"Deep Reading"

Revelation 1.3 NKJV

“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near.”

Houses need regular cleaning. Dust gathers. Mud gets tracked in. Dirt happens. A home owner can get by with superficial cleaning for a while. It helps to invite guests over to the home. The pressure of “having company” may spur the host into a much needed cleaning frenzy. A rapid run-through with the vacuum cleaner, a quick de-cluttering, throw the dishes in the dishwasher, check the bathrooms.

Most visitors will not notice (or be too polite to comment on) hidden dirt lurking just beyond the line of vision. Surface cleaning is passable... for a while. Eventually, every home needs ‘deep cleaning’ above the bookcase and door frames, under the beds and rugs, behind the toilets, and in all the corners and cracks of unlit and forgotten places.

I can read the Bible superficially. A quick run-through a chapter or two. A check mark by an interesting verse, a minute of meditation, and call it good. The Christian company I keep remains sufficiently impressed with my basic, and somewhat superficial, knowledge and application of Scripture.

Surface Bible reading works… for a while. At some point I need to do some ‘deep reading.’ The dust of the world settles naturally in my brain. The mold of sin quickly grows around my soul. The clutter of undisciplined behavior collects on every horizontal surface of my being. I wouldn’t want Jesus to see my spiritual house this way. I need to do some ‘deep reading;’ that is, the kind of Bible study that actually pays attention to what I’m reading instead of allowing my thoughts to wander while my eyes scan the text. ‘Deep reading’ requires me to actually hear the text, open my heart to the deeper meaning, and listen to the Holy Spirit. It begins with the rock solid conviction that, because God will speak to me from the pages of Scriptures, I must pay attention and then act accordingly.

I think it’s time to get my spiritual house in order and invite Jesus over for a visit.