2 Timothy 3:13-17, The Value Of The Bible Is Always Increasing
1. The Bible Protects You Against All Future Deception (v13-14)
2. You Must Continue Living By What The Bible Teaches (v14)
3. The Bible Should Be Taught To All Ages (v14-15)
4. The Whole Bible Is Inspired Of God (v16)
5. The Bible Never Stops Being Profitable To You (v15-17)
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:00:00]:
As we look at 2nd Timothy chapter 3 this evening, we're looking at Paul's instruction to Timothy about the scriptures. And really most of this book is, centered around Paul's instruction to Timothy about the scriptures. And Today, there are many people who would suggest or who would imagine that the scriptures are not really that important, not really that relevant. In fact, many would suggest that the scriptures are less and less relevant as time goes on. We're talking about 1000 years ago when these were written, we're talking about, much time passing very different societies, very different geography, very different lives that people were living. And so there is the the belief by many that these things that are contained in the scriptures are just not that important today. But here is Paul instructs Timothy, he essentially says the opposite. He says the scriptures are becoming more and and more important as time passes. And so I've titled the message tonight. The value of the Bible is always increasing. And I pray that we would take this to hearts and believe this with all of our hearts the value of the word of god is not diminishing over time. It is not decreased because so much in society has changed. It has not decreased because so much time has passed. It is not decreased because we've invented democracy, and so you know, it's not necessary anymore. It's not decreased for, the, any reason that we might come up with our intelligence, what we discover, our science, our artificial intelligence, whatever it might be, as we continue to progress towards eternity, the value of the Bible only increases more and more and more. And I would encourage you to think about that. What can you study that increases in value that way. What what can you spend your time in and immerse yourself in that that is guaranteed to increase in value more and more and more as we approach eternity. I was thinking back to, my days when I was working at Paychex, and they sent me to payroll school back in New York. And I had to spend many weeks learning all of the payroll laws and calculations and, the ways to figure out things and how to handle all the various situations. And that knowledge that I learned, that training that was provided was incredibly valuable for the time that I worked at Paychex. But after I stopped working at Paychex, there was a little bit of a diminishing of the value because I didn't have as much need for the knowledge any longer, but surprisingly, there was still a lot of value because, in my opportunity to serve and help other churches as, part of their board and such to, to be able to help them understand payroll laws for pastors, which most, tax people don't understand. I I had a training and it was like, wow, surprising, it's still valuable. Even though it's not quite the same value, I don't use it every day, but there is still some value over there. But but now, this has been like 20 years. And it's not that it's not having any value at all any longer, but over the past 20 years, you know, laws have changed, practices have changed. So much has changed And then also my memory isn't what it used to be. And and I'm not using it all the time, and so much of that has diminished and been lost. And And so it was really valuable. It was, you know, they spent 1000 of dollars to send me to that in many weeks and hours were spent learning that, but had diminishing value in my life, although it was really valuable and made an impact, but it decreases and decreases and decreases. And you can imagine a 100 years from now, whatever curriculum they were using in that payroll school, it's regardless, like, it's it's moot. It's has no value probably hardly at all, in a 100 years from now. You can talk about any career path you might choose. You can talk about many things that you could learn, right? What what, studies in history or science, maybe math, maybe math is the perpetual one so Jessica picked the right one. But, you know, there's there's just not a lot of value in most of the things that we could spend our time in. But the Bible is different. It was inspired by god. It is the word of god to us, and it has the promise of god that it will always have value, that it will always be relevant, that it will always be even more and more and more valuable to those who will receive it, believe it, and put it into practice. And so we're gonna walk through five points tonight to look at what Paul's instructing to Timothy here and learn about the value of the scriptures and how they're increasing and why it is that Paul is saying the value is increasing, starting in verse 1314 for point number 1, the Bible protects you against all future deception. Here's one of the ways that the Bible is incredibly valuable and more valuable as time progresses because here's what Paul says in verse 1314. But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. but you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them. Notice what Paul says. Now the context of this is you go back to verse 1 of chapter 3 He's talking about the last days. He's talking about the the terrible things that are coming in those last days and the terrible conditions of society in those last days. And leading up to that, he says it's gonna go from bad to worse. Evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse. Now there were evil men and impostors in Paul's day when he's writing this letter to Timothy. There were people who had go behind Paul as he was going from place to place and missionary journeys and try to take those new converts and lead them astray into, branch off of Judaism or some other false doctrine and false teaching, there was all kinds of evil men and impostors even in the 1st century, even as Paul was ministering in writing to Timothy. But Paul says, this isn't the worst that it's gonna get. Evil men and impostors are gonna grow worse and worse. As time progresses, things are gonna get more evil and impostors are gonna abound more. There's going to be more deception, notice deceiving and being deceived. as this grows, these evil men and impostors, some of them will be doing the deceiving. That is they know that they are deceiving people They know the truth and they know that they're not teaching it, but they don't care because they're after their own hearts and their own desires. But then there are also those who are evil men and impostors because they've been deceived. And so there is the deception that will abound and And what Paul is describing here is greater and greater deception that will be going on as we approach The last days perilous times will come. And there will be more abundance of evil men More abundance of false messiahs, false ministers, false gospels, greater deception, stronger deception, more deception, As we approach eternity, we need to understand that the Bible doesn't paint a picture of, you know, glory glory glory on earth until Christ comes back. It really paints the picture of us battling against conditions that are getting worse and worse and worse. And the deception is gonna be so great that the majority of people are going to be caught up in it. Paul tells us in 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2 when it comes time where the Antichrist comes on the scene. He says the coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan with all power, signs, and lying wonders. and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish because they did not receive the love of the truth that they might be saved. And for this reason, god will send them strong delusion that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. This is where it ends with the lawless one coming with signs, power, lying wonders, tricking everybody through very impressive things proclaiming himself to be god, proclaiming himself to be the 1 worthy of worship, but it's unrighteous deception. And between now and then or between Paul and then, deception will grow more and more until it reaches this point. It's gonna go more and more grow more and more. There's going to be many ways for people to get off track, to get tricked, to get confused, to be taken away from the truth. Disception will abound evil men will abound impostors will abound. Paul here is really describing what you might think of as a poison, deception that will poison people, that will take them away from the truth that god has revealed. But he's also declaring the antidote to this poison. He says in verse 14, but you must continue in the things that you have learned. And as we continue on, we see that he's talking about the scriptures. He's talking about the word of god. The antidote, the protection against this deception is the word of god. The protection against all of the trickery, all of the nonsense, all of the amazing powers and lying wonders that are coming is the word of god. And so he tells Timothy, you must continue. Here's how to protect yourself. Here's how to protect the people around you. Here's what you need to focus on. It's the antidote to the poison of deception, the word of god. That's amazing to consider because as you think about the progression of evil men and impostors growing worse and worse, There's more of them. The deception is greater. It's stronger. How do you protect yourself against an evil that is growing and undefined. The false doctrine of Paul's Day is not the false doctrine of today. Well, there's elements or similarities, but it's presented differently. Right? There's there's all kinds of new ways, new deceptions that are being passed around. How do you protect yourself against deceptions? and lies that you can't anticipate, that you can't figure out. Paul says the scriptures. We often use the example of the bank tellers who are not trained on counterfeit money. They're trained on the real thing. And then because they know it so well, when a counterfeit comes across, they're able to spot it because it looks different. It feels different. Even if they can't identify what is wrong with it, it's clearly different to them because they're so familiar with the real thing. In a similar way, the lord has provided for us that clarity that we can know the truth and identify all future and possible deceptions because he's given us the truth. And as we become familiar with it and immerse ourselves in it and know it and believe it. When the deception comes, when the lies come, we can identify that. And here's the idea that Paul is conveying here. As these things grow worse and worse and worse, it's not that Timothy is gonna need or you and I today are gonna need something additional, but that the scriptures are sufficient to handle all future deception. And that's pretty amazing to think about. whatever the enemy comes up with. Whatever doctrine he brings up, whatever lying wonders and and powers he demonstrates, whatever it is that that he can throw at this world, although the majority of society might be swept up in it and buy into the deception, the word of god is sufficient to battle against any deception of against any bad doctrine against any evil men and impostors that will come against the things of the lord. What else can you say that about? If I handed you a little floppy disc and said, here is virus protection for your Windows 95 computer. Now you are safe. You're welcome. Nobody here knows what Windows 95 computer is, right? that is not valuable any longer. It's decreased in value. It might have been valuable back in 1995, But 1995 and a half, it was no longer as valuable. 1996, it was less valuable. That that piece of software it has to continually be updated and changed and transformed and added to and reconfigured and completely, you know, moved around and and The only way contain or continues to have value is if it's continually being worked on. Meanwhile, we have the completed word of god which is more and more valuable because as the attacks against The word of god and the things of god grow more and more and more and more, it holds. and the more time progresses, the greater the deceptions come, the greater our need for the word of god to combat all of the lies and the nonsense and the false doctrine that is abundant in the world around us. I'm sure you're familiar with the concepts. Antibiotics are decreasing in value many times because they're developing resistance. Well, not the antibiotics, but the bacteria are developing resistance to the antibiotics and so the bacteria are changing and modifying and so that they overcome the antibiotic and so now It's harder to remove that infra infection to to get rid of that strain because that stronger bacteria has now taken root and overcome the medicine that we've thrown at it. There is no false doctrine. There is no evil men or impostors, even though they get worse and worse and worse, even though the the deception gets stronger and more powerful, there is nothing. that can overcome the scriptures. It protects you from all future deception. Some people believe the scriptures are less and less relevant. As time goes on, Paul says no way. We need the word of god more than ever. And there is deception that is coming and growing stronger and the word of god is the best protection that we have, no matter what form it takes, if it's artificial intelligence or if it's some very popular personality or if it's some really incredible miracles that are going on, doesn't matter. Whatever the deception Whatever it is that the enemy throws at us, the best protection we have is the Bible, the word of god. contained here in these scriptures. Well, moving on to point number 2, we're gonna still hang out here in verse 14 for point number 2. It's you must continue living by what the Bible teaches. You must continue living by what the Bible teaches. Again, verse 14, Paul tells Timothy, but you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them. Paul encourages Timothy, Timothy, you have to continue. and it's a have to. You must continue. Timothy, this is a requirement. This is a command that I'm giving you. Continue. in the things that you have learned. That word continue. It is a command. It's in the present imperative active tense and voice and mood, where meaning it's continue and keep on continuing and then keep on continuing and then keep on continuing It's not a one time thing or for a season kind of thing, but Timothy, for the rest of your life, you must continue. And the fact that it's in a active voice means that it's, Timothy, something you have to do. It's not something that is done for you or done to you. It is something that you make a deliberate choice to do. You must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them. And we'll talk more about who you learned them from in just a moment. But but this idea of continuing that there needs to be this active and ongoing pursuit of god in the word of god. And this is so important for us because it's one thing when we are new to the lord or maybe in a kind of a fresh season of our life and we get excited about the word of god. And so we We're we're diving in and we're all on fire and we're reading through the scriptures and we're talking to others about the scriptures and we're We're seeking the lord and we're hearing from him. We're receiving from him. But many times, the real danger happens as we kind of hit a plateau. And we settle down, and we have gone through the Bible, maybe once or twice or a few times or ten times or twenty times. And we get back to Genesis and we're like, okay. Yeah. Yeah. I remember this, and it becomes a little bit less urgent for us.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:20:21]:
to spend time with the lord in his word.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:20:28]:
Paul is telling Timothy Timothy, don't let that happen. Don't let it happen where you settle down and kind of get comfortable with how far you've progressed in your knowledge of god and your knowledge of the word. you need to continue in those things. Continue reading the word of god. Make sure you develop the discipline. Make sure you develop the practice so that you continue in the things that you've learned and been assured of. You've learned them. Right? He says that that's part that part is his last tense. You learned things. You've been assured of things past tense. You've learned it. Okay. So now you don't need to study it any longer. No. That's not what Paul is saying. You learned it. So now keep on Learning it. Keep on refreshing it. Keep on renewing it in your heart and in your life. I think it's similar to what the lord told Joshua in Joshua chapter 1 verse 8. As Joshua was just beginning, his opportunity to lead the nation of Israel. The lord meets with him and sets this foundation for him so that he can have a successful ministry, a successful life, and the mission that god had given to him. And so the lord tells Joshua this book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night. that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then, you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Joshua, here's how you're going to have a successful ministry. Here's how you're going to lead the nation of Israel successfully. take the word of god and keep it in your mouth. Keep it talking about it. Keep reading it. Keep walking through it. Meditate it. Keep it in your mind. Day night. And notice The objective
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:22:40]:
that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:22:46]:
That's another trap that we can fall into. We can become very familiar with the scriptures, and we could spend a lot of time in the word of god to know it. We keep it in our mind, but we don't have the objective of doing it. and living it out and putting it into practice in our lives. And so the lord tells Joshua, Joshua, you need to take the word of god. You need to make it a priority You need to think about it all day long. You need to start your day with the word of god. You need to end your day with the word of god. You need to dream about the word of god overnight. You need to fill your life and immerse yourself with the scriptures so that you can observe and do what is written
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:23:32]:
in them. And Joshua, if you do that,
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:23:37]:
You'll have good success. You'll be victorious in conquering the enemies within the promised land. You'll have victory in leading the people across the Jordan River you will
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:23:48]:
be a good soldier and a good servant if you continue reading and meditating so that you can practice what god has instructed. And so continue.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:24:04]:
reading the scriptures. I think we could also say continue studying the scriptures. Back one chapter here in 2nd Timothy, chapter 2, verse 15, Paul tells Timothy to be diligent to to take care, to work hard to present yourself a proved to god, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. And so there is to be some efforts. There is to be an ongoing work and diligence to make sure you know how to study, how to divide up the word of god, how to parse and understand and interpret the word of god. This is to be a pursuit of yours, Timothy, continue reading, continue studying so that you can continue living by the things that you have learned. That word learned, it implies not just ahead knowledge, but it's learning something in order to do it. learning something in order to carry it out. The Greek scholar W. E. Vine puts it this way. Learning Christ is not simply learning the doctrine of Christ, but learning Christ himself A process, not merely of getting to know the person, but so applying the knowledge as to walk differently from the rest of the gentiles. We are to continue in the word of god in a way that it causes us to walk differently than the world around us. continue reading, continue studying, continue living by the word of god so that we live different so that we behave and operate based on what god instructs us in and not based on what we think or what we want, what we hope for, what we wish, or whatever deception might be the popular thing of the day. Moses pleaded with the people of Israel as he was handing over the baton to Joshua, writing out the book of deuteronomy, his final work recapping the things that the lord had revealed to him in deuteronomy chapter 4 verse 9, he says take heed to yourself. Diligently keep yourself. less you forget the things your eyes have seen. Less they depart from your hearts, all the days of your life. You guys, you're gonna have to work at this. Moses tells them. There's going to be the danger of forgetting the things that you've seen. There's the danger of things departing from your heart. You you need to continue in them. You need to continue it and make a deliberate effort to hold fast, to the word of god, and make sure you're living by what he has said. In the next chapter of Timothy, 2nd Timothy chapter 4, we have an example of, well, one time that didn't happen. Second Timothy, chapter 4 verse 10. Paul tells Timothy, Demus has forsaken me. having loved this present world and is departed for Thesalonica. Themis, this Man, we don't know a whole lot about, but he was mentioned in 3 of Paul's letters, colossians, Filemon, and then here in 2nd Timothy. In colossians and Filemon, he's mentioned in a good light. He's a fellow servant. He's alongside with Paul doing the ministry. He's helping Paul in his endeavors, and, he's in prison in those, both of those letters, colossians, and Filemon. and so he's with him attending to him and and perhaps even suffering along with him. For some period of time, we don't know exactly how long, but maybe 3 years, maybe 5 years, maybe more. Demas was serving alongside of Paul. but he didn't continue living by what the Bible teaches. Instead He began to love this present world. Instead of looking to eternity and keeping his heart fixed on the things of the lord, fixed in the word of god, demas loved this present world. It's a very sad statement. and it's true of some today. And and we need to understand and recognize and remind ourselves that it could be true of us.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:29:01]:
also, and it would be a sad statement,
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:29:05]:
that we've left having loved this present world. Demus is always a reminder for me that we need to take heed to make the choice, Timothy, continue in the things that you've learned. continue reading, continue studying so that you can continue living by The things that god has declared, the things that god has called us to. Later on in the book of Revelation, Jesus writes a letter to the church of Ephasis. And Ephasis is where Timothy is stationed. So there's a little bit of, relevance there, and it's a little bit interesting that this is the church that Jesus is addressing when he says this in Revelation chapter 2 verse 5. Remember, therefore, from where you have fallen, Repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent. that church ethicists had some good things going for it, but they had left their first love. And so Jesus says, you need to remember from where you have fallen. You didn't continue, and so you've fallen. There's there's been a digression from where you ought to be And notice he says repent and do the first works. Go back and do the things that you should have been doing all along if you were continuing in the things that you were called to do. continue reading, continue studying, continue living by the word of god. And that's what Jesus calls the church of Ephasis to do. Go back to the place where you were so that you can continue down that path and continue in those things. And so, Paul encourages Timothy, you must continue living by what the Bible teaches. This is not gonna happen automatically, and it's not gonna happen if you just look at a passage and go, oh, yeah. I remember this one. Good one. I can, move on and read something else for the day. It's not gonna happen if you have a light and casual attitude and approach to the word of god, It's gonna require you to make a choice and a deliberate effort to continue reading the word of god. to continue studying the word of god and having the heart and the objective that you would receive what god has to say and put it into practice. in your life today. Now a little bit of a side note before we move on to point number 3 Another encouragement to continue for us. I wanna encourage you to continue for the sake of those that you've taught. Notice what he says at the end of verse 14, knowing from whom you have learned them. And we're gonna talk about that in the next point. It's a reference to his mother, to his grandmother, who taught Timothy, the word of god. Timothy, you must continue in these things. You've learned them. You were taught these things from these people who are very special to you. They've made a huge impact in your life. And, you know, there are those people that you have made an impact in their lives.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:32:32]:
And what would be the fallout
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:32:37]:
for those people that you've impacted so greatly
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:32:42]:
If you were to not continue.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:32:46]:
If you were to follow the path of demas and love this present world, and not continue reading and studying and practicing the word of god. What would what would be the fallout? Of course, they need to have their own and develop their own connection with the lord and relationship with the lord, and they themselves need to continue reading, studying, and Yes. Absolutely.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:33:08]:
But at the same time, there is a reality that
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:33:15]:
We are called, to be examples, we talked about that in 1st Timothy 4, were called to be examples. We are examples, whether good or bad. And sometimes, as a bad example, we can really impact those that we have ministered to, that we've taught, that they've learned from us,
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:33:37]:
and what a tragedy and what a heartbreak for them and what a challenge intension for them who have received the word of god and believed it at our instruction, but now we've not continued from it. For their sake, continue. Reading, studying, living by, it will help and benefit them greatly. And if you do not continue, it will impact and potentially damage that work that has been
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:34:14]:
I remember when Paul was writing to the thessalonians, and he was like, I couldn't stand it any longer. I had to send Timothy to you to to find out if my labor amongst you had been in vain. If no fruit actually came from it because you turned back and away from the things of the lord. I had to find out. So I sent Timothy to to check out what was going on to see if you were still walking with the lord.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:34:41]:
In a similar way, we have a responsibility to continue.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:34:45]:
For our sake, we need it. We need the scriptures. We need to be careful and guard ourselves and take heed to ourselves, but it's not just ourselves that we're concerned about anymore. It's also those that we've ministered to, that we've shared the word of god, that we've witnessed to, those that we've been an example to. And if we don't continue now, the cost is not just something we pay personally but there's a price that is levied against those that we have had an influence on. Alright. Moving on to point number 3. Looking at verse 1415, the Bible should be taught to all ages. The Bible should be taught to all ages. Notice again, verse 14, he says, but you must continue in the things you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them verse 15, And that from childhood, you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. Here, Paul, reminds Timothy. He points out Timothy. You have known these things from childhood, the holy scriptures you've known since you were just a little kid. How did he know the scriptures from childhood? Well, as I mentioned, it was his grandmother and his mother who taught him the word of god. Paul mentions this specifically in 2nd Timothy chapter 1. in verse 5 as he is thanking god for Timothy and and, desiring to see him again He says, I'm remembering the genuine feat that is in you, which dwell first in your grandmother, Lois, and your mother, Eunice, and I'm persuaded as in you also. Timothy, you have a heritage of faith. Your mother, Eunice, believed in Jesus, believed the word of god, and entrusted you to the lord and implanted in you the word of god and your grandmother, Lois, she ministered to you the word of god. She taught you in the ways of the lord. So that from the time that you were little, you have known the Holy Scriptures. This speaks to me a a it's a good idea for children to be taught the holy scriptures, that this is a foundation that Paul is calling Timothy to rest upon you you've known this from the beginning. You have a good solid foundation of the scriptures from childhood. You've known these things So continue in them. Now it's not. You learned them when you were a child, So now you don't need to study them. It's, you've learned them since you were a child, so now continue in them. So it's not just, you know, like grade school, you read the word in grade school, and, that is the time frame for the scriptures. And after that, you don't really need to spend time in the word of god. No. It's from childhood to the present and then now continue continue in
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:38:09]:
the scriptures that you have learned and been taught. The lord instructs
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:38:16]:
his people in deuteronomy chapter 6. He says these words, I commend you today, You shall be in your hearts. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up, you shall bind them as a sign on your hand. They shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. God here instructs his people, fill your life with the word of god. Frontlets between your eyes. Like, put them, like so you can't even, like, look out, you know, without seeing the word of god. On your doorposts, on your gait, but make sure you're diligent to teach them to your children. Notice the diligence again. It's gonna take some effort. It's gonna take some deliberate choice to educate, to instill these things into your children. And so, here's a suggestion from the lord. Wherever you're going while you're on the way, talk about the word of god. And whenever you're just hanging out around the house, talk about the word of god. And when you're walking down the path, talk about the word of god. And and when you're laying down, talk about the word of god. And then when you get up in the morning, talk about the word of god. It it is filling your life, but not just your life, but also your family's life with the word of god. Be diligent in this god says. The this is how to keep these commands in your heart. So the Bible should be taught to children all day long, every day, from the morning to the evening, from this place to that place, from this road to that road, from this activity to that activity, the word of god is to fill every avenue, every arena of our lives. I I think this is something for us to consider also because teaching children. I I talked about this a while back, and I don't remember exactly the context to point you back to the teaching, but teaching children is one of those areas that has the potential for the most fruit of all the things that you can do in serving the lord. teaching children the things of the lord has the potential for the most fruit because they have a whole life ahead of them, for producing fruit in response to what you have taught. And so there's great fruit that can come from investing in children, the things of the lord, which also means, if you need a little bit more incentive, The potential for you to receive the most reward is in teaching children because there will be the most fruit produce. and that it's the least of these, that, that you're ministering to, and the lord said is you minister and to the least you're ministering unto me. So The Bible should be taught to all ages as children are becoming aware of life and able to speak and able to listen. They should be taught the scriptures from the beginning until the end. In verse 14, he says, you must continue. Not Timothy. You're done now. You learn those things when you're a kid. How old is Timothy now? It's likely he's in his late thirties, early forties. Paul says it's still relevant to you. Not just for right now, but you must continue and then keep on continuing. Keep on continuing. Timothy, when you're eighty five years old, you still need to be taught the word of god. You still need the word of god in your life. You still need to be immersed in pursuing these things. And When there's that four year old in your life, they need to be taught. And so two years old, to ninety two years old, to a hundred and two years old, whatever age might hit in between. The word of god is relevant and should be taught to all ages
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:42:38]:
from beginning to end.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:42:40]:
Well, point number 4, we're gonna move on to verse 16 now. Point number 4 is the whole Bible is inspired of god. What is it that we are to teach? Which scriptures ought me to teach? Well, Paul will point out here, verse 16, all scripture is given by inspiration of god. and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. If we're to continue in the things that we've learned, if we're gonna continue in the word of god, what is it that we should continue in? Is there certain parts? Is there, you know, one focus or one thing? Paul says, don't worry about that. All scripture is given by inspiration of god. Get into the word of god. It's all inspired. The whole thing from beginning to end is inspired by god. The idea of it being inspired by god is not just like, you know, someone was inspired to write a song. inspired by god, it means it was breathed out by god. It's not just that he you know, was kind of a motivating factor kind of give kind of an idea to the authors, but but that he spoke through the authors. Pastor Warren Wearsview puts it this way. What we mean by biblical inspiration is the supernatural influence of the Holy Spirit on the Bible's Riders. which guaranteed that what they wrote was accurate and trustworthy. Inspiration has to do with the recording of this communication in a way that is dependable. And so as we talk about, scripture being given by the inspiration of god, it it means that as we look at the word of god, we can trust that it is accurate that it's dependable. It's trustworthy, worthy of our trust because god preserved and spoke these things that we are reading. The fact that it's inspired by god means it's the recording of god's message. This this is not a record of man's attempt to reach god. It's not a record of man's philosophies about god. It's not man's thoughts about god or ideas about god. It's not made up stories to teach moral values. what we have in the scriptures is a record of god's message to us. And so we have here the in inspired word of god, the message of god for us. And the fact that it was inspired means that god perfectly communicated his message through human authors, estimated to be about 40 different authors contributing to the scriptures that we have before us today. But The credit for the words that they wrote is not given to them, but to the lord. In Exodus chapter 24 verse 4, it tells us that Moses wrote all the words of the lord. He didn't write all his words. He wrote the words of the lord. The prophet Jeremiah is mentioned in Ezra chapter 1 verse 1, that the word of the lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled. It's the word of the lord, but the channel was Jeremiah, the word of the lord by the mouth of Jeremiah. He's the one who spoke it, verbalized it, but it wasn't Jeremiah's words that were spoken. It was the word of the lord. We're told in acts chapter 1 verse 16, the Holy Spirit spoke by the mouth of David. It was the audible voice of David. It was the penmanship of David. But it was the writing of the Holy Spirit, the writing of the lord. And so, Scripture is inspired by god. God perfectly communicated his message through human authors, It's inherent. It's without contradiction. It is the truth. Every word is inspired by god.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:47:09]:
we could talk about this subject for a long time. But just to hit a couple points here,
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:47:16]:
some would suggest that you cannot use the Bible to prove that the Bible is the word of god. And so looking at a verse that says, look, All scriptures given by inspiration of god. Some would just, like, throw that out and say, yeah, but so what? That's its own claim for itself, and that doesn't mean anything. It's kind of a silly argument, and so I would challenge it a little bit. You have to use the Bible in order to prove the Bible. There are reasons to believe in the lord, and there are reasons to believe that the Bible is the word of god external to the Bible. But starting there doesn't really make as much sense as it might sound. If I were to give you a diamond, And your eternity is based on whether or not that diamond is genuine. But I tell you Well, don't look at the diamond, don't examine, don't analyze the diamond, just believe all these other things that I have around it. Look, I have a paperwork. You know, I have paperwork. I have a guarantee, but don't look at it. Like, that doesn't actually make sense. If your eternity is based upon whether or not this diamond is genuine or not, no, go to a jeweler, get the proper equipment, look closely, make like, check it out. In a similar way, the Bible claims to be the word of god, examine it, to see if the internal evidence matches the claim. Don't just believe some reports that are given or mentioned about it, but check it out. All scripture is given by inspiration of god. It measures up to every test. It can withstand All of those checks, all of those investigations, because it genuinely is inspired of god. All scripture is given by inspiration of god Paul says. Now, how do we know which parts are scripture? He says all scripture. This is another important point to consider. The canon of scripture is complete. The canon of scripture is complete. I'm not sure how many of us have Thought through this aspect of the word of god, the Bible that we have today, to great degree. The word canon, it literally means a standard or a rule. It it speaks of an authorized collection or list. This is the accepted as genuine list of books that are inspired by god. That is the claim of the
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:50:09]:
Bible.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:50:11]:
These are that authorize the genuine recorded words of god that have been passed down to us. And we accept the Bible as it is, 39 books in the Old Testament, 27 books in the New Testament. That was god's plan. That was god's design. These are the genuinely inspired books that god intended for us to have. Lots of reasons we can know that. We have the Old Testament. That scripture. It was completed long before Jesus translated into Greek, the septuagint kind of solidifies the whole thing and proves the Accuracy, the genuineness of the collection of scriptures, it was divided into 3 parts, the law, the prophets and the Psalms or the writings, and Jesus referred to all 3 in luke chapter 24 verse 44, He says these words, as I spoke to you, while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and the prophets, and the Psalms concerning me. These are all the scriptures, he says. And these things that were written, they must be fulfilled because this is the word of god. And so Jesus puts a stamp of approval on all of the divisions, the 3 divisions that they had, the law of the Psalms, and the prophets. And so the old testament, we can have great confidence in this is inspired by god. And these are the books These 39 books are the books that were divided into their 3 sections, the law, the prophets, and the songs, These are the books that Jesus said, yes. All of those things written about me, they must be fulfilled. That is the word of god. And then Jesus also left room for the new testament in John chapter 16. verse 1213 of John 16, he says, I still have many things to say to you, more word of god to reveal, right, but you cannot bear them now. However, when he, the spirit of truth has come, he will guide you into all truth. For he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak and he will tell you things to come. Jesus authenticated the old testament Then he said, also, there's more coming. The Holy Spirit is going to reveal more to you in the days to come You can't bear them now, but after I've ascended to the father, the Holy Spirit will guide you into all truth. And so the church was steadfast in the apostle's doctrine as the Holy Spirit brought forth the things that they were unable to bear while Jesus was still here on the earth. And so the scripture that was written after the Old Testament, we have the gospels, the, the records of the life of Jesus, and then we have the epistles that letters that the apostles wrote a couple other people as well that were not of the 12, but Paul, the apostle wasn't of the 12, but he was an apostle And Peter, later on, in 2nd Peter chapter 1, refers to Paul's writing as scripture. 2nd Peter chapter 1, verse 1516. And so, the scripture itself establishes the parameters for the scripture so that we can know and trust this is the scripture. The Bible contains all inspired scripture. All the inspired books are included. And All the non inspired books are excluded. Some people wonder why, you know, the question is asked, why was this book taken out of the Bible? that kind of question worded that way is not accurate. It was not included to begin with. They were left out because they were clearly not inspired scripture. They they use 3 criteria for establishing the canon of scripture. Authority acceptance, and sound doctrine. For the Old Testament, the authority was an Old Testament prophet like Moses, For the new testament, the authority was an apostle. Is there a authority and authoritative representative of the lord associated with this book. And so that was the determining factor for the authority of a written work. Acceptance was, did the people of the day accept it? Did they understand it to be scripture? And then does it teach consistent doctrine that matches with the rest of the established word of god? And so This is what was applied to the new testament as, it was being collected together and gathered together to the collection of books that we have today. But what if another book was found? Right? What if, you know, there was a third letter to Timothy? Well, we have so much writing from the early church fathers. They quoted extensively from the new testament so much so that majority of the new testament could be reconstructed from the early church fathers. No other book meets that criteria. There's not extensive quoting from 3rd Timothy that, oh, now we've discovered it and now, you know, it fits. It doesn't. No no other book would would fit and meet the criteria of the authority of a new testament apostle and the acceptance of the church as genuine scripture and any new book proclaiming to be inspired scripture trying to be snuck into the word of god today, of course, would not teach sound doctrine either. And so we have the real collection of the word of god, the inspired, authorized
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:56:31]:
words that god preserved for us. The whole Bible is that
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:56:38]:
It's the collection of books that god preserved for us, spoke through human authors for our benefit. Well, finally, point number 5, looking at verse 1517 or 15 through 17, the Bible never stops being profitable
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:56:53]:
to you. Verse 15,
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:56:55]:
He says in that from childhood, you've known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of god and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction, and righteousness. that the man of god may be complete thoroughly equipped for every good work. Let me ask you a question.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:57:20]:
Are you finished yet?
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:57:21]:
I know you're asking me that question. I'm almost finished. Are you finished yet? If you're not finished, then the Bible is still profitable to you. Paul lists a few things that it's profitable for here. In verse 15, he mentions its profitable for salvation. He tells us in Romans 10 verse 17, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of god. The word of god is profitable, valuable for salvation. For us, to have forgiveness from sin and right relationship with god, the promise of eternity, the word of god is valuable. It provides for us. what we need to be able to believe the truth about Jesus. And verse 16, he lists a few things as profitable for doctrine for reproved for correction, for instruction in righteousness. The scripture is profitable to learn doctrine, to know what to believe to have the the definitions of truth, the revelation and identity of god, and what to believe, and why to believe, and when to believe, and who to believe, doctrine is laid out for us in the word of god. If you don't know and understand all doctrine, You're not finished yet, and the Bible is still profitable for you to develop and learn and grow in your understanding of the truth that god has revealed. It's profitable for reproof. It's related to the word, conviction in the Greek. The word of god is profitable to bring conviction to us. It shows us when we're off base, when we're disobedient, when we've gone astray, Do you ever need reproved? Do you ever feel conviction?
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:59:15]:
The Bible is still profitable for you. because it brings about the conviction that we need, and we've missed the mark and gone astray.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [00:59:26]:
the word correction, it means to restore to an upright state. And so the idea is once the word of god is pointed out the issue, Then it's also the word of god that shows you how to correct it, how to get back up, how to get to the place of right standing. You ever need correction? You you ever need help? You know something's wrong. You're not quite sure how to make it right. The word of god is profitable for you. You're not finished yet if you ever need correction. Instruction and righteousness. The Bible teaches us how to live. how to do what's right? You ever wonder? What do I need to do? What am I supposed to do in this situation? How do I do what's right here in this time? If you're wondering that, you're not finished yet. The Bible is still profitable to you. It never stops being profitable. We all need work in these areas. says in verse 17 that the man of god may be complete that is mature or perfect or finished. Are you finished yet? If you're not perfect, then you're not complete, you're not finished, the Bible is still profitable to you thoroughly equipped for every good work. Are you finished? Are you ready for everything that god has planned for you in this life? You have everything you need right now for everything that is going to take place and is going to happen? No, you don't. until the Bible is still profitable to you. It's never gonna stop. It's always going to be a need for us. And so more and more and more, the value of the Bible is always increasing. Protecting you against deception If you will be diligent to continue living by what it teaches, and then teach it to others. All ages. No limits. Not too young, not too old. The word of god should be passed on, delivered, encourage, strengthened, filled the day when you go here, when you go there, when you'd lay down, when you get up, but the word of god be abundant in your life and through your life because it's all inspired of god. It is god's message to us.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [01:02:01]:
and it will never stop being profitable to you. So invest in the word of god, continue reading, continue studying, so that you can continue living
Pastor Jerry Simmons [01:02:12]:
by what god has said, but we pray that you would help us to do that. Lord, there's so much other things that we can read and study and spend our time in. There's so many things that are requiring and demanding and asking for our attention or would you help us to have great discernment to hear your voice? Lord, that we would give you the time, the attention that is appropriate, and do or that we would continue diligently and faithfully in your word. As we do lord, I pray, that you would reveal yourself by your Holy Spirit,
Pastor Jerry Simmons [01:02:48]:
establish us, protect us, and use us to pass along your truth, a whole new generation that
Pastor Jerry Simmons [01:02:58]:
is Experiencing the value of your word through our lips, through our lives, would be pray for that, help us to continue.
Pastor Jerry Simmons [01:03:10]:
We prayed this in Jesus' name. Amen.