We understand how our more seasoned brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ emphasize how reading the Bible is necessary for a believer… and, sure, we agree – The Word is absolutely critical for us to have close to us, especially in this fallen reality.
Sometimes, however, it couldn’t be helped; Sometimes, it’s actually a pleasure and a treat to go through the Word.
Last Wednesday was an example of this. I didn’t necessarily know what we were going to discuss in our first midweek service of the year, but thankfully, I’ve been brought to a single consideration that’s been effectively infused into my being, more so as of late: That is, in all things we think about, and in all things we’re to talk about, we’re to ask: What does the Bible say?
I’ve been brought to that exact same question when, in my hurry, I employed the help of AI in bolstering my proclamation – the one where I say that this year would be a year of Revelations for us. I thought I’d go ahead and ask AI – first, to help me with synonyms for the word, ‘revelation’; then, antonyms, and then ONLY then I’d ask – what are Bible verses it thought were connected to said synonyms and antonyms?
Collection and collation of data was a breeze, but there it was – I was facing a wall of text, a wall of data that didn’t exactly speak out as I wanted it to. In fact, I started thinking, I may be putting too much focus and I’m most probably overthinking all this.
I was sweating the small stuff. I may have caught myself asking at these times – What does the world want to hear? What does the world say?
Well, okay, I may not have been thinking THOSE questions in particular, but that’s where I was reminded: What does the Bible say?
Not bashing AI here. Not at all. In fact, I’m thankful for it because it DID help me out by way of pointing out verses regarding revelations. Sure, some of them were off, but we were able to see some trends and common themes.
I suppose that as we go through the Bible, we will continue to see aspects about revelations. Here are some that popped up, that we should probably keep in mind:
Light: A Form of Revelation
Psalm 119:130 “The unfolding of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.”
2 Corinthians 4:6 “God made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory.”
Luke 8:17 “For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be brought to light.”
Isaiah 59:9-10 “We look for light, but all is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows.”
From these verses we can see how God’s words are not only heard, but we see them – rather, they shine so we see more and learn more. The Word of God is precious as it is… but as it ‘unfolds’ – that is, as the Word continues to reveal itself in our own personal lives and in our own unique experiences, we are given more understanding.
See, not only are the words of the Lord literal light to our eyes and illuminating to our minds and hearts – in our discovering Light, the Lord HIMSELF is the Light that shines…
…and God’s Light does not discriminate, disclosing all things, and revealing all that is concealed, no matter how we, who were once in darkness, would try to hide from it.
Once, we were in darkness, but God’s revelations shine His light. Indeed.
The Source
The Bible reminds us that ideas can come from anywhere…
2 Corinthians 4:4 “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so they cannot see the light.”
Jeremiah 23:16 “Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they speak visions from their own minds.”
…but only revelations come from God.
Matthew 16:16-17 “Blessed are you, Simon… for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.”
2 Peter 1:21 “Prophecy never had its origin in human will, but prophets spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”
What, then, are we to do with revelations? As with knowledge, we would do good to seek and share.
Seek
Psalms 1:1-4 1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.
3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. 4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
If we were to discern and avoid walking in the counsel of the wicked, or if we were to avoid standing in the way of sinners, or to avoid sitting in the seat of scoffers… we ought to take it upon ourselves to delight in the law of the Lord.
In fact, we should just read Scripture… and, eventually, we will find ourselves delighting in it. But take note that more than all this talk of avoiding the wicked, what’s important is that we’re able to discern what we’re avoiding in the first place – and in order for this to be done, again, our focus should be on Scripture above all else.
If we desire to ‘bear fruit’, and if we do not want to wither – Or, in more understood terms, if we want it so that all we do prospers, we should first ensure that we are trees planted by streams of water. Here I’m reminded of how other people may be instrumental in our being planted, and in our being watered… but the Lord gives the growth. With that in mind, we give thanks to our Father who is our Gardener, planting us and situating us where we are, so we have constant exposure to ‘streams of water’ – which, I believe are significantly represented by the Word of God.
In other words, the Lord plants us by His Word. And, really, when you think about it – He plants us by Jesus Christ, the living Word, who is also the source of the waters of Life.
Let us seek. Let us meditate and delight in the Word.
Let us meditate on the Word and delight in the living Word…
and as we delight in Christ, the living Word, we are brought to timely revelations – that is, meditations of the Word.
And in the sheer greatness of these revelations, consider that it just brings us to a point that we couldn’t keep it in – it must be shared! It must be released – to the nations, and to the people.
Share
Psalms 96:3 Declare His glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!
Seeking leads to sharing, and sharing leads to seeking.
And as we continue to meditate on the Word, may we come to the personal revelations that convict us of our righteousness; the conviction being that the Living Word, Jesus Christ delights in us.
Thank You, Father, for everything! Be praised and glorified, both now and forever. Amen.
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