Thanks for watching this week’s State of the Nation! I am Corey Jones and today I’m excited to share a Bible verse with you that has been on my heart!
2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,” Comma! That’s the end of verse 16 but it’s not the end of the sentence. “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Kidmin Nation, we are running into battle and in everyday conversations, in everything we do, we need to make sure we have the sword of God by our side! Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is alive 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.”
Conversations and teaching without a focus on the Word simply don’t measure up.
And measuring up, we’ve all be there. I can remember a specific ride that I really wanted to ride at a fair. It was kind of like this giant coffee can, where there is nothing inside, no straps or anything holding you in. You would like up against the wall and the thing would begin to spin and then the centripetal force would pull you against the wall. And then it would happen the floor drop out and you would be stuck against the wall. I watched people do this over and over again and I wanted to do it but I simply didn’t measure up. I was disappointed. The next year I went to go stand in line and again I didn’t measure up but that third year I finally measured up and I got to experience it. It was everything I was hoping for and more. I was so excited, and yeah, I did get a little dizzy but I was so excited.
That feeling when it finally measures up is that same feeling you get when the Word of God speaks through your life. Our words never measure up to God’s supreme wisdom. So whether you are counseling, discipling, or teaching, we want things to go well but what we say often doesn’t measure up. We might give good advice but we are lacking. I’ve said before, “You only control yourself.” And that’s good advice but far better than that advice, is found in 2 Corinthians 10:5, “Take every thought captive to obey Christ.” Or we say something to kids like, “Don’t use you words to hurt others.” But far better than that is, “everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.”
Now here’s the key, my mentor Brother Jim taught me this lesson when talking about curriculum and lessons. He said, “The number-one mistake in teaching the Bible to children is to fill them with facts instead of the principles of each story and teaching.” And remember 2 Timothy 3:17, “so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Now it’s true, David did choose five smooth stones out of a stream, He put them in a bag, a shepherd’s bag. And what’s a shepherd’s bag made of? Those are all the facts of but they are not the emphasis of the story. The principle, the thing that really matters is that when you, like David, are in the fight of life, facing your biggest giant, that God is by your side. Principles of Scripture are huge!
And finally, Kidmin Nation, how’s your spiritual tank? Are you spiritually nourished or have you been lacking in when it comes to feeding on the Word of God? The Word of God, is alive and active. It’s active in your life but only when you’re in it. You are the only person who can make this a priority for you. If you won’t prioritize the Bible for you then no one will.
I saw this twitter exchange and I wanted to share it with you. The person tweeted saying, “When was the last time you heard God speak?” And the reply was, “Today when I opened my Bible.” We are in a battle. We need our weapon, the Word of God, in hand.
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”