Drawing Near

and finding nourishment for your soul…

My husband and I are going through a Bible-reading plan together, and we’re just finishing up a solid three months in the Book of Isaiah.

This recent trek through Isaiah has reminded me of the first time I read it, almost thirty years ago. I was young and wide-eyed and so in love with Jesus. But Isaiah was tough. I’m sure I committed many exegetical crimes back then, like presuming that the text was speaking, first and foremost, directly to me, and also looking for an immediate and direct application from every verse to my own life.

On my first pass through Isaiah, I didn’t comprehend everything I read, but I did pick up a few solid nuggets, like the fact that Isaiah 9 is talking about Jesus.

…and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

Eventually I figured out that it’s all about Jesus.

There were still plenty of challenging passages, but I plowed along as best I could. And I’m so glad I did.

One of my favorite passages in the Bible, still to this day, is found in Isaiah.

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55:10-11)

What a beautiful image: God’s Word is like rain and snow from heaven, nourishing the earth and making it flourish.

In other words, God’s Word is nourishment to our souls, and He promises that His Word will always accomplish His purpose. So, even if we don’t understand every nuance at first, it will still yield a good harvest in our souls, because it is living and active — as the writer of Hebrews helpfully reminds us (Hebrews 4:12).

This I have never wavered in believing.

Immersing ourselves in Scripture is never time wasted.

Now, I’m not suggesting we forgo diving a little deeper and striving for a better comprehension of the text. I’m a big advocate of searching the Scriptures for a clearer understanding — just as Paul commended the Bereans for doing (Acts 17:10-11).

And, yes, real life applications do abound throughout all of Scripture, but as a teen, it took me awhile to understand that a better way to approach the biblical text is to first ask: Who was this author’s original audience? What historical context did this author live in? What was his intended meaning when he wrote this book?

One thing that has helped me is to pray the words of Psalm 119:18 before opening my Bible.

Open my eyes so that I may contemplate wondrous things from your instruction. (Psalm 119:18)

So, if you’re struggling to make it through the ancient pages of the Bible, I want to encourage you to keep at it. Pray Psalm 119:18 and keep on reading. Because God is faithful.

As we are at work in the Bible, the Bible is at work in us.

God promises to draw near to us when we draw near to Him (James 4:8). And there is no better way to draw near to God than to seek Him through His Word.

Shalom.