Chapter 3, Verse 16: The Saviour, The Scriptures, The Spirit

John 3:16 – The Saviour
2 Timothy 3:16 – The Scriptures
Colossians 3:16 – The Spirit
—
Let us come to the Saviour. Let us read the Scriptures. Let us worship God in Spirit and in truth.

God's Word - Unchanged, Unchanging, Unchangeable

Some people say, “Surely, you don’t believe the Bible.” They say that the Bible belongs to the past. It’s not for us today. This kind of talk takes us right back to the Garden of Eden – “Did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1).  The Bible says that “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16).  Who are we to say that the Bible needs to be rewritten – so that it only says what we want it to say to us? God hasn’t stopped speaking to us through His Word – but have we stopped listening to Him? 

 * In our cynical world, we hear that “It doesn’t matter what you believe because what you believe doesn’t matter.” When we find ourselves starting to think like this, let’s remember this: God’s Word is unchanged.

 * Sometimes, we look back over our life, and we think, “I used to love reading the Bible – but somewhere along the line, something’s changed.” What’s changed? Has God’s Word changed? No! It hasn’t changed. When our feelings change, let’s not forget this: God’s Word is unchanging.

 * In today’s world, there are many temptations. We are tempted to turn back from following Jesus. We forget that His words are “the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). Temptation is nothing new. Jesus was tempted. When He was tempted, He said, “It is written” (Matthew 4:4). God doesn’t say one thing – and then “change His mind” (Numbers 23:19). He speaks His Word – and He stands by it. His Word is not “maybe Yes, maybe No.” It’s always “Yes” – “Yes, I love you. Yes, I will keep on loving you. Yes, I will love you forever” (2 Corinthians 1:18-20). God’s Word is unchangeable.  

God's Written Word - And His Living Word

"The Holy Scriptures are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15).

In the Bible, we have God's written Word. The Bible points us to Christ. he is God's living Word - "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:1,14). What do we learn as we read God's written Word? - This is what we learn: "Jesus loves me. This I know, for the Bible tells me so." God speaks to us His written Word so that we may come to trust in Christ, the living Word - "from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15).

Reading the Scriptures, we become wise for salvation as we find Christ who is our Wisdom (2 Timothy 3:15; 1 Corinthians 1:30).

Praying Through God's Word: 2 Timothy

2 Timothy 1:1-2:7

Lord, we’re not to keep Your Word to ourselves. You’ve given us the “Gospel.” Help us to share it with “faithful” people who will “pass it on to others” (2 Timothy 1:11,13 & 2:2).

2 Timothy 2:8-3:9

Help us, Lord, to “remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead” (2 Timothy 2:8). Jesus is the living Lord.  Help us never to forget this. When we’re tempted to forget Him, help us to remember why He died. “He died that we might be forgiven. He died to make us good, that we might go at last to heaven, saved by His precious blood.”When we’re tempted to forget Him, help us to remember that He’s alive today – and He lives in us. Help us to say, in our hearts, “I must decrease. Christ in me must increase” (John 3:30).

2 Timothy 3:10-4:22

We thank You, Lord, for “the Holy Scriptures which are able to make us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15). Help us to “preach the Word” in the power of “the Holy Spirit” (2 Timothy 4:2 & 1 Peter 1:12) – and help us to remember this: When all our words have been spoken, Your Word remains “the living and abiding Word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). When all our words have been spoken, the ministry of the Holy Spirit continues. Through His ongoing ministry, Your Word is “written” in the “hearts” of those who have heard the Word preached (2 Corinthians 3:3). Thank You, Lord, for the Holy Scriptures – and the Holy Spirit.

‘By Grace You Have Been Saved…’

2 Samuel 23:1-39
By birth, David was ‘the son of Jesse’. By grace, he was ‘the man who was raised on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, the sweet psalmist of Israel’(1). What we are in ourselves is nothing compared with what we can become through the grace of God! Look at David. Listen to what he says, ‘The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me, His Word is upon my tongue’(2). What had David done to deserve this? What was so special about him? Nothing - This was the work of God, the work of divine grace. In ourselves, we are ‘godless’, good for nothing, ‘like thorns that are thrown away’(6). In ourselves, we are not ‘mighty men’(8-9). How can we be changed? - ‘The Lord wrought a great victory’(10,12). Which of us can be described as ‘a valiant man… a doer of great deeds’(20) - apart from the grace of God? ‘By grace you have been saved…’(Ephesians 2:8-10).

Lord, there are bad things happening to us, things that we wish weren't happening.

2 Samuel 4:1-5:25

Lord, there are bad things happening to us, things that we wish weren't happening. Sometimes, all of this gets us down. We wonder, "Who really cares about us? Is there anybody out there - anybody who's really interested?" We thank You, Lord, that there is an answer to our question. It's not an answer that comes from the human side. It's an answer that comes from above, an answer that comes from You. It's the answer of Your love. You love us in the good times. You love us in the bad times. Thank You, Lord.

Life isn't easy. Sometimes, it seems like there are nothing but hard times.

2 Samuel 7:1-29

Life isn't easy. Sometimes, it seems like there are nothing but hard times. There doesn't seem to be alight at the end of the tunnel. That's the way it feels - but it's not the way it is! Our feelings will lead us away from You - if we let them! Our feelings can run riot over us. They can wreck our lives. Help us, Lord, to look beyond the chaos. Help us to look to You. Sometimes, it feels like You're far away. That's the way it seems to us - but it's not the way it really is! You are with us - now and always (Matthew 1:23; Matthew 28:20).