June 18 I Tuesday

Nehemiah 10-11

Acts 4:1-22

“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”     —John 1:14

“All roads lead to Rome,” a familiar phrase that has been said since the days of the Roman Empire, could be adapted to say, “The whole of Scripture will lead us to Christ.” Scripture is true, but it is not the truth. Now, what does that mean? Jesus said, “I am the Truth” (John 14:6). Scripture is true in that it leads us to the Truth––which is Christ––but if we detach what is true from the Truth, it will remain true but dead.

Jesus did not say, “I will show you how to get to the Father.” He did not come to be a signpost. He said, “I am the Way,” and His invitation is “come to Me” and “abide in Me.” When we separate our understanding of Scripture from Christ, we might begin to see it as a book of principles for living, some pop psychology for getting our head sorted out, or a set of rules that gives us a “to-do” list for the next week. Scripture is only life-giving as it leads us to dependence upon the Truth––Christ.

In the New Testament something wonderful happened: “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us” (John 1:14). That is how John puts it, because the Truth of God is embodied in the person of Christ. What the Word of God teaches us, Jesus Christ embodies. We cannot divorce the written Word from the living Word. Personally, I ask this question of every sermon I preach: how does this lead people to a greater dependence upon God? If what I say does not lead people to dependence on God, all I will do is give them a “to-do” list, which would destroy their Christian life and not enhance it.

Because Jesus is the Truth, a good test for whether or not we are understanding the Word of God properly is to ask, “Was this true of Jesus?” One of the main reasons the exposition of Scripture must be at the core of any healthy and stable church is not because the Scripture itself is the important issue, but that Scripture leads us to Christ.

The Christian life is borne out of our
relationship with Christ, which brings us into our dependence on Christ as our strength, joy, power and leader. If we are going to know God, we will know Him
through His Word, and the Son is revealed in the Word. When we read and interpret the Word of God accurately, just like “all roads lead to Rome,” all text leads to Christ. May our reading of Scripture come to life when we see the Truth of Christ in every page of God’s Word.

Prayer: Dear Jesus Christ, Thank You for revealing Yourself to us through the Word. Help my eyes and heart to see You on every page of Scripture. Come alive in my life.