Enduring Word

1 Peter 1:22-25 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, 23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever, 24 because “All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, 25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.” Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.

I just love it when God tugs me out of bed. I needed my really early time with Him this morning and had such an expectant heart. He showed up in a way only He and I know, and I am humbly thankful for it. There is nothing special about me, he will do the same for you when you humbly seek him with your heart. I had the partial scripture “word endures forever” in my head; and the word search began. I found myself in 1 Peter again, and found myself wrapped up in His Sovereignty in the context of the passage. Peter had quoted from Isaiah 40 of how all of our lives are temporary; we fade as the grass and the flowers of the field. Satan tries to get us to focus on the worries of the day, and he really succeeds when our anxieties grow into tomorrow and beyond; we are not guaranteed another breath, much less tomorrow. James 4:13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; 14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

In the few years that God has really gotten ahold of me, one thing that has affected me greatly is the understanding of Bible study in the context it was written. Sadly, many of today’s teachers simply pull scripture out of context and use what feels good, and twist it into what works for them. I witnessed on a game-show last night Philippians 4:13 ( I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.), on the back of a competitors shirt. He was quoting scripture, yet owned three (successful) liquor stores in NY. He was claiming scripture out of context, and living his life out of context. Philippians 4:13 is truly the apostle Paul preaching contentment in whatever place God has him in his life; he was writing it from prison. Teachers today take scripture out of context and pack pulpits preaching feel good messages, but leave out the painful conviction of sin. Christ did not begin his ministry with the feel good ministry; Mark 1:14 Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

If you look a little deeper into that passage, you will get a glimpse of our Almighty, Sovereign God’s design. 1 Peter 1:20 He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you 21 who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. Everything you need to know, everything God wants you to know is found in His Word, and through his Word and belief in His Son. The Holy Spirit that comes to you as a believer in Christ will open up the Bible to you and reveal God to you in the context of scripture with a pure heart that desires to truly understand. Pray and seek Him today, for he has something for you there today.