Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.
– Luke 2:41-47
There is an aspect of Jesus we must not forget. In the mystery of the Incarnation we see one who is fully God and fully human. This is the Christian confession. In taking on human flesh, Jesus suspended part of his power in order to fully partake in the experience of being human. As such, Jesus developed in all ways just a any other child develops in becoming an adult. This included the learning of scripture. We may conclude that Jesus came like a new computer from a retailer, complete with software pre-installed. That would be an error in thinking. While Jesus had benefit of being perfectly in tune with the Holy Spirit to give understanding, he still had to learn and internalize the text.
Notice what our passage says about the twelve-year-old Jesus. Without getting sidetracked by the parental nightmare of losing track of your child, notice where Jesus was found: at the Temple, with the teachers, engaging them to learn. The incident probably was at a location outside the city wall called the Teaching Steps. Attached to the southern wall of the Temple complex, this was a popular area for rabbis to engage crowds of hearers.
Why is learning scripture important? There is an ultimate goal to learning scripture. It is not so that we can teach or defend doctrine, even though doctrine is important. It is not so we can amaze people with our ability to memorize and quote Bible verses. The ultimate reason for learning scripture is to deepen our relationship with God and our understanding of God. Without the text of the Bible, we are doomed to have shallow, one-dimensional perspectives on God.
Knowing Scripture without Knowing God
In Matthew 5:39-40 Jesus challenges the people to see what their scriptures are really telling them. “You search the scripture because you believe that in them you have eternal life. It is these that testify of me.” They knew the scripture, but they didn’t understand what the scripture was telling them.
Consider Saul of Tarsus. As a young Pharisee he was well schooled in the scriptures, yet he didn’t know the Christ of the scriptures. While pursuing Christians, Jesus met him along the road, blinded his eyes and spoke to Saul. Saul’s response to the voice: “Who are you?” (Acts 9:5).
Even in our own time there are people who are highly educated and familiar with the Bible. One scholar is often featured in secular resources that teach about Christianity or about the Bible. He is well-credentialed and has long taught at a seminary in the United States. The curious thing is that he is an atheist. The point: he can tell you about the Bible, but he can’t tell you about the God OF the Bible.
The Need to Know
We are thus pressed for more than simply knowing the Bible. If we have not come to know the God OF the Bible, our understanding is incomplete.
But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
– Matthew 9:12-13
In saying this, Jesus was talking to religious leaders who were well-acquainted with scripture. It adds punch (and humor) to his statement to them, “go and learn what this means…” Do you see what he does? He directs them to go learn something they think they already know.
The scripture he quotes is Hosea 6:6. “For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, and in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” Do you see what God wants? “Knowledge of God.” God wants us to know him, to understand him. Only then will we properly handle the text of the Bible. Only then will we faithfully live a life that reflects grace and truth to others.
Thought and Spirit
The 20th century pastor and evangelist we know as Watchman Nee has a helpful way of thinking about our relationship with the Bible. In his book The Release of the Spirit, Nee says we must enter into the thought and the Spirit of the Bible1. Simply put, entering into the thought of the Bible means thinking as the author thought. Rather than reading with our minds already set in what we believe, we must read in a way that we may be guided by the thinking of the author. Along the same line, we must remember that the Spirit of God is released through the reading of the text. The reader, therefore, must surrender to the Holy Spirit’s work in us as we engage the text.
Living a Godly Life
In Psalm 119:11 the writer says, “Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.” How does this work? Consider the classic example of Jesus in the wilderness (see Matthew 4:3-10). Three times Jesus responds to temptation with, “It is written…” followed by a reference to scripture. Was his success based on the ability to pass a Bible quiz? No. His ability to go to scripture was a way for him to access his intimate relationship with the Father. In the face of temptation, the goodness of the Father remained more attractive than the ploys of the tempter. His strength came not so much from a good memory, but from a solid relationship.
Relationship is the point. Why learn scripture? Because our relationship with God is deepened by doing so. If we want to pattern our lives after Jesus, we will be mindful of his committed relationship with the text of scripture. Jesus did not come into the world like a computer fresh from the retail store with software already installed. Jesus entered a lifelong pursuit of learning the scriptures. With the Holy Spirit as our guide, the text of the Bible can effectively draw us into a deep knowledge of the Father—just like Jesus.
- This discussion can be found on pages 61-63 of The Release of the Spirit by Watchman Nee, © 2000 by Christian Fellowship Publishers, Inc. ↩︎
The Winding Path 