I know one thing we’ve been asking people to do lately is memorize and read scripture. It’s a great way to get to know God and His purpose for us, but sometimes understanding it is easier said then done. This morning at my bible study there was a really interesting point that was brought up. When we read scripture most of us tend to ask “What does this mean for me?”, when we should be asking “What does it mean for them(the disciples, Israelites, etc.)?” The reason we should ask that question is because there are times where we need to know the context of the situation in order to connect to the message Jesus is trying to convey.
Scripture can be like reading a letter that is for someone else and then trying to apply it to our own lives. We are unable to make the connection because we can’t relate to the content. Think about how Starbucks is valued today, imagine if someone were to write an article and mention Starbucks, no description, just referenced Starbucks, do you think people 2000 years from now (this is saying Starbucks no longer exists) will understand what Starbucks really is, just from the name? If you find that you are asking, “What does it mean to me?” and you can’t figure out the answer, try figuring out, “What does it mean to them?” because then you’ll start diving into things that we can relate to like emotions and feelings.