His word abiding in you

And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

---

The issue in these verses is life. Jesus knows these to whom he is speaking to. He knows that these are people of the book. These people know the scriptures and perhaps love the word of God. Yet in all of their reading and studying they have come away not knowing God when he appears to them in human form. It is an indictment of all religious folks who claim to know God because they know the scriptures. Sadly, these folks are rebuked by Jesus time after time because they knew the letter but not the spirit of the scriptures.

Jesus tells these religious folks, and many of us today, that it is not enough to intellectually search the scriptures. For if we search them only with our brains we will miss the God who permeates them between the words and between the lines. The scriptures must be embraced and consumed with the heart - his word must be living in us. If not we will miss the very essence of the word of God. This involves meditating, praying and living the words of Holy Writ. These are life giving things that will cause us to come to the author of life.

Teach me Lord how to embrace the scriptures with my heart.