A Nugget from New Life Network
Scripture for the Day (March 17, 2017)
But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:14)
It has always amazed me how one can read the same scripture over and over again and then suddenly a light will come on and you can understand what God is saying. It’s like God has intentionally hidden nuggets of truth all through the Bible and the only way you will truly understand their true meaning is to “abide” in the Word and have the Spirit of God interpret them for you.
Jesus therefore said to those Jews that had believed him, If ye abide in my word, then are ye truly my disciples; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:31-32, ASV)
To me, the word “abide” means to “live in it”. Most translations interpret “abide” to mean “to obey” and/or “to continue” in all the teachings of Jesus. I think it goes much deeper than that. The best example that I can give you is the example of how a great actor may research a character role. A great actor will find out everything they can about the character they are portraying. They may spend months researching the history of a character plus learning how to mimic the way a person walks and talks. They may even spend time in the lifestyle of the character, such as living on the street if they are portraying a homeless person.
I have found that if we will put that much effort into studying and meditating on the Word of God, hidden treasures will be revealed. For example, you have to put yourself in the boat with Jesus and the disciples. You have to feel what the disciples were feeling when Jesus was asleep in the boat during the storm. The disciples were ordinary people just like us. You have to get to a place where you are abiding in that boat and feeling what they are feeling.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. (Matthew 13:44)
On the opposite side of the coin, if you read the Bible with strictly man’s wisdom you will fall into the trap of interpreting the Bible as the Letter of the Law, which produces death, versus the Spirit, which produces life.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As the Scripture says, “He traps the wise in the snare of their own cleverness.” (1 Corinthians 3:19, NLT)
The Bible is sort of like a real life mystery novel that is full of hidden clues. God gives us keys throughout the Bible to understand His heart. If you don’t have a personal relationship with Him, you will miss those keys and not understand His unwavering love for us. You will not understand the constant battle that is being waged by our enemy to cause us to believe that God is cruel, mean, uncaring, stands ready to punish us at every turn, and is withholding wisdom from us (Genesis 3:4-5).
Paul was one of the first to see this hidden wisdom clearly and preach it as recorded in the New Testament.
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: (1 Corinthians 2:7)
God wants all of us to know Him and know the truth. The first step is to be born again. The second step is to abide (live) in His Word.
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3)
Don’t forget! We are raising funds for a U.S. Marine in Albany, GA to help his family rebuild their home that was totally destroyed by a recent tornado. You can send your donation to New Life Network at PO Box 70459, Albany, GA 31708, or go to www.newlifenetwork-org-staging.smwnm894-liquidwebsites.com and make your donation online.Thank you for your help and generosity!!
