I want to continue to reflect on verses from John, Chapter 5. Today I read 30 to 47. In these, Jesus is trying to convince his hearers that if they were to have properly understood their scriptures, they would know who he is.
He says, "You search the scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness to me; yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life."
Jesus is speaking more about their hardness of heart than their ability to comprehend. But his words challenged me this morning, as I prayed for insight to what the scriptures are saying to me now; to the Church as it currently exists.
Without prayerful meditation; without intentional study; it is easy to allow the scriptures to reinforce what it is that we already think. It is rather easy (and way too tempting) to pull out those verses of scripture which endorse my life and the way that I have chosen to live it.
It is a horrifying thought, that I might be in the same boat as those to whom Jesus first spoke these words. I search the scriptures, because I do believe that they are my guide to eternal life. I pray that my search brings me to the place where I encounter the heart of the scriptures - Jesus the Christ.
It can be tough to know what the scriptures mean. It is tempting to read into them what we want to believe. Our life is found when we allow the scriptures to place us in a relationship with the living Christ. It is not this or that verse which will bring us joy. Our peace is found in the One to whom those lines bear witness.
Pastor Chris
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