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The Spirit of Prophecy Volume 4
meaning unless a symbol or figure is employed. Christ has given the
promise, “If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine.”
[
John 7:17
.] If men would but take the Bible as it reads, if there
were no false teachers to mislead and confuse their minds, a work
would be accomplished that would make angels glad, and that would
bring into the fold of Christ thousands upon thousands who are now
wandering in error.
We should exert all the powers of the mind in the study of the
Scriptures, and should task the understanding to comprehend, as far
as mortals can, the deep things of God; yet we must not forget that
the docility and submission of a child is the true spirit of the learner.
Scriptural difficulties can never be mastered by the same methods
that are employed in grappling with philosophical problems. We
should not engage in the study of the Bible with that self-reliance
with which so many enter the domains of science, but with a prayer-
ful dependence upon God, and a sincere desire to learn his will. We
must come with a humble and teachable spirit to obtain knowledge
from the great I AM. Otherwise, evil angels will so blind our minds
and harden our hearts that we shall not be impressed by the truth.
Many a portion of Scripture which learned men pronounce a
mystery, or pass over as unimportant, is full of comfort and instruc-
tion to him who has been taught in the school of Christ. One reason
why many theologians have no clearer understanding of God’s word
is, they close their eyes to truths which they do not wish to practice.
An understanding of Bible truth depends not so much on the power
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of intellect brought to the search as on the singleness of purpose, the
earnest longing after righteousness.
Never should the Bible be studied without prayer. The Holy
Spirit alone can cause us to feel the importance of those things easy
to be understood, or prevent us from wresting truths difficult of
comprehension. It is the office of heavenly angels to prepare the
heart to so comprehend God’s word that we shall be charmed with its
beauty, admonished by its warnings, or animated and strengthened
by its promises. We should make the psalmist’s petition our own:
“Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy
law.” [
Psalm 119:18
.] Temptations often appear irresistible because
through neglect of prayer and the study of the Bible the tempted one
cannot readily remember God’s promises and meet Satan with the