Yesterday, we spoke somewhat concerning the scriptures that Christ cited as He walked with His disciples. Today, I would like to talk a bit about the result of those scriptures, and the testimony of the Holy Ghost.
Following His resurrection, Jesus met two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus. They did not recognize Him, and so told Him of the crucifixion of their Master. They shared the report of the women who visited the sepulchre. He obviously saw that they were slow to believe the reports of these witnesses, for He called them “fools, and slow of heart to believe” (Luke 24:25). He then cited the scriptural references throughout the Old Testament that told of Him (and as we discussed yesterday, that was a lot!). After they had recognized Him, He left, leaving them to marvel. They said, “Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?”
These disciples clearly felt the Holy Spirit testify to them of the truthfulness of the words of Christ. Although the Savior will not stand before us and cite scriptures to us, we, too, can receive that same testimony. As we study the scriptures and pray for guidance, we can feel the Spirit testify to us in our hearts of the truthfulness of what we read.
This year, one of the Primary songs the kids are learning is “Hear Him.” The last verse goes:
As I read the scriptures daily
Words of Christ the Holy One
And I hear the Father tell me
This is my Beloved Son
Hear Him!
The scriptures teach and testify of Christ. As we study and ponder them, we can receive a witness of their truth. We can even hear Christ as He speaks unto us. In doing so, we can learn the things that He would teach us, and grow to be more like Him. But we must take care to prepare ourselves to hear the promptings of the Spirit, so that we, too, can have our “heart burn within us.”
For other blogs on this week’s Sunday School lesson, click on the Gospel Doctrine link at right.
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Gospel Doctrine: Focusing on Christ
General Conference From the Past: Reverence Invites Revelation