GETTING THE MESSAGE/2nd Timothy 3:16

Posted

We finished our study of the book of Colossians last week, and before moving on to another book, we will look at different subjects over the next several weeks. This week we look at the inspiration and authority of God's Word.

A non-negotiable tenant of the Christian faith is that the Scriptures are the Word of God. This means that the original source of the Bible in its original manuscripts was Almighty God. The Bible was written over 1000's of years by over 40 authors, but the ultimate author was the Lord God.

In Chapter 3, Paul is warning Timothy that there will be difficult times in the last days. By "last days" he means the time between Christ's ascension and his return. The reason for the difficult days is that there will be imitations of the Christian faith that are not in accordance with the truth. Men, Paul says, will have an appearance of godliness but deny its power.

In Chapter 4, Paul again warns Timothy that a time is coming when men will not endure sound teaching but accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and say what they want to hear rather than the truth of Scripture.

Certainly, Paul's warnings have seen fulfilment throughout church history and are plainly manifest in our day. Many Christian churches openly deny that the Scriptures are inspired and inerrant, and many people profess Christ, yet betray him in what they believe and how they live.

Paul directs Timothy to never waver from declaring the word of the Lord, regardless of how difficult it is because of imitations and dilutions of the truth there may be in or out of the church. God's word is for God's people, so Timothy is to provide the word of the Lord for those who would hear. The Lord Jesus delivers his people from sin so that they may dwell with him and serve him, according to his word. It is the word of God that gives joy, peace, and comfort on earth.

The first thing, then, is to believe the Scriptures are the word of God. Paul says that Scripture is "breathed out by God." This is familiar language with respect to God's work. The Lord God "breathed" life into man when he created him. Also, we read in Psalm 33, "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; their starry hosts by the breath of his mouth."

Obviously, it isn't beyond reason to conclude that the Lord, who made the heavens and earth with his word, could certainly superintend the writing of Scriptures as to direct the final product to be what he wanted to be written down. Paul says this is what God did.

This doesn't mean it isn't mysterious. The writers of Scripture had different vocabularies, different personalities, different contexts, genres, and so on. They weren't asleep and God moved their hands to write on the paper; nor were they simply secretaries taking dictation. Nevertheless, they produced what God intended to be written. Jesus affirmed Scripture was God's word even to the punctuation marks (every jot and tittle).

So those who deny it will have their accountability with him. Remember that when you hear men, Pilate like, scoffing at claims to truth, and then sending Jesus off to his death. Jesus rose from the dead; his word endured, and still does to this day. And men have a reckoning that will be based upon it.



Setting aside then, those who oppose God's word, what are you to do with God's word? First, labor to see the truth of Christ throughout the pages of Scripture. The Scriptures are about God having a people his very own to dwell with him forever through the work of the Lord Jesus. When you see how the prophets wrote of Christ long before he came, it will confirm to you the word of God.

Don't just read God's word, but dwell upon the truths you learn in it, and seek to apply it to heart and life. Since God is the author of it, we sit under the authority of his word. Seek to be encouraged by the hope Scripture gives you in Christ, despite the difficulties in this fallen world.

Paul says to Christians in Romans 15; "Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his God and loves his word.






Powered by Creative Circle Media Solutions