Searching the Scriptures

I don't think there are very many people who know why we refer to the Bible as "The Scriptures." It is really very significant for us to know the reason for this. The word "Scripture" means "writing." The Bible is the writings inspired by God. They were written by men who were led by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit used their culture and vocabulary while leading them to write down the very words of God to us. That is why the Bible has no errors, and all it says is true when we understand it correctly.

However, the Bible has 66 books and 1189 chapters, written over a 1,500 year period. Therefore, when we want to see God's truth about any subject, we must search all of the Scriptures to make sure we are understanding all the truth. That is what the Bereans did when they  heard Paul preach about Jesus. (Acts 17:11) They were more noble than the people of Thessalonica. They listened to Paul's message, and then searched the Scriptures day after day to make sure their message was true. We need to take this and apply this in our own lives.

When we hear anyone speak about God, Jesus, or spiritual things, we must not just accept what they say immediately. We must test everything they say. The way we test it is to see if there are verses and principles in the Bible that teach what they are saying. Since the Bible is the only book in the world that is God's Word, it is the standard for testing everything. This applies to science, history, philosophy, etc. God has given us all the truths we need to know for our lives. It doesn't answer all questions, but it answers everything that is essential for life here and salvation for eternity.

However, some people are not very disciplined. They just accept what they hear, or they read in a commentary some person's opinion. We must not allow ourselves to be that way. The Bible is the best commentary on itself. In other words, if we search all of the Scriptures on a particular subject, and we understand them correctly, we won't need a human commentary very often. God has had the Bible written in that way so any believer can understand it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. (I John 2:27) I pray we will all be like the Bereans and search the Scriptures day after day.  

Tomorrow, I intend to read Acts 18-20.