The Transformative Power of Scripture

[00:00:00] Speaker A: This morning. So we're talking about the transformative power of scripture continuing on. And as I was preparing this, I was thinking about different ways that scripture has been a transformative power in my life. There are many examples of how the word has transformed me. One of the many examples that came to mind was that years ago, when I was particularly struggling with the tongue and how I used my words and different words or things I would say, conversations I would have that were not honoring to the Lord, that were sinful and how I wasn't careful to build others up with my words. I came across this as I was reading God's word. I was reading Ephesians. And I came to Ephesians 429, which says this, let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up as fits the occasion that it may give grace to those who hear. And this verse convicted me. It pierced me to the heart. And I thought, even though I didn't think the things I was saying was that bad, I recognized that I wasn't seeing, seeking to build up with my words, but I was tearing people down for my own selfish gain. And the spirit through those words convicted me and helped me understand my words and their importance and propelled me to honor the Lord with my words. So I want to ask this morning, is there anybody that wants to share a way that God has transformed you through his word? Basically meaning, is there anything God has taught you through the word? He's taught me that I can't do things myself. Yeah, you can't. You need God to do things. That's a great answer. Anyone else want to share? Well, that's okay. Thank you, Ezra, for sharing. That's a great example that we need the Lord to operate and honor him in this world. God transforms his people through his word. That's the fundamental truth that we're talking about. So this transformative power, our topic is the next, but let's ask the same questions we do every week. Let's remind ourselves. Someone share with the group, what is theology? Study of God. Is there anything else we add to that? Caleb? Authority of the scripture is part of theology. It's a category of it, and that's one of the ones we've done in the past. So that was going to be my next question. But for theology, I want to keep emphasizing that it's the study of God which makes us live more like Christ. Because if you are studying God, your life should be molded into that of Christ. That is part of the study. It's not merely. And it can't merely be academic, because if we truly are coming to know God, then we are coming to know Christ, who is God, and we are coming to be like him, then it is not and cannot be merely an academic exercise. So that's good. Yet we're studying God, and we want to align our lives with who he is. So what we've studied so far. Caleb, what did you say? Authority of scripture. What are some of the other topics? We've all been in the scripture with the word of God category. We have done five so far. So that's one. Inerrancy or truthfulness. Right. Clarity. Clarity. That was last week. Good. Yeah. It is sufficient. It's all we need, and we need it. It's clear. It's authoritative for our lives. It is truthful. I think there's one more. It's the first one. The verse we read a lot was all, scripture is God breathed. No guesses. That's okay. It is inspiration. Yes. Some of you are like, oh, I know. The inspiration of scripture. Good job. So now we come to the transformative power of scripture. There's one more week in the doctrine of scripture after this. The main idea of this lesson is what we have on the board. The transformative power of scripture is the multifaceted effect that God. So that's our first blank if you're filling it. In effect, the transformative power of scripture is the multifaceted effect that God, its author, brings about through his word. So word is the last word in the main idea. So that's what we want to come away with. That's the goal of the lesson. Let's start with our first point. What is transformative power? What is transformative power? So he does. Or transformative power. We've kind of seen some examples, so you might be getting an idea of what we mean by this, but it's just the effect through God's word, of transforming. And he does this because when God speaks, it is a different type of speech. When I'm saying this, if I just say that, you know, my coffee tastes good, that's something. But that's kind of meaningless to you. It doesn't make you do anything. You don't even have to listen to it. You can ignore it when God speaks. And sometimes there are versions of this where humans do this. It is called a speech act. And I have this written on your handouts. A speech act. Does anyone happen to be familiar with what this is? I won't make you define it. Have you ever even heard of it. I mean, I'm not sure I had before I studied the topic. A speech act contains three things. So it's speaking and acting kind of in the same breath. It has. First, the content. So that's the first little blank there. A speech act has content. So this is just the speech stuff said the exact words. It also has the force, but not from Star wars. This is the force or the intended effect. So you could write intended effect. And then the third part is the response, or the intended response, which I think I have intended, written out on there. So this is the intended response of what is said. So here's an example you're probably familiar with. Has anyone ever been to a wedding? I know many of you have. I saw some of you guys at a wedding this year. At a wedding, you'll hear someone say, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Right. We all know this line. This is a speech act. It's not just a sentence. It's a speech act. Fun fact. So the content are those words. I now pronounce you husband and wife. That's just what is said. The force or what is happening is it's declaring something. It is a declaration. It's not just words. I'm not just making an opinion about my coffee. It's a declaration, and it therefore has an intended response. The response is that the man and woman are legally married at that moment. So, you see, it's not just being said, but as something is being said, something is happening. Those two are being wed together. It's a speech act. It has two parts. I hope that makes it a little bit more clear. So, declarations, commands, promises, affirmations, warnings, rebukes, corrections are all examples of ways that God does this in his word. All of scripture, uniquely, is a speech act from God. It's not merely words on a page, but it intends a response. And indeed, things happen. Let's go to Isaiah 55 to learn a little bit more about this. Isaiah 55. And when you get there, will someone read Isaiah 55, verses ten and eleven? Can I get a volunteer? Anya. Thank you. [00:09:54] Speaker B: As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making a bud. And first, then it yields seeds for the sower and bread for the eater. So is my word that goes out from my mouth. It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. [00:10:11] Speaker A: Thank you. So, I hope we notice that there is words going out, but there is a purpose to God's. Word. Just as rain comes down and waters the ground, his word goes out, accomplishes its purpose. Why do you think the Bible has transformative power attached to its words? Why does this book, why does it have, or how does it have transformative power? Not a trick question. It's telling people how to live. Who's its author? Who's telling it? [00:11:13] Speaker B: God. [00:11:14] Speaker A: God, right. So since what God speaks is, has an act effect, something happens when we read his word. It actually has transformative power. So he's telling us how to live. And because who is telling us how to live? It has a transformative power that other books don't have. Thank you. So that kind of helps us understand, hopefully, what transformative power is. Now, let's go to our second point. What does the Bible say? Say, we want to know. I know we just read Isaiah, but we'll go to a couple other places to see what exactly God's word says about itself in this regard. So we're going to go to the very beginning. Genesis one, one, three. If you're paying attention during our worship services, these should be really familiar. We just studied these just a few weeks ago. Will somebody read Genesis one, one, three? Chloe. [00:12:35] Speaker B: Was heaven over the place of the watchers? [00:12:43] Speaker A: Can you read verse three, the next verse? And that's good, just for sure. Thank you, Chloe. Yeah. So reading these verses, how does God create the world? We have an example of the first bit. How does he create the world? Levi? By speaking it. You're right. He said, let there be light. And there was light. So he said something, but something happened. He said, let there be light. And it wasn't as if I just said, let there be light. There actually was light. It's like the classic example of Michael Scott in the office declaring, I declare bankruptcy. And Oscar tells him, you can't just say that and expect anything to happen. And he said, I didn't say it, I declared it. Well, Michael Scott's declaration was not a speech act. Nothing happened as a result of it. You can't just scream bankruptcy and actually declare bankruptcy. You have to do something. But when God said, let there be light, there actually was light. God's declaration is actually followed by something happening. And this is one of the greatest examples we can find. It's just right here at the beginning. Now let's go to psalm 19. Psalm, chapter 19, the 19th psalm. Can I get another volunteer to read verses seven through 1119? 711. [00:14:45] Speaker B: The law of the Lord is perfect, dividing the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple, the precepts of the Lord are right. Rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure. Enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean. Enduring forever. The rules of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired than they are gold. More to be desired are they than gold. Even much fine gold. Also them honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant mourn. In keeping them, there is great reward. [00:15:17] Speaker A: Thank you. So I want you guys to just shout these out, because there's a lot. How is God's word described? What are some ways it's described in this passage? Yeah. Perfect. Yeah, you can just say it. Sure. Perfect. Sure. Yeah. [00:15:37] Speaker B: Pure. [00:15:38] Speaker A: I'm sorry. Pure. Yeah. Enduring forever. Radiant. [00:15:48] Speaker B: True. [00:15:49] Speaker A: True. Enlightening. Enlightening. Yeah. Desired. Desired. Mm hmm. Desirable. Sweeter than honey. It warns God's servants. It rewards those who keep it. Yeah. And there are probably several others that we've missed. There are many ways that God's word is described here, but I want to focus on one, just for the sake of time. We see, and I'm looking for the verse, the very first verse, verse seven. The law of the Lord is perfect. Reviving the soul. How does scripture revive the soul? If we need help, let's go to romans ten. Flip to romans ten. So I'll read romans 1014. 17. I want you guys to listen and think. How does scripture revive the soul? Romans 1014. How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent as it is written? How beautiful are the feet of those who preach. The good news. I'll continue reading. But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us. So faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. How does the word revive the soul? Yeah, it reveals the gospel, and the word is called here, the word of Christ. We learn elsewhere that the word and Christ are so closely aligned that John chapter one refers to Christ as the word. The word of Christ is what gives faith. Hearing the word of Christ gives faith. Faith through which you are saved. So it revives the soul in that a dead soul, upon hearing the word through faith, is revived by Christ. In fact, that's the only way your soul can be revived, because your soul needs it. It is completely dead unless you have the word of Christ within you. So in hearing the word Christ is revealed and your soul is revived. So that's just a couple of places of what the Bible says. Of course, there are many more we could go to. Let's go to our third point. What do skeptics say? What do the skeptics say? So, of course, like usual when I get to this part, skeptics could be people that are intentionally misleading by teaching falsely, or it could be just mistakes that we've made by not. Or we just haven't learned how to think about this yet. Now, we've talked about the inspiration of scripture before, right? That was our first lesson. Well, skeptics that deny that the Bible is inspired also have to deny that any divine power operates through scripture. Why do you think that is? If you deny inspiration, why? I mean, a lot of people want to do this, by the way. A lot of people say, well, it's not really inspired, but it still has power. It still accomplishes a purpose. Why can those two things not exist? Yeah, I'll say it again. I'm trying to think of maybe a better way to word it. Why does the inspiration of scripture have to be true if this is also true? They have to both be true. But why? Why do they have to both be true? Why do they depend on each other? Because if it's divine, then it's transformative. And the only way for it to be transformative is for it to be divine. Yeah, I think that's a great answer. Yeah. You see, they need to be connected, because if it's not inspired, if there's no. If God didn't write it, if it was men that wrote it who wrote some true things, some false things, then we can't expect it to have that transformative power, because it is not God speaking. Even if the claim is only part is transformative, you can't know what parts. And if we can't know what part, then it's essentially useless. We can't know what is useful and what's not. And so it really just becomes confusing. We need these things both to be true. A second way that skeptics deny this is some skeptics who deny the authority and sufficiency of the word will elevate other types of speech, acts, other teachings to the level of scripture. So I'll just explain this. If the Bible is not enough, if it's not sufficient and it doesn't have the final authority, then the tradition of the Roman Catholic Church or the tradition of Mormon prophets or some other form of authority would claim to be equally transformative. But we know that the scripture is sufficient and it has the final authority. And so earthly bureaucracies, like the roman catholic system, or false prophets like that of the latter day Saint Mormon Church, they cannot claim authority equal with the Bible, especially if they contradict it. So they have to. We have to also accept that the Bible is authoritative, that it is all we need, and that it can and does transform people. So that's just a couple of things that skeptics might say. But now I want to spend a few minutes on this fourth point. What should our actions say? So I want you guys to think and share answers with the group. We're talking about the transformative power of scripture. What does that mean for you? How should this affect how you live? What are some applications? Katie? We should read it. Yeah. Why should we read it? Yeah, that's a great one. We should read it. Yeah, we should live by it. Why should we live by it? [00:24:39] Speaker B: Because if it transforms us, then our actions should. [00:24:49] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah, I think that's great. And those even kind of go together. Read it and live by it. Anything else? Yeah, I think those kind of go along with one of the. The points I wanted to say is that you must seek to. So you must read, but you must seek also to understand, believe, and obey all that God's word says. So a book that I've been using to select these topics by one of my professors that I showed you guys on the first week we started this. This is what he said. He said, if God commands and there is no response of obedience, or if the response is disobedience, he is displeased. If God promises and there's no response of trust, or if the response is mistrust, God is angered. Often such failures on our part result from misunderstanding scripture as mere words on a page or sounds in the air. Rather, it consists of God's speech acts, not merely words on a page. It's really easy for us to think that way because we see words on a page. But what is behind these words is the word of God. What you are reading is the word of God. And so we should understand, believe, and seek to obey to the best of our ability, all that is in there. The second way, which is connected to this, that we should apply this to our lives, is we should approach it not as just any other book. It is not just any other book. It's not just an object of study to master. Remember, how have we been defining theology? What is theology? [00:26:55] Speaker B: The study of God, which makes us more like Christ. [00:26:58] Speaker A: Yeah, the study of God, which makes us more like Christ. That's great. Theology must end with action, changed lives. It's not an academic discipline in the same way that you would study in a secular university, some other science or art, which might be fine, but it is just different. Theology must end with action. Why? Why must theology end with action? Yeah, it's transformative. That's right. And because if we know God, if you truly know God, that transforms your life. And so if you are actually studying to know God, then your life will be transformed. So that's why we must seek action when we study God's word. And if we're not compelled to anything, then we must question if we've really studied him. That's very good. Thank you guys for participating. Let's close in prayer. Father God, we praise you for your word, that is, transformative. God, when you speak, words do not hang in the air, empty and meaningless. They return to you filled with meaning. They accomplish the purpose from which they go out. Just as the word your son, Jesus Christ, put on flesh, accomplished his works of righteousness and death and resurrection, that through faith we may be saved by his death, that his death might forgive our sins and cover them. Lord, we praise you for this, and we ask that this truth would transform those of us in here who do not fully yet grasp the gospel, that those people would believe in you wholeheartedly and that their lives would be transformed. We pray this all in Christ's name. Amen.