My Thoughts on the Doctrine of Illumination

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I find myself stuck in Psalm 119 due to the footnote found in Psalm 119:18. It's the doctrine of illumination. Illumination as defined in the dictionary is to light up or to shine with light. The "King James Study Bible" defines illumination as follows:

Illumination is the ministry of the Holy Spirit by which He causes Christians to understand the truths of God revealed in Scripture. The word conviction meaning "cause to see" is primarily used of the Spirit's work in revealing sin in the unsaved (John 16:8). The word understanding is used in the Spirit's work in revealing other truth in Scripture. 

Illustration: The Psalmist recognizes the need for supernatural aid in understanding the Scriptures and prayed that his eyes would be opened (v. 18). This would also bea  good prayer cor Christians today as they approach the Scriptures. 

The Bible is something that's actually spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says that the natural man receives not the things of God because it's spiritually discerned. Why are so many people taking Scriptures straight out-of-context? They get one verse and seem to ignore the rest. They even ignore the basic grammatical structures used. It's because the writings of both the Old Testament and the New Testament are all spiritually discerned. The Bible's authors are all inspired by the Holy Spirit with testimonies of accuracy from fallible sources. For example, the Old Testament mentions certain books like the Book of Jasher (which was a historical account) or the writings of the prophet Iddo. Those books were fallible but reliable sources that backed up the writings to be accurate.

I always find it frustrating that a person can't get the Bible right. A flyer from a Catholic bookstore tries to defend their Roman Catholic faith. I try to check out the verses and they are so taken straight out-of-context one way or another. It's amazing how they have the nerve to say that the Bible belongs to God yet they put the Council of Trent as the "final authority". They start quoting this and that to defend doctrines like Peter as the first Pope or devotion to Mary without thinking about context. Shouldn't I feel sorry for them that they can't discern the things of God because they're not saved? The same goes for anti-Catholic cults that try to justify their existence with verses loosely applied. The Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC), Mormons, and the like have even used so many Scriptures taken out-of-context to justify their so-called existence and the so-called "last messenger" such as Felix Manalo and Joseph Smith. 

This also gives me no reason to be proud that I can understand the Scriptures over them. I was thinking about it that could have I easily understood the Scripture better if God didn't open my eyes first? I was thinking of the scales that fell off Saul's eyes during his conversion. Acts 9 would really tell you Jesus chose Saul and not Saul choosing Jesus. Saul was blinded for some time and the scales fell off revealing him new stuff. The power of the Holy Spirit is so great that reading the Bible for the first time gives new revelations. I can't brag that I know the Bible better than them. I have to confess that there are so many times I brag I know the Bible better than them. The doctrine of illumination further calls me to humility. It's because I can't understand the Bible if it wasn't for the ministry of God the Holy Spirit.

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