Understanding what you need to understand
Okra, or as a youngster, “Okree”. You probably either love it or hate it. I love okra. Not as much as cherry cobbler, but that’s not a real contest.
Okra is considered a “good for you” food. This from Medical News Today, “It is a good source of minerals, vitamins, and fiber. It contains a characteristic viscous juice that can be used to thicken sauces.” Yeah, that’s one way to describe that slime. The Medical News Today article says, “Its nutritional content means it can promote heart health and strong bones and protect against cancer.”
From Medical News Today and USDA respectively, raw okra and American Importing Company’s Crunchy Dried Okra list the following nutritional values for 100 grams of okra.
Raw Okra (100 g) Crunchy Dried Okra (100 g)
Calories 33 433
Carbs 7.45 g 73.3 g
Fat 0.19 g 13.3 g
Sugar 1.48 g 30 g
If you’ve decided to eat something that “promotes heart health, strong bones and protects against cancer”, the food in the photo may not be your first choice (hint: it’s not raw okra).
I had the okra in the photo and it was a pretty tasty snack. Here’s the problem, I ate it thinking I was eating something else. I assumed its benefits were closer to raw okra. They were not.
A friend and I were talking the other day (I don’t know where I would be without counsel from my friends) and he mentioned wanting to read a book by a certain theologian. He and I had discussed the theologian’s beliefs, as we knew them, and he thought it would be a good idea to learn directly from his writings.
As soon as he said it I wondered aloud why we should even read a theologian’s opinion about the Bible instead of well, just reading the Bible. So, we talked about it.
I realized I often study the Bible in a Crunchy Dried Okra manner.
- I don’t fully understand something in the Bible, so I go to a reference to get some insight.
- The expert explains the Bible in a way that doesn’t sit well with me.
- I look for another reference who agrees with me.
I’m not sure that was helpful.
My friend and I talked about why God would write the Bible in such a way that parts are hard to understand and we feel the need to get a second opinion. Experts debate these difficult passages all the time, often with no clear answer. And, I’m guessing those experts believe God has given them insight into His Word or they wouldn’t be so determined they’re right.
That leads me to a couple of hopeful thoughts, provided to me by others.
I had a Sunday School teacher who would often say, “The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible.”
Couldn’t argue with that.
Now, back to the conversation my friend and I were having. The whole quandary came to a halt when my friend said, “I think God can help me understand what I need to understand.”
Couldn’t argue with that, either.
Here’s my encouragement. Be careful in selecting your resources outside the Bible to explain the Bible. Not all okra is as good for you as raw okra. It may taste better, but it’s not what you need.
And, trust God to lead you in understanding what you need to understand.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic.
MedicalNewsToday website: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/311977.php
Makes sense to me.
Thanks Jack. And, I’ll put this out there in response to your comment, but also for anyone else reading this. After I published the original post, my wife and I left for an extended drive and it hit me that I had not referenced a single Bible verse. I felt terrible and still do. I won’t go to the trouble to type it out here, but as far as help in understanding the Bible, I think 1 Corinthians 2:12-13 tells us the Holy Spirit will help us understand the things of God–things like Scripture. I appreciate your comment.
Hi Tim. Thanks for this article! I would agree we have to be very careful in where and who we turn to in trying to understand things we don’t understand. I ran across Deuteronomy 30:11 in my curiosity to find out what the bible had to say about understanding the bible. God’s message in the bible “is not too difficult for you, nor is it far away”. I personally believe that if we approach scripture with humility knowing that we won’t understand it all, pray for wisdom, be consistent, and simply study by topic, God will provide what He would have us understand. I think it’s perfectly acceptable to get from others (be careful in doing so). Please allow me to share what I am grateful for n my case, you don’t have to have a high intellect or so called education:) The apostles were considered unlearned and ordinary…that’s encouraging for me! Thanks again Tim for the great reminder!!
Thank you Scott! I appreciate you sharing your insight into this. I agree wholeheartedly. I especially like your thoughts on how to approach Scripture with “…knowing we won’t understand it all…”. How quickly I forget that He is God and I am not; therefore, I am not expected to understand everything. As Isaiah 55:8-9 tells us, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Okay, so I know okra isn’t the point here, but I just have to say… I can’t imagine anyone choosing dried okra for a snack….Just sayin’😂
You make such a great point here Tim. We do have to be extremely careful in choosing whom to use as references when it comes to understanding the Bible. There are way too many people out there who like to ‘proof text’ in order to make the Bible say what they want it to/think it should say. As you said, God will lead us to understanding if we allow His Holy Spirit to work in us.
With that said, though, as you know, sometimes He uses other believers to speak to us as well, so there’s nothing wrong with consulting other references; we just have to, as you said, “Be careful in selecting [our] resources outside the Bible to explain the Bible. ” Outstanding post as usual my friend!
It really was pretty good :).
Thanks for your thoughts. You and your husband are two of those “other believers” God uses to speak His truth.