ROOTED - Wednesday, June 11, 2025

2 Timothy 1:13
 13 What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus.

Reflection: Question #3
Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro
Question: What do the Scriptures principally teach?
Answer: The Scriptures principally teach, what we are to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of us.
This question and answer are related to question #2. Question #2 focused on the fact that Scripture is the church’s sole authority, whereas question #3 centers on what we learn in it to apply to our lives. As a parent I have had many conversations with my children over the years… conversations that involve this very question and answer. I have noticed that my kids struggle with the same thing that I struggle with as an adult: I often don’t like what the Bible says. I don’t like the demand that it has in my life. I feel like it is unreasonable to live my life in the way that the Bible tells me to. And the lightbulb observation that I have made is that might emotion about what the Bible says often influence whether I obey or not. My children and I are the same in this regard. I will know that I am about to do something in a way that violates the Scripture, and I decide in the moment that I don’t like that rule anyway. When this happens, my emotions and feelings become my God. “I am going to do it my way… to heck with what the Bible says.” It is easy for me to obey certain things, but very hard for me to obey in other areas. But true growth in my faith will require that I obey the whole counsel of God not just the parts that I agree with. The “duty God requires” is not subject to my whims, or whether or not it suits my emotions. God has spoken. He has instructed us on how we should live. And we must learn to apply it.

Prayer
Lord, may we learn how to apply the Word of God, obeying it whether we like it or not. Teach us to trust you, that you know best how we should live our lives.