The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good (Gen 1:12).

So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good (v. 21).

God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good (v. 25).

All these verses have the statement, “God saw that it was good.” It means that he was pleased with what he made because it was made according to his will and purpose. God made everything, every species of plants and animals, according to its kind with a specific intention and purpose so that none of them was made accidentally and unintentionally. This truth is especially emphasized when it comes to the creation of man.

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground (v. 26)."

Note the expression, “Let us make man …” It was by his strong intention that man was created in his image and in his likeness to rule over the earth. And we have the following words:

God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground (v. 28)."

It was God’s will to bless man, and it is still, and it will be forever in spite of our sins and mistakes. That is why God sent his only Son to us. Man was created at the end of the sixth day, and when he woke up the next day, it was the Sabbath day—no work. Man was put in the Garden of Eden with all kinds of food provided. Eden means luxury. When no suitable helper was found for man, God created a wife for him by saying, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” All this indicates the goodness of God, nothing else. With this truth in mind, we come to realize that something is very wrong about the way we live today. Look at the following words:

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live (Eccl 3:11-12).

He wants you to have a good life and be happy enjoying the health and the things God gives you. With this strong intention and for this very purpose, God created you, and has never changed his mind, nor will he change forever.

Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord”' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?” Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers (Mat 7:21)!”

Pay attention to the subject “we” in “Lord, Lord, did we not …?” They think, in their mind, that they prophesied, drobe out demons and performed many miracles in the name of Jesus, but according to Jesus, they did not and he does not know them. The reason they think so is that they did belong to the group of “we” who did prophesy, drive out demons and perform many miracles in Jesus’ name. Belonging to the group of believers does not save you. Only your own personal fellowship with Jesus saves you.

The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven (Mat 16:1).

The Pharisees and the Sadducees differed so much in their beliefs and interests that the two groups often argued against each other, but this time they came together to Jesus asking for a sign from heaven. The sign they asked for was something that would prove that Jesus was the messiah whom they had been looking for. If he was, they would make him a king, and fight against the Romans to gain independence for the Jews. Nicodemus, who was one of the Pharisees and a member of the Sanhedrin, came to Jesus alone one night, and asked also about the same signs:

Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him (John 3:2).

Note that he also said, “we …” To this, Jesus told him about the spiritual rebirth of an individual person. Peter, who confessed that Jesus is the Christ, was not much different from the Jews of that day, and had the similar view of the messiah. When Jesus predicted about his death and resurrection, he said, “Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” Then, Jesus taught the disciples by saying:

If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it (Mat 16:24-25).

Think what Jesus meant by “If anyone would come after me, …” To follow Jesus is not the same as to take sides in a certain belief, or to join a certain group of believers. You will need to come personally to Jesus in your own fellowship with him. That is the only way to be saved, and that is the only way to have listening ears to the word of God.

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Cor 1:18).

Without ears to hear, the truth about Jesus’ death and resurrection sounds foolish. It was for this reason that Peter scolded Jesus and said, “Never Lord! This shall never happen to you.” This condition of him continued, and he ended up disowning Jesus three times. It was through the death and resurrection of Jesus that his ears were opened, and he came to see that there is power in the message of the cross.

My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words.

Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart;

for they are life to those who find them and health to a man's whole body.

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life (Pro 4:20).

It is good to look into the inside of our own heart. It is not to say that we should meditate upon our weaknesses, or the mistakes we made. No, our sins have been totally forgiven and washed away by the blood of Jesus, and we have become the righteousness of God. So, we do not need to feel weak, or should not keep any sense of guilt. And in Christ, our weaknesses have turned into strengths, and are being used by God. What we must look at is the word of God that was planted in us, and God himself who lives in our spirit.

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight (1 Pet 3:3-4).

In this verse, a comparison is made between the outward beauty and the inward beauty of a person. It is the beauty of our “inner self” and “a gentle and quiet spirit” that “is of great worth in God’s sight.”

If we have difficulty understanding biblical truths, it is not because they are so complicated and require some high level of intelligence. No, it is because most of the truths in the Bible are something that is very different from what we normally think, or far from our way of seeing things: for instance, we look for the outward beauty, but God looks at the inward beauty. Look at also the following words of Jesus:

Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets (Luke 6:26).

Nobody in this world teaches us that it is not good to be spoken well of ourselves. We all want others to speak well of us, and we love it and even thank them when they do. But for Jesus, it is “Woe”!

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves (Mat 7:13-15).

Heaven is big, and we think that its gate is wide. But, in fact, Jesus said that it is small and narrow. Why and what does it mean? It is interesting that he talks about “false prophets.” What does he mean by that? He goes on to say:

Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord”' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?” Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers (MATT 7:21)!”

Many Christians stumble on these words of Jesus. Why would Jesus say that he does not know them who prophesied, drove out demons and performed miracles in his name? We do not understand why those who were able to use the name Jesus fail to enter the kingdom of heaven. Or did they simply lie to him when they said, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?”

…because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake (1 Thess 1:5).

Note the expression “with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.” God’s power, the Holy Spirit, and the deep conviction go together. Note, especially, the word “conviction.” A conviction is more than an opinion or a thought. It is a strong belief concerning the truth of the Bible. Since every truth that the Bible teaches is a reality in the spiritual world, it does not work for us in our world unless we believe in it. And in order for us to believe in it, we need to be convinced of it as a truth—a reality. And that is where the Holy Spirit works for you and helps you with power.

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come (John 16:13).

“What is yet to come” is a spiritual reality that has not been realized yet in this physical world. The Holy Spirit reveals that reality to us, and guides us into it so that what the Bible promises will come true to us in the physical world.

Our pitfall today in understanding the Scripture is that our activities in discussing what it means are often done only in our mental realm so that it does not work with power in our life as it is supposed to. We must know that the area where the Holy Spirit works by guiding us into all truth is not in the mental realm of our mind, but in the spiritual realm. The following story teaches this truth well:

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets (Mat 16:13-14)."

Note the way Jesus asked the disciples: "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" Now, of course, you need to keep in mind that Jesus tested the disciples by asking this way. The subject was “people,” not his own disciples. So he asked only what others said about him. Note also, that he called himself “the Son of Man” in the third person as if to say that he was not talking about himself. And there were some heated discussions on this question among them, but Jesus remained silent. Then, he asked the second time:

"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am (v. 15)?"

Note that here the subject was shifted to “you,” directly pointing to the disciples. Then, Jesus referred to himself as “I am.” The question was no longer indirect or impersonal. In answering it, each of the disciples was required to speak what he personally believed in his own heart directly to the very one about whom the question was asked. Nobody spoke, and there was a moment of silence. Then:

Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (v. 16)."

Note that Peter boldly answered, “You are … ,” not “The Son of Man is … ,” talking directly to Jesus. This, we call it “fellowship,” and it happens in the spiritual realm. All believers believe in the Bible as God’s word, and agree that what they read in the Bible is truth, but that does not automatically mean that Gods’ word they read is working with power in their life. There is something more than mental understanding of God’s word. Pay attention, for instance, to the following expression Paul uses in his teaching of the reality of the baptism in Christ.

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus (Rom 6:11).

But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you (John 14:26).

Whenever teaching on the work of the Holy Spirit is given in the church, this scripture is quoted. The Holy Spirit teachers us God’s word. But how does he do that? He has no body, no mouth to speak with, and we cannot hear him teach with our physical ears. Yes, it all happens in the spiritual world, and we do not need physical ears to hear him. But it is our mind, not spirit, that needs to understand, and understanding in our mind does not occur automatically in an easy way when we hear God’s word. We know that there are all kinds of bad thoughts and ideas that are unbiblical and even Satanic in our mind, and those thoughts and ideas always work against the understanding of the Scripture. Therefore, we want to know how the Holy Spirit helps us understand God’s word so that our mind can cooperate with the Holy Spirit as he teaches.

First of all, we need to know that without the help of the Holy Spirit, it would be impossible for us to understand the Scripture. We need his help. And in order to get such help from the Holy Spirit, we need to seek him by faith.

If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:13)!"

Read the whole passage of this teaching on prayer starting with the parable of a friend who asks for three loaves of bread. This teaching of Jesus ends with the promise about the Father giving the Holy Spirit, not loaves of bread. Why, and what is the point of this teaching? Beside the understanding of the Scripture, prayer is the another area where we need the help of the Holy Spirit because in order to have our prayers heard effectively we need to pray according to God’s will by standing upon his promises. And in order to pray according to God’s will, we need to understand his word. The Holy Spirit helps us along that line.

Try to see how dry spiritually the world would be without the Holy Spirit. The following passages describe such dryness and thirst.

Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life (John 4:13-14)."

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him (John 7:37-37)."

Note that with these words, Jesus pointed to the day when the Holy Spirit would be poured out upon all people, and their thirst would be quenched. On that day, they would come to understand what Jesus said. Jesus said to the two disciples who were on the way to Emmaus on the day of his resurrection:

Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?" And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself (Luke 24:26-27).

Jesus was preparing them for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit who was about to be given to them. Note the way he explained: “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained…”

… because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake (1 Thess 1:5).

The truth that the Holy Spirit helps us understand God’s word is well known to the Christians. God’s word needs to be understood and accepted by our hearts before it works for us with power. The above words of Paul tell us that the gospel was preached to the people at Thessalonica “with power, with the Holy spirit and with deep conviction.” The “deep conviction” was given with the help of “the Holy Spirit,” and it worked for them “with power.”

You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit (1 Thess 1:6).

The “deep conviction” led the listeners to the “joy given by the Holy Spirit.” This is how the Holy Spirit works for us. The strong conviction upon Jesus and his gospel appealed to them in their minds to believe and accept the message with the same conviction. And the conviction comes by understanding, and understanding by reason.

Human ability of reason includes the things of God and those of the spiritual world. We Christians today are bound by the idea that our ability to think with reason does little help or even works negatively for the truths of the Bible. We think we need to put our head away to understand the Bible. It is true that many of our thoughts are bent and twisted by evil forces of this world so that they hinder us from understanding and believing God’s word, but it does not mean that our ability to think itself has become bad and useless. It is a gift bestowed upon us as a part of God’s image, and we should use it more for his glory.

But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you (John 14:26).

The following story helps us see how the Holy Spirit helps understand God’s word:

Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days." The Jews replied, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?" But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken (John 2:19-22).

What is implied here is that it was by the Holy Spirit that they were able to recall and believe what Jesus had said. Note that it says, “they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.” It was not only what Jesus said, but also the Scripture that they came to believe. In other words, they were able to see that many parts of the Scripture agree with what Jesus said, and that is why they came to believe. All of this process was done by their reason and their ability to think and understand. It was exactly where the Holy Spirit worked for them.

We need to know that when God communicates with us, he does it through a particular channel—a door. He does not come to you by jumping over the fence, or breaking in through the window or the wall by force. The following words will help you see that:

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me (Rev 3:20).

The lamp of the Lord searches the spirit of a man ; it searches out his inmost being (Prov 20:27).

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better (Eph 1:17).

There seems to be some misunderstanding among believers today concerning how the Holy Spirit helps us know God and his truth. We believers tend to think that our logical sense with the ability to reason does not help much when it comes to understanding spiritual things. We usually think that we can only accept biblical truths by putting aside our logical thinking. That is why for many Christians today, especially those in the Pentecostal circles, getting emotionally excited is an important sign for their spirituality: for them, being emotional is a synonym for being ‘spiritual’. There is nothing wrong, of course, about being emotionally lifted up if it is a genuine manifestation of what they believe inside.

There are some interesting scriptures that we need to pay attention to regarding this matter.

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation (1 Pet 2:1-2), …

The Greek word for “spiritual” is logikos, which comes from logos “word.” It is often translated as “spiritual,” but it should be distinguished from pneumatikos, another word meaning “spiritual.” The significance of the word logikos is that it is related to the stoic idea of ‘logos’—the ‘reason’ that animates the whole universe, which, in the gospel of John, was amalgamated together with the ‘wisdom” that was born and preexisted before the creation into the “Word”—the Christ who ‘tabernacled’ himself to live among us. From the word logikos, we have words ‘logic’ and ‘logical’ in English.

Biblical truths can be and should be understood logically and rationally. And that is how the Holy Spirit, who is called, “the Spirit of wisdom and revelation,” helps you know God better. Look at the following words:

Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ (Acts 9:22).

Paul, after he saw Jesus on the way to Damascus, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and the Bible says, “At once, he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.” Yet, people were perplexed because they knew that he was originally coming to Damascus to persecute Christians. According to Luke, he preached by “proving that Jesus is the Christ.” To prove something means to explain or argue that it is right or wrong logically with some evidence, which in his case, he did by quoting from the Old Testament.

Another example can be seen from the way Stephen argued with some members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen in Acts 6.

These men began to argue with Stephen, but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke.

Stephen was speaking with such wisdom that nobody was able to beat him: that is, in a logical sense. Note that his argument was made with the help of the Holy Spirit. It is worth seeing how the Holy Spirit actually helped him in his speech in chapter 7. People were upset because they could see, in a sense, that Stephen was right: otherwise, they could argue back to prove that he was wrong. The Holy Sprit works in your sense of logic so that you will be able to understand clearly what the Bible means. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. But as you know, faith does not come automatically by hearing the word. It comes by understanding what you are hearing, and it is exactly the area where the Holy Spirit works for you.

It is through the fellowship with Christ that a person understands God’s word and learns anything meaningful to his/her life. When you hear God’s word without the fellowship with Christ, you will fall into the same pitfall as the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law did by becoming legalistic in the way you interpret the Bible and apply it to your everyday life. For legalistic people, the Bible is something of the letter, not of the word that reveals the will of God concerning their personal life, or the message that God speaks privately to their hearts.

You are able to learn God’s word only by coming personally to Christ. You do this spiritually, not simply by hearing about Christ through books and preachers, but by learning directly from him.

You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus (Eph 4:20-21).

To learn the truth in the Bible is to learn the person of Christ himself because he is the truth. He is not a theory nor a principle, but a living being. To know him is not like to learn something in school. Those who try to learn the Bible in this way often have no ears to hear. For them, it looks as though Christ is only a framed picture of him hanged on the wall. Even though you speak to the picture, it never speaks back to you. Or, he is like a movie star surrounded by a big crowd, some millions of people who wish to shake hands with him, but you feel that you are only one of many forgotten in the crowd. You call him, and pay all your attention to him, but you do not think he knows you.

When a person comes to know Christ in a good way, you will always see a certain sign manifested in him/her. Read, for instance, the following words of Paul, and try to understand how he speaks of his relationship with Christ.

For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again (2 Cor 5:14-15).

But as you know, Paul was persecuting Christians until he met Christ on the way to Damascus. That time, he already had some excellent knowledge of the Old Testament. So, think how that experience changed the way he understood the Bible. Jesus said, at one time, to the Jews:

You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life (John 5:39-40).

After the on-the-way-to-Damascus experience, he came to realize that he had been making exactly the same mistake as described above. He was urged to re-interpret the whole Bible, so he did. Then, the conclusion he came up with is seen, for instance, in the following words:

That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Rom 10:9).

If you are a Christian, you must be very familiar with these words. However, concerning what we are very familiar with, we usually think we know what it means. But do we really know this one? What does the statement “Jesus is Lord” mean? Don’t you think that it is so crucial to know and understand what it means in order for us to be saved? The people of Nazareth, Jesus’ hometown, thought they knew him well, but did they really?

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls (Mat 11:28-30).

In these words of Jesus, we should pay attention to the three imperatives:

Come to me.

Take my yoke.

Learn from me.

It is worthwhile meditating upon these three imperatives: what they mean and how they are connected with each other. Let us begin with the third one, “Learn from me.”

Learning is different from studying, especially if its object is God’s word. Learning the Bible is more dynamic, and requires more dimensions than merely studying it. Yet, people today tend to have the attitude of studying it as they do in school. Although this type of studying is still an important part of learning the Scripture, this bias often leads us to miss the target, the message of what God intends to say, and not much wisdom is developed in spite of our time and effort. Think about the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, who were considered very knowledgeable about the Old Testament. Yet, they were the ones who came against Jesus and killed him.

According to the Bible, Paul, before his conversion, was trained in the law under Gamaliel, a well-respected Pharisee of the time. He too belonged to the same sect that opposed Jesus, and later, his disciples. We know that he was there when Stephen was killed in Acts 7: he probably heard the entire speech that Stephen gave before the Sanhedrin. So, what happened to him? What made him go and preach the gospel in the midst of all the persecutions? Interestingly, Luke speaks of his blindness and the opening of that blindness with a metaphorical implication as follows:

Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus (Acts 9:8).

Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized (v. 18) …

What really changed him was the experience of meeting the person of Jesus.

He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" "Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked. "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied (vv. 4-5).

This changed the whole perspective on what the Bible, the Old Testament in his case, was all about. For the first time, he came to have ears to hear, and eyes to see. It all happened to him when he saw Jesus. This is what Jesus means by “Come to me.” Studying the Bible without going to him is meaningless and useless. Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians:

You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus (Eph 4:20-21).

Studying the Bible is learning the truth, and the truth is in the person of Jesus. So, we need to be taught “in him.” That is why Jesus said, “Learn from me.”

As we read the Gospels, we are amazed not only with the miracles that Jesus performed, but also with his wisdom and even with his character. When people asked him questions, he always gave answers to them. In fact, many of his teachings were given in the Gospels because of the questions people asked: he taught them by answering their questions. If the teachings given in this manner were taken away, the Gospels would become very short. Jesus gave a teaching first by answering someone’s question, and later when he was alone with the disciples, some of them asked him further about the teaching.

When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. He told them, … (Mark 4:10-11)

After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. "Are you so dull?" he asked. "Don't you see … (7:17-18)?

After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" He replied, … (9:28-29).

When they were in the house again, the disciples asked Jesus about this. He answered, … (10:10-11).

As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John and Andrew asked him privately, "Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?" Jesus said to them: … (13:3-5)

Sometimes, Jesus even gave them answers, when the disciples did not yet ask him any question yet, but wanted to do so:

Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, (John 16:19)

Not only his disciples, but also his opponents often came and bombarded him with questions.

When Jesus left there, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to oppose him fiercely and to besiege him with questions, waiting to catch him in something he might say (Luke 11:53-54).

Yet, Jesus still gave them answers and taught them. Those who listened to him were always amazed with his answers. Luke says at one place:

Some of the teachers of the law responded, "Well said, teacher!" And no one dared to ask him any more questions (20:39-40).

This ability of him is very unique, and it teaches us something about his character. Apparently, Jesus was trained by God to be that way. It was when he was still twelve years old:

After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers (Luke 2:46-47).

With this in mind, we should meditate upon the following words of Jesus:

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls (Mat 11:28-30).