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Second Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.” All Scripture, the Bible, is profitable for teaching, instruction, and equipping us for every good work. First John 2:27 says, “As for you, the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone teach you; but as His anointing teaches you concerning all things and is true and is not a lie, and even as it has taught you, abide in Him.” Here the matter of teaching is associated with the anointing, the moving of the Spirit in us. When we contrast these two portions of the Bible, it is easy to see that the Scriptures and the anointing are related to each other.
God is the Word, and He is in the Word (John 1:1). God is also the Spirit, and He is in the Spirit (4:24). If God were not the Word, it would be very difficult for us to contact or touch Him. However, as the Word, God is tangible and touchable because the Word is God expressed. If God were not the Word or if He did not speak, we would not be able to touch Him. This truth applies not only to the invisible God but even to visible men. If I stood on the podium but remained silent for an hour and a half, the saints would be puzzled and ask, “What is the matter? What is Brother Lee thinking?” However, when I speak, the saints know what I am thinking. The more I speak, the more they know me, because I am expressed through my words.
Words are the expression of a person. If a person does not speak, everything within him remains hidden, but as soon as he opens his mouth, everything begins to be revealed. Consider the story of Peter’s denial of the Lord. When the Lord Jesus was arrested, Peter followed Him until he was in the courtyard of the high priest. While he was sitting with the attendants and warming himself in the light of the fire (Mark 14:54), a servant girl saw him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” But Peter denied it, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about!” (Matt. 26:69-70). However, the more he denied it, the more he was exposed by his Galilean accent (v. 73). This shows that a person’s words are the expression of the person.
In the same way, the Scriptures are God’s words. God expresses Himself and explains Himself through His words. Consequently, 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed.” When God breathes out, He breathes out Himself. All the words in the Bible, whether they relate to God’s purpose, plan, or acts, express and explain God so that we may know Him and gain Him. Hence, we can say that the Scriptures are God expressed.
Since the Bible is such a wonderful book, we should never regard it as an academic book or as a book of religious teachings. The Bible surpasses every book. Although there are portions in the Bible that contain teachings which are seemingly related to conduct, the essence of the Bible is the expression of God, that is, God expressed. Every time we read the Bible, we should have a strong sense that the Bible is the expression of God Himself. We should realize that we are contacting the God who has been expressed. If this is our concept when we read the Bible, we will meet God and sense that God is appearing to us, no matter what chapter or verse we are reading.
Some brothers and sisters often say, “Brother Lee, when I read the Bible, I cannot understand what I am reading, and I cannot remember what I have read. Consequently, I do not have much desire to read the Bible.” When I hear this, I tell them that these are not problems at all, and I say, “When you are invited to a meal, sometimes you are served Western food, and sometimes you are served Asian food. Although you do not always know what you are eating, you are still satisfied. As long as we are nourished and satisfied in our reading of the Bible, understanding what we have read is a secondary matter.
When we read 1 and 2 Chronicles, Daniel, or Revelation, there are many portions that are very difficult to understand. The book of Daniel, for example, records King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of a great human image with a head of gold, a breast and arms of silver, an abdomen and thighs of bronze, legs of iron, and feet partly of iron and partly of clay (2:31-33). The meaning of this dream is not easy to understand. In the book of Revelation there are seven seals, seven trumpets, and seven bowls (5:1-2; 8:6; 16:1), all of which are confusing to us. Nevertheless, after reading about Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and about the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven bowls, we feel as if we have been fed and satisfied, even though our understanding is limited. Even though we do not understand everything that we read, we do not have a feeling of being empty and hungry. After reading the Bible, we are fed and satisfied, even though our understanding is limited.
The benefit that we receive from reading the Bible is not utterly dependent upon our understanding, because the Bible, as the expression of God, is different from all other books. The usefulness of an ordinary book is utterly dependent upon our ability to understand what we have read. If we do not understand what we are reading, we will gain nothing. However, the Bible is not an ordinary book. Even when we do not fully understand what we are reading, we have a sense of satisfaction and nourishment when we open to the Lord in the Word. At such a time we have a deep sensation that we have touched something spiritual that goes beyond our mental apprehension. This is because we have touched God Himself.
The principle is the same concerning not being able to remember what we have read in the Bible. We often do not remember what we ate several days ago, but this does not change the fact that we ate. This is often our experience in reading God’s Word. Although we may forget what we have read, we must admit that we contacted God in our reading of the Bible.
This can be compared to a person being in the sunlight. Although he is under the shining of the sun for only five or ten minutes, the effect of the sunlight remains with him even when he is no longer outside. This can also be compared to taking a bath. When a person completes a bath, he dries off the bath water. Although he is no longer wet, the dirt on his body has been washed away. It is the same with reading the Bible. Although we may not understand much and may remember even less, we receive the shining of God’s face and the washing of the water in the word when we read the Bible (Eph. 5:26). As a result, we are enlightened and refreshed. It is sufficient to read the Bible in this way.
It is not necessary that we fully understand or remember what we have read in the Bible. It is more important that we contact God’s Word, that is, the expression of God, which is also God expressed. Whenever we read the Bible, we must have the concept that we are not studying it with our mind but contacting God Himself with our heart and spirit. When we read the Bible and contact God in this way, we will be satisfied. If this is our situation, being unable to remember what we have read will not be a problem.
When we read the Bible, we must guard against being distracted by our curiosity and inquisitiveness. In reading the Bible, many Christians are distracted by their curiosity and inquisitiveness. For example, the first verse in the New Testament says, “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham” (Matt. 1:1). These words immediately cause us to want to know more about David and Abraham, and the following verses, which contain a whole series of fathers begetting sons, raise more questions in our mind. Since we do not understand what we have read, we can spend much time looking for answers in reference books. Even after much research, however, we still have not gained anything. This is an example of being distracted by curiosity and inquisitiveness when reading the Bible.
When we read the Bible, we should not be too inquisitive. We should always bear in mind that the Bible is the expression of God. Hence, when we read the Bible, our goal should be to contact God. It is good if we understand what we are reading, but if we come across something that we do not understand, we should not strain for an understanding. If we read chapter 1 of Matthew in this way, without being bothered by our inability to understand and without being distracted by a desire to merely seek knowledge, we will have a sense of enlightenment and freshness when we finish reading the chapter. It will be as if we are under the shining of the sun and the washing of water. First and foremost, we need to remember that we should read the Bible to contact God.
The Bible is the Word of God, the expression of God. God expresses Himself in order that He may enter into us to be our life. God is so mysterious that without the Word, it would be very difficult to contact Him. Thankfully, He is the Word. When we touch and contact the Word, we can touch and contact God. Therefore, in order for us to contact God and enjoy Him as life, we must read the Bible. However, when we read the Bible, we must be careful not to fall into the temptation of merely studying with our mind. We must have the firm realization that the Bible is the expression of God. Therefore, we need to use our heart and spirit to contact the words in the Bible. If we do this, we will be inwardly satisfied, restful, and watered.
God is not only the Word and in His words, but He is also the Spirit and in the Spirit. God is in His words for His expression, and God is in the Spirit for His entering into us. The Word is God coming forth to us, God being expressed, and the Spirit is God entering into us. Hence, the Word is God’s coming forth, whereas the Spirit is God’s entering in. As the Word, God presents Himself to us; as the Spirit, God enters into us.
In actuality, the Word is the Spirit, and the Spirit is the Word. Outside of us, the Spirit is embodied in the Word; inside of us, the Word is realized as the Spirit. Whenever we receive the words of the Bible into our being, these words become spirit and life and are realized as the Spirit. Although the words in 2 Corinthians 6:14 seemingly speak only of not being dissimilarly yoked with unbelievers, we can sense the operation of the Spirit in us when we read this verse. As soon as these words enter into us, we realize them as the Spirit.
When the words of the Bible become the Spirit in us and operate in us, they are life to us. Even though the Bible is a book of life, this is not readily apparent because outwardly the Bible appears to be just a book. The words in the Bible must be read and received into us so that the words in the Bible can become life to us through the operating Spirit. The Lord said, “The words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life” (John 6:63). This shows that His words are life only when they are spirit to us. If the Bible is merely words to us, it will not be life to us. The words in the Bible must become the Spirit to us, and then they also will be life. The words in the Bible become the Spirit when they enter into us. Strictly speaking, if the Bible is only a book in our hands, its words will not be life to us but rather letter, because they are only in our mind. The words in the Bible will become the Spirit to us when we read the Bible with our spirit and allow the words in the Bible to touch our spirit and enter into us.
If we desire to know God and experience Him as our life, we must experience Him as both the Word and the Spirit, because today He is in His words and also in the Spirit. Touching God and contacting God is not something that should be abstract to us. Rather, it is something that can be genuine and real if we calm down our outer man, rein in our mind, and exercise our spirit to read and contact the Lord in the Word. Then His Word will become the Spirit operating in us. In this way we will contact God in our spirit.
This is a marvelous and mysterious matter. The Triune God is in His words and in the Spirit, and the Spirit and the Word are connected. If we had only the Spirit, God would be beyond our comprehension, but because His Word is connected to the Spirit, God can become very real to us. Contacting God is not a matter of religious practice. Religious regulations can only tell people what to do, but God’s salvation involves His entrance into us to be our life.
God can be our life because, as the Word, He became flesh, and then through death and resurrection the Word, who became flesh, became the life-giving Spirit. As the Spirit, God enters into all those who believe into Christ. Incarnation brought God into man; death and resurrection brought man into God. In this way God accomplished a mingling and union of God and man and man and God so that He could enter into man as the Spirit to be man’s life. The Spirit contains many elements, including divinity, humanity, death, resurrection, the mingling of humanity and divinity, and the heavenly element. These elements are in the Spirit.
However, even though God is the Spirit with all these elements, He can still be abstract to us. Therefore, sympathizing with our weakness and according to the extent of our capacity to understand, He also gave us the Bible. This Bible contains God’s words, God’s breathing. God is Spirit, but the Spirit has been connected with the words in the Bible. Hence, we can say that the words in the Bible are the embodiment of the Spirit. The life in the Word is the Spirit, and the embodiment of the Spirit is the Word. Thank God that He comes to us not only as the Spirit but also in His Word. He not only gives us the Spirit but also His Word. This is great grace to us! When we contact His Word, the Spirit enters into us.
When our condition is normal, every time we read the Bible, we will contact His words outwardly but receive the Spirit inwardly. Whenever we receive His Word, we also receive the Spirit. The result of receiving God as the Spirit is to receive life. If we contact God, experience God, and receive God as Spirit through the Word, we will experience Him as our life.
I hope that we will learn to use the Bible outside of us and to contact the Spirit within us. We are truly rich! We have the Spirit in us, and we also have the Bible in our hand. The riches in these two items are inexhaustible! For two thousand years no one has exhausted these riches; the more a person touches them, the richer they become. I have been touching them for thirty-five years, and I can testify that the more I touch them, the richer they become. The riches that we have received cannot be exhausted in our experience. We do not possess silver and gold (Acts 3:6), but we have something much more valuable; we have the Word and the Spirit.
Now that we have the Word and the Spirit, we should conduct ourselves in our daily living according to the Word and the Spirit. We should not go against either the Word or the Spirit. Christ has released us and set us free, but we should not go beyond the Word and the Spirit. Whenever we are not in agreement with either the Word or the Spirit, we should always allow the Word and the Spirit to win. We must let ourselves be defeated. We should be submissive and allow the Word and the Spirit to touch us. We must learn to continually match the Word and the Spirit in our being. It is better to be defeated and suffer a loss, even if it involves sorrow, than to offend the Word or the Spirit. If this is our attitude, we will be able to touch the Lord’s words and receive the Spirit every day, and we will have a practical experience of God as life.
