The apostle Paul’s instruction to Timothy and to us concerning Scripture is short and practical. With all of the division in the beliefs of the “Christian” community today, biblical guidance is needed.
First, from 2 Timothy 2:14-17, we read:
Remind them of these things and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene…
These instructions are direct and easy to understand. The problem is that they are not easy to follow because much study is required to “rightly handle” the Word of God. Believers are unwilling to take time and make the effort to achieve this competence in knowledge and understanding of the Scriptures.
Next, Paul made a straightforward statement concerning the comprehensive quality and authority of Scripture. In 2 Timothy 3:12-16, we read:
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and imposters will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 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.
This passage is simple yet powerful. We can put our trust in the Scriptures to provide the information needed to obey and to please God. Nothing is more important, and nothing other than Scripture is dependable. Are you familiar with the content of all 66 books of the Bible and understand how they fit together to become a single, comprehensive, harmonious message for guiding our lives of faith in God and His son Jesus Christ?
