Search The Scriptures

Jesus said, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39). We need to be like the Bereans who“searched the scriptures daily” (Acts 17:11). The Scriptures were written by holy men (2 Pet. 1:21) through the inspiration of God (2 Tim. 3:16). These writings are compiled and now called the Bible. The Scriptures tell us about . . .

1. God. The Scriptures tell us that there is only one God. “But to us there is but one God . . .” (1 Cor. 8:6). The one God is composed of three personalities. “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one” (1 John 5:7). The record of Matthew 3:13-17 shows that these three are separate persons: The Father in Heaven, the Son on earth, and the Holy Spirit like a dove. Paul said in 1 Timothy 3:15 that the one true God is “the living God.”

2. The World. The Scriptures tell us, “God that made the world and all things therein . . .” (Acts 17:24). Also, the Psalmist said, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork” (Ps.19:1). Above all, God also created man in his own image (Gen. 1:26-27). In John 3:16, the record says, “For God so loved the world . . .” And in 1 John 1:9-10, John said, “that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him . . . and to be the propitiation for our sins.”

3. Christ And His Church. The Scriptures tell us, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son . . .” (Gal. 4:4). Peter declared that the Son of God is the Christ (Matt.16:16). The Father said, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him” (Matt. 17:5). Jesus claimed, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matt. 28:18). “. . . there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). In Matthew 16:18  Jesus promised to build his church. The word “church” came from the Greek word ekklesia, “to call out.” The church then in New Testament Scriptures means “a called out body of people,” men and women (Acts 8:1-4) who believed and were baptized for the remission of their sins (Acts 2:37-38, 41, 47). They were called “Christians” (Acts 11:26), the children of God (Rom. 8:16-17), and the family of God (1 Tim. 3:15). The church is the body (Col. 1:18) and Christ is the savior of the body (Eph. 5:23). The church is the kingdom (Col. 1: 13) and Christ will deliver the kingdom up to the Father (1 Cor. 15:24). Are you a member of the Lord’s church, or the Lord’s kingdom? If not, why not?