Spend much time discussing religion with someone and you can quickly discover their knowledge of and opinion about the Bible. But what does the Bible have to say about itself? We learned last week that God’s Word is inspired and authoritative, with many functions that all point back to its main purpose which is to reveal God and point one towards a saving relationship with Christ. This week, let’s study scripture references where the Bible speaks of itself. 

Psalm 12:6 - “And the words of the Lord are flawless. Like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.”

What beautiful words. We are so often faced with lies and deception, it is sometimes hard to know who we can trust. David, as king, probably faced many lies of those whose main goal was advancement gained through flattery. Here, he speaks sweet words of God’s words. He tells us that they are pure, like refined silver. When we are searching for truth and sincerity, we can always turn to the Word of God. 

Since we know that his Word is pure, we must always listen carefully when He speaks.

2 Timothy 3:16 - “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” 

The Bible is simply not like any human book. It is not just a novel or a collection of stories about God. It isn’t fables or myths and it was not written solely by human authors. The Bible is God-inspired. It was written as a dual authorship. God, through His Spirit, revealed to a group of His believers, a message for His people which they then wrote using their own personal, historical, and cultural contexts. It is a message that does not have an expiration date. It is a timeless gift for us to use. This scripture tells us that we were given these words as an inspiration of God and are to use God’s Words for a purpose. How can you apply this verse to your daily walk?

2 Peter 1:19-21 - “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”

In verse 19, we see Jesus referred to as the morning star. We are told that until His return, we are given a light to guide us through darkness. We have Scripture to guide us under the direction of the Holy Spirit. The Bible answers questions. It reveals truth. There is no need to wonder about direction or what is right and what is wrong. Ask God to show you through His Words. The answers are already there, waiting for you to discover them. 

In verses 20 and 21, we again hear it confirmed that all scripture was inspired by God and written down by chosen men. These men were used by God to relay His authentic and reliable Word. Each word that is in your Bible is there because God wanted it to be. It was intentional and was given to us as a guide for our lives. It is imperative that we seek to learn, understand, and apply scripture to our lives. 

Spend time learning and applying Scripture to your life. Hold fast to God’s Words. Know them and share them with others. 

Most of us have multiple copies of God’s Word lying about in our homes. We read through the stories and learn about some of our favorite bible characters. We teach its lessons to our children and we depend on our favorite scriptures to see us through tough times. But, how deep is our understanding of the Word? What about its history?

The best place to turn to learn about biblical history is through the Bible itself. It can be overwhelming but the more that you learn, the more knowledge you will desire and the deeper your understanding will be of God working throughout time to complete His purpose through His Son.

This week we will break that history down into five, easy to study, chunks of time. Commit to spending time digging into your Bible this week and stretching your mind knowing that God will reward your effort and your daily Bible study will be forever changed.

2091-931 B.C. - Israel Chosen as the People of Promise

Some things to study:

• Abraham
  
• Moses and the Plagues of Egypt
  
• Samuel
  
• Saul
  
• David
  
• Solomon
  

 
931-586 B.C. - Disobedient Israel Disciplined

Some things to study:

• Children of Israel violate God’s commandments (Exodus 20:3-7)
  
• God educates His nation (1 Kings 12 - 2Kings 25)
  
• Israel and Judah- a divided nation
  

 586-6 B.C. - Messiah’s Space and Time Prepared

Some things to study:

• Babylonian Domination- Daniel’s ministry 
  
• Persian Domination- Esther’s story
  
• Greek Domination- Alexander the Great
  
• Roman Domination- The rise of Herod
  

 
6 B.C. – A.D. 30 - Jesus the Messiah

Some things to study:

• John the Baptist’s ministry
  
• The virgin birth
  
• Jesus’ miracles
  
• Jesus’ parables
  
• The trials, death, and resurrection of Jesus
  

 A.D. 30- Current Age - The Church

Some things to study:

• The first Christians and the birth of the church
  
• Paul’s missionary journeys