“I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they
did not recognize him but did to him whatever they pleased. So also
will the Son of Man suffer at their hands.” Then the disciples
understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist. Matthew
17:12–13
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The last of the Old Testament
Prophets was Malachi. He concluded his ministry about 400 years prior to
the coming of Christ. Malachi prophesied that a “messenger” would come
before the Messiah so as to prepare the way before Him. Malachi goes on
further to say that “Elijah the Prophet” will come before the day of the
Lord (See Malachi 3:1–24).
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Many of the people at the time
of Jesus did not understand this prophecy and were not even aware of
it. Therefore, the scribes used this prophecy to confuse many of the
people by claiming that since “Elijah” had not come, then clearly Jesus
was not the promised Messiah.
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Jesus clarified to the
disciples that the “messenger,” who was to be the new Elijah, had
already come in the person of John the Baptist. Thus, in clarifying
this, Jesus also clarified that the scribes were not accurate in their
attempt to interpret the Scriptures and were actively misleading the
people on account of their errors.
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One thing this tells us is
that we must approach the word of God with humility. The pride of the
scribes led them to believe that they had some sort of extraordinary
wisdom that they did not. Thus, they acted as poor spiritual teachers of
the people of God.
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Humility before the Word of
God is essential if we are to properly understand not only the Old
Testament prophecies but also the very words of Jesus Himself. Without
humility before the Word of God, we can all easily misinterpret the
beautiful and holy words spoken by our Lord.
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Everything in the Scriptures
is profound, deep and true. And by this holy Word of God we come to meet
God Himself. But if we allow pride to seep in, we may find ourselves
imitating the scribes and misunderstanding God’s Word. The result will
be a skewed image of God which will become an impediment to our personal
encounter with our loving Lord. But if we can always remain humble
before all that God has revealed to us, then we will more easily be open
to those deepest and most beautiful truths God wants to speak to our
hearts.
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Reflect, today, upon any way
that you have found yourself confused by the Word of God. Try to humbly
open your heart more fully to that which our Lord wants to speak to you.
Listen with an open mind and heart and allow the pure gift of faith to
become your guide so that you will be led to those deepest truths of our
faith.
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My mysterious and beautiful
Lord, You have revealed to us the deepest and most profound mysteries
of life through Your written Word. May I always approach Your Word with
humility and openness so that I will come to know You more fully. Jesus,
I trust in You. | |
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