Today, in my devotional time I was in Proverbs 21 where it says; Every man’s way is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the hearts.  This passage freshly reminded me of something.  

When I feel like I’m hearing from the Lord through his Word, I write a note down with a date to remind me of how God has used the Bible to speak to me.  I have numerous places in my Bible where I’ve done this.  As I go through His Word each year, I see these notations and I’m oftentimes encouraged about what the Lord has revealed to me through my time with Him.  Other times, when I see these underlined passages with my notes and dates written next to them, I cringe.  I cringe, because in retrospect, I realize I wasn’t hearing from the Lord. I was really looking for a verse to justify my position.  I’m very tempted to erase these notes but I leave them in there as a reminder that I can be deceived.

2 Timothy 2:15 tells us to accurately handle the Word of Truth.  One of the ways we do this is by understanding how to interpret scripture.  One is called exegesis and the other is eisegesis.  Exegesis is where we read the text for what it says and then apply it to our life or situation.  We look for things like the author’s intent.  What was he trying to address? What was going on in history during that time that would help us understand this?  Eisegesis is where we read into the text our preconceived ideas or thoughts and try to make the passage apply to our situation or we look for only those passages that might support our position.  We don’t seek the full counsel of God.  

Why would this be so important in our lives?  My heart is pretty jacked up and so is yours.  We desperately need to hear from God so we don’t sin against Him.  This could even be a burden we are putting on others that he hasn’t asked them to keep.  I also know I can get caught up spending a lot of time on things that distract from our King’s mission.  Paul says, “I know nothing but Christ and Him crucified.”  

“Father help me be focused on the things you want me to be focused on.  No good soldier entangles himself in things that distract from the mission, but I am so easily distracted.  Speak to me through your Word and show me the things in my life that are not pleasing to you.  Don’t let me think to myself, but rather, cause me to flinch to the authority of your Word.  Help me to understand the practical application of your Word in my life.  Not what I want it to say, but what it says.”

Love you all,
Greg Huber