SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES
(week 50/11)
Olubi Johnson
Firstly, we want to wish all our readers a wonderful Christmas and a healthy, wealthy, Christ-filled, destiny fulfilling New Year!
John. 5:39 KJV: Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they, which testify of me.
Acts 17:11 KJV: These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
1Peter 1:10-11 KJV: Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: (11) Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
Proverbs 2:3-6 KJV: Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; (4) If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; (5) Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. (6) For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
Proverbs 25:2 KJV: It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.
In the scriptures quoted above, we see the Lord Jesus instructing us to search the scriptures and the Holy Spirit, instructing us to do this search daily and diligently in order to find the knowledge of God and experience His glory which are hidden in the Word.
The complete canon of scripture from Genesis to Revelation is God’s written Word to the human race: written over a period of about 4000 years by 40 people, living at different times in human history, collated in 66 separate books; however, having one unifying theme: a revelation of God’s nature, character and power and His plan of redemption for humanity through the Lord Jesus Christ.
This written Word contains in symbolic code of types and shadows the plan of God for every individual life:
Revelation 22:19 KJV: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
It is instructive to understand how this can be. Just like the same set of the 26 alphabets of the English language are combined according to the rules of spelling and grammar to form unique, books and stories; so the same set of symbolic types and shadows in scripture can be combined uniquely according to the rules of the application of scripture, in the manifold wisdom of God, (Eph. 3:10) to form God’s plan for each individual.
The rules for the interpretation and application of scripture are found in
James 3:17 KJV: But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
So any interpretation or application of symbolic codes in types and shadows from scripture must be:
1. Pure: must not contradict other scriptures (Ps. 12:6).
2. Must not contradict God’s character of loving-kindness, righteousness and justice (Jer. 9:24).
Furthermore, the Bible contains in symbolic code of types and shadows, all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge:
John 1:1 KJV: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Colossians 2:3 KJV: In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
So as we search the scriptures as a daily habit diligently, the Holy Spirit will show us the symbolic codes that apply to our lives and the treasures of wisdom and knowledge He wants to give us and then enable us to experience their physical reality.
In our article next week, we will see in more detail how to search the scriptures daily and diligently.
