DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- LISTEN UP!

DAD'S RAMBLINGS –  LISTEN UP!

"Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded Israel....Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.....Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Sabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law; and the people stood in their place. So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading." (Nehemiah 8:1, 3, 7-8).

I have met people who do not think they need anyone to teach them the Scriptures. They feel that all they need is to read the Bible and the Holy Spirit will teach them all they need to know. Now, of course, the Holy Spirit is given to guide us into all truth. But God also gave us teachers to help us understand the Scriptures.

Many of the Israelites had not heard the Scriptures read while they were in captivity. So it was new to them, and they needed the help of the priests and Levites to help them understand God's Word.

We are not in the same situation, but many, especially people who are new believers and have not been exposed to the systematic instruction of the Scriptures, need godly help to understand what God is saying in His Word. And even people who come from churches that do not regularly preach and teach from the Bible do not really know the Scriptures. I don't minimize the work of the Holy Spirit, but Jesus said to make disciples, teaching them to observe all things that Jesus commanded. In the Book of Acts, we find Philip teaching the Ethiopian the meaning of Isaiah chapter 53 (Acts 8:26 ff). And of course God used the Apostle Paul to help us understand the Gospel in all of His writings.

So to say that we don't need anyone to teach us seems to be out of sync with the Bible itself. God has given us Apostles, prophets, pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints, to help us become mature in the faith. Solomon wrote the Proverbs "to know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding" (Proverbs 1:2). It is a fool who will not listen to instruction (Proverbs 15:5). To ignore these God-given ministries seems to reject God's plan for our spiritual development. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Love, Dad