2 Timothy 3:14-17 – “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”

Have you ever done a job without the right tools for the job?  If any of you have done yardwork or work around the house, you’ll know just how beneficial it is to have the right tool for the work to be accomplished.  Just this last weekend, I myself was working out in my backyard, taking out a piece of fencing that had been put up by the previous owner, but split my side yard in two unnecessarily.  Getting the fence down was the easy part.  Underneath that, however I found a slab of concrete that had been reinforced with rebar.  Now, at first I thought this would be an opportunity to use my sledghammer – always an exciting time for me, but after a few smashes without making a dent in the concrete, I realized I’d need a jackhammer.  Needless to say, a jackhammer made short work of said concrete.

This is how many of us try to go through life as Christians.  We rely on our faith in the gospel for salvation, but then we go about life constantly doing what seems right in our own “moral” eyes.  The problem with that is that we’re still sinners.  While we have the Holy Spirit in us, that does not guarantee that we will choose God’s will from moment to moment, nor does it gaurantee that we will even know God’s will for us.  What is does gaurantee is that we have access to God, and we have spiritually enlightened eyes that can open the Word of God, and search for the truth of who God is, and His will for us.  This is my exhortation today – are you going through life sustained by your own power, choosing what seems best to you?  Someone once said, that there are always three options in any given situation, the wrong way, the right way, and God’s way.  Knowing the heart and mind of God from His Word is how you will have peace in your life knowing that regardless of the circumstances you are pursuing God’s will in everything.  The Bible is not a means to show you how to live a perfect life, but it is the means by which you come to know the One who is perfect, and being conformed into His image, you will walk in His will.  It isn’t something to be picked up from time to time when things get bad, but it is meant to be the steady diet of the Christian.  Even Jesus when confronted with temptation in Matthew 4:4, having fasted 40 days and with the power to turn rocks into bread, told the tempter, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'” 

Do you carry in your heart the words of life throughout your day?  The Bible is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that you will be equipped for every good work.  How are you equipped?  One of Satan’s greatest desires is to separate you from the Bible.  He will fill your life with business, and seek to have you delight yourself in any temporary fleeting pleasures rather than enjoying God from His Word.  My encouragement to us all is to be diligent in asking God to grant grace to pursue Him in His Word passionately, and that we would discipline ourselves in discipleship in this way.  There is no better place to be, no better medicine for the troubles each day will bring than delighting in God from the Word.

Grace and Peace,
Adam