No individual is perfectly versed in every aspect of life; hence the need for reference books. For instance, all appliances, machinery, and the like come with instructions that teach users exactly how these gadgets work, and what to do when they malfunction. Similarly, the Bible (Scriptures) is the Christian’s only guide to living the Christian life the way God intended.
The Bible is the Word of God! It contains sixty-six books written by different individuals as they were inspired by God. The Bible addresses every area of life: “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” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Knowing the role the Bible should play in the Christian’s life means comparing all other instructions against the Bible to ensure we are not doing anything contrary to the Word of God. This also means we need to verify what other ‘Christians’ say. They might even quote Scripture to try to mislead us, but allow the Holy Spirit to guide you into accepting or rejecting whatever is being taught.
There’s a story in the book of 1 Kings that makes this point. Soon after Jeroboam became king in Israel (northern tribe), he tried to stop the people from going down to Jerusalem to worship as God commanded, for fear that the people might switch their allegiance to King Rehoboam of Judah (southern tribe). In order to ensure his fears won’t be realized, he made two golden calves for them to worship. In addition, he built shrines and ordained priests for service. Jeroboam also instituted a religious festival for Israel. Needless to say, this became a terrible sin for him and the people.
In 1 Kings 13, God sent a prophet from Judah to Bethel to rebuke Jeroboam and prophesy what would happen in the future at the altar he had built. When Jeroboam heard the prophet, he pointed at him and shouted a command for him to be seized. Immediately, Jeroboam’s outstretched arm became paralyzed, and he could not pull it back. At his request, the prophet prayed for him and his arm was restored. Jeroboam invited the prophet for dinner, but he answered: “Even if you gave me half of everything you own, I would not go with you …For the Lord gave me this command: ‘You must not eat or drink anything while you are there, and do not return to Judah by the same way you came’” (Verse 8-9).
The prophet who had come from Judah left to go back home but was chased down by an older prophet who lived in Bethel at the time. The older prophet was able to convince this prophet to go to his house and eat and drink. During the prophet to prophet visit, the Bethel prophet prophesied: “You have defied the Word of the LORD and have disobeyed the command the LORD your God gave you. You came back to this place and ate and drank where he told you not to eat or drink.” (Verse 21-22).
I was concerned about the turn of events in this story; in fact, I was heartbroken. This prophet from Judah had tried to obey the Lord, but unfortunately, he gave in to deception. He knew without a doubt what God’s instructions were, and even repeated them to the king, but allowed himself to be deceived, leading to his disobedience. Similarly, when we know what the Bible says, let’s not allow others to talk us into doing otherwise. Sometimes, even Christians can talk you into doing what you know to be wrong. If we’d like to be pleasing to the Lord, we’ll need to obey Him to the letter.
There are many teachings, sayings, and doctrines out there that are not biblically accurate. Please, let’s always make sure we compare whatever we hear against the Scriptures. The book of Jude warns against ungodly people who have sneaked into the churches to teach false doctrines. Along with this warning comes the reminder that the Israelites, although they were delivered from Egypt, faced destruction in the wilderness for not remaining faithful. Jude’s benediction: “Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen” (Verse 24-25).
All quotes are from the New Living Translation (NLT).
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