NOT LOOKING FOR INSPIRATION

When we come to the Bible, we also should not look for inspiration. We should not try to find or create some kind of inspiration. We do not need to seek inspiration from the Holy Spirit. Inspiration from the Holy Spirit is like radio waves in the air; as long as we adjust to the right frequency in our spirit, the radio signals will come. When we purposely look for something, we oftentimes find something false. When many brothers and sisters read the Bible, they create their own inspiration. This is unnecessary. The Spirit who has been sent forth to all the earth is omnipresent and all-pervading. As long as the frequency in our spirit is right and the condition of our spirit is proper, we do not need to look for or think about inspiration when we come to the Bible; inspiration surely will come.

I hope that God’s children can grasp these four points. We should realize that reading the Bible is a simple matter, we should not come with a heart to study, we should drop our concepts, and we should not look for our own inspiration. May we all practice these four points.

PRACTICAL EXAMPLES

Let us now consider our practice. When we come to read the Word, we must turn our being from outward things. This is commonly known as quieting ourselves, being calm. As soon as we are calm, our whole being can be turned to the spirit. At this point we must ignore our concepts. Instead of having the intention of investigating something in the Word, we should have a seeking heart to contact God Himself, to eat Him, drink Him, and enjoy Him through our reading. Rather than reading random portions of the Bible, we should simply follow a regular schedule and continue reading from where we stopped the day before. As we read the Bible, we should not entertain different thoughts or try to study or investigate a topic, in order for the words of the Bible to spontaneously touch our inner being.

Suppose we are reading Matthew 11. In this chapter John the Baptist, the Lord’s first faithful witness, was in prison. After hearing about the miracles that the Lord performed in healing the sick, casting out demons, and even resurrecting the dead, John wondered how people who had done nothing for the Lord could receive such miracles, but he received no deliverance. Hence, he sent men to question the Lord, asking if He was indeed the coming Christ. In other words, if the Lord was the Christ, He should deliver John from prison, and if He was not, John should wait for someone else. This word was meant to provoke the Lord Jesus. The Lord replied, saying, “Blessed is he who is not stumbled because of Me” (v. 6). If our inner being is touched with the Lord’s response, we may say to the Lord, “Even though I have served You faithfully, and You do not seem to care for me in my sufferings and are doing many things for others who seem to have nothing to do with You, I am not stumbled by You. On the contrary, I am blessed.” Such a response does not come from our concepts; it is not imagined, and it does not come from study. Rather, the Holy Spirit has touched us and inspired us as we were reading the Word in a simple way. This is the way to eat the Word.

LEARNING TO BE SIMPLE IN ENJOYING GOD 
THROUGH READING THE WORD

For this reason, when we read the Word, we must learn to be simple; when we eat, we are simple. We do not need to have any concepts, we do not need to have the intention of learning something, and we do not need to seek for inspiration. We simply need to read. As we read, the Holy Spirit will frequently touch our inner being with the Word. The intention to study will be a frustration to our reading. Any concepts will veil the true picture of the Bible. The thought of receiving inspiration will often produce false inspiration. We must drop these things. When we come to the word, we must be very simple, having the attitude of not wanting anything and not knowing anything. All we want is to contact God in His Word. Then according to the condition in our spirit, the Spirit will use the words of the Bible to touch our inner being in an appropriate way, and we will receive something from the Bible. When we receive, we must still restrict our mind from thinking too much. We must exercise our spirit to turn the words that touch us into prayer. Then our reading will reach a higher plane, and we will always be richly fed when we read the Word.

We may wonder how a reading that does not pay attention to spiritual inspiration can help us understand the Bible. However, those with the best understanding of the Bible read in this way. If we would daily read with the sole intention of eating the Word and being nourished by God’s riches, after some time we will see that the Bible is an open book to us. While the light of the Bible will shine brightly before us, we will also feel that no one can fully understand this book. It is inexhaustible. No matter how we approach it, it always yields fresh riches and brings new nourishment.

I hope that all the brothers and sisters will take this word to be simple by considering that the reading of the Word is a simple matter. We should not try to study. We should drop our concepts, and we should not seek for any inspiration. This is what it means to be simple. If we can be this simple, our reading of the Bible will be profitable. Then when a word touches us, we must restrict our thoughts and exercise our spirit to digest the word. It is better not to have many thoughts. We must remain in the Spirit’s inspiration and receive the words that touch us. Spontaneously, we will exercise our spirit to turn what touches us into prayer. In this way our reading will be an absorption of His nourishment and an enjoyment and satisfaction. As we eat God’s Word and absorb God, we will enter into the experience of enjoying God through reading His Word.