According to the Scriptures

11.14.2012

1 Corinthians 15.3-4 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures... NASB

It is vital that we know: according to the Scriptures. Life is often very confusing – even in the very best of things – and it is important to know how to think, and what to think, in the midst of such uncertainty, incompleteness, and (possibly) disappointment. That’s why we live according to the Scriptures.

The church in Corinth was having a rough go of things and Paul, firmly and carefully, had to remind them of some things in order for them to keep their faith sure. But Paul summed it all up by reminding them of life: according to the Scriptures. Every person needs knowledge and wisdom. First, we have to know what’s going on; and then we need to operate within that knowing appropriately. That’s where the Scriptures come into action.

Not only does the Bible (the Scriptures) teach us what to know, it also teaches how to respond to what we know. And it applies to every area of life. If we paid more attention to the Scriptures it would matter a whole lot less what the media has to report. There are events and circumstances all around us clamoring for our attention and we can only take in so much or do so much. Our lives are fixed and finite and it takes courage and resolve to appropriate our time and resources correctly and effectively.

Our problem is we just don’t always know what to do, or how to do it. Another thing is there are many who feel it their responsibility to direct us on how to react, respond, or believe – there is no shortage of these kinds of folk. We do need to learn how to figure things out for ourselves but we all need help in learning how to learn.

God hasn’t left us without resources and He hasn’t left us without His word. A difficulty for many is they approach Scriptures with such cynicism and skepticism that they don’t stand a chance when they bump into true truth – their eyes are too blind and their minds too made up. If we can’t believe in God, we won’t believe in His truth.

It all starts with belief: some believe according to the Scriptures and some, well some just believe they’ll have to tough it out on their own. That’s the choice we have – we can choose to believe or not. We can respond to God or not. But if we choose to believe then we must continue to believe. That’s where a lot of folk fall down – they just can’t continue. So the problem then is either God, and what He says, is not enduring; or we are not enduring. I’ll put my money on God – I know about you and me…

My friends, let’s live according to the Scriptures for in them is the key to all of the wealth of God and what we need to know and how to handle what we know.