God's Truth (Psalm 111:6-8)

Today's scriptures: Psalm 111:6-8

“The works of His hands are verity …”

Verity isn’t a word we use much these days, but it has rich meaning: “the quality or state of being true or real” and “a fundamental and inevitably true value” and “the quality or state of being truthful or honest.”

God is truth. He is real. He has infinite value.

“The works of His hands are … justice … “

God is just. He is holy and righteous. 

And He inspired a written account of His precepts, His commandments, His assurances, His encouragements. His word, the Holy Bible, is “trust and righteousness,” and it will “stand fast forever and ever.”

Do you know this God? Do you know the one true, real, holy, righteous God? Read His word. Read the history of His people. Read about His plan of reconciliation for you. Read about His love—an everlasting love.

Just for you.

Prophecy Fulfilled (1 Peter 1:10-12)

As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.
(1 Peter 1:10-12, NASB)

One thing I love about the Bible—among many—is the fact of already fulfilled prophecies. Old Testament prophecies about the birth and death of Christ. New Testament prophecies about the destruction of the temple.

I feel so blessed to know that because some prophecies have already been fulfilled, others will one day be also.

In these verses, Peter reminds his readers—which includes us, by the way—that the prophets of old predicted Christ’s suffering and His glory to come. Jesus did suffer, and one day, those who know Him will bask in His glory.

But there’s more in these verses. In fact, in a very real way, these verses define the reason God inspired men to write His words: to serve us. Have you thought of that? God didn’t have to leave a written account of His work. He could have just left it to general revelation through creation. Or He could have let us figure it out on our own (like that would happen!).

No. He loves us so much He left the gift of written word. Words inspired by Him, flowing through chosen men. Men who dedicated their lives to accurately scribe God’s inspiration.

Have you thought of what an amazing gift your Bible is? Have you praised God for speaking to you through its words? Don’t take it for granted, my friend. Read it. Meditate on it.

And thank God for it.

Open the Gift (2 Thess. 2:15)

So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us.
(2 Thessalonians 2:15, NASB)

We who follow the one true God have been so very blessed to have His words in written form. We have the history of the people of Israel, the foundation of our faith. We have the psalms, with songs of praise and cries for help. We have words of prophecy, some of which have already been fulfilled.

We have eye-witness accounts of the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. And we have His very words of encouragement and exhortation.

And we have letters that guide us and help us to live as Christ would live.

What a beautiful, beautiful gift.

But you know something? You have to open the gift to enjoy it. Think about it: It’s your birthday, and you’re surrounded by gifts from your friends and family. They’re creatively wrapped, quite lovely. It’s not the lovely wrapping that has value, though. You need to open the gift.

It’s the same with God’s word. You need to open the Bible to get at its value. And because He encourages, affirms, convicts, and exhorts us through its words, we should open it regularly—daily, in fact.

The Bible truly is the gift that keeps on giving!

The Word of God (1 Thess. 2:13)

For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.
(1 Thessalonians 2:13, NASB)

What do you believe about the Bible? Is it just a book with a lot of stories? Or a book with some good advice, but no more important than any other book? Or a book with some truth, some words to live by, but with a lot of irrelevancy?

Or do you believe it to be the inspired, inerrant word of God?

I guess my thought is either you believe the Bible to be God’s word or you don’t. To take bits and pieces and reject the rest seems so odd to me. If God is the sovereign of all creation, then He certainly worked through the pens of men to create a written documentation for us to know more of whom He is.

God breathed His truth through the writers, and He breathed His truth through those who gathered the books into what we now know as the Holy Bible.

Many people don’t necessarily have a problem with the idea of God’s inspiration of the Bible, but the idea of inerrancy doesn’t sit well … throughout the ages and with all the translations, there are no errors, they say. Inerrancy defined means there were no errors in the original manuscripts. And yes, as fallible man copied the original manuscripts, some fractional errors may have occurred.

But again, if God is sovereign, if He is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present, then don’t you think He guided the pens of the scribes? And don’t you think that if any error entered a copy, it was so minor so as not to make any real difference in His final message?

Believe what you will about the Bible. But if you believe it to be God’s word, then believe it to be God’s word.

"...the Word of God Is Not Imprisoned" (2 Tim. 2:8-10)

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to my gospel, for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a criminal; but the word of God is not imprisoned. For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, so that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory.
(2 Timothy 2:8-10, NASB)

“ … the word of God is not imprisoned.” I love these words!

No matter what happens to us, no matter how we’re ridiculed or persecuted or rejected, God’s word can still be proclaimed. The gospel can still be shared.

This reminds me so much of the story of Corrie Ten Boom, one of my greatest mentors. If you don’t know her story, visit www.corrietenboom.com. The condensed version is that she and her sister were incarcerated in a concentration camp during WWII, and while in that—excuse my expression—hellhole, they held Bible studies. And many women came to faith. Even after her sister died, Corrie continued to help others “obtain the salvation which is in Jesus Christ.”

Many of us are in our own “prisons.” We may be suffering from health issues that keep us down. We may be trapped in relationships that are hurtful. We may be heartbroken by rejection or rebellion.

And some of our brothers and sisters throughout the world are in literal prisons or are threatened daily as they fulfill God’s mission.

Yet even if we’re behind bars—either literal or figurative—we can still share God’s truth. We can still get the word out.

Because “ … the word of God is not imprisoned.”