By Xiao Xiao, France
Reading the Bible is a daily must for Christians, and it’s also indispensable on the path to gaining the truth and growing in our spiritual lives. The Lord Jesus said, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Clearly, frequently reading God’s words in the Bible and holding them firmly in our hearts is something that every Christian ought to do. However, every one of us has had the following experience in our Scripture reading: Sometimes we’re able to gain the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment and illumination; our spirit is moved, we can understand God’s will and requirements and have the faith to put God’s words into practice in our daily lives. After a period of time, we grow in our spiritual lives. But then at times, we feel dry and lack enjoyment in our Bible reading and can’t feel the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment or illumination. We don’t have a sense of God’s will and requirements, and even less do we know how to practice God’s words in our day-to-day lives, and after some time, we experience no spiritual growth. Sometimes we might even get sleepy while reading the Bible and become less and less willing to read the Scripture, attend gatherings, and pray. This can be very confusing. We’re reading the Bible just like always, so why are there two totally different outcomes? How can we obtain the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment and illumination so that we are able to achieve good results in our Scripture reading? Actually, as long as we grasp three key points, we can resolve this issue. Next, I would like to address my simple personal understanding of them.
