DON'T GO SLOW HERE
Luke 24:25-26 NKJV
25 Then He said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?"
There are times when slow is good. Driving through a school zone. Measuring before making a cut. Slow works when it comes to speaking and getting angry. But Jesus addressed an area where we don't want to be slow. Slow to believe the Scriptures.
This chapter of Luke contains the road to Emmaus story. The two disciples that encountered the risen Christ on the very day He rose from the dead. An interesting note is that they did not recognize Him. Their eyes were restrained, and they did not know Him. The same phenomenon happened in the twenty-first chapter of John when the disciples did not recognize Jesus on the shore. I don't have an answer for why I am sure we'll know later.
But on the road to Emmaus, the disciples were telling this stranger about Jesus, and He answered with this verse that they were foolish and slow to believe. We know Jesus did not say things to hurt people, so evidently, those who knew the Scriptures had an opportunity to jump on board, but they were slow. Jesus then expounded on the Scriptures from the Old Testament that referred to Himself. He started with Moses, then the Prophets, which would have included the Psalms since David was a prophet.
This being 'slow to believe' is in line with Jesus' parable of the sower sowing the Word. The Word as a seed fell on different kinds of ground: hard, rocky, thorny, and good ground. The seed that fell on the hard ground never took the word in. The seed was never received. Slow to receive, slow to believe. If you go back and read that parable in Mark four and Luke eight, you'll see that the Word, God's seed, will always produce. The variable is the condition of the ground.
APPLICATION
So the biggest question remains: How can I be quick to believe what God has spoken in His word? I don't have all the answers, but here are some ideas.
Have an increased respect for God's Word. Don't treat reading His Word as a duty, but as a privilege, as a hunt for treasure. Be quick to say that you believe what you read. No, you will not always understand it, but give thanks for what you do know. And ask the Lord to help you be quick of heart, not slow. He will be faithful to show you areas where you could be slowing things down.
PRAYER
Lord, thank You for showing me what is slowing down my heart. I want to be super quick to believe all You have said.