For those of us who have gone on a long trip, we understand the importance of being prepared. Sadly, we may have learned this by what can happen when we are not prepared. The Pharisees were the religious people in the time of Jesus. They knew all the laws and the Bible from ancient times. But their hearts were not prepared and they missed Jesus who was standing right in front of them.
To prepare we know 3 things for sure:
- We need to know where we are going. What is the purpose?
- What things we need to bring [and what things to leave behind]
- Who the best Guide is to travel with us.
Let’s get specific for each item:
- Where are we going?
We often have a variety of desires of where we want to “get to” in life. Some of these reasons may be to enjoy our lives more; to save ourselves from mistakes; to be a good influence in this life…
All these are understandable reasons, but perhaps the wisest thing to do is check with our Creator. What is God’s desire for us?
- A relationship of love with Him – John 17:3
- Being transformed into the image of His Son – 2 Corinthians 3:18
Big Idea – If our goal is something other than these things we will attempt to make the Bible something it isn’t intended for. How did that work out for the Pharisees? John 5:37-39
- What things we need to bring? Good attitude, compass, water, food…
What things do we need to leave behind? Old maps, faulty glasses, preconceived ideas, false assumptions…
Big Idea – Come on this journey as a disciple with the desire to be transformed.
- The gift of the best Guide to travel with you.
John 14:15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you…24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. 25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
1 Corinthians 2:12 We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. (Every believer has the Spirit of God – Romans 8)
Author Steve Ridgell writes,
God gave us the Bible so we could know his Son. Finally, you need to know that there is help for understanding the Bible. There is a story in the book of Acts about a man who was reading his Bible but did not understand it. God had a Jesus disciple connect with him to explain the Scripture. When they began to talk about the Scripture being read, the Christian told him the good news of Jesus. The Ethiopian believed it, acted on it, and found life in Jesus. 1
Commentary writer Williams Brown writes,
Understanding the Bible takes leading from God, Himself. Although this one doesn’t deal directly with biblical interpretation of texts it remains as the most important part of Bible study. Make sure you first ask the Author of the Book to give you the insight into what He really means. Without the constant guidance of the Holy Spirit of God we can’t truly understand the Bible. God gives us the ability to understand His Word. That means we need to have a close relationship with Him first.2
Asking the Holy Spirit to teach us with a:
- Heart of trust (believe that He will) and an
- Attitude of humility (believe you need His help.)
In Acts 9:31 Christians were “walking in the fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit.” The word, “Comfort” [parakleses] is the verb form of the noun parakletos. Comforter, helper, advocate: “parakletos” The word means, “lit., called to one’s side, i.e., to one’s aid, is primarily a verbal adjective, and suggests the capability or adaptability for giving aid. It was used in a court of justice to denote a legal assistant, counsel for the defense, an advocate; then, generally, one who pleads another’s cause, an intercessor, advocate” (Comforter, W. E. Vine) For such a word to be applied to the Holy Spirit demands He is a person. Otherwise it is like taking you “lap top computer” into court instead of your lawyer.3
“The Bible is not a manual. It’s a book of encounters and experiences. It’s a book about the story of God walking with men and women. It’s about the experiences that we can have in the presence of God. It’s a book which when used in conjunction with the Holy Spirit opens up a whole new dimension of life before you. It makes you supernatural. It makes you more than you ever thought possible.” Graham Cooke
Eugene Peterson – It is entirely possible to come to the Bible in total sincerity, responding to the intellectual challenge it gives, or for the moral guidance it offers, or for the spiritual uplift it provides, and not in any way have to deal with a personally revealing God who has personal designs on you. To put it bluntly, not everyone who gets interested in the Bible and even gets excited about the Bible wants to get involved with God.
When study just becomes about knowledge it can fail to captivate the heart. It is possible to know the “right” answers about God but not really know God! A couple of books that touch on meditating on scripture— which I thinks helps move knowledge from the head to the heart because meditation moves us into prayer and gets us talking to God, are: Experiencing God through Prayer by Madame Guyon; Bible reading in Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald Whitney and Celebration of Discipline by Foster. Anne E
Supplemental Materials:
Next step here – Observation
