Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth

1. Read: 2 Timothy 2:15

2. About the Text:

1) Paul discusses “The Word of Truth.”

2) What is “The Word of Truth?”

3) He is referring to the Holy Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:15).

4) What is rightly dividing the word of truth?

5) Why should we rightly divide the word of truth?

6) How do we rightly divide the word of truth?

3. Ref. to S, T, P, O, and A.

1. It is understanding the overall purpose of the Bible.

1) “But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 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” (2 Timothy 3:14-15).

2) “Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24).

3) “For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God” (1 Corinthians 2:11-12).

2. It is understanding the literary divisions of the Bible.

1) The Bible has two parts, the Old Testament and the New Testament.

2) The Old Testament has 39 separate works/books.

a. Law – 5 books, Genesis through Deuteronomy.

b. History – 12 books, Joshua through Esther

c. Poetry – 5 books, Job through Song of Solomon (Wisdom Literature)

d. Major Prophets – 5 books, Isaiah through Daniel

e. Minor Prophets – 12 books, Hosea through Malachi.

3) The New Testament has 27 separate works/books.

a. Gospel – 4 books, Matthew through John

b. History – 1 book, Acts

c. Letters of Paul – 13, Romans through Philemon

d. General Letters – 8, Hebrews through Jude

e. Prophecy/Apocalyptic Literature – 1, Revelation

3. It is understanding the historical periods of the Bible.

1) Antediluvian – Before the flood

2) Postdiluvian – After the flood

3) Patriarchal – Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

4) Bondage – In Egypt

5) Wanderings – In the Wilderness

6) Conquests – Book of Joshua

7) Judges – Book of Judges

8) United Kingdom – Saul, David, Solomon

9) Divided Kingdom – Jerusalem (2 tribes) and Samaria (10 tribes)

10) Judah Alone – After Assyria conquers Israel.

11) Captivity/Exile – Babylonian captivity

12) Restoration/Postexilic – Rebuilding Jerusalem and the Temple

13) Between the Testaments – approximately 400 years of prophetic silence

14) Christ – Life of Jesus

15) Church – Beginning in Jerusalem and into all the world.

4. It is understanding and making application of the truth of the Bible.

1) “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, ‘If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free’” (John 8:31-32).

2) “So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading” (Nehemiah 8:8).

3) “Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, ‘This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ’” (Acts 17:2-3).

4) “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” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

1. Because the Bible is inspired of God – “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” (2 Peter 1:20-21).

2. Because handling wrongly leads to erroneous conclusions – “as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures” (2 Peter 3:16).

3. Because eternity is at stake – “in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 1:8).

4. Because all will be judged by it – “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day” (John 12:48).

5. Because relationships are important – “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:6-7).

6. Because every person is valuable – John 3:16

7. Because God wants to communicate to us.

1) “No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him” (John 1:18).

2) “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son…” (Hebrews 1:1-2).

8. Because God wants to be understood –

1) “For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, nor is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend into heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.” (Deuteronomy 30:11-14).

2) “how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)” (Ephesians 3:3-4).

1. With prayer.

1) “But we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4).

2) “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42).

2. With the right attitude.

1) With love – “but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—” (Ephesians 4:15).

2) With a good and honest heart – “But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a honest and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience” (Luke 8:15).

3) With sincerity – “For we are not, as so many, peddling the word of God; but as of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:17).

4) With care – “Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease” (2 Peter 1:15).

5) With zeal – “But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:2).

3. Intelligently

1) Not looking for contradictions, but harmony – Galatians 2:16 and James 2:24.

2) Interpreting the figurative in light of the literal – John 11:11-13.

3) Understanding the text in its context – Psalm 48:3, but look at 2.

4) Considering figures of speech – “The name of the LORD is a strong tower, The righteous run to it and are safe” (Proverbs 18:10).

5) Looking at the totality of Bible teaching – Matthew 4:4.

6) With investigation – “These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11).

4. With personal application – “If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them” (John 13:17).

1. In this lesson we have looked at three questions…

1) What is rightly dividing the word of truth?

2) Why should we rightly divide the word of truth?

3) How do we rightly divide the word of truth?

2. Invitation