Several years ago, I discovered our son Seth sitting in our comfy khaki chair with a theology book in hand. He held the book in front of him, staring at the pages. He would not be distracted. It was quite serious; he was reading. Mind you, Seth was 2 years old.
I can’t imagine what Seth believed he was “reading.” He mumbled something about it being a “scary story.” The volume Seth was holding told about seeing Jesus in the everyday world. But Seth couldn’t see Jesus in the chapters. He didn’t know what to look for.
While it’s good to dig diligently into Scripture, it’s more important to remember what it is we’re actually digging for in God’s Word. We aren’t looking primarily for a fact, ideology, or doctrine. We’re looking for Jesus—the one George Whitefield called “the treasure hid in the field.” Jesus is the treasure.
Jesus once confronted a group of religious hypocrites who bragged of their knowledge of God, even though they had “never heard [God’s] voice,” and bragged about their knowledge of Scriptures, even though they didn’t have the Scripture’s “message in [their] hearts” (John 5:37-38). These religious leaders knew the Scripture’s words but knew nothing of the Word living in the Scripture. They came to the pages, but missed the treasure.
“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life,” Jesus said. “But the Scriptures point to Me!” (John 5:39).
Often I come to Scripture in search of an answer. If I don’t find exactly what I expect the Bible to tell me, I can become frustrated because it doesn’t fit with my views. But if Jesus is the treasure, then Scripture is not first concerned with giving me what I insist I need. Scripture’s first concern is leading me to true treasure . . . to Jesus.
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: John 2:1-25
More:
Think back over several of your favorite Bible passages. How do these stories and teachings connect you to Jesus?
Next:
How are you more often tempted to use the Bible for answers than as a way to discover Jesus? How do you need to search God’s Word differently in order to see Him as your true treasure?
peacedove on June 18, 2011 at 12:40 am
“Scriptures first concern is leading me to true treasure….to Jesus.”
What a wonderful last paragraph,that shows how simple it is to know Jesus.
Wonderful
winn collier on June 18, 2011 at 6:51 am
treasure = jesus. this is the simple claim of Scripture, isn’t it?
mayann on June 18, 2011 at 2:27 am
Recently, I’m receiving the same message and it’s about the real heart of relationship with the Lord.
It’s not about all the scriptures you know, how deep your understanding of the Gospel, missions you’ve done or how big you tithe. IT’S ABOUT HOW YOU TRULY LOVE THE SAVIOR, and you can show that love by obeying His command NO MATTER WHAT DOES IT TAKES.
winn collier on June 18, 2011 at 7:03 am
thanks for sharing mayann. the intentions of scripture is to lead us to jesus, crazy that we use it other ways, huh?
eppistle on June 18, 2011 at 6:43 am
Our primary purpose in reading the Bible, listening to a sermon or participating in a Bible study is not to learn, but to know. So it’s not a waste of time if the passage is a very familiar one and we didn’t learn anything new. But it is a waste of time if we don’t listen to God, deepen our knowledge of Him and His desires for us, and grow in our pleasure of how He is our treasure. Let’s not let familiarity breed contempt and cause us to lose our sense of wonder for the Divine.
winn collier on June 18, 2011 at 7:04 am
listening and deepening, I like that.