2 Timothy 3:15-17 - The Bible: Gods Owners Manual for Life.
2 Timothy 3:15-17 (NLT) You have been taught
the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they
have given you the wisdom to receive the
salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. 16
All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful
to teach us what is true and to make us realize
what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when
we are wrong and teaches us to do what is
right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his
people to do every good work.
INTRODUCTION
God is the source of the Bible.
Inspiration refers to the way God guided those who wrote
his Word. The Bible is not a collection of
stories, fables, myths, or merely human ideas about
God. It is not a human book. Through the Holy
Spirit, God revealed his person and plan to certain
believers, who wrote down his message for his people (2
Peter 1:20, 21). This process is known as
'inspiration.' The writers wrote from their own personal,
historical, and cultural contexts. Although they used
their own minds, talents, language, and style,
they wrote what God wanted them to write.
Inspiration refers to the reliability of
Gods Word. Scripture is completely trustworthy
because God was in control of its writing. Its words
are entirely authoritative for our faith and
lives. The Bible is "God-breathed." Read it, and
use its teachings to guide your conduct. [Life
Application SB]
Gods inspired Word is one way he breathes
his Spirit into our life. The whole Bible is
God's inspired Word. Because it is inspired and
trustworthy, we should 'read' it and 'apply' it to our
lives. The Bible is our standard for testing
everything else that claims to be true. It is our
safeguard against false teaching and our source of
guidance for how we should live. It is our only
source of knowledge about how we can be saved. God
wants to show you what is true and equip you to
live for him. How much time do you spend in God's
Word? Read it regularly to discover God's truth
and to become confident in your life and faith.
Develop a plan for reading the whole Bible, not just
the familiar passages. [Life Application SB]
The Bible is basic equipment. In our zeal
for the 'truth' of Scripture, we must never
forget its 'purpose'--to equip us to do good. We
should not study God's Word simply to increase our
knowledge or to prepare us to win arguments. We should
study the Bible so that we will know how to do
Christ's work in the world. Our knowledge of God's
Word is not useful unless it strengthens our
faith and leads us to do good. [Life Application
SB]
COMMENTARY PEARL
GOD WANTS YOUR BELIEFS TURNED INTO BEHAVIOR
I once was asked what the best
translation of the Bible was. My answer: when you
translate it into your life. Thats what Bible study
is all about. If youre not translating
Gods Word into your life, youre not studying
the Bible the way God intended.
God gave us the Bible to transform us,
not simply to inform us. It should give us a
bigger heart, not a bigger head. In the book of
James, we're told, Do not merely listen to the
word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it
says (James 1:22 NIV).
In other words, God wants your beliefs
turned into behavior.
God makes his purpose for the Bible even
more explicit in 2 Timothy 3:16-17: All
Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us
what is true and to make us realize what is wrong
in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong
and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it
to prepare and equip his people to do every
good work (NLT).
The purpose of the Bible is more than
just showing us what is wrong in our lives or how
we should live. God gave us his Word to
radically transform our lives.
The Bible describes itself in different
ways. For example, it calls itself a hammer, a
sword, and a scalpel. All of those are tools
designed to make radical changes. God intends for the
Bible to dramatically change your life.
The Bible also describes Gods truth as
milk, water, bread, and meat. What do all those
things have in common? If you dont eat or drink
regularly, then youll die. In the same way, you were
never meant to live without the Bible. The Bible
is essential to our lives because it gives us
life.
We call the Bible Gods Word, but
the Bible also talks about Jesus as the Word of
God. John 1:14 says, So the Word became human
and made his home among us. He was full of
unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his
glory, the glory of the Fathers one and only
Son (NLT). God gave you the Living Word, Jesus,
to be the Author and Finisher of your faith.
And he gave you the written Word, the Bible, to
prepare you to live out your faith.
The Bible can transform your life today -
but you have to open it up and start reading!
[Daily Devotional by Rick Warren:
https://pastorrick.com/devotional/]
COMMENTARY
Four Ways the Bible Helps You Reset Your Life
Jesus says in John 17:17, "Sanctify them
by the truth; your word is truth" (NIV).
What does sanctify mean? It simply means
to grow up and to be made more like Christ - to
get a reset. After you choose to follow Jesus,
you're not the same person. Youre different.
You're being sanctified.
How are you sanctified? By God's truth.
The more you incorporate Gods Word into your
life, the more you're going to be transformed and
made new. With the help of the Holy Spirit, you
will be able to reset the areas of your life
where you want to experience change.
Making a change will always require you
to know Gods Word. Its the manual for
resetting your life!
When you decide that you don't like the
way youre living and the decisions youve
made are just not working, then you need to go to
Gods Word. It's going to help you in very
practical ways:
"All Scripture is inspired by God and is
useful to teach us what is true and to make us
realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us
when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is
right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people
to do every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17
NLT).
The Bible shows you the path to walk on.
It shows you where you got off the path. It
shows you how to get back on the path. And it
shows you how to stay on the path.
In his Word, God has given you everything
you need to make changes and then stay on the
right path. This is why a daily quiet time of
Bible study and prayer is important. If you're
going to change, then youve got to face the
truth. And where is the truth? It's in God's Word.
When you're not in God's Word, you're not
learning and facing the truth on a daily basis.
The Bible is a mirror that will reflect
the good, the bad, and those areas that need
change. Let God show you all the truth he offers in
his Word so you can make changes that will lead
to a life of purpose and joy. [Daily Devotional
by Rick Warren:
https://pastorrick.com/devotional/]
CLOSING CONCEPTS
The creative energy that called the worlds
into existence is in the word of God. This word
imparts power; it begets life. Every command is a
promise; accepted by the will, received into the
soul, it brings with it the life of the Infinite
One. It transforms the nature and re-creates the
soul in the image of God. ED126
The Bible is the revelation of God to our
world, telling us of the character we must have in
order to reach the paradise of God. We are to
esteem it as God's disclosure to us of eternal
things, - the things of most consequence for us to
know. By the world it is thrown aside, as if the
perusal of it were finished, but a thousand years of
research would not exhaust the hidden treasure it
contains. Eternity alone will disclose the wisdom of
this book. The jewels buried in it are
inexhaustible; for it is the wisdom of an infinite mind.
FE444
Inspiration of the Bible Writers. God
committed the preparation of His divinely inspired
Word to finite man. This Word arranged into
books, the Old and New Testaments, is the guidebook
to the inhabitants of a fallen world;
bequeathed to them, that by studying and obeying the
directions, not one soul would lose its way to heaven.
7BC944
In order to arrive at truth, we must have a
sincere desire to know the truth and a willingness
of heart to obey it. And all who come in this
spirit to the study of the Bible will find abundant
evidence that it is God's word, and they may gain an
understanding of its truths that will make them wise unto
salvation. SC111
Satan comes to us with worldly honor,
wealth, and the pleasures of life. These temptations
are varied to meet people of every rank and
degree, tempting them away from God to serve
themselves more than their Creator. "All these things
will I give thee," said Satan to Christ. "All
these things will I give thee," says Satan to us.
"All this money, this land, all this power, this
honor, and these riches, will I give thee," and we
are charmed, deceived, and treacherously allured
on to our ruin The Saviour overcame the wily
foe, showing us how we may overcome. He has left
us His example, to repel Satan with Scripture.
CTr212
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY
2 Timothy 3:16, 17 - The Bible: Gods Owners
Manual for Life.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20210319-1124.html
2 Timothy 3:15-17 - How To Use The Sword.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2019/20191216-0923.html
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
https://abible.com/links/
