Each of us has to be willing to get into God’s Word and studying biblical truth.
The bible teaches us what we need to know about God and how it relates to us. It helps us to learn who we are. Do you believe that the bible is able to teach us in this day and age? Some have questioned the relevance of its message today and have even questioned its authenticity.
The challenge that we have is to believe God’s Word or not to believe it. If we choose to not believe it, then that is a choice to believe men. Why? Because in our belief system today, we have to believe in something.
Acts 4:19-20
19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it’s right in the sight of God for us to listen to you rather than to God, you decide; 20 for we are unable to stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
We will be seeing more and more events or situations where we need to understand that our belief system is often under the influence of man rather than God. It is a choice to listen to either man’s way of thinking or God’s way of thinking.
John 6:68-69
68 Simon Peter answered, “Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!”
Note: People believe in God, but the challenge is to explain who it is that you believe in. There are many who lack the critical knowledge of Jesus Christ in Scripture. We need to believe in Him with knowledge and understanding. It is not enough to just believe. The demons believe and the angels believe, too.
1 Corinthians 1:25
…because God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.
Spiritual and biblical truth is not well known today. Many people make the comments “I’m blessed,” “I’m spiritual,” “I’m holy,” are not necessarily based upon any bible study or learning about the Scriptures. (The bible study is a time for learning and to ask questions.)
Acts 17:22
Then Paul stood in the middle of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that you are extremely religious in every respect.
Romans 10:2
I can testify about them that they have zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.
Being religious all by itself will not get you into heaven. Many people can come across and be religious, and even say religious things, but still be ignorant about God’s Word. We are called to be much more than just religious. We are called to learn and grown in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
If you can’t get into God’s Word and be encouraged by what His Word says to us, then something’s wrong with your approach. God is ready and willing to speak to each of us and to have a relationship with us. We need to pray for knowledge and understanding from God with the prayer, “Lord, open my eyes and make this clear to me.” It takes practice and repetition to continue to seek God’s Word and be strengthened and encourage.
Acts 17:11
The people here were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, since they welcomed the message with eagerness and examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
God will provide the maturity as you seek Him and His Word. He will help you to grow as you read the bible each day.
Reading the bible is something that a believer must have a desire to do each day. It is the bread of life that enables you to stand strong as a believer, and it gives you the confidence you need to stand firm for Jesus Christ.
If you’re not reading the bible, you’re rejecting it.
A. Rejecting the bible is a rejection of spiritual growth.
2 Peter 3:17-18
17 Therefore, dear friends, since you know this in advance, be on your guard, so that you are not led away by the error of lawless people and fall from your own stability. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
You can never learn enough about God. You will always grow in The Lord and grow spiritually when you are reading God’s Word. If you’re not seeking Him through His Word, you are not standing still–in fact, you are decreasing in your growth and losing ground.
2 Peter 1:5-10
5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, 6 knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness, 7 godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they will keep you from being useless or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 The person who lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten the cleansing from his past sins. 10 Therefore, brothers, make every effort to confirm your calling and election, because if you do these things you will never stumble.
B. Rejecting the bible is accepting man’s teaching.
2 Timothy 3:5-7
5 They willfully ignore this: Long ago the heavens and the earth were brought about from water and through water by the word of God. 6 Through these waters the world of that time perished when it was flooded. 7 But by the same word, the present heavens and earth are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
There are many that will lead you away from the true God through what are perceived to be religious acts. Note, for example, that not all spiritual books sold in America today are about Jesus Christ. A lot of them are “spiritual,” but they do not have the view of seeking Christ as personal Savior. Anything other than this is accepting what man teaches as spirituality.
2 Timothy 3:14-15
14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed. You know those who taught you, 15 and you know that from childhood you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are able to give you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
C. Rejecting the bible is to be taught by demons.
1 Timothy 4:1
Now the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons.
How are you to know the truth?
Titus 1:1-2
1 Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to build up the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness, 2 in the hope of eternal life that God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.
God wants you to know the truth in order for you to live a life of holiness and righteousness. As you are being taught, you need to be able to discern the truth in God’s Word. It should challenge your way of thinking as you receive knowledge from God’s truth. God’s truth should have a positive effect on your life. It should change you as you grow in its truth.
Think about this…salvation should never really be a question that you have to ask about over and over again. If someone has to convince you that you’re saved, then you probably aren’t. The Word is what gives you the information you need to take away all of the uncertainty and doubt about that very question. A believer should be confident in his salvation based upon what God’s Word proclaims about salvation and God’s eternal promise that you will fellowship with Him. It is this knowledge that helps to build the confidence of the believer. It also should give you the desire to seek Him more and more as you remain patient in The Lord and wait on Him to answer your prayers. God’s timing is far superior to our timing in all things.
What is meant by the phrase “The Word of God”?
1. Understanding the Word itself is a vehicle used to express a thought from one mind to another.
2. When we say The Word of God we are saying this is the designated means which God uses to convey to us the thoughts of His heart.
3. God has spoken to us in order that we may know what He would have us to do–through the medium of words He has revealed His will (Psalm 12:6; 119:99).
A revelation is God revealing something that, beforehand, was not known. The purpose of God granting revelation is to impart knowledge.
Jeremiah 1:9-12
9 Then the Lord reached out His hand, touched my mouth, and told me:
I have now filled your mouth with My words.
10 See, I have appointed you today
over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and tear down,
to destroy and demolish,
to build and plant.
11 Then the word of the Lord came to me, asking, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
I replied, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”
12 The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I watch over My word to accomplish it.”
God will give you what you need in His Word (His truth), and it will help you to see yourself and the world differently. It will give you the desire to serve Him and seek Him in everything that you do.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All Scripture is inspired by God[a] and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
1 Thessalonians 2:13
This is why we constantly thank God, because when you received the message about God that you heard from us, you welcomed it not as a human message, but as it truly is, the message of God, which also works effectively in you believers.
Akron Alliance Fellowship 