"You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. Yet you refuse to come to me to have life. I do not accept glory from human beings. But I know that you do not have the love of God in you. I have come in my Father's name, and you do not accept me; if another comes in his own name, you will accept him. How can you believe when you accept glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the one who alone is God?" (John 5:39-44, NRSV)
In many old churches and cathedrals (this one was built in the 11th century) there are modern altars and lecterns. I especially love this one. Standing in this massive stone structure, it is a reminder that Jesus was a real person. We can search and analyze the scriptures our whole lives and never let them touch us the way a person touches us. Here in John's Gospel, Jesus is calling us to know him and to let our knowledge of him be at the heart of our faith.
We need to read all scripture this way, not just what we call the Old Testament. Sure, that is what Jesus is talking about here, but remember that Jesus didn't write any of the Bible. Jesus is the Word. What we know of Jesus comes from the witness of others, witnesses, dare I say, whose words were chosen by others more removed from Jesus the person. Each of these witnesses had a reason for telling the stories they told of Jesus. To understand Jesus, we need to use our hearts as well as our heads. We need to search for the truth at the heart of what has been written and preserved. It is not the words themselves that are holy; it is the Word. Jesus criticized those who lived so strictly by the rules of the law that they had forgotten the purpose of the law: to help us love God completely and love one another. Over the last two millenia, many Christians have fallen into the same trap. Rules are so much easier than relationship.
Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians that we see as through a glass, darkly. I find that an apt image. The light of Jesus, the light of the world, shines brightly. It shines most brightly when we act in love, testifying in deed to the person of Jesus who did everything for love of us.
My favorite passage is from John 1, and my favorite translation comes from my New Testament professor, Dr. Kathy Grieb: "And the Word became flesh, and pitched its tent among us." Come, let us follow him.