Apostle Dr. Alex L. Jenkins, Sr.
Visionary Leader • New Life Apostolic Church of Jesus, Inc.
Guest Teacher • New Season Apostolic Ministries • Tuesday Night Bible Study
This teaching was delivered as a guest at New Season Apostolic Ministries and is now shared with our New Life family on Empowerment Central. Work through each section carefully. Engage with the discussion questions honestly. God wants His people to possess understanding — not just information. With all thy getting — get understanding.
Download the Presentation Slides
The full PowerPoint is available for personal study and sharing.
In All Thy Getting — Get Understanding
Proverbs 4:7 — KJV
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.”
Open in prayer. Once prayer is complete read both anchor scriptures before moving forward. Let the weight of these words settle before the teaching begins. Solomon is not giving casual advice here. This is a desperate plea from a man who has seen everything the world has to offer — and is pointing his son to the one thing that matters most.
The Foundation
Proverbs 4:7 — KJV
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.”
Hosea 4:6 — KJV
“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee…”
God did not say His people lacked worship. He did not say they lacked church attendance. He said: My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. The tragedy was not that the enemy destroyed them. The tragedy was that ignorance destroyed them.
Three Different Things
We are living in a generation that has more information than any generation before it, yet many people still lack understanding. We know more. We have access to more. And yet confusion is everywhere. God never intended for His people to merely collect information. God wants His people to possess understanding.
Knowledge
Tells you WHAT
Wisdom
Tells you WHEN
Understanding
Tells you WHY & HOW
Background of the Text
Solomon is not giving casual advice. He is writing as a father to a son who is about to inherit a kingdom. After all his wealth, power, and influence — this is what he told his son:
Proverbs 4:7 — KJV
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.”
Not: Get gold like I got gold. Not: Build a palace like I built a palace. He said: Get UNDERSTANDING. Because understanding protects what blessing provides.
Many people lose what God gives because they never gained understanding. The blessing outpaced the preparation. The door opened before the wisdom to walk through it was developed. God wants to be able to trust us with more. And He cannot trust us with more until understanding catches up with our anointing.
The Principle in Action
Solomon
Asked for understanding. God gave him everything else with it.
1 Kings 3:9, 13
Daniel
Pursued understanding in captivity. Rose to governing the empire.
Daniel 1:17, 20
Nations
Those who invest in understanding rise. Those who reject it decline.
Luke 16:8
1 Kings 3:9, 13 — KJV
“Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart… And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour.”
Solomon asked for one thing. God gave him everything. Daniel was a captive with no home field advantage. But he pursued understanding in the language, systems, and culture of Babylon while keeping his covenant with God. He ended up governing the very empire that enslaved him.
The Apostolic Application
As Apostolic believers, we possess precious truth. We preach repentance. We preach baptism in Jesus’ Name. We preach the infilling of the Holy Ghost. We preach holiness. But possessing Truth and understanding Truth are not always the same thing.
Some Know Acts 2:38
but not discipleship
Some Know Holiness
but not spiritual maturity
Some Know Doctrine
but not leadership
Some Know Scripture
but not stewardship
Some Know Church
but not Kingdom
Some Know the Anointing
but not character
God is not satisfied with partial development. He wants both the power AND the understanding to steward it correctly. Truth without understanding produces potential that never becomes impact.
A Direct Word From Jesus
Luke 16:8 — KJV
“…for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.”
Jesus was not complimenting the world’s morality. He was confronting the church’s lack of understanding. The world studies systems, leadership, finance, communication, and strategy. Many believers have greater Truth but less practical effectiveness.
Proverbs 3:13 — KJV
“Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.”
Understanding affects every area of life — family, ministry, finances, relationships, and leadership. Every area improves when understanding increases.
How to Get Understanding — 5 Steps
So how do we actually get understanding? Not just want it — how do we develop it?
Seek God For It
James 1:5 — Understanding begins in prayer. You cannot pray your way out of studying, but you cannot study your way into revelation without God.
Study God’s Word
2 Timothy 2:15 — Not skimming. Not social media devotionals. Consistent, disciplined engagement with the Word of God.
Learn From Experience
Romans 5:3-4 — Pain can become a teacher. Failure can become instruction. Stop running from what God is trying to teach you.
Invest in Learning
Proverbs 23:23 — Books. Courses. Mentors. Seminars. Every dollar you invest in understanding is a seed with a supernatural return.
Learn From Others
Proverbs 13:20 — Wise people learn from their mistakes. Wiser people learn from someone else’s mistakes. Humility is tuition.
The Danger of Rejection
Hosea 4:6 — KJV
“…because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee…”
Ignorance
Can be corrected
Rejected Knowledge
Is a CHOICE
Choices
Always produce consequences
God sends pastors. God sends teachers. God sends mentors, books, conferences, experiences, and hard seasons. All of it is instruction. But some people sit under it, nod their heads, and walk out the same way they walked in. Every week. For years.
The danger is not what you do not know. The danger is refusing to learn what God is trying to teach you. When Truth and Understanding come together, there is unstoppable Kingdom impact. You have His Spirit. You have His Truth. Now pursue understanding.
Altar Moment — What Should Your Prayer Be?
How many of us have been praying: Lord, bless me. Lord, use me. Lord, increase me. What if the prayer tonight should be:
“Lord, give me UNDERSTANDING.”
Because if God gives you understanding, He can trust you with what comes next.
Discussion Session — 4 Questions (28 Minutes)
Take time with these four questions. Write your answers honestly. Bring your reflections to our monthly gathering ready to discuss.
Question 1 — 7 Minutes
What area of your life do you have the most knowledge in but the least understanding of?
Example: You know Scripture about money but still struggle financially. Where is the gap between what you know and how you are living? That gap is exactly where God wants to work.
Question 2 — 7 Minutes
What has God been trying to teach you through a season you are still frustrated about?
What understanding was God developing in you? If you can name what God was teaching you, the season was not wasted. It was tuition.
Question 3 — 7 Minutes
What specific area do you need to invest in — and what is one step you will take this week?
Name the area. Name the resource. Name the date. Write it down — spoken commitment has a shelf life. Written commitment becomes accountability.
Question 4 — 7 Minutes
How do we stop the next generation in our church from starting over from zero?
What does it look like to pass understanding — not just anointing — to the generation coming behind us? We build. They spend. The next generation starts over. That cycle ends with us.
With All Thy Getting — Get Understanding
Close this session by leading yourself in the corporate closing prayer:
“Lord Jesus, give us understanding in Your Word, understanding in our homes, understanding in our ministries, understanding in our finances, understanding in our purpose, and understanding in Your Kingdom.”
“Let us never be content with information alone. Give us revelation and application. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”
“Lord, with all my getting,
help me get understanding!”
Apostle Dr. Alex L. Jenkins, Sr. • Guest Teacher
New Season Apostolic Ministries • Tuesday Night Bible Study
Shared with New Life Apostolic Church of Jesus, Inc.