I could provide numerous examples, but I was just interjecting in general-- butting into your conversation with
@marks regarding the nature of understanding scripture >>>
There is a difference between knowing what scripture says and understanding what it says/means. Here's one example that kind of relates to this in an interesting way... it concerns the way the woman speaks with the spirit of Samuel. It's fascinating actually. The concept of calling up
a familiar spirit is the root from which we have derived the idea that a bottle of alcohol is referred to as a bottle of spirits. Less, commonly these days of course, but that's the concept of old. That the woman conjures up the spirit of Samuel, by means of some bottled potion that opens a gate to the spirit world. If you look at the Hebrew account in 1 Samuel 28, this becomes clear.
The woman, in her altered state allows the spirit to speak through her... that is, -she sees Samuel, and is able to tell Saul what she sees, but when the spirit of Samuel is speaking-- it is through her-- she becomes a conduit, or what we would call
a medium through which the spirit speaks.
Here's what is interesting-- In Luke 24 we have two accounts of something very similar. First on the road to Emmaus, the risen Christ speaks to the two disciples 'in a different form' that was unrecognizable to them. If you can get your head around the concept explained above, you might understand what was happening. The spirit of Jesus was speaking through another, and it was only later that they realized this to have been the case.
Similarly, in the same chapter of Luke we see Jesus
appearing in the midst of the twelve and speaking with them. This appearing and disappearing is at will-- that he can appear among them at any time and in any form, speaking to and through people in a way that he makes himself completely recognizable despite his appearance, by what he says and the way he says it. We can know that this is what is happening by the testimony of those present, of whom we are told-
But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit.
Why? Because, like that spirit who spoke through the woman-- Jesus is speaking through one of them in similar manner. Just as Saul knew (perceived) it was Samuel when he asked her--'What do you see?' -and she was able to describe the spirit she was communicating with, and who was communicating through her-- the disciples were able to understand that it was Jesus speaking through one of them (unnamed here, but obviously Thomas, from other accounts) who could "see" Jesus and in spirit put his finger in the wounds in his hands and side. But Jesus makes it clear that it is really him, speaking to them-- in this way--- Like the previous example, he sits and eats with them, breaking bread or eating fish and honey... because they were terrified.
To set their troubled minds at ease, he says, 'a spirit doesn't have flesh and bone' like this, meaning--
it's really me in here. Risen. Alive.