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COMMUNITY OF ALL BELIEVERS (2 TIMOTHY 3)

REFLECTION

The theme for our reflection is “Community of all believers” A community is a group of people who share or have certain attitudes and interests in common. The church is a community of all believers because we share one faith, one Lord and a common salvation through Him. Another important fact that makes us a community of all believers is that we believe in one Scripture that guides, inspires and instructs us in our relationship with God, our neighbours and the world or God’s creation. We shall reflect on the fact that as a community of believers, we are mutually equipped for good work that pleases God through constant study of Scripture.

Dear friend in the Lord, the foundation of our faith is Jesus Christ but the manual that guides and equips our faith to consistently follow His examples and also abide in good works that please God is the Scripture. As a community of believers, we must constantly be instructed and guided through our study and knowledge of the Scripture. Paul mentioned the importance of Scripture to the community of believers in his second letter to Timothy when he wrote “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17) In other words, the Scripture gives life and meaning to our faith. The moment the community of believers or the church compromises the centrality of Scripture it becomes weak and loses its integrity and impactfulness in the world. It is for this reason that Jesus said “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” (Matthew 5:13) Paul mentioned some of the evils that will befall the world during the last days for which the community of faith must be ready to endure and overcome through the power of the Holy Spirit and the consistent study of Scripture. Paul said “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5) Beloved in the Lord, Paul’s prophecy is fulfilled in our era and beyond. These things are all around us and it is for this reason that we cannot compromise the centrality of the Scripture in our lives as a community of all believers.

Beloved in the Lord, this is the time the community of all believers must be intentional and dedicated to the study of Scripture, especially, in an era where the church continues to be attacked by false teachers and teachings, false prophets, immorality and hostility both in our nation and in cyberspace. We are to strongly draw inspiration and heed the advice of Paul to Timothy when he wrote “… everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13 while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:12-17) Beloved in the Lord, is your life guided and impacted by the teachings of Scripture? What is the place of Scripture in our congregations? Are we serious with Bible studies and is the Bible shaping our thoughts and actions as a community of all believers? What is the place of Scripture in our homes as people of faith? Are we intentional about teaching and training our children in the knowledge of Scripture so that they will grow in wisdom, righteousness and stature and be equipped for every good work?

For us to live in righteousness and thoroughly be equipped for every good work as a community of believers, Joshua further admonishes us to “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.” (Joshua 1:8). Nurturing begins at home, therefore, let us maintain our dedication to daily Bible study starting from our homes. I have a simple rule that guides me always, No Bible No, Breakfast! We must also be disciplined and dedicated when it comes to Bible Studies in our congregation. Today, many churches have replaced Bible study with social activities and entertainment. The church cannot grow spiritually if entertainment and other social activities outweigh or overshadow the need for quality Bible Study. A church or community of all believers that do not uphold the centrality of Scripture is nothing short of a community of spiritually empty or carnal-minded men and women whose purpose of the gathering is mainly motivated by social welfare and not by God’s calling, mission and salvation. No wonder gossip, slander, envy, bad leadership, and unhealthy politics and competition among others keep destroying some of the churches in the twenty-first century. We need to return to the fundamental manual of our faith, the Scripture, to redeem the image and integrity of the Church in our time.

Another fallacy the church must purge itself from is the instantaneous or once-in-a-blue-moon revival programmes that do not guarantee spiritual growth. We fail to attend Bible study and prayer programmes for many days and months, and then all of a sudden we organise a mega revival programme thinking that it will bring about instantaneous spiritual rejuvenation and growth. Such programmes are beneficial if we are consistent with our daily and congregational Bible study and prayer programmes as a community of believers. Most of us attend this programme for two to three days, we pray, sing, get emotionally charged with all its associated drama and then go back to our old ways waiting for the next mega revival programme to reactivate our spiritual life. How can we sustain our spiritual growth and righteousness and also remain equipped for every good work if we are inconsistent with Bible studies and prayer? Dear friend “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is —his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2) The transformation begins and is sustained when the Scripture becomes our daily bread and the foundation of our spirituality and morality.

In summary, we have discovered that as a community of believers, we are mutually trained in righteousness and well-equipped for good works that please God through our constant study of Scripture. Buy a Bible today if you do not have one, start reading and studying it if you have one, and be consistent with your morning devotion and your congregational Bible Study and Prayer programmes to experience true revival. Shalom.

PRAYER

Holy Spirit, strengthen us as a community of believers to study the Scripture, meditate on it day and night to live in righteousness and be fully equipped for every good work that pleases and glorifies the name of the Lord. Amen.