And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. 2 Peter 3:15-17
And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.
The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:13-16
It’s not that the common person can’t understand what is written in the scriptures but that there is an aversion to accepting it as the Truth. So they twist it and see what isn’t there to their own destruction. Then there is the whole work and strategy of the enemy to present the scriptures as a ‘lie’ or false or wrong. It is by the Spirit of God that the scriptures / ‘Word’ are enlightened within those who seek Him. Peter calls it ‘spiritual discernment’. What exactly is the ‘mind of Christ’? This is a direct inference to the indwelling Presence of the Holy Spirit which guides our mind and will to the heart of God and His wishes for us. This is the very spiritual communication that the Spirit has with us. His Voice, His prompting, and His power are all learned by us as we set ourselves to question Him and converse with Him and do that which He is instructing us to do.
So much of institutional religion leaves out the ‘questioning’ part. Most teach from the pulpit that ‘this is the way’ with certainty as they teach what they are receiving from the scriptures IF they actually utilize the scriptures in their sermon / address / lesson. But when reading the scriptures I am always questioning the Holy Spirit for answers and understanding of what I am reading. Isn’t He the Teacher? Doesn’t He know how to relate it to my life? So much teaching in the institutions is about the ‘pastor’s’ interpretation / way and is usually presented as ‘THE way’. Usually to ask the pastor questions about their teaching / sermon is seen as the height of rebellion rather than a genuine desire to understand deeper. In my teaching settings I ALWAYS want my listeners to ask questions, to dig deeper and wrestle with the concepts and truths. Questions are often more helpful than answers. The Holy Spirit will often respond to me with a question to my question to Him. His questions send me in a direction that I usually wasn’t thinking about. But that is me, and the Holy Spirit interacts with each individual differently because we are a ‘one of a kind’, unique, and a special creation of our Father. Actually He knows you better than you know yourself. His interaction with you is His specific way of teaching and ministering to you in love.
You can read the scriptures for years over and over and still have specific and new revelation while reading it when the Holy Spirit points out things you’ve never understood before. The ‘light bulb’ goes off in your mind — and you wonder, “Why haven’t I ever understood it that way before?” The Holy Spirit is our TREASURE guide! He can reveal where the ‘treasure’ is in the scriptures — by His revelation directly to your mind and heart. The depths of the scriptures / Word always amazes me when He shows it to me.
Are you relying on other’s spiritual discernment rather than going directly to the Holy Spirit yourself with questions? He is the best Teacher you can seek out. Are you diligently seeking Him while reading in the scriptures? Is it a daily pursuit? How much do you want to learn from Him? How much fire do you have in your belly / inner soul to seek Him out? How fervently do you want to know Him deeper? The more you ‘know’ Him the more you want to go deeper with Him. The hole in our souls was created for Him to fill. Only He can fill it, all other things will not satisfy that longing.
Holy Spirit come and teach us! Reveal Jesus to us in new and deeper ways!