All scripture is inspired by God

(2 Timothy 3:14-17 – All scripture is inspired by God)

When we read the Bible we need to stop and think about what it is that we are reading.

All scripture is inspired by God
All scripture is inspired by God

The scripture today tells us that all scripture is inspired by God. It is the words of God put into the minds of men, and written down for the benefit of mankind.

These scriptures that we read and study were given to us by the Creator of the universe. He gave them so that we could learn about Him and so that we could be transformed into His image so that we may live with Him.

All scripture is inspired by God for us

Before continuing, let us look at these verses today.

14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:14-17)

All scripture is inspired by God, but to what end? Why do we need God’s inspired scripture?

As in all of the writings and the ways of God, He provides the answer in the scripture itself.

In verses 16 and 17 of this section we see that all scripture is inspired by God for the purpose of teaching, reproof and correction. His inspired scriptures are to give us insight, knowledge, instruction and more, to show us His ways.

The aim is that we may become mature in Christ, and that we may be complete and equipped to live as Christians.

Does all scripture really include what is written in the New Testament?

Now here’s a thought. When Jesus came to the earth to do His ministry, the only scripture that existed was the Old Testament.

When the gospels were written, they were accounts of the life of Jesus. But of key importance they were a record of things that Jesus taught. So, being the teachings of Jesus, they certainly contain the words of God since Jesus is the Son of God.

But what about the book of Acts and the many letters and epistles of the New Testament?

Once again, the book of the Acts of the Apostles was a record of the rolling out of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world and how the gospel was spread to all nations at that time. It showed how the early church developed. It also showed how they made decisions about different points of doctrine and how the early church was structured.

When we look at the letters and epistles of the New Testament we gain insight into the details of the New Covenant. Jesus brought us the gospel and the teachings of the New Covenant. But it was the writings and teachings of Paul and others who “unwrapped” the New Covenant and showed us how and why it works.

Finally, we see in the writings of Paul, these words that make it clear that the New Testament should be considered the words of God.

13 And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. (1 Thessalonians 2:13)

Since the scriptures contain the word of God, then it is correct to consider the writings of the New Testament as the words of God also. Thus we can say that all scripture is inspired by God, and that includes both the Old and the New Testaments.

Scripture as a tool

We have already noted from this verse that the purpose of scripture is to teach, reprove, and correct people. It is a tool for learning and understanding the ways of God.

But God didn’t just provide us with these scriptures in a book and leave it at that. No, He also gave gifts to men and to the church so that the scripture could be spread and studied and learned. Consider these words.

11 And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ; 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the cunning of men, by their craftiness in deceitful wiles. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is supplied, when each part is working properly, makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love. (Ephesians 4:11-16)

These gifts that were given to men to be apostles, prophets, teachers, pastors, and evangelists, needed a foundation. They needed a base from which these various gifts could operate.

That base is again the word of God. All scripture is inspired by God and it is this scriptural inspiration that is to be used by the ministers of the church to grow the individuals.

Look at what the outcome is that the Lord seeks of His people. His desire is that we all attain a level of maturity ”…to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

All scripture is inspired by God to be used by the ministers of the church to help people to learn and grow into the fullness of Christ. And when they do, by the application and learning of the scriptures, they can then be firm in Christ and not tossed about by all manner of strange and diverse teachings.

All scripture is inspired by God for us to use as a tool to learn and grow.

Scripture as a weapon

But the use of the inspired word of God goes much deeper than just as an adjunct to learning. The inspired scriptures from God are also a weapon to be deployed and used in this spiritual war that we wage. Consider this verse:

13 Therefore take the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the equipment of the gospel of peace; 16 besides all these, taking the shield of faith, with which you can quench all the flaming darts of the evil one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:13-17)

This is the armour of God that we are to take to fight the spiritual war in which we find ourselves as combatants. Our enemy is the devil and his demonic forces that stand against the will of God.

Note in this verse there are two very critical pieces of armour related to the inspired scriptures.

The first is in verse 14 where we are told to, “…gird your loins with the truth.” Other translations read this as “put on the belt of truth,” which I think gives a better understanding of this weapon.

The words of God are truth. Jesus said that He is the truth also.

The interesting thing about this analogy is that a belt holds everything else together. If you look at a soldier, their belt doesn’t just hold up their pants, it is a tool that might hold weapons ready for use. A belt might hold pouches or scabbards for knives, a sword, clubs, and so on. The belt worn by a policeman might hold a gun, handcuffs, a walkie-talkie, a night stick, and so on.

So, in this analogy we see that like a belt, the truth holds all of the rest together too. Truth is central to the weaponry necessary to wage this spiritual war. And the truth is found in the scripture.

The second weapon we see is in verse 17 where we are instructed to take, “…the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

Note that the sword is not the Spirit. It is the word of God. When we learn and study and immerse ourselves in the scripture, we are arming the Spirit within us with the sword to be able to fight the attacks of the devil.

As an example of the sword of the Spirit in action, consider Jesus after He had received the Holy Spirit. He went into the wilderness for forty days and was tempted by the devil. But Jesus overcame and defeated every temptation by using the scriptures to show the devil where he was wrong. With every temptation, Jesus responded by saying, “It is written…” (See Matthew 4:1-11)

All scripture is inspired by God

It is for all of these reasons that all scripture is inspired by God.

The inspiration of the word of God is given to teach us and bring us to the full stature of Jesus Christ. It is designed to be both a tool and a weapon to be able to stand against the devil and his cohorts.

Ultimately, the inspired word of God through the working of the Holy Spirit will transform us into the image of Jesus Christ. And that is necessary if we are to live with Jesus and God the Father into eternity in His eternal kingdom.

So, study God’s word. Learn it and apply it in your life daily. Grow in it and be blessed by it for these are the words of life.

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