Elementary, My Dear Watson

When my wife and I want a diversion from our normal routines, we like to watch a good detective show. Often one of us will guess “whodunit” early on and laugh about the bragging rights to such a gift. One of the favorites is Sherlock Holmes, a fictional detective with an amazing ability to observe and see what others don’t see. Sherlock was often pointing out to Dr. Watson his assistant, “You see, but you do not observe.” Howard Hendricks, in his work, “Living by the Book,” the best book ever on Bible study, says, “What makes one person a better Bible student than another? He can see more. That’s all. The same truth is available to both of them in the text.”

Have you ever been reading the Bible and said to yourself, “I’ve read this passage many times, but I never have seen that before!” What just happened? You see, the more we read God’s Word the more we love it, and the more we are going to hang on every word. The Bible is God’s message not only to the world but to us personally. It is like a love letter that one reads over and over because every single word is important. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God…” literally “God-breathed,” the very words of God. James 1:25 says, “But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, (the Bible) and perseveres, …he will be blessed in his doing.”

Observation is a learned skill. Look for repeating words, sentence structure, for contrasts and comparisons, etc. Don’t forget to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” (Psalm 119:18)

Pastor Phil Newby