WEEKS 2 TO 3
COVENANTS
Session 1 – The truth, surety, and infallibility of god’s word
Session 2 – the impact of the covenants in a modern world
PERSPECTIVE TRANSLATION – ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION
THE APPLICATION STARTS HERE…
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
PAUL THE CHURCH PLANTER (HEBREWS 4:12 ESV)
AIR STUDY SESSION 2 – covenants 1 SESSION 1
TRUTH, SURETY, AND INFALLIBILITY OF GOD’S WORD
HEBREWS CHAPTER 4, VERSES 12
TRUTH, in a world built by the father of all lies, is one of the most elusive qualities. God through His spoken WORD and His instructed COVENANTS has never lied. That can not be said of the DEVIL.
When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
JOHN 8:44 (ESV)
We have trained ourselves to DOUBT before we BELIEVE. We are so used to promises being broken, hopes dashed, and people’s words meaning nothing that we don’t live expecting truth to prevail or promises kept. We may not believe in Satan’s lies, but we certainly believe that everyone tells lies. Repeated lies break our hearts and our trust. It seems we can’t trust anything anymore!
When it comes to God’s Word, we are so practiced in doubt that we only believe when we can see the evidence or have had the experience. All Satan does to keep you from believing God’s promises as being the truth is to convert EVIDENCE into human science and experiences into COINCIDENCES.
The DEVIL twisted the recorded Words of God to create the deception that would create doubt in our minds about God’s character and sentiment. AND THAT ATMOSPHERE IS WHAT GOVERNS OUR WORLD.
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
GENESIS 3:1-5 (ESV)
Believing that God’s word is accurate does not start with proving the Bible through study or archaeological facts.
Knowing that the Word of God is TRUE and being SURE of His promises is a faith exercise, not a factual one.
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith, we understand that the universe was created by the word of God so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.
HEBREWS 11:1-3 (ESV)
So faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ.
ROMANS 10:17 (ESV)
The Faith Facts of Stalwarts of the Faith
Men and women of old had little fact or science to base their truth or surety. They simply had DIRECTION from God and FAITH in His inherent truth.
PERFORM AN AIR STUDY (See AIR Study Aid) on HEBREWS 11:4-12
FAITH FACT: THE WORD OF GOD IS TRUE
HUMAN FACT: The bible is irrelevant; there are way too many contradictions, it makes no sense, it doesn’t prove anything, I don’t believe it, who cares?
God’s Word is not about the Bible. There is a ton of God’s Word in the Bible, but the Truth of the Word of God is about your RELATIONSHIP with Him.
The men and women of old had little written words to work with. It was more about their appreciation of the Character of God in every situation. Joseph is the best example of this. He did not have the Ten Commandments Personal Addition in his back pocket. In the heat of the moment, he could not check to see if sleeping with Potiphar’s wife was wrong, but because He knew it would anger Potiphar and, more importantly, bring disrepute to his God, he fled the situation. The Character of God and Joseph’s relationship with his God WAS HIS TRUTH.
THE FOUR ELEMENTS OF THE SURETY OF OF GOD’S WORD
1“FOR THE WORD OF GOD IS LIVING…”
The original Greek word translated here as “living” means “to have life” or “alive.” The Word of God is alive because God is a living God.Its ability to offer principles and personal guidance to so many in their unique and different situations demonstrates that it is the core of ALL truth throughout all time. Despite writers showing their humanity by telling stories from different perspectives, the PRINCIPLES and CHARACTERISTICS of God are relevant and beneficial to everyone and anyone.
All Scripture is breathed out 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.
2 TIMOTHY 3:16-17
Broken humans recorded the words, so the world calls the Word of God broken. God’s characteristics were penned so long ago that those without faith call the Bible irrelevant.
Because of our faith, the brokenness of the human writers highlights the wonder of God’s TRUTH, and the history of His Word only demonstrates His FAITHFULNESS.
Through the work of His Spirit, God enables us to hear and understand what He has to say. His Word (not just the Bible) is alive, and no matter what we’re going through, we can read or meditate on Him, and we will always learn something about God or OURSELVES.
GOD’S WORD IS ALIVE, AND IT REVEALS A LIVING GOD WHO DESIRES TO BE KNOWN.
2 GOD’S WORD IS ACTIVE
The term active in Hebrews 4:12 means “effective, powerful, producing or capable of producing an intended RESULT.” The Word of God is not just a good read with good truth and the right ways of living. His Word is a force that activates, changes, heals, creates, and inspires. The force of His Word is found in its ability to activate our conversation and relationship with Him and is vibrant, dynamic, energizing, and productive. It is not static or idle in the lives of genuine faith-fact-finding believers.
And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
1 THESSALONIANS 2:13 (ESV)
Astonishing, life-generating things happen when God’s Word is PERMITTED, by faith, to be powerfully active. It is fully capable of accomplishing its purpose.
For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
ISAIAH 55:10-11 (ESV)
3 GOD’S WORD IS REVEALING
”Piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
It is God’s WORD that has been placed inside us. His character and His image are installed alongside our own characteristics. The “sword” is often used as a METAPHOR in scripture to refer to God’s Word.
In this verse in Hebrews, the “sword” is said to separate the “joints and marrow,” probably a reference to tendons and ligaments (Greek words harmōn and myelōn). These tissues are hidden away, hard to reach, and seemingly indistinguishable. A sharp blade can uncover and SEPARATE these things.
In the same way, the Word of God can separate spiritual things which seem entirely intertwined.
Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!
ISAIAH 5:20 (ESV)
This is a graphic explanation of how completely God’s Word can distinguish between the godly (His Character) and the ungodly (Our character). To man, the soul and spirit seem indistinguishable, but the Word of God can discern between these. This incredible “cutting” power of Scripture is, therefore, a TOOL to separate our very thoughts motivated by His character as opposed to those inspired by our own.
The Bible provides everything we need to differentiate between genuinely selfless, spiritual deeds and selfish and UNGODLY acts.
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.
MATTHEW 7:21-23 (ESV)
4 GOD’S WORD IS LIFE–GIVING
God’s Word reveals just how gracious He is. He is not out to find reasons to condemn us but rather ways to save and give us life. His Word reveals that He is constantly at work to heal, redeem, and restore.
The ATMOSPHERE of the Word is in direct contradiction with the atmosphere of the Devil. We can not admit to the lies of the devil and not admit to the truth of God’s Word.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
JOHN10:10 (ESV)
The thief steals. The Word of God restores.
The thief kills. The Word of god heals.
The thief destroys. The Word of God redeems.
The Word brings life because it creates in us a desire for more than what our mediocrity can deliver. We can match ALL of our true yearnings and desires to the Word of God. For example, the Word of God tells us that death has been defeated (1 Corinthians 15:55-57). And something in our spirit tells us that’s true. It matches a yearning we have. And it is a light-based yearning and not darkness. We don’t have fear (that’s what lies give us) of death because the Word speaks life. Believer or not, we all have a desire to live forever. That yearning for life in us matches the Word of God and is faith evidence that His Word is life.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
ECCLESIASTES 3:11 (ESV)
Even when the Word corrects us, it saves us from death and pushes us toward light and life. When God convicts us, calls us out on something, or refocuses us back on Himself, it is done as a loving Father.
For the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.
PROVERBS 3:12 (ESV)
Even Word-based CORRECTION and discipline become life and peace.
For God is not a God of confusion but of peace.
1 CORINTHIANS 14:33a (ESV)
SUMMARY QUESTIONS
- Why does true faith always trump human understanding?
- What four faith facts lead us to the truth, surety, and infallibility of God’s covenant-binding Word?
- How is the Word of God a sword?
- In what way is correction life-giving?
- What was your inspiration from 2 Timothy 3:16?
LEARNING AND MEDITATIONS
After AIR studying 2 Timothy 3:16 and meditating on your study, write down your learnings and journal the thoughts of your meditation:
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PERFORM AN AIR STUDY (See AIR Study Aid) on HEBREWS 11:4-12
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