Sunday morning’s sermon was a very good one. God is using it today to help inform my recent thinking on Jesus being the only way to know God and why so many want to believe that there are many paths that lead to God, no one path being better than the other. Don’t you love it when what’s on your mind and your pastor’s sermon converge?

Here are Jesus’ words from John 5:39-47:
You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me,⁴⁰ yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. ⁴¹ I do not receive glory from people. ⁴²But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. ⁴³I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. ⁴⁴How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? ⁴⁵Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. ⁴⁶For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. ⁴⁷But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

First of all, I am in awe of the fact that God would put his words in a book for us to read. He wants people to know Him. Not only did He kill his son to make relationship possible, he inspired men to write it all down. From Moses to John’s Revelation, God has provided a means for us to know all we need to know regarding a relationship with him. It is simple enough for a child to read (or hear) and comprehend. It is not complicated. Rather, the One True God has spelled out in plain English (and hundreds of other languages) exactly how he can be known. It is not his desire to have men and women groping in the dark, trying to find a way to know him. He says in Hebrews that if we seek him diligently, we will find him. No other god makes such promises!

Second, I notice that the Pharisees (very religious people who searched the scriptures to know God) completely missed the point of God’s word. They love Torah (Moses’ books), but they didn’t love Jesus. They were faithful to study ancient writings. They were faithful to pray. They were very religious. They were interested in spiritual things. They loved to talk about spiritual things. They appeared to want to know God. But when they were confronted with the truth that Jesus is the way, they didn’t like it one bit. Even after Jesus explains to the Pharisees that the scriptures were written to teach them about HIM, they reject him.

This teaches me something about people. Let’s say I have a friend who talks a lot about wanting to know God better than she does right now. She may say, “I’m trying out yoga and meditation.” So I say, “Can I tell you about my relationship with God? The Bible teaches that Jesus is how we can know God. Can I tell you about Jesus?” If my words are met with, “I’ve heard all of that. I just really think there is more to it than that.” Despite initial appearances, that is a clear indication that a real relationship with God is not what that person wants. She’s looking for something else. Perhaps it’s praise from other people for something she’s doing, as in the case of the Pharisees. Or perhaps she just wants to feel spiritual and Jesus doesn’t do that for her. I don’t know. But I do know that if God were really at work in her heart, then her eyes wouldn’t roll when I said Jesus’ name.

This also teaches me something about myself. I love to read and study God’s word. This passage reminds me to approach it with an humble attitude, a teachable attitude. It reminds me to look for Jesus on every page. Apart from God’s Spirit at work in my mind and heart, I will overlook him. Perhaps I’m looking instead for “a fresh word,” or interesting word play in the original languages. While those may be helpful sometimes, they do far more to garner a little praise from men. (If you speak or teach, then you know what I’m talking about). Having insight into the scriptures is not the point. Jesus is.

They all work together. If you want to know God, then read the Bible and know Jesus. If you want to understand the Bible better, then look for Jesus in it. Everything points back to him.