In Jeopardy

Knowledge can certainly be a good thing - and as we acquire knowledge, we can also ask the Lord for wisdom in how to apply the knowledge we gain.  But, we have to continue to be discerning and
reject ideas that don't line up with God's Word. Hosea 4 states:
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.
7 "The more they increased, The more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory into shame.

There is plenty of information available in the world today; and God desires for us to train our minds. Some information, though, is not helpful to us and will be detrimental to our Christian walk.  That is why we need filters - and the Word of God, living and active, abiding in our heart, can provide the necessary filter in order that we may discern what is consistent with Scripture and what can be beneficial to us as we follow Christ.

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We are surrounded by information, and we have to be careful to filter what we take into our minds.
And, we can be motivated to not allow our knowledge to make us prideful. 1st Corinthians 8 says:
1 Now concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.
2 And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know.
3 But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.

As if you didn't know it already, the brainiac Ken Jennings was declared to be the "Greatest of All Time" on the legendary game show, Jeopardy!, which brought its GOAT competition to prime-time, and, according to WORLD Magazine, 15 million viewers tuned in to the competition. WORLD reports that the four nights, of which Jennings won three, represented "the largest television audience drawn by a non-sports program in the past four years."

Jennings, according to WORLD, "who holds the record for the longest Jeopardy! winning streak—74 games in 2004. He defeated Brad Rutter and James Holzhauer, who held records for most dollars won.

It is reported that Ken Jennings is a Mormon, and made news about 5 years ago when, according to Religion News Service, he denounced a new church policy on same-sex marriage.  The article says that, in a podcast, Jennings...

...lambasted the LDS Church’s recent policy changes regarding LGBT persons—that

1) any Mormons who are in a same-sex marriage are now considered to be in apostasy, and

2) any children who live primarily in a home with same-sex parents are not eligible for baptism.

Jennings, who is a Mormon Sunday School teacher, related how disappointed he was in the changes, which he called “shocking” because he had understood there to be room in Mormonism for a wide diversity of opinion on same-sex marriage.

Based on the context, you could make the case that Jennings is a supporter of same-sex marriage, or at least tolerant of it.  But, as the article points out, he was not at that time inclined to leave the Church.

But, he certainly has made a case for being knowledgeable about a wide variety of topics.  I wonder how he would have answered the question posed recently in a regular Jeopardy! episode.  According to a Christian Post article, the category was "Where's That Church?," and according to the article the clue "asked contestants the country in which the Church of the Nativity, which is in Bethlehem, West Bank, less than 6 miles south of Jerusalem." The article related:

When contestant Katie Needle answered "What is Palestine?" she was ruled incorrect. Then contestant Jack McGuire answered "What is Israel?" and was ruled correct.

In a statement posted on the “Jeopardy!” website Monday, the production team explained that during the filming of the episode, “we became aware that the clue was flawed as written and that determining an acceptable response would be problematic.”

“In accordance with our rules and in the interest of fairness, we voided the clue and threw it out. We restored Katie’s and Jack’s scores to what they were prior to the clue,” they continued.

Unfortunately, the flawed sequence was aired by mistake.

Bethlehem is located in the area of Judea and Samaria, popularly known as the West Bank - it is controlled by the Palestinian Authority, but there is not a country called Palestine; that has been a source of conflict for quite some time.  Geographically, you could consider that area as part of Israel - so the game show rightly threw out the question (it never should have been asked), but Jack is more correct that Katie was.

Meanwhile, in other Jeopardy! news, perhaps you're aware that the venerable, likable, 78-year-old host of the show, Alex Trebek, has been suffering with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.  Christian Headlines reported in October that the host was undergoing more aggressive chemotherapy; his numbers from September had revealed a setback.  The article says:

Faithwire reports that Trebek, who was raised Catholic, has partnered with the Christian-based World Vision, and has openly sought prayers for his cancer battle.

“I told the doctors, this has to be more than just the chemo, and they agreed it could very well be an important part of this,” Trebek told People magazine in late May. “I’ve got a lot of love out there headed in my direction and a lot of prayer, and I will never ever minimize the value of that.”

Closer to home, Alex is married to a devotee of Religious Science.  FoxNews.com reported that:

Jean, who is a licensed practitioner at the North Hollywood Church of Religious Science, shared some advice to those that may be struggling through difficult times or cancer treatments of their own, noting that they merely need to turn to the universe for support.

“Just ask the universe, ‘What’s the next step for me?’” she said. “The universe will always respond. I am absolutely sure that we live in a benevolent universe that is always conspiring for our highest and greatest good.”

Jean Currivan Trebek had made those comments in an interview with SurvivorNet.  The Fox article also states: "She did note to the outlet that, in the past, she has played her sound-healing crystal bowls for Alex. The acclaimed TV host previously credited her and an outpouring of fan support with helping him get through treatment."

Well, there certainly is a great deal of knowledge out there.  And, I think to study and know information can be very beneficial and will help to build up our minds.  Ken Jennings has an amazing amount of knowledge, and can be inspiring in our pursuit to know more about the world in which God has placed us.

We can move beyond a mere comprehension of facts and see how God can use the knowledge we acquire in order to help us to be more proficient in living a life for Him.  Facts are great, but God wants us, I believe, to learn how to apply the knowledge we gain - that, I believe, is the wisdom that He will make available.

We also recognize that knowledge can be perilous.  The wrong kind of knowledge can be detrimental to us spiritually.  We have to be discerning regarding what we take into our minds and make sure that our knowledge does not become distracting to our Christian walk.

And, the Scriptures teach that knowledge that is not tempered by our love for Christ can serve to make us arrogant.  In our quest for knowledge, we should not allow that knowledge or information to make us prideful - we can always seek to stay humble and learn as God would direct us.