Spiritual things are spiritually discerned.

I Corinthians 2:14 "The natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned."

Often times I hear many Christians complain that they do not understand the bible, or they don't enjoy reading God's word. I was in the same trap myself for a long time, because I never took the time and disciplined myself to read God's word. I would set my bible down, and then just open to any old page and expect for the word to come alive. I did this for several years, but most of the time I just did not read God's word period. I say this to my shame. For the last two years, by the help of the Spirit's teaching and guidance I have been studying faithfully God's word, and it gets sweeter with everyday. I find myself lost in God's words and promises and how incomprehensible he is. The thing I like the most about studying God's word is that the more that I learn, the more I learn there is a whole lot more to learn! How wonderful it is to have a God to learn about, with which you can never learn everything about.

Often times as Christians we expect to sit down at our bibles, and for God's word to instantly and completely make sense. We don't want to study it, meditate on it, and just stand in plain awe of it. We live in a quick fix it age, when if we want an answer, we just look it up on the internet, or get out one of the many books on our shelves. We sit down at our bibles with a mind set like the world, for understanding of our bibles. We don't want to seek the Lord, and ask him for guidance and understanding, we want to approach it carnally. Yet v. 14 says "the natural man does not understand spiritual things." How we so often sit down at our bibles with a carnal mindset, and with the thinking of getting our 15 minutes or two chapters done, so that I can watch the game or my favorite TV show. Finding ourselves ever so ignorant of God's word, and falling into a self-righteousness the world is so full of. Following vain traditions of man, having no comprehension of what God's word truly says.

John 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." There is hope for us Christians to understand God's word intimately, to discern spiritually what God's word is saying. For the longest time in my Christian walk I never realized that God's word could be understood by my pea-brain. I thought that I would have to read other books, or have to ask the preacher for answers to all my questions. Little did I know, how sweet communion with Christ could be through an intimate understanding and studying of God's word.

So you may ask well I am saved and have the Holy Spirit, so how come I don't hear him teaching me, and guiding me into all truth? You must learn to ask and listen, he is there and want to teach you. How I did it, was to come to an understanding that I was foolish, dumb, and of mine own natural mind could never comprehend even the smallest and simplest concept of God's word. I had to come to realize that I must rely on the spirit to teach and guide me, that in me was no understanding, and that God had all the answers.

Isaiah 55:8-9 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Yet we have someone, God the Holy Spirit, who is willing and desirous to teach us all truths, and lead us to a deeper walk with God, and understanding of his word. All we must do is ask for guidance.

John 14:13-14 "Whatever you ask in my name, this will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in the Fathers name I will do it."

The way I found in my own life to begin to unlock the portals of heaven through God's word, was to sit and pray over Proverbs 2, and I Corinthians 1 and 2. I prayed and ask God to help me to see myself as foolish, and in need of one who alone could teach me and guide me into all truth. Then I asked that the Lord would give me an hunger and unsatisfying desire for his word, that I would search for it like gold and silver. Here is a quote from John Calvin on communion with God:

"Whosoever, then, really perceives what fellowship with God is, will be satisfied with it alone, and will no more burn with desires for other things."

"He therefore, has at length made a proficiency in the gospel, who esteems himself happy in having communion with God, and acquiesces in that alone; and thus he prefers it to the whole world, so that he is ready for its sake to relinquish all other things."

Are our desires for communion with God, through His word and prayer such that we are and would be willing to relinquish all the we love in this world? The television, sports, whatever our so detracts our hearts from a diligent study of God's word. I will leave off with the first verse of a song that I truly love by Isaac Watts "When I Survey The Wondrous Cross":

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the Death of Christ, my God;
All the vain things that charm me the most -
I sacrifice them to his blood.