Scripture I'm reflecting on: 2 Timothy 3:16-17
"All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work."
"The whole Bible is God's inspired Word. Because it is inspired and trustworthy, we should read it and apply it to our life. The Bible is our standard for testing everything else that claims to be true. It is our safeguard against false teaching and our source of guidance for how we should live. It is our only source of knowledge about how we can be saved. God wants to show you what is true and equip you to live for him."
Reflection:
A simple message that is so easy forget at times. When we're busy, stressed, or having a bad day....its easy to "take a day off" from pulling out our Bible. This becomes even easier when you've already read through the Bible multiple times and feel you already have a complete understanding of God's Word. This verse, along with many others scattered throughout the Bible, warn us to stray away from this line of thinking.
As I find myself trying to progress to greater levels of closeness with Christ, I have found there is no substitute for keeping a strong, committed focus on the Bible. In my "chronological" reading through the Bible from start to finish, I reached Chronicles about a week ago. Chronicles also brought about my first "rut" in my reading. I found myself not looking forward to reading, not finding this particular book all that inspiring and took a "night off".... which turned into a week off. I figured subbing in some sermons on my phone and reading a few devotional pages would be good enough to stay close with Christ.
It wasn't.
It took me until reading this verse to realize why I was feeling a little off... because I was becoming distant from God. It seems crazy to say, but just from reading a couple of chapters a night, even from a less than inspirational 1 Chronicles, I can already feel my heart back in peace.
God has left us a manual. A manual of his thoughts. A manual which encourages us to experience real life and become more like Jesus. A manual of his teachings. 10 commandments - a guide to live in freedom of fear and evil. Proverbs - teachings of wisdom. His word sets us straight when we stray towards evil, restores us, and opens our eyes to ways to make our lives more happy and fulfilled.
Final Thought:
My most difficuly challenges, that I still haven't necessarily overcome, is not only remembering to read, but remembering that the Bible is God's words. No matter who the actual author of each book was, all of the words that made the Bible come from God. I have a tendency, particularly with some of the Old Testament stories that seem almost impossible nowadays, to read these stories as almost fiction. It is only when I correct this thinking and remember to read these stories for what they are, God's manual of the history and glory of our faith, that I experience the full glory of the Word and find myself the closest to God.
If you are like me, then there is rarely (if ever at all) a time when you read the Bible where you don't find a line or a teaching that speaks to you in a way you hadn't thought of before. Turn to the Bible with the troubles or worries of your day. The answer to how to put your heart at peace will assuredly find you during your reading.
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