Understanding the Bible
1 Corinthians 2:14
Scripture- The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
notes- Unbelievers cannot understand the Bible because they don't have the Holy Spirit, who helps us interpret the meaning. The word understand is defined as- to perceive the meaning of, grasp the idea of, or comprehend. This is how so many teachings from God's Word get mixed up in the minds of unbelievers.
The first phrase "the man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him," clearly shows that the unbeliever considers the truth of God as foolishness. Though anyone who can read may be able to take things from the bible and assign meaning to it, we do need the Holy Spirit to help us understand the full meaning.
In the second phrase, "he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned," we can look at the definition of Discerned, as used in the bible.. it means the ability to "think biblically". Paul is saying that only through the Holy Spirit can we evaluate the things that comes from the Spirit of God. But a person without the Spirit, although he cognitively or mentally might understand meaning of the words, will disregard it or not accept it because he is unable to spiritually discern (think biblically)- That is why they regard it as foolishness.
This reminds me of a time when I DID believe in God, but before I accepted Jesus as my Savior and allowed him to take up residence in my heart. I would try and try to get closer to him by reading his word, but just could not understand the message! I too thought it was foolishness because I was still living in this world, without the Holy Spirit. Once I laid down my life, accepting Jesus as my savior and allowing him to come in and take control, this was the first thing that I noticed- His Word was all the sudden understandable! What a boost of faith I had then. This is when my love affair began, in June 2004.
Prayer- Thank You Jesus for adopting me as your child. I am so overwhelmed with joy that you heard my cry and offered me a spot in your family. I am so privileged to call you Father- your love is all I've ever longed for. Continue to help me grow "in you" as I dwell in your Word daily. I'm so grateful that you removed the veil from my heart, allowing me to truly understand your message, providing me with the Holy Spirit as guide to help me walk out your will for my life. Your beauty surrounds me! I know it's hard to believe (as wordy as I am), but sometimes I don't have the words to describe what you do for me :) Thank you for allowing me to rest in your peace. I will do my best to please you all the days of my life! All my love, KV
Created 10 months ago
