The reality of the Word
As someone that is born again, your growth in your walk with God will be an offshoot of the value you place on the written word of God. Peter alluded to this in 1st Peter 1:23 “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” We became saved by the message of the Christ which we heard. Therefore, we are to also grow by the same word we heard. Peter reiterated the same thought in 1st Peter 2:2 “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby”. To desire means to have a passion for a thing, to be zealous about a purpose. The believer’s approach towards the word of God should be voracious and not casual.
Apostle Paul in writing to one of his protégés called Timothy commended his approach to the holy scriptures in 2nd Timothy 3:15-17 “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto every good work
Paul praises Timothy’s approach to what is written in the holy scriptures. He says Timothy has acquainted himself with the contents of the holy scriptures and they are able to make him wise unto salvation which is through faith in Christ Jesus. It means Timothy has a mastery of the words, sentences, phrases and clauses of the scriptures. The word scriptures in the Greek is the word “gramma”. It refers to a written document, a bill. In this context, Paul was referring to the writings of the Old Testament which runs from Genesis to Malachi. He says the focus of the writings of the Old Testament is produce in the reader salvation through faith which is found in Christ. Holy scriptures refer to the sacredness or sacrosanctity of the scriptures.
God inspired the writings of the books of the Scriptures. The documentation of the text of scriptures was inspired by God, and he used human language, culture, and methods in communicating his word to man. The fact that God used the language, culture, and knowledge of man would mean that no author of the Scriptures lived physically in a world separate from the audience that they wrote to. God is the divine author of the scriptures.
It does not mean that God took over the minds or wills of the human authors such that they had no knowledge of what they were talking about, and the audience was also ignorant of it. God, as the divine author, communicated via human authors, and they that is the human authors used human language, culture, and knowledge known to their audience at the time when they wrote.
This would mean there is a responsibility today to understand the authors’ words as they relate to their first/primary audience.
If there is a first/primary audience, by hindsight, it can be deduced that there is a secondary audience. This would be those who take the words written to a particular people at a time and read them in the world of the present.
It’s exclusivity when taught accurately and explained is to produce in the hearer salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. It means it will be an abuse of the scriptures to use it to teach economics, science, how to become wealthy or any other thing whose end is not to produce salvation or spiritual growth in the life of hearer. Salvation from sin is not received by someone’s vision, testimony, experience or dreams. It’s available solely by faith in Christ.
The scriptures are a document that uses history, oral tradition, events, persons and things to teach faith in Christ Jesus.
In verse 16, there is the phrase “all scripture…..”. The word scripture in verse 16 is from the Greek word “graphe”. It means the art of writing. God inspired men to pen down the things that are found in the scriptures. Only the scriptures are advantageous for teaching to produce salvation through faith in Christ. Only the scriptures can correct and instruct the believer in Christ within the framework of salvation.
Verse 17 shows the aftermath of the accurate teaching of the scriptures. It will produce a believer who is mature and thoroughly built. When believers in Christ are properly taught God’s Word, their walk with God is steady. Nothing moves them. They walk in the full orb of what Christ has done for them. They don’t suffer identity crises. That’s why the accurate teaching of God’s word is a nonnegotiable in the gathering of the saints.
If as someone who is born again, you find it hard to either study God’s word or to sit down and be taught God’s word. It means your spiritual growth is not in view. Some believers are allergic to bible study but they can spend loads of time watching television or chitchatting to friends. What an irony. The knowledge of God’s word you have will determine your spiritual growth.
Confession: I give myself to the study of God’s word. I’m diligent in my walk with God. I do not trivialize spirituals. I’m deliberate in my spiritual growth.
