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 When
I first began to "make talks" I ran across some
scripture I did not understand. My father, an elder in our home
church, helped me on those passages, but with the help he issued
a warning and ever-needed wisdom.
He
said the Bible was made up of individual bits of truth, many of
which seemed complete and self-sustaining, but were actually
only a part of the total picture. The part should always he
understood in light of the whole (keep things in context) and if
that isn't wisdom enough — the better one understands the
whole, the richer the part becomes.
He
went on to say that I would find many passages that were
unclear. I should not become discouraged. If careful study, with
attention to such context as I knew, did not explain them, just
put them in a pigeon hole. We were sitting beside his roller-top
desk, and the illustration was plain. "Some day," He
said, "you will find other truths not now known to you; and
this wider knowledge will answer some earlier questions. You can
then remove that problem from its pigeon hole." It made
good sense to me.
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Then,
maybe because he knew human nature in general; or my nature in
particular; he added a final warning. "Robert, I hope you
live to be one hundred, and learn much Bible, and answer many
problems for yourself and for others. But know this: when you
die, you are going to leave things in the pigeon holes" (or
words to that effect). I'm just beginning to learn how smart the
old man was. What I need is a bigger desk.
'This
is no indictment of the Bible nor of man's capacity to
understand it. The same principle is true of all great quests
— we are seekers throughout life's journey. The
remarkable thing about God's word is the amount of information
ascertainable to those who seek in faith — the opening of
heavenly vistas to unworthy mortals. "When I consider thy
heavens, the work of thy fingers, ... what is man that thou art
mindful of him?" Psm. 8: Then let us develop a more humble
attitude in our studies. Let as deal reverently with God's
message to man, confident that we can, if we will, find there a
light for our path. We will never know it all, but we can know
enough to serve Him faithfully and, by His grace, be saved.
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