Sometimes I find truth in the most unusual ways. Thursday, I was working with a young student who has a great deal of trouble with comprehension and retention. At Shiloh, boys are required to memorize Scripture, which means a need for retention. Since the school uses the King James Version, sometimes the ability to comprehend is a little difficult, so I try to explain it in modern, age appropriate terminology.
Since I've been attending church, Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, and several Bible colleges all my life, Scripture is easier for me to understand than most of the boys Or is it? Not only am I a lot older, but most of them have had little to no Biblical training. It's often been preached to me the necessity of meditation on Scripture. Yes, I read my Bible daily. Yes, I get a great deal from it. However, working with a young boy who hasn't had my training taught me something new. Well, validated other verses of Scripture is closer to the truth.
The passage the boys had to learn for the month of December was Matthew 1:18-23. Makes sense to learn the passage about the birth of Jesus. How many times have I read that passage, memorized that passage, heard Christmas carols, watched movies about it, or heard it preached? Dozens? Hundreds? Many, many, to be sure.
And yet, as I worked with this boy who was having such difficulty learning that passage that is so familiar to me, I learned something, too. I have long known that Jesus said He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him. (John 14:6) Known it, studied it, believed it, experienced it. It always thrills me to find other passages of Scripture that validates one I've known and believed for many years.
Going back to working with the boys, I would have the young man quote a small phrase over and over again until he knew it. Or so I thought. When I was sure he knew that phrase perfectly, I'd have him quote another phrase until I was confident he knew that one. Then, I'd have him put the two together. That's how I learned two chapters in Romans-word perfect-for a class at Moody when I was 45 years old.
The trouble is, it wasn't working with my charge, so I'd try to explain it in language appropriate for a nine year old. For example, every time he's quote verse 19, he'd leave out the word "not." That's a very important word in that phrase. Joseph was not willing to make Mary a public example. He'd leave it out every time he tried to quote that phrase. That changes the meaning entirely.
But, it was verse 21 that was the eye opener for me. ..."thou shalt call His name JESUS for He shall save HIS people from their sins. Such a little insignificant word that I'd been passing over my entire life. Only HIS people will be saved from their sins. Acts 4:12 says there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. It gave me the opportunity to share truth with this boy that Jesus is the ONLY way to heaven, the ONLY way to be saved from our sins.
I've just begun Billy Graham's book Where I AM. In it, he quotes Zig Zigler saying the good news is that we can do nothing bad enough to keep us out of heaven. On the other hand the bad news we can do nothing good enough to keep us out of hell. A pastor once said there'd be a lot of surprised people in heaven and and lot of surprised people in hell.
Matthew 1:21 showed me yet again that only those who come to Jesus will be saved from their sins. Only HIS people will be saved. There are many, many other passages that say the same thing, but it was that one little word that affected me so powerfully.
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