Led By the Bible and Taught By the Spirit

The old hymn, I Am Resolved, has the line “…led by the Bible, taught by the Spirit, we’ll walk the heavenly way.” Being resolved to be led by the Bible and taught by the Spirit is one of the ways of God. It is also at the heart of the meaning of one of the Hebrew words for wisdom, the word bayin.

Yesterday, you learned that bayin is from a root word meaning to cut, to separate. It developed into the word for understanding in the sense of knowing good from evil. In the context of Solomon’s prayer in 1 Kings 3:6 – 9 you also learn that it is necessary for leading, as in choosing the right direction, the good, pleasing, perfect will of God.

The word bayin is used 169 times in the Old Testament, over three times more than any other Hebrew word for wisdom (and there are many). Every time it is used, it is in the context of leadership.

For example, the first place this word shows up in the OT is in Genesis 41:33 describing Joseph as he led Egypt to prepare for the seven years of plenty followed by the seven years of famine. Another example is of the Levites in 2 Chronicles 34 – 35, during the days of Josiah, and how they possessed bayin to lead and teach Judah in worship with the songs and instruments of David. God gives bayin from His word to reveal His will to give direction to our lives so that we will choose the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Your will is the decision-maker of your life. It makes a decision, informed by your mind and carried out by your body. It is powerful. Have you ever heard the term “will-power?” Once set it is hard to change. It will overrule the mind and the body in leading, which is why it is so important that it be right in its leadership, in discerning good from evil.

When you submit your will to the leadership of the Holy Spirit, He will lead you from God’s word, and you begin walking in the Spirit, by the Spirit, to carry out the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. Your will possesses and is possessed by bayin and you are worshiping the Father in spirit and truth.

Today, memorize Psalm 119:169 (one of the places bayin is used) and make it your prayer of trust and submission to the leadership of the Holy Spirit today.

Tomorrow, we will look at what the New Testament says about “good and evil.”