Scripture says, "Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits" (Psalm 68:19).

The Bible is the storehouse where those benefits are kept. It is a royal treasury that glitters with unspeakable wealth--priceless riches such as truth, faith, joy, peace and hope.

A generous king might show you his treasure house and give you a handful of expensive jewels. But God, King of the universe, invites you into His royal treasury daily. He does not offer you a small sample of His wealth . . . He loads you down with all you can contain! He heaps His precious benefits upon you. He showers you with plenty . . . abundance. And He says, "Come back again tomorrow for more and more!"

The message of God to the world-weary is, "Throw down that load you are carrying, that heavy heart full of remorse, sin, fear, loneliness or worry. Cast off that depressing burden and enter my treasure house to be loaded down with true everlasting riches."

The Bible is the loadstone of wisdom and God says, "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding: for the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. She (wisdom) is more precious than rubies: and all the things that you can desire are not to be compared unto her. Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is everyone that retaineth her"(Prov. 3:13-18).

This message is written for those who sincerely want to taste the riches of God's Word.

When Jesus was a baby, His mother and Joseph brought Him to the temple in Jerusalem. Jesus looked just like any other baby. There was no ring of light over His head as we sometimes see in pictures. There was no glowing aura about Him that made people realize He was a very special infant. Those are just the inventions of artists. There was nothing at all unusual about the appearance of this tiny Jesus.

Yet one man, a devout person named Simeon, walked over and took Jesus from the arms of His mother. He recognized Jesus as the promised Messiah. He held Jesus up and looked lovingly and reverently into His face. He praised God the Father for letting him see the Christ before he died. "Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word: for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation" (Luke 2:29, 30).

Some men pick up the Bible and see just another book. They see only poetry, history, religion and literature. But others hold that book as lovingly as Simeon held Jesus, for they see His face reflected in its pages. They see salvation, light, life and hope.

Why?

Why did others brush by Joseph and Mary without a second glance at the sacred infant? Why did they see nothing, while Simeon saw the hope of the world?

The reason Simeon recognized Christ in the arms of Mary is the very same reason that some see life in the Scriptures while others do not.

The Holy Spirit!

The Bible says concerning Simeon, "It was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ" (Luke 2:26). And in the next verse we see that it was the Holy Spirit who led Simeon into the temple that day. Others thought Jesus was the son of Joseph because they looked upon Him with their natural eyes and in the light of their human knowledge. But Simeon saw Jesus as the Son of God because He was seeing in the light of the Spirit's revelation. He did not just "figure out" that this infant was the Messiah. It was a revelation from the Holy Spirit! It was supernatural!

Years later, after Jesus began His earthly ministry, He asked His disciples, "Whom do men say that I am?" (Mat. 16:13). Men had tried to "figure out" the identity of Jesus. The disciples told Jesus, "They say you are John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets" . . . the reincarnation theory, a result of human reasoning. Men scratched their heads, knit their brows, and said, "We will figure it out." This is what they came up with! The reincarnation theory. They were terribly wrong, of course.

Then Jesus asked His disciples, "Whom do ye say that I am?" Immediately, Peter answered, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God"(Mat. 16:16).

Jesus said, "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona (Peter): for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven"(vs.17).

Peter did not "figure it out." His answer was not a product of his flesh and blood brain. It was a supernatural revelation from God!

By a spiritual revelation Simeon saw that the infant Jesus was God's Messiah. By spiritual revelation Peter saw the true identity of Jesus.

And in the very same way you will see light in the Scriptures! If you try to "figure it out" relying only on the ability of your mind, you will stumble down a blind alley. Without the Holy Spirit as your Guide, you will never comprehend truth. You, too, must have a spiritual revelation.

Some people say, "The revelation has already been given. It is the Bible; it is complete and all we have to do is read the revelation." But Scripture itself says, "The natural man (human nature) receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor. 2:14).

The most intelligent man in the world, human nature at its very best, just does not possess the ability to understand spiritual truth. In fact, the most priceless gems of spiritual wisdom are actually foolishness to him!

Unless the Spirit reveals truth to a man, he will not find it, no matter how diligently he reads the Bible. The world is full of cults and false prophets who use the Bible as their basic text book, the source of all their doctrine. Their teachings are abundantly overflowing with Scripture, but they are, according to Scripture, "sensual, having not the Spirit"(Jude 19). This word "sensual" as it is used here comes from a Greek word in the original. That word is psuchikos and it means "natural" . . . "the unregenerate nature." They interpret Scripture with the mind of the unregenerate nature.

The Biblical Pharisees are a perfect example of this. Their heads were full of Scripture. Their brains were stenciled with thousands of Scripture verses. All of their beliefs were drawn from Scripture . . . yet they were so blind that they looked at Jesus and said, "He is possessed with Satan."

An uneducated fisherman said to Jesus, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." But these Biblical experts looked at Him scornfully and said, "He is a devil!"

So it is very plain that it is not enough just to read the Bible and commit it to memory. The Scripture was read in synagogues all over the world and truth remained concealed. The Bible is read in thousands upon thousands of churches each Sunday where truth remains concealed.

Every word of the Bible is true but the Bible itself is not truth. The mere reading of the Bible (as we can see by these examples) is no guarantee of discovering truth.

Someone will say, "Wait just a minute, brother . . . what do you mean when you say that the Bible itself is not truth?"

I mean that some revere the Bible above the message of the Bible!

The message of the Bible prophesied a Savior. But when He came He was rejected and crucified by people who vigorously defended the Scripture. They lifted the Scripture up on the highest pedestal, and they lifted the very life and message of the Scripture up on a cross!

Jesus! Jesus Christ! He is the message of the Bible!

He said, "I am . . . the truth!"

Listen to what He said to some people who knew the Scripture very well. "Ye have not His Word abiding in you: for whom He hath sent, Him ye believe not. Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me. And ye will not come to Me, that ye might have life"(John 5:38-40).

Their heads were full of Scripture but still Jesus told them, "Ye have not His Word abiding in you."

How is that possible?

They had Scripture about their religion, their minds were full of Scripture that (to them) proved their doctrines and theological viewpoints. They even had Scripture to defend the Scriptures. But they did not have God's Word abiding in their hearts!

What is God's Word?

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men"(John 1:1, 3, 4).

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us"(John 1:14).

"And He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and His name is called The Word of God"(Rev. 19:13).

Jesus is the Word of God!

"God, who at sundry times and in different manners spoke in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son"(Heb. 1:1, 2).

In the dim light of human reasoning, men fumble about through the pages of the Bible and invent grotesque doctrines. Other men swallow those theological camels simply because they are constructed from Scripture.

When these men read Scripture, they see a lot of "Bible" but they never see the Word of God!

However, the man who opens his Bible and reads in the brilliant light of the Holy Spirit will see and know the Word of God.

The Holy Spirit always testifies of Jesus!

Christ said, "When the Comforter (Holy Spirit) is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of Truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of Me" (John 15:26).

And in another place, Jesus said, "When He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself . . . He shall glorify Me" (John 16:13, 14).

A man who reads the Bible with dependence upon his own intellect to show him truth will always glean spiritual death from its pages, for his own mind cannot penetrate past the letter of the word. Scripture says, "The letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life" (2 Cor. 3:6). If you are not born again, then you do not possess the Spirit of Truth. You cannot hope to understand the Bible. You will only formulate false opinions (which you will be certain are correct), or you will be confused and bored.

You must have a spiritual rebirth.

This is when the Spirit of Truth comes into your heart.

Repent of sin. Turn away from it. Ask God to forgive you. Give your life to Him. Christ died on the cross for your sin. He is the Savior of all who come to Him. He will save you if you ask.

He will give you the Holy Spirit if you ask.

We are basically evil but Jesus said, "If ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?" (Luke 11:13).

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find: knock, and it shall be opened unto you" (Luke 11:9).

After you have accepted Christ as your Savior and are reborn, let the Holy Spirit lead you into the Scriptures. Always pray before you open your Bible, "God, I pray in Christ's name that you will open my heart to truth. Let me see wonderful things in your Word. Teach me about Jesus."

Always remember Jesus said, "Learn of Me" (Mat. 11:29). The revelation of God's nature and God's will is found in the person of Jesus. Read the Bible to know Jesus. Do not let your human nature and Satan sidetrack you into reading the Bible to prove what church is right, or get you all tangled up in legalistic doctrinal matters.

"Love God with all your heart. Love your neighbor as yourself. Do to others as you would have them do to you. Do good works to others in the name of Jesus."

That is sound doctrine. It is only a tiny paragraph, but if you will walk according to those words, you will never need to learn any more about doctrine.

Caution! If you are not a reborn Christian, do not attempt to apply those words to your life! The natural, unregenerate, human heart is absolutely incapable of such pure and selfless love. If you try to make yourself worthy of salvation by struggling to love God with all your heart, or your neighbor as yourself, you will either deceive yourself into thinking you have succeeded, or you will be frustrated by your constant failure. None of us has the ability to give love in the sense that this commandment requires.

Then why did Jesus say, "All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments"?

Why does God require that love if we are not able to meet the requirement?

Once again we are confronted with the necessity for spiritual rebirth. In this experience we receive the Holy Spirit, and as Scripture says, "The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given us" (Rom. 5:5).

"Given us." We did not have it. We were not born with it. We could not earn it. We could not buy it . . . it is a gift of God! By "it" I speak of the "love of God." I do not speak of the Holy Spirit who imparts that love as "it." Scripture always speaks of the Holy Spirit as "He"because the Holy Spirit is a Person.

I want to emphasize this point . . . there is a great danger in misappropriating verses of Scripture!

For instance, consider that verse mentioned previously, "The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given us."

Who can truly make that statement?

The answer should be obvious . . . only those who actually have received the Holy Spirit! Yet I know people who open the Bible, point at those words and say, "There, you see . . . it says right here that we have God's love in our hearts because His Spirit is within us." By "we" they mean humanity . . . all people in the world. But those words were written in the Epistle to Christians and only Christians . . . those who have been reborn by the Spirit of God.

A man who was deeply blinded by the practice of misappropriating Scripture said to me, "If everyone in the world learned to see the Christ in themselves and the Christ in others, what a beautiful world this would be." It sounded just grand . . . but the whole phrase was based on the very wrong idea that Christ is in everyone. The Bible teaches, "He that hath the Son (Christ) hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" (1John 5:12). It is clear that some have not Christ.

I asked him where he got the idea that Christ was in everyone. He said, "It says so in the Bible . . . 'Christ in you, the hope of glory'" (Col. 1:27).

I said, "Do you believe that we must be pardoned by God for our sin and be reconciled to Him by the blood of the Cross?"

He said, "Of course not! The very idea of reconciliation to God through blood is abhorrent to me and most others." He went on to say, "There is really no such thing as sin, or separation from God . . . so why do we need to be reconciled?"

Now let me show you what that man did. He reached into the Bible and took out something that did not even apply to him and appropriated it to his own life. Not only that, but he completely ignored the rest of the letter those words were taken from.

He quoted from the Epistle to the Colossians. In the first chapter (the very one he quoted from) it says, "It pleased the Father that in Him (Christ) should all fullness dwell; and, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself" (vs. 19, 20).

This man took the part about "Christ in you the hope of glory" and applied that to himself. He rejected the rest of the letter.

I am warning you against this kind of "Bible reading"!

It is most deluding and destructive!

Suppose a man named Peter Smith found an envelope on the sidewalk. When he opened it he found a letter from an attorney addressed to a man named David Jones. Suppose the letter said, "Dear Mr. Jones: We have settled your uncle's estate. Please come to my office and pick up a check for $10,000.00."

Now suppose Peter Smith went to the lawyer's office and tried to claim the $10,000.00. The lawyer would say, "You are no relation to the uncle that died. You are not David Jones and the letter was not addressed to you." What if Peter Smith pointed to just a part of the letter, not the whole letter, but just a few words plucked out of context, "come to my office and pick up a check for $10,000.00"? The lawyer would laugh the man out of his office! How foolish it would be for a man to attempt claiming money by using a letter not addressed to him . . . and taking it out of context at that.

It sounds so absurd that you might think, "Certainly, no one would do that!"

But you would be wrong because thousands of people do something just like this with the Bible every day.

The Epistles are letters . . . letters written to the early Christians and to all the faithful in Christ everywhere. The key is the phrase "in Christ." The Epistle to the Colossians was written to the "faithful brethren in Christ" (Col. 1:2). What does it mean to be "in Christ"? We are born by the Spirit of God into the Body of Christ. A man who has been born again is "in Christ." A man who has never been reborn is not in Christ. He is "in Adam" . . . that is, in "human nature." The Bible says "in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (1 Cor. 15:22).

All people in the world are either "in Adam" or "in Christ."

Suppose an "in Adam" man opens the Bible to the book of Ephesians and reads, "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God" (Eph. 2:19). He might conclude, "Wonderful . . . the Bible says right here that I am in the family of God. We are all in His family!"

But this "in Adam" man failed to note to whom this Epistle (letter) was addressed. It was written "to the faithful in Christ Jesus" (vs.1). An "in Adam" man applying something like that to his life is like Peter Smith trying to collect $10,000.00 from a letter written to David Jones!

The promises of eternal life, spiritual blessing and other gifts of God are directed to those "in Christ." If "Mr. In Adam" reads them and appropriates them to himself, he is only destroying his chance of life and insight.

Imagine that a man went to his doctor for an examination. Upon conclusion of the "physical," the physician said, "Fred, you have a serious growth. It must be removed by surgery. If you do not have this operation, you will die soon, but, if you consent to the operation, everything will be all right."

Suppose that Fred told the doctor, "No . . . I don't want any operation. I do not believe it is necessary." Now carry this imaginary illustration on a bit further and follow Fred home. His wife asks, "What did the doctor say, dear?" Fred replies, "He said, 'Everything will be all right.'" Of course, Fred is taking those words completely out of context. He was told that everything would be all right if he had the operation.

Now watch Fred in the weeks that follow. His mind will not face the fact of his illness. He tells himself over and over again, "Everything will be all right."

He is clinging to some misappropriated words, taken out of context, and those words are his only hope. They will prove to be a futile hope because Fred will die exactly as the doctor warned.

The Bible issues a serious warning. Sin is a disease in human nature and it is fatal . . . it brings not just the death of the body, but eternal death and separation from God. However, through the sacrifice of Jesus, through His blood we can be pardoned and healed of this disease. In effect, God is saying something like Fred's doctor. "You have a serious disease. Unless it is removed you will die, but if you take the treatment everything will be all right."

Some people take the treatment (repentance and conversion) but others go on like Fred and delude themselves into thinking "Everything will be all right!" They ignore the verses about sin and judgment, and they cling to a false hope by misappropriating verses about God's children and heaven, which do not apply to them.

Most of the cults and fanatical outgrowths of Christianity in the world have been started by people who studied the Bible in the frail light of human reasoning, misappropriated Scripture, and took verses out of their proper context.

So be very sure that you . . .

1 - Are born again, and read Scripture in the light of the Holy Spirit's guidance.

2 - Read the Bible to know Jesus.

3 - Never take things out of context! No matter what a writer on Scripture may say a certain verse means . . . you read it for yourself in its context! Read the chapter leading up to that verse, read the chapter after the verse. Do not look at one verse and say, "I wonder what that means." Most verses in the Bible can only be properly understood in their entire context.

These points are of extreme importance! They cannot be over emphasized.

In my opinion, a new Christian should never start with the book of Genesis and try to read the Bible through. My advice is, begin with the Gospel of John. Read it carefully, prayerfully and with much thought.

Then read the other Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke).

During this period he should also read a bit each day from the book of Proverbs.

When he completes the Gospels, he should read the book of Acts and the Epistles. While reading, the Epistles especially, he should have a modern language Bible as a study guide. I read the King James version of the Bible. It is very beautiful and powerful. But I also use the Amplified version, Living New Testament and several other modern language renditions as a guide in my Scripture reading.

I recommend that every Christian have his own concordance. It is a priceless aid to Bible study. A concordance is a book where all the words of the Bible are listed. For instance, if you were studying the subject "faith," you could turn to your concordance and it would give you every place in the entire Bible where that word appears. If you have never used a concordance, you will be amazed at the truth this type of "word study" unlocks and the enlightening spiritual thoughts it sets in motion.

Do not read books about the Bible to the neglect of reading the Bible itself.

David said, "My heart was hot within me; while I was musing (meditating) the fire burned" (Psalm 39:3).

Years ago, as a child, I used to write with "invisible ink." I would squeeze a lemon into a cup and write words on a paper with this fruit juice. When the words dried, the page was clear. Nothing could be seen. Then I would say to my mother, "Please hold this paper over the heat of the kitchen stove." As she did, the words I wrote appeared on the paper as if by magic.

The heat revealed the invisible.

Meditating on God's word sets a fire in a man's heart, and in the heat of that fire, truth becomes visible.

Do not just "read the Bible" as if it were a novel. Meditate!

"Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the Scriptures?" (Luke 24:32).

When I study the Bible, I often read several verses and then get up, walk around, pace back and forth, turning over those verses in my mind . . . thinking about each word; and as I do the fires begin to burn.

You cannot possibly receive truth from the Bible if you depend on your natural instincts to guide you. In fact, many, many things you read will come sharply into collision with what your instincts tell you.

The Bible speaks of hell; your instincts will say, "There is no such place." The Bible tells often of judgment, but your instincts will say, "It is not true!" The Bible speaks of a God who will forgive and receive the most heinous sinner, but your guilt distorted instincts might say, "It is too good to be true!" Scripture tells of eternal life, but your instincts say, "Just a false hope for the simple."

Your instincts are what some people call their "gut feeling." It is a sense deep inside that something is right or wrong.

If your guide through the Bible is a scout called "Gut Feeling" or "Big Chief Instinct," then you are going to end up on a dead end trail!

Human instincts are blind concerning spiritual truth. Jesus said, "If the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch" (Mat. 15:14).

Do not be led by your instincts . . . they are spiritually blind!

In fact, you must often deny and completely disregard what you are told by your natural instincts!

Follow the compass!

Here is what I mean.

Years ago, when I was a very young man, I was hunting in the forests of New Hampshire. I was deep in the woods and decided that I should return to the road so I would not get caught in the forest at nightfall. I placed my compass on a stump and read it. I was sure I knew the way out, but my compass told me I was wrong. However, my instincts said, "You have been here before. You know the way . . . something must be wrong with your compass." So I continued walking in the way my "feelings" told me to go. I got into some long swamp grass near a beaver dam, and then stumbled through a big blow down. Finally, I looked at my compass again. It said, "You are going the wrong way!" But my foolish guide, my own stubborn human instincts said, "No, that cannot possibly be the way out. The compass is wrong, follow me." So once again, I went off on a fool's trudge, blindly stumbling in the direction indicated by my "feelings." It began to get dusky. Fear of spending the night in the woods made me bring out the compass again. I had gone into the woods walking east; all I had to do was walk straight west to strike the road where my car was parked. This time I followed my compass and denied my human instincts. That compass showed me west . . . and I walked west in spite of the fact that it seemed to me I was walking in the opposite direction. The compass got me out.

The Bible tells us we are lost souls. Our natural instincts say, "No . . . it cannot be!" The Bible points to Jesus and says, "Go to Him . . . He will save you!" But our instincts say, "No. I am as good as the next fellow! I am all right. I will just keep walking this way!"

Warning . . . follow the compass! The Bible is the spiritual compass.

When you open your Bible and read something that seems to contradict what your "feelings" tell you, please, in the name of the Lord, for the sake of your very spiritual life, accept what the Bible says!

This is what Jesus meant when He said, "While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light" (John 12:36).

Many years ago a man wrote the words to a beloved Gospel song, "There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains, lose all their guilty stains."

This man had light! What he said was true, but he lived a life tortured by terrible guilt. He was able to believe that forgiveness and peace were available . . . but for others. As for himself, he believed that he was condemned to die in his sins.

The light he saw said, "There is a fountain opened for sin and uncleanness." The light he saw said, "God will forgive your sins."

He had the light . . . but he did not accept it as truth for himself. He did not receive it with faith.

He went by his "feelings" rather than the compass of God's Word. He wandered in a wilderness of miserable guilt because he would not accept what the "compass" said.

If you respond to the light and truth as that man did . . . then, like him, you will never taste the blessings and benefits of the Scripture. But if you will deny the false witness of your instincts and accept God's Word as truth, you will rejoice in His blessings.

Your feelings may tell you that God is far away, but the Bible says, "I will never, never leave you nor forsake you" (Heb. 13:5). Whom will you believe?

Your feelings may say, "He did not forgive you and He did not cleanse you." But the Bible says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).

I am sure, by now, you understand what I mean by "follow the compass instead of your own instincts." Practice this lesson in all of your Scripture reading. It will help you the rest of your life here on earth.