I'm taking Hebrews as my free class this semester. One thing our admirable professor has required of us is to read and re-read the text in its entirety. Each week as part of our homework so far we have had to read chapters 1-8 in one sitting. This is all part of an effort to enforce what he calls the hermeneutical spiral.... which I'm now thinking I shall have to blog about very soon... and to develop in us a better understanding of the text as a whole.
I love it. Having read Hebrews more times in the past month than I had previously in my entire life, I find I am definitely coming to a firmer grasp of what I initially found to be it's challenging concepts.
This morning, as I began my reading of the text, I found myself stuck on 1:1-4. Since this has happened to me several times over the past few weeks, I decided it was worth taking a few moments to blog about it.
Why am I getting stuck on the first 4 verses? Well, because I've been exercising the Bible reading principles I discussed in an earlier blog where I asked "What would happen if I really believed God's Word is true?" As I've been reading the book of Hebrews, I've sought to apply this principle. Each time I go to the text, I give myself a mental pep-talk, chanting things like, "This is true, this is true," and "Naomi, what you are about to read is absolute truth." Having that kind of attitude really helps me sit up and pay attention rather than mindlessly blaze through the text week after week.
And that's precisely why I keep getting caught on the first 4 verses my friends. When I read that God spoke in time past through the prophets and that He has now spoken to us through His Son I am amazed! The very God of the universe, Almighty, Infinite, Transcendent, was concerned enough with His creation to condescend and speak to us. When I consider what an unworthy sinner I am in light of His majesty and holiness, being ignored and rejected makes more sense. But the God of my imagination is not the God of the Bible!
Please! Take just a few moments to read it and you'll see what I mean.
No, not only did He speak to us through prophets, reaching down into the lives of men to make Himself known to them, but He sent His only Son to live among us, and ultimately to die on our behalf. His Son, through whom He made all things, the radiance of His glory and the very representation of His nature. Wow! That is something incredibly special.
Meditating on that for even a few minutes should impact the way you think about having a personal relationship with God. He has gone through great lengths to speak to us, to me. Are we, am I, listening? In all honesty, any person who put forth such efforts to communicate and have a relationship with me would probably have my undivided attention. That kind of interest would make me feel incredibly special, valued, and honored, and in light of that I would probably want to hear whatever it was they had to say to me.
Let me challenge you friends. If you are a born-again believer, chosen by God, then He wants a personal and intimate relationship with you. He has given you His Word that He might speak to you and reveal Himself through it. Don't dishonor the cost of Christ's blood by ignoring Him. Read your Bible. Read it like it's truth. And may you grow in your love for Him as you grow in your knowledge of Him through the reading of His Word. I know I have.Labels: education, journal/quiet time, reflections