Is the Bible Truly Difficult to Understand?

Question:

When having discussions with different people about the Bible, I hear people say things like, "our human brains are too small to truly understand what God means." But can that be true? Look at the following scriptures and see for yourself.

Deut 30:11
Ps 119:130
Luke 10:21
James 4:8
Must we do more research in order to get the understandings of things that we don't understand?

My Answer:

Interesting choice of scripture for your question.
There is a right and a wrong way of reading the Bible.  For example, when reading the New Testament, you need to:

1. Figure out what prompted the writing of the letter?
2. Look for what's clear (who, what, where, etc.)
3. Look for what's unclear (cultural background, etc.)
4. Many misinterpret the Bible because they take passages out of context. So keep everything in context with the chapter, with the letter/book, and with the theology of the whole Bible.
5. Finally, the Bible isn't meant to be just read, but obeyed. If you don't respond to what it teaches you, then even if you follow steps 1-4, you're still reading it incorrectly.

---Pastor Andy