In today’s sermon, I will be explaining from the Book of 2 Timothy 3 vs 16 and 17.
The book of 2 Timothy is a letter written by the apostle Paul to his protégé, Timothy. While the letter contains instructions for ministers and pastors, it is also valuable for all believers.
The preceding verses in 2 Timothy 3 vs 8 describe men who oppose the truth and are corrupted in their minds, disqualified, and found to be counterfeit regarding the faith.
What faith? In 2 Timothy 3 vs 10, Paul says they didn’t follow my teachings. Paul’s teachings were on the Gospel; he would always say, “According to my Gospel.” This is explained in 1 Corinthians 15 vs 1 – 4, Romans 2 vs 16, Romans 16 vs 25, and 2 Timothy 2 vs 8.
In addition, Paul made us understand that the Gospel is the Power of God unto salvation, and therein the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, Romans 1 vs 16 – 17.
Therefore, because these men rejected the Gospel, they exhibited the traits of the unsaved which are listed in 2 Timothy 3 vs 2 – 5.
Going through this scripture blesses me all the time and as I sit to write this sermon note, my eyes fell on 2 Timothy 3 vs 11 which says:
“Persecutions, sufferings. What things befell me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me.
Now, pay attention to “out of them all, the Lord delivered me”. My prayer for you today is that out of all your troubles and circumstances, God will deliver you. Amen!
As we delve into a closer study of this passage, may we be strengthened by the truth and power of God’s word.
PROFITABLE KNOWLEDGE
We will take our text from 2 Timothy 3 vs 16 – 17:
Verse 16: All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
Verse 17: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. (KJV)
In all the Riches of Christ teachings, we have often said that there are things to know after you get saved.
The Christian life is a life of continuous learning or discovering the riches of redemption and getting our minds renewed or adjusted to the truth of our identity in Christ.
Learning is not fun but requires an intentional work or labor. It calls for deliberately setting time apart to study to know.
Ignorance of who you are, what you have, and what Christ can do through you will not make you effective and fruitful as a child of God.
Ignorance can cause you to have experiences as though you need to be saved over and over again.
An unrenewed mind and false teachings can cause you to be manipulated by the world or the devil to oppress you or have experiences as someone not saved by the blood of Jesus.
A well-informed believer is a threat to Satan and his agents. Knowledge is light, ignorance is darkness. If you know your rights as a believer, you cannot be oppressed or bullied by the devil.
The quality of your conduct as a believer depends on how far you have allowed the knowledge you have to affect your mindset.
Our conduct is a product of our belief system. You cannot be fruitful or better than the knowledge you have.
Even though the acquisition of knowledge must be aggressively sought by the new believer, the lack of direction and guidance in pursuit of knowledge can become harmful to your Christian life.
People out of unholy curiosity have ended up destroying themselves. From our opening text, the knowledge that is profitable to the believer is the knowledge from the scriptures.
Every explanation or teaching on our faith is by the scriptures. What forms our conviction or persuasion is the scriptures.
What corrects our thinking and brings training to us as believers are the scriptures.
The scriptures are profitable because, in the scriptures, we receive doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness for us to be well-equipped for every good work in Christ.
Trying to depend on other knowledge materials will destroy you because it will not bring any profit to you.
There are certain materials such as philosophical books, motivational books, testimonies of people who claimed to have visited heaven or hell, books on the demonic world, and other occult information that are unprofitable to the spiritual growth of the believer.
Such materials may be used by academic institutions for academic purposes but not for spiritual growth as a believer.
Any book or preaching is profitable to the believer to the extent to which it took its inspiration from the bible or its alignment to the teachings of the apostles in the epistles.
We must therefore be guided in our pursuit for knowledge. The knowledge should be what reveals to us what Christ has accomplished for us through his redemptive work.
Any knowledge which does not reveal Christ cannot bring spiritual growth. You can’t grow by eating every food. There is the right diet for the believer to feed on for spiritual growth.
See the following scriptures for additional studies:
Acts 20 vs 32:
“And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified”.
2 Timothy 2 vs 15:
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that neededth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
John 8 vs 32:
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
My passion lies in reaching out to young adults in communities and schools, witnessing the transformative power of faith in their lives.
This blog extends my ministry, sharing insights, encouraging believers, and exploring Christ's teachings in daily life.
Welcome, Brother James.
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