Submitted to The Authority of Scripture
“ All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
I bought my wife some bookshelves from IKEA not too long ago. I got them home, pulled them out of the box and quickly set out to put them together. It didn’t take long before I realized I had some things not quite right. So, I did it again, and again it was not right. It took me four times before I got frustrated enough to look at the directions. After that, I put the other three shelves together with no problem because I had learned what to do.
The Word of God is the revelation of God given to us so that we may know God and know how the abundant life He offers us is to be lived. But sadly, many of us just go at life trying to figure it out the same way I tried to figure out the bookshelves. It's not until we are really frustrated, confused, or broken that we seem to look for help.
As God’s people, we should want to know what God says about everything! We should read His Word, memorize it, meditate on it, believe it, and most importantly, be obedient to it. The Bible unfolds the beautiful gospel message of Jesus and our relationship with Him. It tells us unchanging truth and guides us away from the things that steal our joy and peace.
It should be our desire to submit to God’s Word because in doing so we can experience the nearness of God, the fullness of His desire for us, and be transformed into the likeness of Jesus. We know that thinking God’s thoughts will guide us in living God’s way. It will also help us overcome those temptations of the world and our own heart that cause us to stray away from Him. With these things in mind, let me ask a couple of questions.
How often do you read and meditate on God’s Word?
What is one area of your life that needs God’s Word to guide and lead you?
How obedient and open to God’s will are you?
What does God want to change to help you experience more of Him in your life?
Prayer
Father, help us to make the time for reading what You have said to us, and help us to grow in a desire and love for reading Your Word. Holy Spirit, teach us and lead us into all truth. Lord, help us to not only read what Your will is for our lives, but give us the wisdom, strength, and power needed to be obedient to Your direction. Make our heart’s desire mirror Your desires so that You, Lord, will be magnified in our lives.
Amen.
