II Timothy 3:16-17
Paul, in writing to Timothy, shares with him the power of God's Word. You'll read four claims given to us in these two verses; 1. Everything in the Scriptures is God's Word. 2. All of it is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training them how to live. 3. So the man of God may be thoroughly equipped. 4. For all good works.
1. All of it is God's Word.
The Bible is not half inspired and half uninspired. It's not partly fallible, and partly infallible. Now, we all have favorite passages, but it's all His. It is all life-changing. I'll admit there are passages of scripture that I've never preached on. There are passages of scripture that I don't understand; but it's all God's, and it's all God-inspired, and every part of it is there for a purpose.
2. Its instruction is alive and profitable.
The Word is profitable for you and me if we follow and obey it. Get your pen out and in II Timothy 3:16, in that second part of the verse, underline some words. Where he says "all of it is useful for" -- here's a word to underline -- "teaching." God's Word teaches us, it's good for helping -- underline "helping," "correcting," and "training." . It teaches what is right. It corrects us and helps us to get right, stay right, and live right. God's Word is very beneficial, and it's alive.
3. It is comprehensive.
As a pastor, I often asked myself, "How can I meet the needs of everybody here?" And then I realize it's not my job to meet the needs; it's my job to preach the Word. The Word of God is comprehensive. The Holy Spirit bears witness to the Word, Jesus, and he comes and ministers to all the needs today. The Holy Spirit brings us together, and in this time of worship and prayer, he meets our needs. In our walk with God, we have times when God comes especially to do a real, comprehensive work in our lives. These times are literally like the tide; they come and they go according to our need.
4. It can completely equip us for both life and ministry.
God's Word has the ability to come alongside of us and enable us do that which we perhaps could not do ourselves. I learned a long time ago that if you have the Spirit without the Word, you blow up; and if you have the Word without the Spirit, you dry up. But when you have the Word and the Spirit together, you grow up. And sometimes I wonder, when we hold the Word, if we realize what we have in our hand. Sometimes we just kind of take God's Word for granted.
The Bible was written over a 1500-year span. It was written by 40 generations, by over 40 authors from every walk of life including kings, peasants, philosophers, fishermen, poets, statesmen, and scholars. It was written in different places, including out in the wilderness, in dungeons, in palaces, inside prison walls, while traveling, on lonely islands, in the midst of war. It was written at different times, sometimes in peace, sometimes in battle. It was written during different moods, some writing from the heights of joy while others wrote from the very depths of sorrow. It was written in three continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe. And it was written in three languages -- Hebrew, Arabic, and Greek. It covered subject matters including hundreds of controversial subjects, yet with harmony and continuity from Genesis to Revelation, there is one unfolding story, and the story is the redemption of man through Jesus Christ.
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