The Man Of God And The Word Of God

“THE MAN OF GOD AND THE WORD OF GOD”

II Timothy 3:14-17

A pleasant morning to everyone! I have great admirations to those who where mightily used of God in His church. Among them are church fathers like- John Chrysostom, Theodore and Jerome. The list goes on with Martin Luther, Zwingli, John Calvin, D.L. Moody, Spurgeon and Finley. One day, while I was reading a book, I ran across John Wesley, the one responsible for the Wesleyan movement and the father of Methodism. This man of God wrote over 200 books, edited a magazine, compiled dictionaries in four languages (and mind you, all in his own handwriting). He crisscrossed England on horseback for a total of 250,000 miles- stopping to preach along the way. He preached 40,000 sermons- rarely less than two a day and often seven, eight or even more. When he was 83, he regretted that he could no longer preach more than twice a day, and confessed his increasing tendency to lie in bed until 5:30am. At 86, he was still rising that hour each morning for prayer and Bible reading. For 53 years of his tireless ministry, John Wesley wrote something about the Bible “I want to know one thing, the way to heaven: how to land safe on that happy shore. God himself has condescended to teach the way; for this very end he came from heaven. He has written it down in a book! Oh, give me that book! At any price, give me the book of God! I have it: here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be a man of one book.” (Can you guess what that book is?) -the Bible. All the men I mentioned to you a while ago have one common denominator- they were people of the book- and that is The Bible, the Word of God, The Holy Scriptures. And that is what I want to share with you this morning. And so I entitled my message, “THE MAN OF GOD AND THE WORD OF GOD.” Or you may simply say, “The Christian and His/Her Bible.” Before we continue, let us turn to God in prayer,

“Heavenly Father, we affirm that Your Word is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to the dividing soul and spirit, it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. We believe that Your Word will not return to You void but it will accomplish what You desire and achieve that purpose for which You sent it, I pray now of Your empowerment to Your servant. In Christ name we pray. Amen!.”

Our text is found in II Timothy 3:14-17. Before reading the passage, I would first like to paint a background it. II Timothy is included in what we call as “The Pastoral Epistles” along with I Timothy and Titus. Written by Paul during his second Roman imprisonment around 66-67 AD. The heart of the Apostle is laid bare as he faced his final days on earth in a cold Roman dungeon. Thus, II Timothy is a pastoral, a prison and a personal letter to Timothy. But who was Timothy? Timothy during the writing of the letter was the one in charge of the churches at Ephesus. Ephesus (modern day Turkey) that time was an important trade city in Asia. All caravans coming from Europe to Asia went through that city. And because it was the largest city in the province of Asia Minor it is a melting pot of races- Hebrews, Greeks and Romans live there. Along with these, the city is known of its collection of religion. The people of Ephesus are very religious, it was noted for the temple of Artemis or Diana, her Roman name. Diana is the goddess of moon, hunting, fertility and resurrection. Both men and beasts find hope of fertility from this goddess. They hail her; in fact, they minted coins in honor of the goddess. The city of Ephesus is in constant change because of these factors and a lot more of influences. This city has a form of religiosity but denies its power. And I can compare this city to Manila. “Ang mga nakatira sa Ephesus ay katulad ng mga Pilipino- napaka-relihiyoso ngunit wala namang tunay na pagbabago.” The city of Ephesus is infiltrated with a lot of false teachings and teachers- cults abound. Not different from what we have in our country. Just as there is a threat to the churches in Ephesus those days and so is with the churches in the Philippines, and the rest of the world. And so we must heed Paul’s instruction to Timothy- the unchanging truth in these changing times. Let us read Paul’s instruction (II Timothy 3:14-17 NIV)…

“14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”