E28 - Hope’s Harbor Gritty Bible Devotions - The Bible - GOD’s Eternal Word
Hope’s Harbor
Gritty Bible Devotions
Episode #28
Title: The Bible – GOD’s Eternal Word
Date: November 15, 2021
Contact: info@hopesharbor.net
Key verse(s): Luke 4:4 - ‘But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD OF GOD.' "
There are 47 verses in the New King James Version of the Bible containing the phrase ‘Word of GOD.’ This made it somewhat difficult to choose one for the key verse. I chose Luke 4:4 because it is what Jesus said to rebuke Satan when he was tempting Jesus in the wilderness at the beginning of His ministry.
Intro: I want to start off by telling you I was a skeptic at one time about all I’m going to present in this episode. I believed in a god, but not the GOD of the Bible. I didn’t trust the Bible and didn’t like church.
For one thing, when growing up I was taken to church, a lot. But as I got older I noticed that what people claimed and proclaimed did not match with how they lived. The only Christians who lived what they believed were my grandparents on my mother’s side and later on her sister and her husband.
When I turned of age to leave home I left religion too.
A few years later I became friends with a neighbor who was a faithful Christian and he would talk to me about the state of my soul. Some nights we stood out in the street, me arguing against his beliefs and him trying to convince me the Bible was true and that GOD was giving me a chance to change my life.
Eventually, I accepted what he told me and prayed, asking GOD to forgive and save me from my sins.
I tried reading the Bible but couldn’t make much sense of it. And so I remained indifferent to GOD’s claim on my life. Mostly because I didn’t fully understand all that happened when I prayed the ‘sinner’s prayer.’ This went on for a few years.
And as it happens often with GOD in answer to prayers, those of my grandparents because they knew I was drifting, a crisis occurred in my life and I began to look for help from GOD.
I was in trouble and in deep distress. I cried out to GOD begging His help.
Oddly enough GOD’s help came in the form of a deep hunger for… can you guess? His Word. I began reading the Bible and couldn’t get enough. I started at Genesis and read all the way through to Revelation.
The teachings of the Bible, containing the very words of the Son of GOD, rescued me from not only that crisis but saved me from living a life of eternal loss. Not loss of salvation, but the loss of all we gain in eternity when we live for GOD in this life.
What was my greatest discovery from reading the Bible so much? It’s right here in the next sentence:
In John 1:1 Jesus is called the Word: ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.’
Word in this verse is the Greek word logos. Now a word is an expression of the mind. We can infer Jesus is the expression of the mind of GOD.
GOD is theos, meaning supreme Deity.
Theos is mentioned 1343 times in the New Testament alone. In the Old Testament GOD, Elohiym in the Hebrew, is mentioned over 2700 times.
Do you think GOD is the central figure of the Bible?
Jesus is mentioned 943 times in the New Testament. Since Jesus is GOD the Son, it stands to reason the Bible is GOD’s message to us, and Jesus is the basis of that message.
But what is the main message of the Bible?
Devotion focus: Jesus is the living Word of GOD
If you had a world gone astray, a world which at one time was perfect, and you wanted to set things back to where they started, how would you go about it?
Let’s follow this thought and see where it leads.
Would you first want to announce to people living in this fallen world to know what you intended to do? Would it surprise you that is exactly what GOD did? He announced what He intended to do, to restore the world by rescuing it from the virus of sin infecting not only the inhabitants but also destroying all of creation with it.
The story of redemption is alluded to beginning in Genesis 3:14&15 and in numerous other places in the Bible.
One of the greatest displays of redemption was when GOD delivered the Jews from Egyptian slavery.
And the greatest act of redemption happened when Jesus died on the cross.
Now, GOD has announced all through the Bible His intention to deliver the human race from bondage to sin. Jesus announced He came to die for the sins of the human race. And GOD saw to it all this was and is recorded in the Bible for anyone to see.
So what’s the problem? Sadly it’s unbelief. People for the most part do not believe the Bible. Some go so far as to deny GOD’s existence at all.
But listen… GOD is an intelligent being. He created us with the ability to communicate. Is it reasonable GOD would want to communicate with us?
If so, what is the primary means down through the centuries before electronic recording devices came into being? Yes, the written word.
Only GOD could have seen to it that the Bible record would be preserved for several millennia and assembled into our present-day book.
There are some however who say the Bible cannot be trusted and/or how do you know it is authentic. These are understandable concerns.
All I want to say to this, and it may seem simplistic, but to every authentic item or object such as diamonds, gold, even money, there are imitations and counterfeits.
But these imitations and counterfeits are fashioned from an original existing somewhere.
With all the false religions in the world, there must be one truth about GOD existing somewhere.
I’ll say this about Christianity: it’s the only faith I know of in which forgiveness from GOD is free to me. It cost GOD His Son. It cost Jesus His life. And it cost the Holy Spirit when Jesus died.
Christianity is faith-based. (Ephesians 2:8&9 – ‘For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,’ vs 9 – ‘not of works, lest anyone should boast.’)
All the other major religions I’ve studied are works-based. Rule-keeping in the hope GOD will be pleased. Since GOD requires perfection the problem with earning GOD’s favor is self-evident.
Summary: Christian, you have GOD’s Word, His final Word, contained in the Bible. It is a treasury of every kind of wisdom, guidance, instruction, warning, history, poetry, and more.
Action to consider: Read your Bible. Faithfully. Regularly. Prayerfully. Every day. Do this and the truths in the Bible will begin to change your life for the better. You can trust me on this.
Next week’s devotion: Probably the fruit of the Spirit – Galatians 5:24&25 – vs 22 – ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,’ vs 23 – ‘gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
Appendix: Verses containing the phrase ‘Word of GOD’
1Sa_9:27 As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to go on ahead of us." And he went on. "But you stand here awhile, that I may announce to you the word of God."
1Ki_12:22 But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying,
1Ch_17:3 But it happened that night that the word of God came to Nathan, saying,
Pro_30:5 Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.
Mar_7:13 making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do."
Luk_3:2 while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.
Luk_4:4 But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD OF GOD.' "
Luk_5:1 So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret,
Luk_8:11 "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
Luk_8:21 But He answered and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."
Luk_11:28 But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"
Joh_10:35 If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken),
Act_4:31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
Act_6:2 Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, "It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.
Act_6:7 Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Act_8:14 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them,
Act_11:1 Now the apostles and brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God.
Act_12:24 But the word of God grew and multiplied.
Act_13:5 And when they arrived in Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also had John as their assistant.
Act_13:7 who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.
Act_13:44 On the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God.
Act_13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, "It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.
Act_17:13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came there also and stirred up the crowds.
Act_18:11 And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
Rom_9:6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel,
Rom_10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
1Co_14:36 Or did the word of God come originally from you? Or was it you only that it reached?
2Co_2:17 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.
2Co_4:2 But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
Eph_6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
Col_1:25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God,
1Th_2:13 For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.
1Ti_4:5 for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
2Ti_2:9 for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of chains; but the word of God is not chained.
Tit_2:5 to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.
Heb_4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Heb_6:5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,
Heb_11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
Heb_13:7 Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.
1Pe_1:23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,
2Pe_3:5 For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water,
1Jn_2:14 I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.
Rev_1:2 who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.
Rev_1:9 I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Rev_6:9 When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held.
Rev_19:13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.
Rev_20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.