The Wednesday Word ~ 05 June, 2024 A.D.

The Living Christ and the Scriptures

 by D.G. Miles McKee

One old time preacher used to say, “The Word has mighty free course among us nowadays, for it goes in one ear and out the other.” An amusing observation, but often true!

 

There are no words anywhere to compare to God’s words, yet we are often complacent about them. We seem to easily forget that God Himself, via human agency, has written the Bible for us. That is why it is a privilege to study, read and meditate on what He has said (Joshua 1:8, Proverbs 2:1-5).

 

It’s best not to fall into the trap of waiting till we feel like reading the Scriptures before reading them; we simply read and meditate on them till we feel like it!  As we meditate on the Scriptures our world is often turned upside down! Indeed, as we read the scriptures they read us and challenge us.  But more than that they bring us to Jesus and bring Jesus to us.

 

Jesus was a man of the Scriptures. Think of how He, as a man, mastered them. They were daily His delight and meditation. The ‘blessed man’ of Psalm One is actually a prophetic picture of Christ by which we learn that Christ’s delight was in the law (word) of the LORD; and in His law (word) He meditated day and night (Psalm 1:1-3).

 

We so easily forget that the Bible is not primarily a history book or a rule book, it’s a book about a person, the Lord Jesus Christ. As we meditate on the written word, the Holy Spirit will lead us to the living Christ (John 16:12-14). It is the scriptures which speak and testify of Him (Luke 24:27; John 5:39). For example, when in Jeremiah 2:13 we read of Yahweh as the fountain of living waters, we have just read about Jesus, for Jesus said, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink.”

 

When in Psalm 36:9 we read, “For with Thee is the fountain of life: in Thy light shall we see light” we have just again encountered the Lord Jesus Who is both the life (John 14:6) and the light (John 8:12).

 

When Yahweh says, “I even I am He that blotteth out thy transgressions” (Isaiah 43:25), we have, once more, come face to face with the Lord Jesus Who said, “Thy sins are forgiven thee” (Luke 5:20).

 

Jesus is everywhere in the Scriptures. He is, to name but a few things;

 

The Alpha and Omega (Revelation 1:8).

The Anointed One (Psalm 2:2).

The Lord of Lords (Revelation 19:16).

The Author of Life (Acts 3:15).

The Mighty God (Isaiah 9:6).

The Branch (Zechariah 6:12).

The Bright and Morning Star (Revelation 22:16).

The Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).

The Christ (Matthew 1:16).

The Teacher (John 1:38).

The Everlasting Father (Isaiah 9:6).

The Door (John 10:9).

The Good Shepherd (John 10:14).

Holy and Righteous One (Acts 3:14).

The I Am (John 8:58).

The True Vine (John 15:1).

Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14).

The King of Kings (Revelation 19:16).

The Eternal Word (John 1:1).

The Word of God (Revelation 19:13).

The Lamb of God (John 1:29).

 

The gospel causes us to hunger for the Christ of the Word, and the Holy Spirit is more than willing to reveal the glory of Christ in them. He delights to be our teacher. In fact, He is more willing to teach us than we are to learn.

Don’t think for a moment that the Holy Spirit is reluctant to draw you to the Word and its centre, the crucified Christ. Never think that God is unwilling to reveal Himself or that somehow He has disbarred you from growing in grace. He is delighted with you, for you are in the beloved One, Christ Jesus the Lord (Ephesians 1:6). He is well pleased with you and has been since before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4). He wants you to grow in your knowledge of the gospel and wants you to know that there is no such a thing as a willing learner and an unwilling God.

And that’s the Gospel Truth!