelation.

So…What’s The Problem With “Know It Alls”?

First…They Refuse His Revelation vs. 26

Next…They Reject His Relationship vs. 2

So, what is the problem with “know it alls”?

First, they refuse His revelation.

Next, they reject His relationship.

We see this in verse 27, where Jesus says, “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

What Jesus is really saying is this…

“The “know it all” misses the invitation to know the Father through the Son.”

They miss the very heart of the gospel. Jesus is not just offering information. He is offering relationship. He is offering access to the Father. But the proud person, the self assured person, the one who believes they already understand God on their own terms, will always miss what only Jesus can reveal. 

We all want God on our own terms!

The humble want it. The teachable desire it. But the “know it all” walks right past the greatest invitation in the world, the chance to know the Father through the Son.

Speaking of God on our own terms…

One of the biggest reasons people reject the relationship Jesus offers is because deep down we want to come to God on our own terms. 

We want a God that fits our preferences, a God made in our own image, a God we can manage instead of a God we must submit to. That is what it means to anthropomorphize God. We shape Him to look like us. 

We want a God who is tolerant of our sin, but firm and just with the sins of everyone else. 

We want a God who is not very demanding when it comes to our obedience, our generosity, or our holiness, but we want Him to be very demanding about the obedience and holiness of other people. 

We want a God who asks very little from us, but one who asks a whole lot from those we disagree with. 

And the moment we do that, we are no longer worshiping the God of Scripture. We are worshiping a god of our own making.

We see this same pattern in many world religions. Islam teaches that a person must earn God’s favor through the Five Pillars. Judaism emphasizes obedience to the Law without recognizing the Messiah who fulfilled it. Mormonism adds extra books and requires extra works in order to gain God’s acceptance. Buddhism teaches that enlightenment comes through meditation, self discipline, and escaping desire. In every one of these approaches, humans are trying to climb their way up to God. They are trying to achieve God’s approval through works, through effort, or through their own inner strength.

But Scripture teaches something completely different. Christianity is not humanity reaching up to God. Christianity is God reaching down to humanity through His Son. Jesus makes this unmistakably clear. In John 14, verse 6, Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” That is not narrow minded. That is grace. That is mercy. That is clarity. Jesus is not one of many paths to God. He is the only path to God. He is the One who reveals the Father. He is the bridge. He is the door. He is the mediator. The know it all rejects that. The humble receive it and find life.

So…What’s The Problem With “Know It Alls”?

First…They Refuse His Revelation vs. 26

Next…They Reject His Relationship vs. 27

Lastly…They Resist His Rest vs. 28-30

So, here we are at our last point. What's the problem with know-it-alls? 

First, they refuse his revelation. 

Next, they reject his relationship. 

Lastly, they resist his rest. And we see this in verses 28 through 30 this morning. 

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and who carry burdens. I will give you rest. My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

I think that just about everybody in the world, if they were honest, would say that’s the one thing that's missing from their life…peace and rest. 

I think 100% of humanity that has ever lived, that's living today, or ever will live, is hungering for peace, and is searching for rest. 

Think about it like this…

“People carry their burdens instead of coming to Christ for relief.”

This got me wondering, why? 

Why do people choose to carry their burdens when Christ tells them to bring their burdens to him? 

Why do people continue to carry the heavy weight of their lives when Jesus says that he will carry it? 

Why do we insist on trucking around our burdens as if doing so is some badge of honor? 

I understand why non believers do it, but why in the world do Christians do it?

Have you ever heard the story of Chris McCandless?

His story was made famous in one of my favorite books of all time, the book Into the Wild. 

Chris was a bright, capable young man who wanted to prove that he could survive completely on his own. He walked away from his family, his money, his relationships, and every safety net in his life. He headed deep into the Alaskan wilderness with almost no supplies because he believed he could carry the weight of life entirely by himself. No help. No guidance. No wisdom from others. No community.

Months later they found his body deep in the Alaskan wilderness in an abandoned bus. In his final journal entries, he wrote words that revealed enormous regret. He admitted that he could not carry the burden he thought he could carry. He realized too late that no one is strong enough to shoulder the weight of life alone. His desire to prove himself became the burden that destroyed him.

And while most people will never wander into the Alaskan wilderness, many of us wander into spiritual wilderness carrying burdens we were never meant to carry. And the results may not be physical death, but they often bring exhaustion, anxiety, isolation, and spiritual collapse.

So why do we choose to carry these heavy loads?

First, we carry burdens because we think we can handle them.

Pride whispers that we are strong enough, wise enough, and capable. We try to prove ourselves instead of humbling ourselves. It is the same root problem as the know it all. Pride blinds. Pride isolates. Pride refuses help even when help is standing right in front of us.

Second, we carry burdens because we do not really trust God to carry them for us.

We say we believe, but we hold tightly to control. We want rest, but we do not want surrender. We want peace, but we cling to our own plans.

Third, we carry burdens because we misunderstand the heart of God.

Many believers fear that if they let go, God will not catch them. They think they must perform, strive, and exhaust themselves to earn God’s approval, even though Jesus is offering a life of rest and peace.

And this is where God speaks so clearly in Isaiah 30, verse 15, “This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it.”

Conclusion:

As we close this morning, let me remind you of what we have seen in God’s Word. What is the problem with know it alls? 

They refuse His revelation. 

They think they already know what God is trying to show them. 

They reject His relationship. 

They want a God on their terms instead of coming through the Son. 

They resist His rest. They keep carrying burdens they were never meant to carry.

But you do not have to live like that. You do not have to walk through life pretending to be strong enough or smart enough to handle everything on your own. There is no prize for being a spiritual know it all. There is no reward for carrying burdens that Jesus wants to lift off your shoulders. The call of Christ is simple. Come to me. Come with your weariness. Come with your burdens.

Maybe today is the day you place your dependence on Jesus Christ. The Bible says that if you want a relationship with God, it begins by admitting your sin. You have to acknowledge that you have fallen short of God’s standard and that you cannot save yourself. Then you believe. You believe that Jesus lived a perfect life for you, that He died on the cross for your sins, that He paid the penalty you could never pay, and that He rose again and is alive today. Through Jesus alone your sins can be forgiven. Through Jesus alone you can go to heaven. And lastly, the Bible says you must call upon Him. Call on Christ to save you. Call on Him to forgive you. Call on Him to make you new.

So I want to invite you this morning to do exactly what Jesus invites us to do in Matthew 11. Come to Him. Come with an open heart. Come with humble faith. Come to Jesus. Thankfully, you will find rest.

Come To Jesus! Thankfully, You’ll Find Rest!

Closing Prayer:

Father, thank you for drawing back to this place this morning. 

Lord, we confess that too often we have acted like we had everything figured out. We have leaned on our own understanding. We have carried burdens You never asked us to carry. Forgive us for the times when we have refused Your revelation, rejected Your relationship, or resisted the rest that You offer.

Jesus, we want to come to You today. Teach us to walk in humility. Teach us to trust You with everything we are. Teach us to lay down our pride, our self reliance, and our heavy loads. Help us to depend on You for wisdom, strength, and peace. Draw every heart in this room closer to You. And for those who do not yet know You as Savior, may this be the moment they call upon Your name, admit their sin, believe in Your death and resurrection, and receive the gift of salvation.

Holy Spirit, strengthen us as we leave this place. Help us live with grateful hearts, humble spirits, and surrendered lives. Let us walk in the rest that only Jesus can give.

We pray all of this in the powerful name of Jesus. AMEN!