Photo by Jeremy Thomas on Unsplash
Electricity is very useful. It can also be dangerous.
Our present lifestyle requires electricity. We need it for lights and appliances, including our computers, tablets, smartphones, and wi-fi. If there's a problem with your car, technicians hook it up to a diagnostic computer.
Electricity, not just its discovery, but how to harness it has revolutionized the way we live. A bit of an understatement, huh? Though valuable and useful, it can be dangerous unless it is properly grounded.
Spirituality is similar to electricity when it's not grounded—dangerous.
Grounded
Electricity needs to be grounded to stabilize it. This makes it both safe and useful. Likewise, spirituality, that is, spiritual truth, needs to be grounded in a proper way.
Spirituality, that is, spiritual truth, needs to be grounded in a proper way
What is the grounding for spiritual truth? God's Word—the written Word of God, the Bible—stabilizes spiritual truth. It grounds spirituality.
Just as electricity needs to be grounded to be safe and useful, so also spiritual truth needs to be grounded in God's written Word, the Bible.
Spiritual truth needs to be grounded in God's written Word, the Bible
Ungrounded
Ungrounded electricity is dangerous. A good natural example is lightning.
Why does lightning strike the ground from the clouds? It's attracted by the positive charges (electrons) in the earth (the ground).
The atmosphere, filled with storm clouds, contains an immense amount of scattered negative electric charges. When they gather together, these negative charges seek the positive charged ground.
This is why it's not good to be exposed out in the open in an electrical storm. You become what the grounding that the lightning seeks.
The need for understanding
The natural world is God's illustration book for understanding spiritual truth (Psalm 19:1-4; Rom. 1:20). So, the need for electricity to be grounded can help us understand the need for spiritual truth to be grounded.
Have you ever flown on a plane in an electrical storm? It's exciting, to say the least, as you're bounced around in those clouds full of electrical power. It may be less exciting on the ground but it's a lot safer!
The natural world is God's illustration book for understanding spiritual truth
When I was seeking the truth, I wandered through a maze of philosophies and religions. It was confusing because I had no real grounding in my life.
I also found all these philosophies and religions to be impersonal.
One constant
One constant in my search for the truth was reading the Bible each day. I did so for a couple of years while I searched. I didn't understand much of what I read, but it stabilized me.
As I bounced around from one possibility to another, I saw consistency and stability in the Bible. It kept pointing me to a person and that person was Jesus.
The Bible kept pointing me to a person and that person was Jesus
Here are a couple of things I discovered in my Bible reading—
Jesus Christ—the Messiah—is known as the Word (John 1:1, 14)
This lines up with the account of creation in Genesis 1:3—"...and God said...."
At the end of the Bible—in Rev 19:11-16—Jesus is known as, "The Word of God."
The personal nature the Bible
God's truth—recorded in the Bible—is personal. Unlike the ungrounded, impersonal philosophies and religions of the world, it is grounded in the person of Jesus.
As He told the expert teachers of the Law (the Pharisees)—
You study the Scriptures in detail because you think you have the source of eternal life in them. These Scriptures testify on my behalf. Yet, you don’t want to come to me to get ⌊eternal⌋ life. (John 5:39-40 GW)
God's truth—recorded in the Bible—is personal and grounded in the person of Jesus
The Bible and you
What's your experience with reading the Bible? Do you understand it or find it difficult?
If you'd like to know God or understand Him better, start reading or listening to God's Word—the Bible.
The Bible is not just a collection of spiritual truths, it's God's Story. His story of redemption for all people. It is a written revelation of truth so we may know God in a personal way.
Are you searching for answers? Are you uncertain about what is true? Are you confused by man's opinions and ideas about truth?
Each week I post an article like this one, a devotional on Wednesdays, and a simple Bible study on Fridays. The goal of all of these is to help seekers and believers get grounded in their understanding of the truth and in relationship with the Lord.
Getting grounded
Here are some ways to get grounded—
Read or listen to the Bible each day—even if it's only a few verses a day
Think about what you are reading or listening to throughout the day
Read and study through the simple Bible studies posted each week on Applied Truth
Here are some resources to get you started—
Many biblical resources are available online. If you're reading this, you probably have access to most of them.
Various Bible versions can be found to read or listen to, there are many Bible reading plans to follow, and several devotional readings.