Read John 5:36-42

The religious leaders in this passage had, at minimum, the first 5 books of the Old Testament memorized!

And yet, Jesus tells them, “You have never heard God’s voice,” and “You do not have his word abiding in you.”

This should make us mere mortals pause. We should think, “These people who not only know the Old Testament, but have huge chunks memorized. And Jesus told them, ‘You don’t hear God’ and ‘You don’t have his word abiding in you.'” What on earth does this mean for me???!!!”

The Bible is not…
A theological encyclopedia
History book
Trivial pursuit
Something to make you look better than everyone else.

Jesus told these religious leaders the purpose of the Bible…

The Scriptures bear witness to Jesus…the Source of Eternal Life

John 5:39

What does this have to do with how to read the Bible?

Find One Thing that points you to Jesus and
Gives Life to your Mind, Heart, Soul and/or Strength

The Bible is a Tool God gives to us so we can Hear & Follow Jesus. Knowing the Bible is not the end goal. Knowing Jesus is the end goal. And then, Living like Jesus is God’s ultimate end goal for you.

So, every time you read, find the One Thing that jumps off the page at you.

What will you look for?

• Something that stirs your affections even deeper for Jesus (Heart).
• Something that you never thought of before (Mind).
• Something that points out a way of living that needs to be cut out (Soul).
• Something that helps keep your faith strong for today (Strength).

But what about the rest? I read a whole chapter and only capture One Thing? But what am I supposed to do with the rest of the chapter? Shouldn’t I dig and dig and dig for more than one thing?

NO!

The Spirit will give you what you need for today. Then, some day, you will come back to the same passage and the Spirit will give you something different for that day. Keep. It. Simple.

After all, complexity (or the thought of complexity) is what keeps so many from jumping into God’s Word. So cut out the complexity. Find One Thing.

Oh. And. When we get complex, this is when we use the Bible as a theological beat stick. When we get simple and find One Thing, this is when we can incorporate the One Thing into our life. And then, the most stinging critique Jesus said of the religious leaders won’t be said of us…

You do not have the love of God within you

And for bonus…Find a way to write it down. Journal. Post-It. Index Card. Writing helps internalize what God shows you for today.

So do it now. I’ve given you One Thing for John 5:36-42. Now you write down One Thing that jumped out to you.