The Bible Its Symbols – What Should We Do With The Bible

There are many symbols that the Bible uses for itself and we can learn much about why we need the Bible in our lives by looking at them.

The Bible is not just words on a page. Thru the working of God it does amazing things in us. The Bible changes lives and has century after century after century. It can and does do much more than teach men how to be saved. The Bible was also given to help us in our everyday lives.  God wants us to know how much we need His Word and He wants us to know how the Bible can be a help to us. He wants us to know how the Bible can work in us.  So He wrote into His precious word illustrations about the Bible itself and how it works in us.

And not just one or two.  It has taken us a while to go thru them.

1 We saw that the Bible is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. It illuminates where we are right now and the way we should go.

2 The Bible is a mirror that shows us who we really are.

3 It is also a Laver so not only can we see where we need cleaned but provides the cleaning

4 The Bible is spiritual food.  We cannot grow spiritually without it.

5 It is also a fire that ignites our passions.

6 The Bible is as a hammer that breaks apart false teaching.

7 The Bible is a sword.  It cuts to the heart of the matter.  A sword is also both an offensive and defensive weapon.

8 The Bible is precious Seed.  It is only the Bible that is the seed.  It is what we are to spread and plant.

9 The Bible is also rain and snow.  The Bible is what waters the seed.  You do not plant with the Bible and water with something else.  You plant with the Bible and you water with the Bible.

10 The Bible connects Jesus to itself.  Both the Bible and Jesus are called the Word of God.  There is the written Word and there is the living Word.  The Bible is truly His Book.

That is quite a list.  The Bible does a lot in our lives.  Since that is true what we are to do with it.

Receive it

Jas 1:21  Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

Since this book is God’s Word, since it is so good for us, and does so much for us, then we are to with meekness receive it.  We should acknowledge that Almighty God gave it to us for our benefit.  We should humble ourselves and put away our pride when the Bible corrects us and receive it as it is The Word of God.

Do it

Jas 1:22  But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

Since the Bible is God’s Word, we should act like it and follow thru on the truth it teaches.  We should be doers of the Word and not hearers only.

Hold it fast

Tit 1:9  Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.

Not fast as in 80 miles per hour.  But hold fast, as in not letting go, not straying from.  The Bible in this verse is called the faithful word.  The Word of God will never steer you wrong.  It is perfect and its truths are faithful, and its work in your life is faithful to do all it says it will do.

We should stand up for it.  We should hold it fast.

Rightly divide it

2Ti 2:15  Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

This is a big one.  For there to be a command to rightly divide the Word of God… that means that it can be wrongly divided.

I have seen many forget the basic principals of Bible study and Bible truth.  I have seen men start out good, but get way way off later.  I have seen others study just as a job.  For them it is a just a career.  They don’t really have any faith in what the Bible teaches.  They do not believe that they actually hold the word of truth in their hand.  So they continually correct it.  It is sad.

It is the word of truth and we should not mess with it.

Then there are those who do it because they can pull in big bucks by purposefully twisting it.

And some will get so into, so deeply fixated on one section of scripture that they ignore and forget what all the rest of the Book says.  To rightly divide the word of truth, you must consider not only the verses you are looking at, but you must also consider all the rest.

To rightly divide it, you must also understand what practices had a time and a place in the past and need to stay there and what practices are to be moved forward into New Testament Christianity.

To rightly divide it is simply impossible from a human only standpoint.  You need the leadership of the Holy Spirit to help you and to illuminate the truth of the scriptures.

Hold it forth

Php 2:16  Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

The Bible here is called the word of life.  The Bible gives eternal life and the Bible is used by God in our lives to help us life the abundant life in Christ.  It is spiritual food.  It strengthens our day to day spiritual life.

Others need this.  We should hold it forth.  It should be shared.

What should we do with the Bible.  That actually is a large topic and we could spend weeks there, but I am going to wrap this up with just these 5. We should receive it, do it, hold it fast, rightly divide it, and hold it forth.

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