If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. 1 Corinthians 8:2
There is a kind of knowing that is not self conscious. It causes us to act in service of others. It is an aid of love.
Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that “We all possess knowledge.” But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. 1 Corinthians 8:1
There is a kind of knowledge that looks at itself, like someone obsessed with his own reflection. It ponders its own qualities. It congratulates itself on its brilliance, depth, and breadth.
The first kind of knowledge is real knowledge, because it produces real actions of love toward other people. In the Bible, knowledge is never far from the actions of love. Love and knowledge go hand in hand.
The second kind of knowledge, the one that thinks about itself, is false knowledge, because it prevents loving action from happening. It “puffs up” because it is full of air. It looks impressive, but there is nothing real behind it. There is no love there.
The person who thinks about how much he knows “does not yet know as he ought to know.” There is a way of knowing, then, that we ought to follow. And that is the way that supports and aids loving action. It is outward knowledge, focused on how to better love others.