He Shall Lead You Into All Truth

In my last post, I wrote about how some consider Christianity and the Bible too difficult to understand and I suggested that it is really not all that complicated IF you keep things simple and start at the beginning. The problem is that many want to eat steak when they have not yet learned to digest the milk… or the basics.

I want to pick up on that thought today. Over the years as pastor, I’ve had dozens, if not hundreds of people say to me that the Bible is too difficult to understand. There is a reason for that. It’s because this is not just a book, it is the literal Word of God. It is intended to teach us about God and His ways. But it’s not like picking up a book of instructions or “Chrstianity for Dummies.” It is a spiritual book, intended for spiritually alive people. Those that are not born again will never really grasp the meaning of the Bible, because until you are born again and the spirit inside of you quickened to life, it will remain beyond your realm of understanding.  My wife and I have had the unique opportunity to have had two exchange students who came to us as atheists. One, from Hungary, actually knew a lot about the Bible because it was taught as literature in his country. So he had a head knowledge of the Bible, but no spiritual understanding. The other came from Berlin where the wall had only been down for 7 years when she came to us. She had no concept of God at all. Both wear highly intelligent and learned “intellectually’ about the Bible but it had no meaning. Until they attended church regularly, heard the gospel preached and witnessed the Christ-life in us and others. The second one gave her life to Christ and suddenly the Bible just “came alive” to her and she could not get enough. Which leads me to my point of this post.

When I was saved and the Holy Spirit dwelt in me, the Bible that I had heard (and read) all of my life, suddenly became clear to me. It was like a light went on. Sometimes it was almost as if a light is shown on the pages (figuratively) and the words leaped off the page and began to take root in my spirit. When I received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, things escalated. I had such a hunger for the Word that I carried it with me all the time and read the Bible every chance I had, even if only for a minute. The more I sought to know God, the more I was drawn to the Word. Someone taught me something that became a key and changed my reading, knowledge, and understanding of the Word. They told me that every time I was getting ready to read, to stop and pray and ask the Holy Spirit to lead me and teach me what He wanted me to know. That changed everything, not only in my comprehension of the Bible but in my walk with the Lord. It all started to become clear to me. As I looked at the Bible, I "saw" God! Words I had read dozens of times previously in my life suddenly leaped off of the page and ignited in me like fire. My simple point is this… You will never grasp what the Word of God is about until you are born again and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you into all truth.