Remember when some of Jesus’ disciples were walking along the road and He appeared to them after He had resurrected from the dead? Luke 24 says that they walked and talked with Christ, even invited Him in for a meal, but they did not recognize Him until “their eyes were opened and they recognized him” (verse 31). What I never realized until this morning was that just a few verses later in that chapter of Luke, we see something similar:
While they were still talking about (what happened with the disciples on the road), Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” (After some eating and discussion) Jesus said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. (Lk 24:36,44-45)
There is definitely a theme here. Christ, through the presence of the Holy Spirit within us, has the power to open our eyes and our minds. When it seems that He is absent from our circumstances, He can open our eyes and show us His presence in that very moment. When we are reading the scriptures and we don’t understand, He can open our minds to understand what we are wrestling with. He can open our hearts to receive it and apply it appropriately.
People often ask me how I get such insight from God’s word when I teach or blog. Clearly, it is the Holy Spirit revealing truth to me. I make no claim to great depths of spiritual knowledge. Heck, I doubt my own sanity on a daily basis! If I were to recommend ONE thing to you in regard to studying and understanding the Bible, I would say to read the passage over and over again. Read it in several different versions. (biblegateway.com is excellent for this…you don’t have to buy a bunch of bibles.) When I teach, I read the passage I’m covering probably 50-75 times. Maybe more.
Why do we work so hard to figure out God’s will on our own? Why do we pound the commentaries and bible dictionaries to make sense of the scriptures? While studying is important and I do it often, we often forget about the most important resource that we have. Christ’s very presence in us through the Holy Spirit. The Creator of the perfect plan for our lives, and the very author of the Bible are dwelling within us. We only have to press in, be quiet, and listen for the still small voice that will surely come.