I just LOVE studying Scripture!!! I am currently studying Living So That, by Wendy Blight with Proverbs 31 Ministries Online Bible Studies and our Verse of the Week for week two of the study was 2 Timothy 3:16-17. I decided to really break this verse down and examine the key words that spoke to me.
“SCRIPTURE” ~ “the books of either the Old Testament or the New Testament or of both: the Bible ~ the sacred writings of a religion”
~ The bible itself informs us what Scripture is in 1 Tim. 5:18:
“For Scripture says, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,” and “The worker deserves his wages.””
Where do we read these 2 statements? In the bible; therefore Scripture = the Bible! Not only that, but we know it is both the Old Testament AND the New Testament that compile Scripture, as 1 Tim. 5:18 quotes from Deut. 25:4 (Old Testament), and Matt. 10:10 (New Testament).
“BREATHE” ~ “to send (something) out from your lungs through your mouth or nose”
According the past-tense (breathed) of this definition God has SENT something out of His very being!!! Looking again at our verse of the week we can see WHAT it is that God has SENT OUT ~ SCRIPTURE!
Scripture comes FROM GOD ~ He has SENT it OUT from Himself and it has been written down on the pages of the Bible for us to read…WOW!!!!! Now we just need to BREATHE it in ~ “to take (something) into your lungs through your mouth or nose” Merriam-Webster.
We need to take Scripture into our hearts ~ then we will be able to breathe it out over others 🙂
The Greek word “theopneustos” is only used ONCE in Scripture – in 2 Tim. 3:16. I just LOVE this:
“2315 /theópneustos (“God-breathed”), likely a term coined by Paul, “expresses the SACRED nature of the Scriptures (their divine origin) and their power to sanctify believers” (C. Spicq, 2, 193).”
“RIGHTEOUSNESS” ~ Living “in conformity to the demands of the covenant and according to God’s will”
So what is the Word of God, The Bible ~ Scripture that God sent out from Himself to us for? It is to TEACH us what God’s will is, REBUKE us when we go against the will of God, and CORRECT our behavior in order to TRAIN us HOW to live according to the will of God.
The greek word Paul uses, that is translated as ‘righteousness’, is ‘dikaiosuné’ and indicates that Scripture will teach us ‘what is deemed right by the Lord’.
THIS is how we can know the will of God – by reading Scripture and allowing God to breathe His Word into our hearts and minds!
“EQUIPPED” ~ “to provide (someone) with necessary materials or supplies…to make ready”.
Get THIS!!! God…our Heavenly Father…wants to train you and me to know and do what is right in His eyes. In order for us to do that He SPOKE ~ sent out ~ His Word from Himself TO us, and it was recorded in Scripture…the Bible that we can pick up and study freely, whenever we want!!! WHY??? SO THAT He can PROVIDE us with ALL that we need. To prepare us and get us ready! If God wants to prepare and get us ready for something…it means that He has a PURPOSE for us! Whatever God is preparing you for, whether you know or not, we DO know something ~ the best thing that we can do right now is to study Scripture. Read God’s Words SO THAT we will be ready for anything He calls us to. Where He calls, He equips, and one way He does so, is through Scripture.
“GOOD” ~ The Greek word used by Paul is ‘agathos’ which means ‘intrinsically good, good in nature’.
The GOOD work that we are being trained for isn’t necessarily all about show and what we look like ~ it is INTRINSIC ~ it is internal ~ it is inherently good in that it comes from God. It comes from a righteous heart and mindset, and it is done for the right reasons.
“WORK” ~ in Greek…‘érgon’ “is a deed (action) that carries out (completes) an inner desire (intention, purpose).”
How absolutely INCREDIBLE that the GOD of the UNiVERSE, the God who sent His SON to save us from Spiritual death, also BREATHED ~ SENT OUT ~ Words from His own heart into the world to be recorded for us to read in the Bible. He spoke these Words SO THAT we could grasp full knowledge of who He is and what His will is. He desires to train us, and use us to do His work in the world. The work that we do comes from the desire God has planted in our hearts through His Word. In fact; when we are obedient to God’s Word ~ we will portray His heart to the world!!
I want to be #LivingSoThat the people around me want to KNOW Christ!
I want to be #LivingSoThat I find TREASURE in God’s WORD!
Lead me Lord, I pray. Amen.
If you are interested in joining in the Proverbs 31 Ministries Online Bible Study of Living So That, by Wendy Blight just click here and sign up!
Wendy (Proverbs 31 Ministry Volunteer) said:
Wow! Wow! Wow!! Could you please stop in WI on your way home from Scotland? I need a tutor!! I have tried but struggle to really breakdown, verse map etc. I’m printing this!!! I’m still teetering on the “intimidated” stage. Thanks for sharing!!!
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sarahtravis12 said:
Wendy I would LOVE to come visit!!!!! Can’t WAIT to see you in September!!! ❤ 🙂
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thefedorows.wordpress.com said:
Sarah, I liked how you took the words and dug deeper! The words “God-breathed” stood out to me when I verse mapped this. But, I like how you wrote that God sent his word out from his being. Wow!
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thank you 🙂
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Shelly (OBS Team) said:
Love this, Sarah! I get an incredible feeling of security and overwhelming love when I consider God breathing out His very being onto the pages of the Bible that we hold in our hands. God-breathed . . . sacred and holy. Thank you for sharing this today!! Great post!! Love ~ Shelly
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thanks Shelly ❤ Isn't it an incredible image of God's breath over the pages of Scripture 🙂 Love you!
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jillberan said:
Thanks for sharing Sarah! I love how you pull this apart and I appreciate your teaching! The Word becomes even more powerful when we take the time to look at the original language…thanks for doing that work for me today!! Blessings to you!
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thank you Jill! I’m a Greek Geek!!! 😉
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Becky Cox said:
Awesome! The thought that God loves us/me so much that he would give me and gives us/me what I need to know to serve him! Thank you Sarah for putting this in words that touched my heart! ♥
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thank you friend ❤ He loves you so much! 🙂
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Melissa said:
I can just feel your enthusiasm for God this morning. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. 🙂
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thank you Melissa! This study has definitely encouraged my enthusiasm!!
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Cynthia said:
I love the way to broke down the verse and explained it! Your page is also very beautiful.
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thank you Cynthia! I sometimes think about changing it but I just love pink too much!!
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wendyblight said:
Wow! You have done an incredible job summarizing and teaching what we are learning!! Thank you, thank you for sharing. Isn’t it amazing that we go for so long feeling intimidated and thinking we can’t understand the Bible. And once we start to read it, we realize it’s written FOR us. That is its purpose. And God sent it to speak directly to us to help us get to know Him…to help us understand our own lives in light of those who have gone before us…to encourage us…to convict us…to save us…to give us hope and the list goes on!! Love your post!! Blessings, Wendy
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thank you so much Wendy 🙂 I don’t know how I survived before I really starting studying God’s Word! I get a glimpse of how difficult life would be when I have a day without starting it with Scripture! So so thankful that He Spoke His Word to us for all those reasons you list…and more!
Love Sarah xox
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passagethroughgrace said:
Beautiful explanation of 2 Timothy. Your simple breakdown into small parts leaves me wanting to live the way you describe for Christ. It is incredible that God chooses us to teach and train to share who he is with the world. Have a blessed day! Mary
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sarahtravis12 said:
Thank you so much Mary. I am often in awe that God would take His time to train me!!
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