I’m not much of a car guy. The distinctions between makes and models is usually lost on me. If you ask me what just passed me on the highway, I’ll tell you it was a car or a truck. Jim Gray could probably tell you what make, model, year, trim package, and engine it has. He might even tell you what’s on their radio! That’s the difference between an expert and an amateur.
Recently we’ve been looking at cars, and a funny thing happens. Once you start to research a particular model, you start noticing that they exist! Some of those cars aren’t just cars—they are specific cars. I don’t mean to be too dramatic—but your eyes are opened.
A similar thing happens when we study scripture. Sometimes words and phrases fly by us as we read and we get the gist of what’s happening but miss a lot. Then, something happens that causes us to notice a detail we missed before, and we start seeing the details all over the place. Even better, sometimes we read scripture and we begin to see all around us how it applies and guides us in the right way. It quits being a detail on a spec sheet and becomes a living and important thing!
Several stories in scripture capture these eye-opening moments. Mary was unaware that the gardener with whom she spoke was really Jesus until he uttered her name (John 20:22-18). Two men walked down the road towards Emmaus told a stranger of their disappointment that Jesus, a mighty prophet, had been killed. Once his identity was clear to them, they said, “Didn’t our hearts burn within us while he talked on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures? (Luke 24:32)
Keep your eyes open. You never know what you might miss if you don’t!