This sermon is a continuation from the previous message and we look at seven more points – this time exclusively about God’s Word.
Brian Gale (United Kingdom)
Words – Part 1
This sermon looks at the importance of words and explores seven areas where words impact on Church members’ lives today.
Could you explain what “Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth” really means?
You are referring to 2 Timothy 2:15 which reads: “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
In our Q&A “How Does the Church of the Eternal God and its International Affiliates Differ from Other Christian Churches? (Part 1) we state the following:
“In charging Timothy with ‘rightly dividing the word of truth,’ Paul brings out the fact that God’s Word must be read and studied, ‘here a little and there a little’ (Isaiah 28:9-10). All Scriptures to a given concept must be consulted, to avoid reaching a wrong conclusion. The Word of Truth must be taught honestly, while nothing is to be added or deleted. In dividing or ‘cutting straight’ God’s Word, error and false interpretations are being cut off. As Paul admonished Timothy to preach God’s Word ‘in season and out of season’ (compare again 2 Timothy 4:2), and not to be ‘ashamed of the testimony of our Lord’ and the gospel (2 Timothy 1:8), so Paul also did not shun ‘to declare… the whole counsel of God’ (Acts 20:27).”
The word “orthotomeō” (Strong’s Number: G3718) meaning “‘rightly dividing’ can be understood as follows: ‘To cut straight, to cut straight ways. To proceed on straight paths, hold a straight course, equivalent to doing right. To make straight and smooth, to handle aright, to teach the truth directly and correctly.’”
The Bible clearly says in 2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Also, we read in John 17:15-19: “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.”
We are clearly told that Jesus prayed that His disciples would be set apart by the Truth of God. They would be able to rightly divide the word of Truth.
From the Scriptures already quoted we can see that we must read the Bible, study it, and diligently seek correct understanding from it. As we do, we can show ourselves approved unto God as workmen who need not be ashamed.
We must also realise that the Bible, in its original form, is the Word of Truth. There are no contradictions; otherwise, the Bible could not be trusted.
Let us break down 2 Timothy 2:15 which is Paul’s instruction to Timothy who was a minister in the New Testament Church of God. However, just because this was an instruction to a minister at that time doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t apply to all Church members as well down through the ages to the present time. We are admonished to “Test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21) – again, an exhortation that applies to all members of the Church of God whether they are ministers or members.
2 Timothy 2:15 starts out by saying: “Be diligent”; that is, to make every effort, be studious and unflagging in this endeavour. Barnes Notes on the Bible states the following:
“Study to show thyself approved unto God – Give diligence or make an effort so to discharge the duties of the ministerial office as to meet the divine approbation. The object of the ministry is not to please men. Such doctrines should be preached, and such plans formed, and such a manner of life pursued, as God will approve. To do this demands study or care – for there are many temptations to the opposite course; there are many things the tendency of which is to lead a minister to seek popular favor rather than the divine approval. If any man please God, it will be as the result of deliberate intention and a careful life.”
As mentioned, this admonition applies to all ordained and unordained members of God’s Church. We all must be diligent in discharging our individual duties and responsibilities—whatever they may be.
“…to show yourself approved unto God.” In Matthew 25:23 we read: “His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’” This is part of Christ’s teaching in the parable of the talents and must be our aim in life. We must remember that our calling now is the only opportunity that we will have, and we must make it fully count as there is no second chance for anyone.
“… a workman who does not need to be ashamed.” This must be our goal. Three verses earlier, in 2 Timothy 2:12, we are told that if “If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He will also deny us.” That is a pretty stark warning for us to do the right thing. Timothy was given the task of reminding them “of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers” (2 Timothy 2:14). God will surely be pleased when we take His Word seriously and rightly divide the Word of Truth. While ministers are to preach the Word of God in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2), we all have the responsibility to answer those with meekness and fear who ask us regarding the hope that is in us (compare 1 Peter 3:15). In 1 Timothy 4:16, a warning is given: “Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.”
“… rightly dividing the Word of Truth.” The word “rightly dividing” literally means “to rightly cut, to cut straight.”
As mentioned above, there are warnings about not adding to or taking away from God’s Word. We read in Deuteronomy 4:2: “You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.”
Deuteronomy 12:32 states: ““Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.”
Revelation 22:19 adds: “… and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”
We also read in Mark 7:13 about those who are “making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things that you do.” This follows on from verse 7, which reads: “And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”
It should be further added that in Romans 8:9 & 14 we read that “if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” In order to obtain the Holy Spirit, we need to repent, believe and be baptised (see Acts 2:38). God only gives the Holy Spirit to those who obey Him (see Acts 5:32). It follows that those who are not obedient to God will not receive His Holy Spirit and, therefore, will not be able to properly divide the Word of Truth. Even those who might be called by God and who are on their way towards baptism must be careful not to reject or second-guess the teachings of God’s Church, which is the foundation and the pillar of the Truth (2 Timothy 3:15), and to replace them with their own personal opinions.
It is clear from mainstream Christianity that tradition can play quite a part in their “understanding” of the Way of God. On the website carm.org/catholic/roman-catholicism-bible-and-tradition, we read:
“One of the great differences between Protestant and Catholic doctrine is in the area of Tradition. The Protestant church maintains that the Bible alone is intended by God to be the source of doctrinal truth (2 Tim. 3:16). The Catholic Church, however, says, ‘Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture make up a single sacred deposit of the Word of God . . .’ (Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 97).
“The Catholic Church reasons thusly:
“‘1. The apostles left bishops as their successors. They gave them their own position of teaching authority’ (Par. 77).
“‘2. This living transmission, accomplished through the Holy Spirit, is called tradition…’ (Par. 78).
“‘3. Both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honored with equal sentiments of devotion and reverence’ (Par. 82).
“Within the Catholic scope of Tradition, many doctrines have been ‘revealed’ to the Church over the centuries. For example, there is the veneration of Mary, her immaculate conception and her bodily assumption into heaven. There is also the Apocrypha, transubstantiation, praying to saints, the confessional, penance, purgatory, and more. Protestantism as a whole differs with Catholicism in these additions.”
This article states that “The Protestant church maintains that the Bible alone is intended by God to be the source of doctrinal truth (2 Tim. 3:16),” which is incorrect. For example, the Bible clearly teaches the keeping of the seventh-day Sabbath and the annual Holy Days, which neither Roman Catholicism nor Protestantism accepts. They have replaced them with Sunday and man’s holidays (Christmas, Easter, etc.), which have no biblical basis whatsoever. For more differences, please see our “Statement of Beliefs,” which will show a great disparity between the Church of God and mainstream Christianity.
From what we have seen, these churches have not rightly divided the Word of Truth. In addition, they have added things and taken away things through tradition and faulty reasoning and the outcome of such practices is not favourable!
Two additional examples of how the Bible has not been the basis of understanding can be seen in the false belief in the Trinity. In the New Bible Dictionary we read the following: “The word Trinity is not found in the Bible, and, though used by Tertullian in the last decade of the 2nd century, it did not find a place formally in the theology of the Church till the 4th century.” In other words, this is something that has been “added” which is condemned in God’s Word.
Another example is that of the Rapture. Wikipedia, under the heading of “Rapture,” makes these observations: “Pre-tribulation rapture theology originated in the eighteenth century, with the Puritan preachers Increase and Cotton Mather, and was popularized extensively in the 1830s by John Nelson Darby and the Plymouth Brethren, and further in the United States by the wide circulation of the Scofield Reference Bible in the early 20th century.” The rapture is not mentioned in the Bible and is another example of a belief not shown in the Bible being “added” which is contrary to the clear teachings of Scripture.
As stated above, other examples of changing God’s Word to suit man’s requirements is that of the weekly Sabbath. Saying that a change was made because Christ was raised from the dead on a Sunday morning is both incorrect (it was Saturday evening) and has no biblical basis whatsoever. It was, in brief, a change not approved of or authorised by Scripture.
There are many other examples of similar “adding to and taking away” from the inspired Word of God, which would clearly come under the heading of NOT rightly dividing the Word of Truth.
We must always let the Bible interpret itself. It is infallible in its original form and must be our guide to life, and we must never fall into the trap of human reasoning. We must always rightly divide the Word of Truth as the Bible instructs!
For more information, please read our free booklets “The Authority of the Bible” and “How to Find the True Church of God,” which include our “Statement of Beliefs.”
Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)
FOT: God’s Future Government on Earth, Part 3
This three part series finishes with a further seven changes that will be experienced after Christ’s return – making a total of twenty changes reviewed in the way that God’s government will work in His Kingdom.
FOT: God’s Future Government on Earth, Part 2
This sermon continues with a further six areas of change during the millennial rule of Christ.
FOT: We Reap What We Sow
How many times how we seen people, quite obviously guilty, get away with the crime they’ve committed? Often through a street-wise, highly paid lawyer or through a legal loophole that’s been exploited. They got away with it. Or did they? This brief message looks at this question.
FOT: God’s Future Government on Earth, Part 1
This first sermon of three, briefly reviews what we have in the world today, and takes a look at how the world will look after Jesus Christ’s return to this earth. This covers seven changes.
Are We Inured?
In the current state of world events, are we inured or are we in the process of becoming inured by the constant reports of widespread and worldwide problems which must surely be leading to the end of this age? Do we just accept more bad news without thinking too much about it? After all, bad news is a staple diet of modern reporting.
A good definition of inure is “to habituate to something undesirable, especially by prolonged subjection; accustom.” A synonym of inure is hardened. So, putting it another way, are we or have we become used to and hardened to all that is happening around the world? I think it is a good question to ask.
Yet again, I bring up the story of our old friend, the frog in boiling water, and how often he has been mentioned over the years in the Church of God – and with very good reason. If there are any reading this and don’t know the story, suffice to say that “the premise is that if a frog is put suddenly into boiling water, it will jump out, but if the frog is put in tepid water which is then brought to a boil slowly, it will not perceive the danger and will be cooked to death. The story is often used as a metaphor for the inability or unwillingness of people to react to or be aware of sinister threats that arise gradually rather than suddenly” (Wikipedia Encyclopedia). Whether the story is true or not is immaterial, but the lesson we can learn is invaluable.
It can be so easy to see details of the latest tragedy or calamity and just accept that this is the way society is. One such item, one of many, was in a “Money Marketing” e-mail that I saw in early August 2019. The piece read: “By volume, 90% of world trade goods are transported by sea. There are around 53,000 ships in the world’s merchant fleet, 5,000 of which are container ships, and the largest of those carries more than 20,000 containers. Without these ships, many countries could not participate in global trade, and consumers would have to absorb the increased costs, making the world poorer.” I thought about Revelation 8:8-9 where it states that “a third of the ships were destroyed!” A third of 53,000 is 17,667 ships and think of the number of containers that would be lost, plus cruise ships and others. It’s not just about the present but how that will play out during the time of trouble just ahead of us.
It can be pretty easy in these days of mass communication to read, hear or see the very latest events on the world scene, and we ought “to cry and sigh for all the (many) abominations” (compare Ezekiel 9:4) that surround us, but if we transpose this to the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord, we may be able to see, in some part, just what a terrible time it really will be. We must remember the admonishment by Jesus Christ to “Watch therefore, and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:36).
The Feast of Trumpets is a central Holy Day in God’s plan and the people of God will be celebrating this Holy Day on Monday 30th September. This festival pictures that time that is just ahead of us—a time of terrible trouble that should Christ not return, no flesh would be saved alive (Matthew 24:22). Preceding that time, there will be so many problems—all created by man through the influence of Satan—that the troubles that we can currently “cry and sigh” about will pale by comparison.
Let us make sure that the “frog” doesn’t influence us, that we can really appreciate what is going on in the world today and extrapolate this to the time of terrible trouble just ahead, and we will, in no way, be inured to the terrible things that we now see on a daily basis.
Gaining Help and Strength From Others
As church members, we should all be there for one another. We should gain help and strength from others and, just as importantly, we should give help and strength to others, wherever possible. That approach will help us all as we strive to make it into the Kingdom of God!
God says that He is a jealous God. How can that be?
The first reference to God saying that He is a jealous God can be found in Exodus 20:5 where we read: “…you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me.” This is part of the second of God’s Ten Commandments.
Young’s Analytical Concordance shows that the word for jealousy in this verse is “qanna” which can mean zealous and jealous. The same word is used in the same context in other verses as follows:
Exodus 34:14: “…for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God…”
Deuteronomy 4:24: “For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.”
Deuteronomy 5:9: “… you shall not bow down to them [carved images] nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me…”
In passing, the meaning of this verse, and also the one in Exodus 20:5, quoted above, is explained in our Q&A, titled “What does it mean that God will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Him (compare Exodus 20:5)?” In short, it points out that the negative conduct of the parents may have in many cases a negative impact on the children, but the children are not doomed to have to follow their parent’s bad example.
Deuteronomy 6:15: “…(for the LORD your God is a jealous God among you), lest the anger of the LORD your God be aroused against you and destroy you from the face of the earth.”
The word “ganno”, also meaning zealous and jealous, is used in Joshua 24:19 and Nahum 1:2, also referring to God being a jealous God. There are a number of other references too. We can quickly understand that God is zealous which can be defined as “jealous for the good or the promotion of some person or object; ardent; eager; fervent; devoted.” That is a quality of God and must also be a quality that we must have. It is not within the scope of this Q&A to look at the zealous nature of God but to answer the question about jealousy.
Deuteronomy 4:23-24 states: “Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything which the LORD your God has forbidden you. For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.”
The following Scriptures also show that God would not accept unfaithfulness towards Him and had to be first in the lives of the ancient nation of Israel and, therefore by extension, in our lives today:
Leviticus 18:3: “According to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do; and according to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, you shall not do; nor shall you walk in their ordinances.”
Leviticus 20:23: “And you shall not walk in the statutes of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they commit all these things, and therefore I abhor them.”
Deuteronomy 12:30: “… take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them [pagan nations], after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.’”
They were instructed to put God first, to love God with every fiber of their being, to teach God’s Way to their children and not to learn the way of the heathen. Nothing else would be acceptable.
God was making sure that His people kept Him at the center of their lives, and we should do exactly the same today.
We know that God is perfect in every way. How then do we understand the verses quoted above?
One commentator observed that “this is part of the second commandment – you shall have no other gods before God. The meaning is clear, beautiful and as righteous as a man being jealous for his wife. In an environment where many gods compete for the affection of man God is intensely competitive in vying for the affections of His people.”
God was “jealous” in the sense that He expected full devotion, not merely a partial, lukewarm commitment. Worship belongs to God, and He is right to be “jealous” of it.
God entered into a committed relationship with the ancient nation of Israel. In Exodus 19:4-6 we read: “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”
The commitment was that Israel was to “obey My voice” and “if you keep My covenant”, as God put it. The demands of the covenant were the laws and statutes that regulated the relationship between Israel and God and between the Israelites themselves. We read the response from the Israelites in Exodus 19:8: “Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do.” So, Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD.” Agreement had been reached.
We know that Israel reneged on these commitments time and time again. We can read this in Psalm 78:10-11, where the sub-heading to the chapter in the New King James Bible is “God’s kindness to rebellious Israel”: “They did not keep the covenant of God; They refused to walk in His law, And forgot His works And His wonders that He had shown them.”
As the people of God, Israel failed miserably much of the time. As the people of God and “spiritual Israel” today, we have a special relationship with God. In our booklet “God’s Teachings on Sexual Relationships” we state on page 26 the following: “As we can see from Ephesians 5:31-32, Paul is addressing here the mystery of the relationship between Christ and His Church. He emphasizes that those who are called must come out of the ways of this world in order to be joined with Christ. Christ must be continuously living within them (1 John 2:15–17; Romans 12:2; Galatians 2:20). Paul also shows that the physical institution of marriage is pointing at a spiritual union between God and man. It is pointing at a spiritual marriage between Christ and His Church.”
In 2 Corinthians 11:2, the apostle Paul wrote: ”For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.” Paul desired that the church be fully devoted to Christ. His “jealousy” was one of wanting the very best for the Church and their relationship with God. Anything that would divert their attention and commitment of worshipping God would be seen as a disaster. That was a type of Godly jealousy, where Paul earnestly wanted the best outcome for the Church which would be their closeness and commitment to worshipping God.
If Paul could be “jealous” for God in the right way, how much more would the perfect Creator God have righteous jealousy for the spiritual well-being of His people?
However, jealousy with man is usually a very negative force. In the “works of the flesh” in Galatians 5:20, we read some traits to be avoided: “idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,” none of which, along with the other “works of the flesh,” are to be part of a true Christian’s way of life.
In 1 Corinthians 10:22 we read: “Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He?” This was talking about idolatry, and it is a very dangerous exercise to provoke God in such a way; particularly, when true Christians should have known then, and should know today, that God always has our best interests at heart and God’s jealousy is based on his love and concern for us. He wants us to make it into His kingdom – for eternity!
We can see that jealousy is used in God’s Word in both a positive and a negative way. When jealousy is used as an attribute of carnal man, it is invariably used in a negative way, but when used as an attribute of God, it is always used in a positive sense because God is perfect in all His ways.
Isaiah 42:8 contains more than just a clue as to why God is a jealous God: “I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor My praise to carved images.” He clearly states that He will not share His praise with any other so-called god as He is the only true God and all the other gods are just idols from the imagination of man. He looks after His own and protects us mightily and that is divine jealousy, all in the best interests of man.
In Matthew 10:37 we read: “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.”
This Christian struggle of choosing God above all else is vividly described in James 4:4-5, where we read: “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, ‘The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously’?”
We have to live a life worthy of our calling. In 1 John 2:6 we read: “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” By following such instructions we will be able to get our priorities right and God will be first in our lives. It has been said and written many times that God should be first, followed, in that order, by our mate, our children and then our job, but how many times have we failed to get our priorities right?
In the Church of God, we have often used the phrase that God’s jealousy can be defined as “intolerant of unfaithfulness.” God demands of us, for our own benefit, complete fidelity to Him as He knows what is best for us and guides us down that path through the lead of the Holy Spirit. On the other hand, the jealousy of the carnal human mind is always linked to envy and covetousness of which we must not be guilty. The difference between Godly jealousy and man’s jealousy is unbridgeable.
We should be very grateful that God is a jealous God as He has the very best interests of all of His people at heart.
Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)