John 5:31-40

Jesus is can often be found teaching His followers not to be like the Pharisees who study the Scriptures diligently, pouring over the words for years, even memorizing, but never allowing them to soak into their hearts.  The Pharisees would not believe what they were reading, they would not open their hearts to the facts before them; they rejected Jesus.  They missed the chief subject of the Old Testament revelation.

"You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life." (John 5:39-40 NASB)

The word translated as search in the text above means to search diligently or anxiously.  The Barnes Bible commentary notes the word applied to miners, who search for precious metals - who look anxiously for the "bed" of the ore with an intensity or anxiety proportionate to "their sense" of the value of the metal.

This is an interesting concept.  When we study our Bible are we truly looking for something?  Are we mining the pages for the precious truth?  I am often seeking God's Word for me, but I don't know as I thought of it as mining for His truth for my life.  In reality, when I am digging, when my sleeves are rolled up and my hands are calloused from digging relentlessly I can expect to hit pay-dirt.

Read John 5:31-40 here

Listen to John 5:31-40 here