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Welcome to Day 1459 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to WisdomBible Study \u2013 Its Aim Is Not Ignorance \u2013 Meditation MondayWisdom - the final frontier to true knowledge.\xa0Welcome to Wisdom-Trek! Where our mission is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before. Hello, my friend, I am Guthrie Chamberlain, your captain on our journey to increase Wisdom and Create a Living Legacy.\xa0Thank you for joining us today as we explore wisdom on our 2nd millennium of podcasts. This is Day 1459 of our Trek, and it is time for Meditation Monday.\xa0Taking time to relax, refocus, and reprioritize our lives is crucial in order to create a living legacy.\xa0For you, it may just be time alone for quiet reflection.\xa0You may utilize structured meditation practices. In my life, Meditation includes reading and reflecting on God\u2019s Word and in prayer.\xa0It is a time to renew my mind, refocus on what is most important, and making sure that I am nurturing my soul, mind, and body.\xa0As you come along with me on our trek each Meditation Monday, it is my hope and prayer that you, too, will experience a time for reflection and renewing of your mind.\xa0
We are continuing our series this week on Meditation Monday as we focus on Mastering Bible Study through a series of brief insights from Hebrew Scholar, Dr. Michael S. Heiser.\xa0Our first few insights will focus on study habits to build a strong foundation. Today let us meditate on:
Bible Study \u2013 Its Aim Is Not Ignorance\xb7\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Insight Thirteen: The Aim of Bible Study is the Meaning of the Text, Not a Defense of Your ViewThe Bible is God\u2019s Word\u2014a repository of truths and information that, through human authors, God wanted to be preserved for posterity. Since the Bible is one of God\u2019s means to transform our lives and direct our behavior, those who hold it in esteem have an emotional investment in it. They believe that it\u2019s the expression of God\u2019s will, not only for faith but also practice (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Given all that\u2019s riding on Bible study, it\u2019s not hard to see why people who engage in it seriously sometimes argue about the results. Disagreements aren\u2019t about an intellectual victory. Right and wrong are at stake; at least that\u2019s the ideal. Sometimes that\u2019s accurate. Other times it\u2019s exaggerated.
Knowing precisely what the Bible means at every turn would require omniscience. Several passages are ambiguous. God knows omniscience isn\u2019t an attribute we possess. Consequently, assigning a point of morality to every interpretive decision is unwise. It may sound sacrilegious, but a lot of the Bible\u2014and hence, Bible study\u2014doesn\u2019t have a moral issue in view.I\u2019ve met many Christians who are so desperate to make sure their behavior is right and not wrong that they end up becoming better at arguing for what their family or tradition tells them a verse means than actually studying the matter for themselves. I\u2019ve seen relationships destroyed over conflicting Bible interpretations where no core doctrinal teaching was at stake. I\u2019ve seen believers driven to despair when friends or family members make an interpretation a litmus test for good standing before them, and even before God.
The goal of Bible study shouldn\u2019t be about finding ammunition to make someone guilty, or shaming someone on the other side of a disagreement. It isn\u2019t about finding ways to crush opposition or force a spiritual submission. You aren\u2019t the Holy Spirit. It\u2019s often better to kindly share what you believe and its basis in Scripture and then privately take your concerns to the Lord.
\xb7\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Insight Fourteen: Ignorance is Not a Gift of the SpiritIn this era of social media, we\u2019ve all been exposed to people who have a knack for irritating and offending people they\u2019ve never met. If you peruse comments on blogs or online forums to...