Understanding

Psalms 119:125 I am thy servant; give me understanding, that I may know thy testimonies. God is the source of understanding. We need to remove the wrong philosophy from our minds that other people are the source of understanding. Too often we automatically look to other people - the pastor, Sunday school teacher, seminary professor or other educated person or book to give us understanding. God can use other people in giving us understanding, but He is the source. Understanding is a gift from God. It is not something that we conjure within ourselves. Understanding of the Bible does not require an education or Bible instruction, or even a Bible teacher. The ability to understand the Bible is something that God gives to us. To receive understanding we need to recognize our position as Christ's servant who needs understanding. Those who feel they already know because of their education will not view themselves as servants and will likely miss looking to God to give them understanding in a crucial moment. In order to properly understand and draw insights from stories in the Bible, we need God's understanding. THIS shows why the traditional Bible story diet has failed in Sunday Schools: it attempts to enable the student to understand through human understanding rather than God's understanding.