The Lord learned about his potential from the scriptures, just like you can

How did Jesus manage to memorize, process, live, and extrapolate the scriptures beyond those around him? Some would say that he had some special power that made it easier for him, but any special advantage Jesus possessed would void the example he provided and the sacrifice he made. Instead, he used the tools available to everyone then and now, but with greater heed and diligence than they chose to exercise.

The fact that Jesus was incredibly familiar with the scriptures is shown by his frequent quotation and intentional fulfillment of their contents.¹ In the Lord’s time, copies of the scriptures were handwritten, expensive, and rare. Most people would only have access to the scriptures through memorization and recitation of the copy held at the local synagogue. Those with much greater access to the scriptures marveled that Jesus could have known them as well as he did in spite of not having been formally trained in their contents.² The increased familiarity Jesus had with the scriptures over his peers—in spite of equally limited access to them—indicates how much more effort he exerted over the same experiences they had with them.

His example in developing proficiency in scripture is perfectly applicable to the modern world. How often do you think Jesus thought about the scriptures he heard each Sabbath? Do you think he only thought about them while they were being read, or do you think he frequently thought about them throughout the week? Do you think he listened with an academic perspective, as the scribes did, or did he actively think about his daily life and how he could improve based on what he heard? Do you think he relied on his religious leaders to teach him what the scriptures meant, or do you think he actively questioned the status quo? Do you think he limited what he learned to whatever the synagogue leader chose to teach about, or did he search out his own questions? Do you think he passively listened to what was taught, or do you think he extended the lesson with prayer and direct revelation?

The example of Christ in learning and applying the scriptures has special significance to learning about his character. After all, the Old Testament he had access to was full of prophecies about who and how he would be.³⁵² You not only have greater access to most of the material that Jesus had, you also have access to many other subsequent scriptures that even more thoroughly describe his character. Just like Jesus, you can use those scriptures to learn more about the character of Christ and gain stronger reasons to live that way yourself.