39-40"You have your heads in your Bibles constantly because you think you'll find eternal life there. But you miss the forest for the trees. These Scriptures are all about me! And here I am, standing right before you, and you aren't willing to receive from me the life you say you want. (The Message)
But aren't we supposed to study the Bible?
We hear over and over again that we should be spending time reading the Bible. In fact having a good understanding of the whole Bible goes along way in being able to see where and how God might be leading one in a given situation. But there is a problem that can arise. The Bible itself can become an idol. Rather than the Bible leading us to it's author we can begin to believe the Bible itself is to be worshiped. We can study the Bible so much that we loose the relationships that it is meant to guide us through and that provide the frame work for living out our faith. This is the problem that Jesus was addressing with the religious establishment of his day. They had focused upon the details of the words for so long that they had lost sight of fact that it was pointing toward God and His son. Jesus warning is that we can get so caught up in the details of religion/church that we miss the relationship that is of ultimate importance.
Some thoughts to ponder and share with others:
- Have you ever found yourself so immersed in details that you couldn't see/didn't see the bigger picture?
- Why do you think the religious leaders knew the details about God but seem to have missed seeing God?
- What could a healthy balance between knowing about the Bible says and doing what the Bible says look like?
- How might you remind yourself to see the big picture of God's plans for you and those around you on a daily basis?
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