Informed, but not Transformed

It's an odd paradox that the more Christians seem to know about God, the Bible, and the history of Christianity, the further they seem to be from being truly Christ-like. They are deeply informed, but not transformed. As Brian MacLaren points out:

Too often there seems to be a direct correlation between knowledge about theology on the one hand and arrogance, contentiousness, and an uncharitable spirit on the other.

No one is in favor of ignorance, but mere knowledge that "puffs up," as Paul points out, isn't much better.

I am no better sometimes than anyone else in this regard; it's sometimes difficult to resist the spirit of arrogance when faced with other Christians "simple faith" when measured against my "knowledge". Knowledge is a good thing (Proverbs 2:10) but, as Jesus pointed out, knowledge can be used for great evil (Luke 11:52) as well. Don't get me wrong: I maintain that the Christian life requires a great deal of learning--learning about God, the Bible and the history of Christianity--but that knowledge is useless unless it is put into practice or better yet used as a corrective force rather than points scored in my honor.