How to Read the Bible
Jesus is the Word of God. Every letter and sentence in the Bible reveals Him and the nature of His kingdom (Matthew 5:17-18; Luke 24:27).
The life of Jesus Christ is the most significant event in all of human history. To the Jews of the first century, the arrival of Father God in man’s flesh was earth-shattering, cataclysmic, and apocalyptic. However, through a very messy covenantal relationship, God had already prepared the Jews for the revelation of Jesus. God had crafted history itself into a pathway which He would use to enter our humanity. The entire purpose of the historical events, religious ceremonies and legalistic codes was not only to reveal the need for a Savior, but to foreshadow the arrival of Jesus.
The western church has become enslaved to a rational and empirical paradigm of understanding the Bible. Prophetic and metaphoric meaning behind Old Testament text is often dismissed as being “over-spiritual.” There is so much fear in the church today that approaching the Bible with a spiritual and prophetic lens is somehow wrong. This fear stems from the desire to always be correct and in control of our understanding of God. This paradigm allows us to understand the Bible and amass factual knowledge, but does not lead us any deeper into an experiential relationship with its Author. This myopic mindset promotes arrogance, hardness of heart, and spiritual pride.
There is a misconception in Christianity today that the amount of knowledge about God and the Bible are the most critical ingredients for growing faith. Our church messages and sermons today mostly teach us about the Bible itself and provide bullet points for how to be a better person. There is nothing wrong with this, but the focus of our messages must be on how to experience God as an empowering, personal presence. Faith is trust that develops through relationship. Relationship is not how much I know about a person, it is my knowing of a person.
Historical and cultural context is obviously critical for our understanding of Bible passages, but it should only be the beginning of our journey into God’s Word. God’s wisdom is not the wisdom of this age. His wisdom is endowed by the Holy Spirit, who opens our eyes to see spiritual meaning as we approach the Word with child-like faith, wonder, and simplicity (1 Corinthians 2:12-13). There is nothing wrong with finding “spiritualized” meaning behind the events and personalities of the Old Testament, especially if it reveals my supernatural identity in Christ.
The prophets are excellent examples of men who, by the power of the Holy Spirit, recognized and derived spiritual meaning in everything. God was not forcing Himself on these individuals to speak through them. By calling them into intimate relationship with God, the Holy Spirit opened their minds and hearts. Their spiritual vision made them aware of God’s presence and purposes in everything they were experiencing. Their perceptions and prophecies were empowered by their ability to recognize patterns in Israel’s history and apply them contemporaneously. More importantly, their experiential knowing of God by the Spirit allowed them to see the Messiah in everything long before He ever came in the flesh.
We have access to much greater glory than these men did (Matthew 11:11; 2 Corinthians 3:9-11). Jesus Christ is both the blueprint and operating system of the entire universe (Colossians 1:17). Everything and anything, aside from sin, reflects His glory. This is especially true of the Bible, which is heaven’s lifeline to us. This lifeline is attached to a Person, not theologies, facts, or religious dogma. We must ask the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to see Jesus and His spiritual Kingdom in every part of the Bible.
