2 Timothy 3.16-17
“All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
Salvation begins our journey with Christ, and we are then called to grow in wisdom and maturity as we learn and apply the Word to our lives. This passage tells us that the Word of God does four things that are “profitable” for equipping and empowering the follower of Christ to live an effective and fruitful life:
- The Word teaches. It gives us instruction on how to live.
- The Word reproves. It tells us when we are not living the right way.
- The Word corrects. When we wander from the right path, it tells how to get back on path.
- The Word trains in righteousness. It gives direction and disciplines that will keep us on the right path.
The passage says that when we allow the Word to teach, reprove, correct, and train us, then we will be “complete and equipped” for the work to which the Lord calls us. The opposite is also true. If we do not allow the Word of God to do its work in our lives, we will be incomplete, and we will not be equipped for the work to which the Lord calls us.
I encourage you to lean into this passage. Look closely at what it says and pray deeply about what it means. Challenge yourself. Do you have sufficient knowledge or the Bible? As a result of your study of and obedience to the Bible, are you “complete and equipped for every good work?”
The Greek text makes the message even more clear and powerful.
The Greek word for “complete” is artizo. It is related to arti, which means “now.” It describes someone who is able to operate efficiently and effectively in the immediate present because they have been trained and are therefore fully prepared.
It is also important to note that the Greek artios is related to the Latin ars, which means “skill and craftsmanship.” It is from this word that we get the English word “art.”
“Equipped” is the Greek exertizo, and it means “to equip fully and completely.” It describes someone who is proficient, competent, and able to meet the demands of their life and work.
The word for “work” is ergon, and it means “deed or task.”
Here is the message of this passage: The Word teaches, reproves, corrects, and trains us for the purpose of equipping us to do the tasks of life in a skillful and artful way. God wants us to be skillful and artful in our marriage and family life. He wants us to be skillful and artful in our daily work. He wants us to be skillful and artful in our citizenship.
In order to accomplish this in and through our lives, the Lord uses His Word to teach, reprove, correct, and train us.
Given this truth, it must be asked: When you look at the Christian community today, do you see a preponderance of believers who are skillful and artful? Do you see believers who are thoroughly knowledgeable in the Word of God and wise about how it applies in the real world? Do you see believers who are “complete and equipped for every good work?”
Sadly, the Christian community is weak in biblical literacy. Many professing Christians do not know the Word like they should. As a result, they are not prepared to respond to the issues and challenges of our generation.
We need to recover our biblical integrity. We need to restore the authority of the Word of God in the lives of Christians and the church.
