Good morning my friends, I trust you are staying warm if you are in a cold climate and cool if you are warm climate. Can you imagine what this world was like in the beginning?
Many of us find the Word of God, our Holy Scriptures, is vital to our daily living. If we neglect it for any period of time we feel it in many ways but especially in our daily perspective of life in general. Yet, so many people read the same thing we do and feel no effect. The Word of God does nothing for them except entertain them with a few stories and give them a few wise sayings to share. There is a reason for this; they don't know the author.
It seems that Paul took nothing for granted and was thankful for everything that occurred, including when people receive the Word of God as the Word of God. We read this as he writes in Thessalonians 2:
And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe. v. 13
Yesterday I happened to catch a television show on Moses and his journey as the leader of Israel. It was written from a perspective of purely "academic" speculative research. The whole thing was based on the premise "we know this is impossible so this is what must have really happened". They refused to believe in the existence of God which in turn made the Word of God a lie, so they had to come up with their own explanation, based purely on speculation and assumption. It was extremely frustrating to watch what they turned the account of Moses into. It was things like this that happened in his own day that made Paul so thankful that the Thessalonians were not like that; they heard the Word and believed the author.
It is very important in this age of assumption and speculation from the academic world, that we continue to assert the Word of God for what it is:
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
If we spend all of our days living in the world's philosophy and the world's perspective, our view of God, his love and his purpose will become distorted and lost. We will soon start believing that "we know this is impossible so this is what must have really happened". Human logic will start winning the day in our heart and mind. But we do not receive God's Word in the same way that we receive the word of man:
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the LORD.
"As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:8-9)
We must be renewed in the Word every day and recognize that these are not just words we are reading. Paul writes to the Thessalonians that the Word is at work in those of us who believe. It is part of the ingredient of our transformation into the likeness of Jesus. But it cannot work in us if we are not putting it inside. We must read it, study it, memorize it and live it.
Some of you who are reading this have been neglecting the daily study of God's Word and you are feeling the effects. You cannot survive on a a diet of man's teaching, worship and prayer. You require the whole meal, including the meat of the Word. We have enough weak and immature believers not fulfilling their calling, don't you be one of them. Take up the Word today and feast on what the Father has prepared for you today. Then go and serve Jesus well in a world that is dying without him. Remember, the Word of God is not the word of man:
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 4:12-13)
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