The Bible is so different from typical instruction manuals. It is far more human. Instruction manuals use stark wording and a 1-2-3- process that may help or possibly confuse you. The step-by-step instructions may not even refer to the latest product improvements. I run into that often in software programs or appliances I purchase.
When we read the holy scriptures, we need to do so with a dependent attitude on the Holy Spirit to help us to see God’s words clearly. I am not saying that the Spirit of God must give you a personal revelation of the scriptural text, but that He will remove distractions from your spirit so that you can understand the truth that is already there.
Because God is communicating with us, and we are not machines, He is teaching us on a human level. Humans communicate with one another in a complex of signals. Our human faces have 43 muscles that can all add subtlety and nuance to communication. The new cultural addition of Artificial Intelligence for communication has zero muscles. It will not save us or make the world a safer place through communications of peace. That comes with kind words and a smile and all other expressions of our 43 facial muscles.
Sometimes people think there is a secret message in a communication from God. They think they must read the word of God and then pray to God for a special revelation that “This word is for me.” Jesus once said, “Why do you call me Lord, and not do the things that I say?” (Luke 6:46). He never mentioned that we need a personal revelation of the Holy Spirit to make his words apply personally to us. It is enough that he said it.
There are many who teach that the Bible is a mystery book that is only understood by special revelation. Perhaps some are trying to become someone special as they claim to be the one who can interpret the Bible for you. Others are just ignorant of how simply Jesus taught, and how he expected everyone to take him at his word.
Some teachers have developed a false teaching to support the idea that a special revelation of God is necessary to believe the scriptures. They claim that there are two words in Greek that can be translated as the word “word.” These Greek words are logos and rhema. A study of these two words in the original Greek New Testament does not support this distinction.
Look at John chapter 14, verse 26. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you (John 14:26 ESV). The Spirit of God will help us to remember what Jesus taught. Clearly, Jesus was saying that the Holy Spirit will work within us. This will not be a new and personal revelation. There is no spiritual process by which a logos becomes a rhema, because logos and rhema are one and the same. On the farm we call a barn an outbuilding, and in the city we have traffic laws and traffic ordinances. No big differences.
In John 15, verse 20, he said, Remember the word that I said to you... He did not ask them to pray for a revelation about it. He said remember it and meditate on it so that you can understand it. Later that night he told them again, When the time comes, remember what I said to you... (John 16:4). Again, in Matthew 16, verses 9 and 11, he said, Do you not remember?... How is it that you fail to understand?
Remembering the words of Jesus brings understanding as we spend a while meditating on it. You do not need a special revelation. The word that God gives is available to all to understand with their normal mind.
Remember the parable of the sower and the seed in Matthew 13. In the second scenario the seed sprang up quickly but lacked roots. Jesus said they heard the word (the seed) but did not understand it. In the third scenario the seed sprang up but was choked by competition with weeds. Jesus said the weeds were the cares of everyday life and the deceitfulness of wealth.
In every case the word of God, the seed, remained the same. The word’s fruitfulness rose or fell based upon environmental factors. The word did not change from a logos to a rhema.
Let’s apply this understanding to the account of Mary and Martha as recorded in Luke chapter 10.
Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her." Luke 10:38-42 ESV.
Mary, the sister of Martha and the brother of Lazarus, sat at Jesus’s feet with intense attention. She had picked a front row seat and was all ears, as they say. Martha became frustrated at doing all the work of food preparation alone without Mary’s usual help. This time something was different because she just sat in the presence of Jesus. Martha made her complaint directly to Jesus.
Jesus loved Martha as much as Mary. Martha was a strong believer. After all, Mary was only able to sit listening to Jesus because Martha had taken the initiative to invite him into her home (verse 38). At a later visit, at the time of the death of her brother Lazarus, she confessed her brother would arise back to resurrection life in God’s time. That showed tremendous faith in God’s plan and power even before the resurrection of Jesus!
Jesus said to her, “Martha, Martha...” The Jewish culture repeated a word for emphasis. In this case, Jesus was expressing his personal care and respect to her directly, because he was a grateful guest in her home. If we have invited Jesus into our hearts, there is a lesson here for us, too.
With love Jesus spoke directly to Martha and the situation. Mary was not the problem here, but her own distraction and general anxiety were the problems. Sometimes it takes true love for someone to tell it like it is. Martha was hearing only the sounds of the words of Jesus amid her labors. Houses were typically much smaller in those days. She was close enough to talk to Jesus directly.
Martha was distracted by the weeds of anxiety, and she was not paying close attention to what Jesus was saying. He commended Mary for her full attention to him as he spoke. He said that what she was learning would not be taken away from her. The story does not tell us what Jesus was teaching about that day. That was not the point. This is a lesson about how to listen to Jesus correctly.
Martha was anxious about the next meal. Maybe she did not plan on having so many visitors come to hear Jesus. But Jesus was thinking long term. He commended Mary’s action of giving him her full attention. He said, what she was learning would not be taken away from her. Setting her full attention on Jesus she would better remember his words.
Meanwhile, Martha’s distractions would hinder her memory. The words Jesus spoke were given equally to all in the house. Mary gave her full attention to Jesus while Martha did not. Mary fulfilled the fourth scenario of the parable of the seed because she received the word of God with an non-distracted heart.
So here is the good news. If you can hear the word of God, you have what you need to awaken your faith in God. You do not need to plead with God for additional special revelation. The sower sows the seed of the word of God which, like all seed, has within it the germ of life and enough reserve energy to sprout and grow its first leaves. What happens after that is largely due to the environment provided by the hearer. That is why Jesus finished the parable of the sower and seed with the words “He that has ears, let him hear” (Matthew 13:9).
Let your prayer be to God. Pray like this: “Make me like Mary. Help me to set aside my anxieties and distractions. O God, help me to sit at the feet of Jesus and receive from him that good portion of his word that will not be taken away from me. I ask you Father in the name of Jesus."
When you come to Scripture always have the attitude that you are sitting at the feet of Jesus. Set your anxieties aside and take him at his word. Do what you can to eliminate distractions. Your understanding of the word of God will flourish.
Amen.
Teaching # 20240113 Scripture reference: Luke 10:38-42
Comments