Lost 'key of knowledge'

Luke 11: 42 - 54

You have taken away the key of knowledge

From time to time, we are blessed by the message we hear from the pulpit and we feel that indeed the Word has been broken for us, in a way that draws us toward God. We know what that feels like - the sense of liberation and blessedness that we take away with us. And I am not talking about the messages of 'health and wealth' that seem satisfying initially but turn out to be a mere puff of wind in the end.

There are times too when we hear messages that are not so 'life-giving'. They may seem theologically correct, but they come from a slant that keeps Christians in bondage to 'one' particular 'correct' interpretation. Of course this is not heretical teaching but it becomes 'lifeless' because the Word is no longer approached with openness, with a sense of humility - that whatever we 'know' may be only a small fraction of God's full revelation.

The teachers of the law in Jesus' time were 'closed' to new interpretations, basing their practice on narrow views. This hindered many from hearing the 'good news'. The law became for them burdensome (in that time, to rules and regulations) rather than freeing. Of course, their most glaring error was to reject Jesus. We may not do that today, but there are subtle ways in which we do not allow others to experience the fullness of Christ's message. We do accept the truth of his Lordship and his role as Savior, but isn't there more to 'knowing Christ'? Isn't there more about his life, his ministry, his passion, death and resurrection that will give us the 'key' to what Christian faith is about? He isn't just to get us to heaven, but to find fullness of life, in the here and now. May we not lose these keys of knowledge.