The Authority of God's WordRock of Offence CommentaryFor the Christian, the Bible is the canon, measuring rod, and final word on ALL points of doctrine, belief, and conduct. II Timothy 3:16-17 tells us... "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works."It is important to realize that the scripture is "inspired by God." The Bible is not a book solely written by man. It is a book authored through the power of the Holy Spirit by God through the hands of holy men. The Bible isn't a presentation of man's ideas, but of God's thoughts, desires, commands, and will.For the Word of God to be effective in our lives, we have to observe two things. First, the word of God only works when we do it. The temptation is to be a casual listener. James 1:21-25 says... "Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But BE DOERS OF THE WORD, AND NOT HEARERS ONLY, DECEIVING YOURSELVES. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but A DOER OF THE WORK, this one will be blessed in what he does."Secondly, the word of God only works when we mix faith with it.Hebrews 4:1-2 says.... "Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard DID NOT PROFIT THEM, NOT BEING MIXED WITH FAITH IN THOSE WHO HEARD IT."This same thought is carried through in I Thessalonians 2:13..."For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, YOU WELCOMED IT NOT AS THE WORD OF MEN, BUT AS IT IS IN TRUTH, THE WORD OF GOD, WHICH ALSO EFFECTIVELY WORKS IN YOU WHO BELIEVE."If you believe the scriptures are authored by God and you have received them as God's Word to you, you must both do them and mix faith with them so that God's Word can be a benefit to you.The Bible teaches that the word of God is what will judge you in the end. Jesus said in John 14:47-50.... "And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I DO NOT JUDGE HIM; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him--THE WORD THAT I HAVE SPOKEN WILL JUDGE HIM IN THE LAST DAY. For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak."Notice that by not receiving Jesus' words we are rejecting Jesus. God is one with his Word. You cannot reject God's Word without rejecting God. The importance of God's Word in our lives cannot be minimized and should be foremost in our thinking. It is a turning away from the teaching of scripture towards philosophy, human reason, and tradition that has hurt the witness of the Church, not to mention the needless suffering it causes by not knowing the truth.The Bible is one book made up of 66 individual books written by some 37 different authors. The scripture quoted in this survey comes from the King James and New King James Version with references to the Hebrew and Greek writings from which these translations were interpreted. Any Bible student can make use of these Hebrew and Greek words through Strong's Analytical Concordance, which contains a Bible dictionary of both these languages. The Word of God Changes UsFor the Christian, the authority of God's Word is of prime importance. God will show you things in the Bible that He wants you to believe and act upon. It may be something that goes entirely against what you have believed in the past. When God does this, He is asking you to "repent" or turn away FROM WHAT YOU THINK IS TRUE, and EMBRACE WHAT HE HAS SAID IS TRUE. Christians tend to have all kinds of beliefs that are based on other things besides God's Word. These beliefs can be based on things preachers/pastors have said, Church traditions, denominational beliefs or even family traditions passed from one family member to another. One of the first things God attempts to do is to get you to believe His Word instead of man's ideas or religious teachings. When you choose to ignore what God is showing you and insist on believing things your own way, you are limiting God's ability to change you. The Holy Spirit does not require repentance in this area to be difficult or cruel. It is done to bring you into the blessings of the Gospel in which God wants you to walk. God wants you to be blessed--but most of the time we are our own worst enemy. When what we believe is elevated above what God has said, we can never enjoy God's blessings. God wants us free. You cannot walk in freedom apart from a commitment to obey God's Word. As we grow in our walk with the Lord, we will find repentance a constant companion as God shows us where He wants us to change in light of what His Word says.II Corinthians 3:18 says... "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are CHANGED INTO THE SAME IMAGE from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." |
