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14 Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers. 15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 16 But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. ~ 2 Timothy 2:14-16
We return to Paul's description of what it looks like to be defined by God's grace. Living in a world that is under the control of the one called "the god of this world" is dangerous, but when we are defined by the God of the Bible, we will know His peace.
This is why in v.14 we read, "Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers."
In the church at Ephesus, there were those who were minutely disputing certain words in the Bible which created factions and division. This is why the Apostle Paul writes to Timothy and tells him to remind everyone to be loyal, faithful, and consistent to the Word of God. We are not to be engaged in debates that get so intense and so hot that we forget that the Lord has sent us to teach others about His culture.
The words "to the ruin of the hearers" literally means "catastrophe." Church arguments can lead to catastrophic results among the people of God. And, the worst is that the name of the Lord is defamed in the community and people turn away from Him.
The believer is to avoid the kind of debate that pits divine truth against human philosophy and makes the Bible answerable to man instead of man to God. We must stand on the Word of God and we must never subject the Bible to an argument that is steeped in the rejection of its authority.
It is good to discuss the Bible, to debate certain interpretations of a biblical text, to use various passages of Scripture, but what is to be avoided is placing the Word of God under human philosophy.
In v.15 we read, "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
The emphasis in this verse is that the worker needs to be diligent in his labors so that he will not be ashamed when his work is inspected. This word "diligent" gives the idea of hastening oneself to "rightly dividing" or correctly understanding the Word of God which is the treasure that we must guard. Those who use the Word correctly will be on the frontline of what God is doing in this world.
An approved worker diligently studies the Word and seeks to discern the false by knowing the truth. As we study the Scriptures, we will grow in our ability to recognize and understand the usage of each word in the Scripture. As we drink of His word, our investigative powers will increase and our ability to recognize the false will be heightened.
In order to "rightly divide the word of truth" we must begin with the understanding that the New Testament is the fulfillment of the Old Testament, and that there is a clear distinction between the Church and Israel in the Bible.
When we study the Scriptures to understand them, we must be sure to study it verse by verse in its context. Then, we set out to understand the words that are used in that context with other passages in the Scriptures that deal with the same subject. Then, we will be able to understand the subject in the whole context of the Bible. Confidently, we will have a good working knowledge of the Scriptures and we will be that one who does not need to be ashamed.
Paul is dealing here with a very important principle in understanding the truth of Scripture: all Scripture must be understood in the light of the rest of Scripture. We really have not ever understood any single passage until we have carefully tried to fit it with all that the Scriptures say about it. One of the most frequent ways in which error begins is when one group takes a single passage, or a single book, of Scripture and zeros in on a single text, or a few chosen texts, and builds its entire doctrine on that one passage.
In v.16 we read, "But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness."
The word for "shun" is also translated, "walk around." In other words, "Stay away from it; do not get involved in it, walk away from it, because it will give safe haven to more unwholesomeness."
The Bible clearly affirms God is truth, He speaks truth, and He does not lie. The Bible also affirms Satan is a liar and the father of lies and goes around deceiving people. God reveals Himself as truth, and Satan therefore is revealed as the antithesis to God – Satan is the liar. That particular dichotomy descends from the conflict of God and Satan to pervade every area in the universe. There is conflict between the holy angels and the unholy demons, and there is conflict on the earth between the truth and the lies of Satan.
The people of God have always been plagued with false doctrine. The invasion of the false has been something which the people of God have endured since time began. Satan attempts to distort the truth with lies. He attempts to confuse the world so that they cannot perceive the truth of God by drowning them in a sea of deceit. It was his evil intentions and clever misrepresentation of truth to Eve that plunged the whole of the human race into sin.
This is why we must be diligent to study the Word of God. The souls of people are at stake. Time is short, my friends, and we must be careful to expose the darkness by using the light of His Word. We live in a fallen from the truth world and because of this, many question God's love. They look at 'all the suffering' especially of the innocent, and they cannot see that God can possibly be loving. In Jesus Christ the love of God was clearly demonstrated for all to see. Many either have not heard the Gospel or they have a distorted understanding of it. We are here on this earth now to pull back the curtain of confusion and to bring light to the souls of men and women and boys and girls. Will you today share His love with those He brings into your life?
