Friday, October 30, 2009

Man's Operating manual

"It is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." (Luke 4:4)


Before we go any further in this study of scripture, I thought it important that I identify the Bible, what it is and y we should study it over the words of man (aka 'the sermon').

I was once told that the Bible was hard to be understood. The person I was conversing with said all her life no matter how much she tried & no matter how much she craved understanding she could not understand what she read. As I considered her words I was reminded of the church I grew up in. During Sunday services the pastor, ass. Pastor, guest speaker- evangelist whoever- would usually choose between a minimum of 1/2 a verse to a maximum of 4 verses as a context to 'preach their sermon' from. I thought about my own academic troubles in mathematics. If I attempted to work out 4 algebra problems per week I probably would've never gotten the hang of it either (although I did have to take freshman algebra twice lol). Some argue in math you go home every day and do homework. Even then, that is only after going over several problems back & forth with your instructor. Imagine 4 versus a week... Some of the chapters in St. Luke alone have 60+ verses in them. At that rate it would take 15 weeks to cover the issues contained in one book in the bible (multiply that by 66 books). So what is the Bible? The bible is like an operating manual. It provides the basic (as well as more in-depth) instructions to live.

Yes! God's words are contained in a book.

Words are how the species of Man communicates. That is why Jesus is called the Word of God as He is the one who communicates with man. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. (St. John 1:1-4)

"And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called the Word of God."
(Revelation 19:11-13)

The words contained in scripture is inspired by God, and is good for doctrine, correction and instructions as far as righteousness is concerned (2Timothy 3:16-17). God created man and gave him dominion over the works of his hand. Therefore man has dominance over the fish of the sea; over the fowl of the air; over the cattle; over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth; and over all the earth. (Genesis 1:26) He gave the man instructions and told him the consequences for disobedience.

And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed... And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (Genesis 2:8-16).

The most important instructions are the Royal Law also known as the law of liberty, which are the Ten Commandments. These instructions were/are so important that God didn't give them to an angel to deliver to man. He came down from heaven to Mt. Sinai and spoke these commandments to man face to face.

And be ready against the third day: for the third day the Lord will come down in the sight of all the people upon Mount Sinai. And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightning’s, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. And Mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace and the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake and God answered him by a voice. And the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mount... (Exodus 19:1-20).


All the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said to Moses Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said to the people fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. And the Lord said to Moses, say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven (Exodus 20:1-22).


Since Israel was the only nation present, what were the instructions to the rest of the world? 1st of all there was a mixed multitude present at Mt. Sinai, not just Israelites. (Exodus 12:37-38) Secondly the Lord called Israel a kingdom of priests... that is IF they are obedient. (Exodus 19:5-6)

Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you...Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath god so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day... teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons... and their children (Deuteronomy 4:1-10).

God's Word is soo powerful that it is written that when the word goes out of His mouth... "It shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it" (Isaiah 55:11).


I could use a year worth of posts pointing out all of the different instructions in the Bible. Study-the-Bible-not-the-sermon is dedicated to revealing these instructions. But for the sake of time and space I will briefly point out a few that I will go in depth on at a later date.



What God's people should eat.

"... these are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth. Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is cloven-footed, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts that shall ye eat...And the swine (pig) though he divide the hoof, and be cloven-footed, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you. Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you...These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas and in the rivers, them shall ye eat. And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you... ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing... This is the law of the beasts... To make a difference between the unclean and the clean and between the beast that may be eaten and the beast that may not be eaten" (Leviticus 11:1-47). "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are" (1Corinthians 3:16-20).

Note: you only have to touch the carcass of these animals to be defiled. So don’t misunderstand the comment that Jesus made about defilement in the New Testament.





Sabbath Day: 6 days shall work be done: but the 7th day is the Sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings. (Leviticus 23:1-37)



The rest of the Biblical holidays (holy days) can also be found in the 23rd chapter of Leviticus as well as Deuteronomy 16:1-17.



LET IT BE KNOWN: The Word of God is contained in the Bible. This is the only Word /truth whereby man can obtain salvation. THIS IS OUR INSTRUCTION MANUAL.

Let us hear the conclusion of the WHOLE matter: Fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the WHOLE DUTY of man" (ECCLESIASTES 12:13).



Lastly I leave you with the same advice that the apostle Paul gave us all, "...Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" (Philippians 2:12).

May the Lord add a blessing to the reading of His word.






Locksmif LLAVES (keys)



Furthur scripture refrences:

Jeremiah 30:1-2


Joshua 1:8


Leviticus 19:1-4, 9-18,26-32


Exodus 31:12-17

2 comments:

  1. It was pretty long this time and took a while to read but it was worth it! Good job

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