The Power of God’s Word

I was reading through the book of 2 Timothy the other day and paused when I came to Paul’s words in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, words that are very familiar to many of us:

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God p may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

What a great passage! Many would say that these two verses help define the purpose of God’s word.

But as I read these two verses, I was drawn back to the two previous verses before. Paul writes:

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

Paul tells Timothy that “the Holy Scriptures (God’s Word) can make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (v.15). Think about this: without the Bible, we would not understand the gospel message that Jesus is King and Lord of all creation. We would not understand God’s mission to rescue and renew all creation in and through Jesus. We would not understand what it means to be saved from our sin, what it means to live in new life, or what it means to know God’s forgiveness. Without God’s “Holy Scriptures,” we would be lost in this world. God’s true word is truly truth (John 17:17). Say that four times fast!

God uses his word, which reveals the gospel truth of Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to bring people to saving faith in Christ. The apostle Paul says elsewhere:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

And consider Peter’s words

For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

But God doesn’t just use his word to save us; he uses his word to continue to transform us. In verse 14, Paul says to Timothy, “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of…” The Holy Scriptures give us confidence that God’s word is truth for our lives and enables us to grow up in Christ. God uses his word to continually reveal our sin, to pour out his abundant grace, and to lead us in a life of holiness. With this reality in mind, we must continue in what we have learned from God’s word!

Do you want to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ (2 Peter 3:18)? Do you want to know the hope that continues in the dark night of the soul? Do you need to be equipped and empowered to live faithfully in a broken and hurting world? You need to turn to God’s word. God uses his word to save, transform you, and grow you more and more into the likeness of Jesus.

Digging into God’s word with you, church!

-Pastor Wade