The Question Jesus Still Asks
There is a piercing question Jesus asked more than once: “Have you not read?” It wasn’t aimed at unbelievers or those unfamiliar with Scripture. It was spoken to people who read often, studied deeply, and prided themselves on their biblical knowledge (Matthew 12:3; Matthew 19:4).
Yet their conclusions were wrong. Their understanding was distorted. Their hearts were misaligned.
That reality should sober us. It tells us something important: it is possible to open the Bible regularly, discuss it often, quote it accurately, and still miss the point. Not because Scripture is unclear, but because our approach can be.
Jesus never asked, “Are you smart enough to understand?” He asked, “Have you not read?”—a question about attention, motive, humility, and desire.
Scripture Is Clear—But Our Hearts Must Be Too
The Bible claims that God is not the author of confusion and that His Word is understandable (1 Corinthians 14:33). The problem is not the clarity of Scripture; the problem is often the condition of our hearts when we approach it. We may bring assumptions, preferences, fears, or traditions with us, and those filters can shape what we are willing to see.
Sometimes we read to confirm what we already think. Sometimes we read to justify what we already want. Sometimes we read while keeping God at arm’s length. And sometimes, we read without truly reading.
Jesus saw this in the Pharisees. They were experts in the text, but they missed God’s heart. When they approached Him with questions, they weren’t seeking insight—they were seeking permission. They wanted room to maintain their preferences rather than align their lives with God’s design.
It is possible to open Scripture with the wrong aim. And the aim makes all the difference.
Reading to Know God, Not to Use God
Scripture was never meant to be a tool we use to validate ourselves. It is meant to reveal God: His will, His character, His plan, His desires. When we read with the goal of understanding Him, everything changes.
Colossians describes this beautifully: believers are to be “filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom” so that they may “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.” Knowing leads to walking. Understanding leads to obedience (Colossians 1:9–10).
The question every believer should carry into Bible reading is simple and transformative: “What does God want from me?”
Not: “What can I get away with?” “What fits with my lifestyle?” “What supports what I already think?”
But: “What is God revealing about His heart, His will, and His character?”
Reading with this desire opens the door for Scripture to shape us the way God intends.
Reading Without Filters
Our minds are not blank canvases when we approach Scripture. We come with background, culture, tradition, preferences, habits, and experiences. These influences can help us—but they can also hinder us.
Jesus confronted religious groups who were so committed to their traditions that they could no longer see what Scripture plainly said. Their bias became a lens that bent the text (Mark 7:8–9).
We face the same danger.
Sometimes an instruction challenges us financially. Sometimes a teaching challenges our relationships. Sometimes a command calls for sacrifice or humility. Sometimes a passage confronts what we’ve accepted as normal.
In those moments, it is tempting to read selectively—to soften, excuse, or sidestep what God is saying. But meaningful growth requires openness.
Scripture must be allowed to disrupt us. It must be able to correct, convict, and reshape us. A disciple seeks transformation, not comfort.
The question to ask is: “Am I willing to let this passage reshape me, even if it disrupts my preferences?”
Reading Beyond the Surface
Deep understanding rarely happens quickly. Growth requires time, patience, and deliberate attention. Paul told Timothy to “take pains” with Scripture, to be absorbed in the work of study, to persevere (1 Timothy 4:15–16).
Surface reading rarely produces deep conviction.
Most believers have favorite passages, familiar stories, and well-known chapters. But beneath the surface lies spiritual depth that only reveals itself through meditation and careful consideration. Sometimes we avoid deep study because it feels challenging or because certain topics are uncomfortable.
But discipleship is not shallow work.
God invites us to dig. To wrestle. To reflect. To explore. To ask honest questions. To follow trails we’ve overlooked. To recognize connections we’ve never seen before.
Depth strengthens faith. Depth reveals truth. Depth guards against error. And depth helps us avoid the trap of becoming hearers of the Word who never grow into doers (James 1:22–25).
Reading for Transformation, Not Just Information
The purpose of Scripture is not merely to inform us but to transform us. Information alone can leave us unchanged, but transformation shapes our character, choices, and heart.
When Scripture says, “store up treasures in heaven,” the question is not merely what it means—it is whether we are willing to let it challenge the way we live (Matthew 6:19–21). When Scripture speaks of humility, holiness, repentance, purity, generosity, or love, it is not offering optional suggestions. It is revealing God’s design for His people.
Reading correctly means letting Scripture examine us, search us, and guide us into the life God desires (2 Timothy 3:16–17).
When Jesus Asks Us the Same Question
Sometimes the most important spiritual mirror we face is the question Jesus asked long ago: “Have you not read?”
Not because He doubts our literacy, but because He knows the difference between reading and receiving.
We may read but resist. We may read but excuse. We may read but remain unchanged.
But when we approach Scripture with an open heart, seeking God sincerely—when we read with humility, honesty, and depth—the Word becomes a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105). It becomes the place where we meet God, understand His will, and learn to walk in His ways.
And that kind of reading leads not to confusion but to clarity, not to fear but to confidence, not to stagnation but to transformation.
