Hearing His Voice #223

No prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God.

2 Peter 1:20-21

Isaac of Syria, a bishop of Nineveh who left his service in the church to live in solitude, spent years meditating on Scripture. He is considered a mystic, yet he anchored his encounters with God in the context of biblical truth. His advice to those who study God’s Word is profound: “Do not approach the mysterious words in the Scriptures without prayer and without asking help from God, saying: ‘Lord, grant me to perceive the power that is in them.’ Deem prayer as the key to the insight of truth in Scripture.”

God can speak at multiple levels through His Word. He has embedded nuances and shades of meaning into it, even in the languages and cultures in which it was written. One phrase can have several different implications and apply to many situations. But that doesn’t mean the Word can say whatever we want it to say. Mystical encounters with God and subjective experiences with His voice can be thoroughly genuine, but they can’t be genuine if they are violations of His nature or His Word. His voice is expressed in many ways and in many contexts, but it is never the private property of the hearer to be abused or distorted. It expresses only what God means to say.

Follow Isaac’s advice. Approach Scripture with prayer to perceive the power within the words and to understand the insights of the Spirit. Never let your own mind and heart be independent interpreters of truth. Submit your faculties to the Holy Spirit and take time to let Him inspire, reveal, and lead. When you read the words of the Father, which testify to the Son, in the power of the Spirit, your understanding of the Word will come alive.

Lord, who can grasp Your thoughts unless You enable, inspire, and interpret? My experiences and intellect are not enough. I need the wisdom of Your Spirit as I read and meditate. Unveil Your truth to me, in me, and through me.