…the Lord Jesus…has sent me
that you may receive your sight… —Acts 9:17
{CHAMBERS} “When Paul received his sight, he also received spiritual
insight into the Person of Jesus Christ. His entire life and preaching from
that point on were totally consumed with nothing but Jesus Christ— “For I
determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him
crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). Paul never again allowed anything to attract
and hold the attention of his mind and soul except the face of Jesus Christ. We
must learn to maintain a strong degree of character in our lives, even to the
level that has been revealed in our vision of Jesus Christ. The lasting characteristic
of a spiritual man is the ability to understand correctly the meaning of the
Lord Jesus Christ in his life, and the ability to explain the purposes of God
to others. The overruling passion of his life is Jesus Christ. Whenever you see
this quality in a person, you get the feeling that he is truly a man after
God’s own heart (see Acts 13:22). Never allow anything to divert you from your
insight into Jesus Christ. It is the true test of whether you are spiritual or
not. To be unspiritual means that other things have a growing fascination for
you. Since mine eyes have looked on Jesus, I’ve lost sight of all beside, So
enchained my spirit’s vision, Gazing on the Crucified.”
{ELGIN} I was talking to a friend of ours just yesterday about a
related topic. She told me how she
longed to be in a Bible study. I
resisted the urge to say “Ok I will start one!”. Just because you can does not mean you
should. (A bible study should spring from
the prompting of the Spirit and not simply your desire to help people. The challenge is to know the difference ..
but that will have to wait for another time.)
She also wanted to understand what the Nicene council did and why
certain writings were excluded from the Bible as we know it. After I thought about our conversation, and read
Chamber’s devotion this morning, I concluded that although those things are
nice to know, it is more important to know more about Jesus. Our friend is not questioning His deity ..
something the Nicene council addressed by the way … but she is concerned about
things that really have no bearing on her spiritual growth. Her questions are not unreasonable … but, in
my opinion, are not practical. Our spiritual
understanding is rooted in the presence of the unquenched – Spirit in our
lives. Most Christians, my opinion
again, are Biblically illiterate. They
are not students of the scriptures .. but hearers mostly .. from the radio, TV and
Sunday morning on the big screens. I am
referring primarily to Christians in the U.S. of A. Listen, “To whom much is given, much is required.” (Luke 12:48) In other countries, many Christians will
never hold a Bible in their hands. But for
us … we are Bible-poor … having more than one in our homes. The problem is a Bible sitting on a shelf is
of little value except to impress our friends. It must be read to have its
intended affect. My friend does not need
to read about the Bible, she needs to read the Bible. It is a common malady that plagues many if
not most Christians in the US. NotReadingTheBibleitis. If you want to know more about Jesus, study
your Bible. If you want to grow in your
faith, study your Bible. If you want to
know how to live, study your Bible. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and
profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in
righteousness, that the man [or woman] of God may be complete, equipped for every good
work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
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