lens

I have several friends who are basically blind.  They have to wear glasses or contacts or else they would bump into things and fall off cliffs to their deaths (this is unlikely since Indiana doesn't have many cliffs, but you get the point).  A special lens has been created for their eyes that allows them to see an out of focus world with focus. 

Reading the Bible can be similar.  We can open up to an Old Testament book and find it confusing.  We bump into things we don't understand and might even fall off a proverbial cliff of faith if we aren't careful.  The words seem strange and the teachings odd.  We see them, but they seem out of focus.  We can't quite make them out.  We need a lens. 

The good news is that we have one.  Jesus is our lens.  Once we understand who Jesus is (Messiah and Lord) and what Jesus taught us; it is then that we can begin to really see and understand the whole message of scripture.  Knowing Jesus is like putting on the right prescription, we find that everything comes into focus. 

After the death and resurrection, Jesus appeared to a few of his disciples who were traveling.  He spoke to them and took time to explain to them how the Old Testament was connected to his story.  Luke 24 tells us, "Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?  And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself." 

The Old Testament may not include the name Jesus; but it is about Jesus...and it is understood through Jesus.  Like the right pair of glasses, it all comes into focus when we see it through the life and teachings of Jesus our Lord. 

My prayer is that over this "Red Letter Year" as we study the teachings of Jesus; you will find that the rest of scripture starts to become more and more clear as well.  May Jesus be the lens that helps truth come into focus for you. 

In Christ, 
Pastor Scott