Latest / Reformed Thinking / Breathed-Out and Sufficient: Scripture’s Origin, Profit, and Purpose (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

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Breathed-Out and Sufficient: Scripture’s Origin, Profit, and Purpose (2 Timothy 3:16-17) · Reformed Thinking

• 0:00
  Welcome back to Reform. Thinking into the deep dive.
• 0:02
  Our mission, as always, is pretty straightforward.
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  Take the sources, cut through the clutter, the the cultural
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  noise and get right down to the core claims that shape our
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  faith. You know it feels like we're
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  swimming in information these days, right?
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  So many voices all claiming to have the answer, maybe leaving
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  you feeling a bit stretched thin.
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  Oh, today we're pushing back against that noise.
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  We're diving into just two verses, but wow, what verses?
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  7 Timothy 3.16 and 17. That's the source code for
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  understanding Scripture itself. I want to really distill the
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  doctrine here. How does the Bible's nature
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  equip God's people for a life that's well defined by what God
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  has revealed? Because with all the competing
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  voices out there, you need to know where the true voice is
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  coming from. That's spot on.
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  Paul isn't just sending Timothy some nice thoughts here.
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  He's laying out the theological engine, you could say, for
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  everything the Christian minister and really every
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  believer does. And the argument in these versus
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  it moves with this, this real precision.
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  So we're going to follow that logic.
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  We'll tackle 3 big questions. First, where does the Bible
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  actually come from? That's its origin, its status.
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  Second, what does it do for us? Its utility, its profit, you
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  might say. And 3rd, why did God give it?
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  What's the end goal that gets us into its purpose and truthfully,
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  its efficiency. So let's start right at the
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  source, God's breath. OK, God breathed.
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  That's the term everyone knows from this passage.
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  Textus. Toss in the Greek.
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  It immediately sets the Bible part, doesn't it?
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  What's the technical weight behind that word?
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  Yeah. Textus Toss.
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  It's it's what scholars call 1/2 Axe, Lego man, and on.
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  Basically, it's the only place this exact word shows up in the
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  whole New Testament. Wow.
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  OK. So it's unique.
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  Very unique and theologically massive.
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  It literally fuses theos, which is God and pneuma, meaning
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  breath or spirit. It's nailing down the text.
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  Divine origin. It means God himself exhaled the
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  text. It's not just that he, you know,
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  nudged the human writers along or gave him some good ideas
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  about him. No, the idea is that the words
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  came out from God. It's his own living word,
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  captured in writing through human hands.
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  Yes, but originating from him. That distinction.
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  Origin versus mere influence. It's everything for
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  understanding this passage. That's a key point because
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  sometimes people get stuck on that, right?
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  They say, well, hang on, Paul sounds like Paul and Luke sounds
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  like Luke. How can it be God's breath if
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  the human styles are so different?
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  That's a fair question, and it brings up what theologians call
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  concursus, or dual authorship. It's actually part of what God
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  breathed implies. The idea is that God, in his
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  sovereignty, use the writers exactly as they were, their
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  personality, their background, their vocabulary, their
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  education. God's breath was the starting
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  point, the guarantee, but it flowed through the human
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  author's own faculties. He didn't just, like, dictate it
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  word for word, like a machine overriding their minds.
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  So the author is like the instrument maybe?
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  Exactly. Think of it like that.
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  The author's personality is the instrument.
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  A flute sounds different from a trumpet, but God is the composer
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  and the musician, ensuring the final piece is precisely what he
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  intended, error free, while still sounding like that
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  specific instrument. It keeps both the human feel and
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  the divine source intact. And you mentioned this connects
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  to bigger biblical ideas about God's breath, like in creation.
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  Precisely. There's a really strong link,
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  the same breath, the same spirit that brings life, Think Genesis
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  to God breaking life into Adam or Psalm 33.
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  By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the
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  breath of his mouth all their host, or even Ezekiel vision,
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  the breath bringing dry bones back to life.
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  That same powerful creative life giving divine breath is the
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  source of the written word too. OK, so that elevates Scripture
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  to the level of God's creative acts in a.
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  Way it gives it that status. Yes.
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  And because the source is the living true God, the immediate
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  result for the text is absolute authority.
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  It means when scripture speaks, God is speaking.
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  That has to be our starting point for how we approach it.
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  And authority leads directly to reliability, doesn't it?
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  If the source is God, and God, as Titus 1.2 says, cannot lie.
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  The necessary outcome is truthfulness.
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  Yeah, inerrancy. That's a cornerstone of Reformed
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  thinking drawn right from here. If God breathed it, it reflects
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  his character. It's true.
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  And everything it affirms, it's unbreakable.
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  As Jesus himself said, we trust the Word because we trust the
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  one who spoke it. That's why we submit to it.
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  Authority established, Truthfulness established.
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  Now what about the scope Paul says all scripture, Sigma,
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  Alpha, Murphy, sick. Does all mean just the Old
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  Testament which Timothy knew growing up?
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  Or does it include the New Testament writings to?
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  All Sigma alpha Pharphy makes it clear it's the whole thing, the
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  plenary scope, meaning the total scope.
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  The word graphia was the technical term for the
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  recognized sacred writings, the Canon.
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  So yes, it absolutely includes the law, the prophets, the
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  writings, the Old Testament, what Paul calls the sacred
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  writings just a verse earlier. But here's the thing.
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  By the time Paul writes to Timothy, there's already a
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  pattern set by the apostles themselves that includes the New
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  Testament writings under that same authority.
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  How so? Well, look at First Timothy
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  5.88. Paul quotes two sources and
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  calls both of them Scripture. One is from Deuteronomy, classic
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  Old Testament, but the other it's the saying of Jesus
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  recorded in the Luke's gospel. OK, so he puts Luke on the same
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  level as Deuteronomy. Exactly.
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  By doing that, he's showing that the Apostolic writings about
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  Christ's life and teaching carry the same God breathed weight as
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  the established Old Testament. That's powerful, and Peter does
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  something similar with Paul's letters.
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  Right, he does. In Seven Peter Three Peter talks
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  about Paul's letters and mentions that some people twist
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  them as they do the other scriptures.
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  He puts Paul's writings right alongside the existing Canon.
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  So when we confess all scripture is God breathed, we mean the
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  whole 66 book Canon, Old and New Testaments.
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  Every single part shares that divine origin and authority.
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  So bottom line for this first part, the source determines the
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  status. It's God's word, it's true, it's
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  authoritative, and it applies to the whole Bible.
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  And because it's from God, it's not just true, it's also useful,
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  profitable. Which brings us right to the
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  next word. Profitable.
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  Scripture isn't just divinely sourced, it actually does
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  something. It's useful.
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  And Paul lists 4 specific ways it's profitable.
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  Let's unpack those. There seems to be a kind of
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  pastoral logic to the order here.
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  There really is. These 4 uses aren't just random,
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  they follow a sequence designed to shape a person, to move them
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  from ignorance or error towards, well, godly living.
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  Think of it as a complete toolkit God provides through his
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  word. First up is teaching.
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  Teaching Delta Parapha docs right?
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  This is the foundation. It informs the mind.
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  It gives us the content we need for faith.
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  It's the true map, telling us who God is, who we are, what
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  Christ did, what to believe. So it provides the framework,
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  the truth. Exactly.
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  It renews the mind by filling it with truth.
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  Without this teaching, the other functions don't really have
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  anything solid to work. With OK, it makes sense, but
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  knowing the truth isn't always enough, is it?
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  We often stray from it. We certainly do, and that's
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  where the second function comes in.
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  We're proof. This isn't a gentle suggestion.
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  It's more like judicial exposure conviction.
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  The word confronts us. It cross examines our wrong
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  beliefs, our sinful actions, the lies we tell ourselves, the
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  cultural ideas we've maybe just absorbed without thinking.
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  Can you give an example? Sure, think about something like
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  maybe hidden bitterness. Our culture might frame it as
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  just, you know, protecting yourself for a needing space.
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  But scripture comes in with reproof, using the law and says,
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  no, that's actually resentment. It's unforgiveness.
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  It's sin. It acts like a mirror, showing
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  us the dirt. It convicts the conscience.
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  OK, so teaching gives the standard reproof shows where we
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  fall short. That sounds necessary, but maybe
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  a bit harsh if left there it. Would be absolutely.
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  If you only expose the problem, you leave people crushed.
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  That's why the next step is correction acute for Epson PO
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  CUDA Sigma iota var Sigma. The word literally means
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  straighten up again, restoration.
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  Setting things right. Precisely.
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  Reproof identifies the crookedness.
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  Correction shows how to get straight.
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  If Reproof says you're headed the wrong way, correction
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  provides the map and the directions to turn around and go
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  the right way. So if Reproof exposed that
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  hidden bitterness, correction points to the biblical commands
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  about forgiveness, reconciliation, dealing with
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  conflict, God's way. It shows the right pattern, the
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  better path. If Reproof finds the broken
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  bone, Correction sets it. It redirects.
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  Us. OK, so truth taught, error
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  exposed, path corrected. What's the last one?
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  It feels like it should be about staying on that corrected path.
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  You got it. The 4th is training in
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  righteousness. That word pedea is about
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  disciplined upbringing, like child rearing, instruction
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  formation. This isn't about a one time fix.
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  This is the long game, the steady practice of holy habits,
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  spiritual disciplines, character development.
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  It's how Scripture shapes us over time to actually live
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  righteously. So, building godly character
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  through practice. Yes, this is where we see the
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  law's third use as a guide for the believer.
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  We're already saved by grace through faith.
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  Now, out of gratitude, the Word trains us how to live, how to
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  pray, how to deny self, how to serve others, how to obey God's
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  commands in daily life. It forms our character piece by
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  piece. It's really quite a system,
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  teaching reproof, correction, training, mind, conscience,
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  path, character. And you mentioned this ties into
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  the Law and Gospel framework. Beautifully.
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  Remember verse 15, the immediate context.
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  Scripture makes you wise for salvation through faith in
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  Christ Jesus. That's the gospel, the good news
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  of salvation. Now reproof often uses the law
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  like a hammer, showing us our sin, crushing our self-reliance,
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  driving us to that gospel, to Christ for forgiveness.
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  Then, once we're in Christ, reconciled through the gospel
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  correction and training, use the law differently, not to condemn
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  us, but as a guide for grateful living.
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  How do we walk in a way that pleases the God who saved us?
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  The Word trains us, so it uses law and gospel dynamically for
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  the whole process of salvation and sanctification.
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  All right, so we've seen the source, God's breath.
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  We've seen the utility, teaching, reproof, correction,
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  training. Now verse 17 gives us the
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  purpose, the big why? Why did God breathe out this
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  profitable word? Verse 17 gives the goal, the
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  intended outcome. It says all this happens so that
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  the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
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  That's the aim of the whole process.
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  Let's break that down. First, the Man of God.
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  Acute stack role, prime, alpha, mega P of Sigma.
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  That phrase sounds significant, like it has some history.
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  It definitely does. In the Old Testament, it was a
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  title for key figures like Moses, Elijah, Elijah.
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  Prophets, Leaders who spoke God's word represented him.
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  Often during difficult times. They were God's appointed
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  spokesman. So people directly commissioned
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  by God, right? And then the New Testament
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  context, particularly here, writing to Timothy, it points
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  primarily to the minister, the pastor, the elder, the one
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  officially charged with guarding the doctrine and shepherding
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  God's people. Like Timothy himself.
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  It signifies their role as stewards of God's Word.
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  OK. So the immediate focus is
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  equipping the minister. We can talk about how that
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  applies more broadly later, but what's the goal for this
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  minister? Complete and equipped?
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  What do those terms tell us? They're strong words describing
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  readiness. Complete cute, alpha rota, gota
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  over Sigma means something like fit for duty, competent,
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  adequate. It suggests the person has
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  everything needed for the job. They're not lacking any
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  essential qualification or tool. So capable.
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  Ready. Ready and capable.
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  Think of maybe a soldier who's passed all their training and is
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  declared fit for service. It's not about being sinless,
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  but about being fully prepared and suitable for the tasks God
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  requires. And then equipped acute Akuti
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  Sigma MO of Sigma. That sounds like the process
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  that makes them complete. It's actually the result, and
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  maybe even stronger. It's a perfect tense verb form,
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  meaning it describes a finished state, a settled, accomplished
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  outfitting that has been done to the person by scripture.
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  Ah. OK, so scripture does the
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  equipping. Yes, it's like they've been
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  fully kitted out, furnished with everything necessary.
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  Imagine a Craftsman whose toolbox has been perfectly
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  stocked by the master. Scripture provides the full kit.
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  So the man of God is competent acute Alfaro salon because
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  Scripture has thoroughly furnished him.
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  Acute offer new O for Sigma for his work preaching, teaching,
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  refuting error, leading, enduring hardship.
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  And the scope of that equipping is huge.
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  Every good work. That little phrase seems to be
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  the linchpin for the doctrine of the sufficiency of Scripture.
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  It absolutely is. That's the foundation.
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  The doctrine of sufficiency basically says Scripture
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  contains everything we need from God for salvation, for trusting
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  Him, and for living a life that pleases Him.
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  If the Bible equips the man of God for every good work
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  required, well then logically, nothing essential for knowing
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  God, serving God, or living godly is left out.
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  It's all there in the book. And that phrase, good work is
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  key too, isn't it? It's not just any activity we
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  think is nice. Exactly.
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  The Word doesn't just enable good works, it defines what
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  counts as a good work. In a biblical sense, a good work
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  is something God has actually commanded in his Word, done from
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  faith in Him and for His glory, not just, you know, something
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  that feels good or seems helpful by human standards.
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  So this really pushes back against the temptation churches
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  sometimes feel to look outside scripture for the real tools for
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  ministry or Christian living, like relying heavily on secular
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  psychology or business strategies.
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  It does. If Scripture is sufficient for
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  every good work, then those other things can't be essential,
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  can they? They might offer maybe some
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  illustrations or secondary insights, but they can't replace
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  the Word as the primary source of wisdom and guidance.
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  If the pastor feels they need a secular business model to make
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  the church effective, or the latest therapeutic trend to
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  counsel effectively, it subtly undermines this claim that
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  Scripture provides the complete toolkit.
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  The sufficiency of the Word, based on its divine origin and
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  utility is a safeguard. We don't need new revelations or
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  techniques. We need to faithfully use the
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  perfect tool God already gave us.
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  OK, so that connection is vital. The man of God is fully equipped
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  by this sufficient word. And right on the heels of saying
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  that in 3.17 Paul issues a strong command and 4.2, it seems
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  like the equipping naturally flows into a specific duty.
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  The connection is immediate and intentional because the word is
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  sufficient and equips the minister.
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  The very next thing Paul says is essentially, so get to work
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  using it. The command in 4.2 is preach the
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  word. Be ready in season and out of
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  season. Reprove, rebuke, and exhort.
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  Preach the word. That's the core duty.
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  It's the non negotiable central task.
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  And notice this makes expository preaching where you open up the
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  text, explain it, apply it, not just one style among many.
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  It's a theological necessity. If this is the God breathed
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  sufficient tool for equipping people, then the minister's main
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  job has to be wielding this tool faithfully.
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  Paul even prefaces the command with that incredibly solemn
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  charge. I charge you in the presence of
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  God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the
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  dead. This is serious business.
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  And it's fascinating how the specific actions Paul commands
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  the minister to take in 4.2 directly reflect the four
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  profitable functions of Scripture we just talked about
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  from 3.16 the. Parallel is unmistakable.
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  It's almost point for point. What scripture is and does the
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  minister does by preaching it? Walk us through that.
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  OK, so Paul says the minister must reprove.
• 15:35
  That clearly mirrors Scripture's function of acute virusalon
• 15:38
  kamaki over Sigma convicting sin.
• 15:41
  He says rebuke, which involves correcting error and setting
• 15:44
  things straight, aligning with acute var epsilon P alpha nu O
• 15:48
  acute var salon kamiya kamivar Sigma.
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  He says exhort, which is urging people toward godliness and
• 15:53
  encouraging them at it, reflecting the PLP of the delta
• 15:56
  viralon acute alpha, the training and righteousness.
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  And he adds, it must all be done with complete patience and
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  teaching, bringing in the foundational DDDAA Lambda Q to
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  alpha. So the preacher's actions are
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  basically applying the word inherent functions to the
• 16:12
  congregation through proclamation.
• 16:15
  The minister is the delivery system for the words own work.
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  Now the passage focuses on Timothy, the minister.
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  But how does this equipping ripple out?
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  What about the listener? The person in the Pew that's.
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  A great question. The ministers equipping isn't
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  just for his own benefit, of course.
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  Paul explains this elsewhere. Like in Ephesians 4.
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  Christ gives gifted ministers like pastors and teachers.
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  Why? To equip the Saints for the work
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  of ministry for building up the body of Christ.
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  Ah, so the equipped minister then equips the congregation.
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  Exactly. The minister uses the sufficient
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  Word to teach, reprove, correct, and train the congregation.
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  The goal is that the whole church gets built up, gets
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  equipped through hearing and submitting to the Word so that
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  they too can perform the good works God has prepared for them
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  in their own lives. So the sufficiency benefits
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  everyone. The minister is equipped to
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  minister the Word, and the church is equipped by that
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  ministry of the Word. That's right, it creates a
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  church full of people who are hopefully becoming increasingly
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  competent and furnished by Scripture for whatever God calls
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  them to do. Parenting, working ethically,
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  serving neighbors, sharing their faith.
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  It all flows from God's sufficient Word.
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  It means our confidence, our satisfaction, our direction.
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  It all has to be grounded in the Bible God has given us.
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  It really is complete. OK, let's wrap this deep dive
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  up. We've covered a lot of ground
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  from just two verses. We started with the source,
• 17:39
  God's own breath texte sustos, making the word authoritative
• 17:43
  and true. Then we looked at its dual
• 17:45
  nature, God breathed and profitable MO mega var fiamu
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  over Sigma. We saw those four key functions,
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  teaching us truth, reproving our errors, correcting our path and
• 17:56
  training our character. And it all culminates in the
• 17:59
  grand purpose, the complete equipping acute alpha over
• 18:02
  Sigma, and furnishing acute over sima, more acute acute over
• 18:05
  Sigma of the man of God, and through him the Church, for
• 18:08
  every good work which establishes the amazing
• 18:11
  sufficiency of Scripture. And maybe a final thought to
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  leave with everyone listening in a culture that's always, you
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  know, chasing the next big thing, the newest trend, the
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  latest technique, perhaps the greatest strength of the church
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  is simply it's steady, patient faithfulness to this book
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  because this word defines what's truly good and equips us for
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  every one of those good works. The real challenge for you isn't
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  just to be busy doing things, even good sounding things, is to
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  make sure that what you are doing, how you raise your kids,
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  how you engage in society, how you treat people, is actually
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  shaped and defined by God's revelation in Scripture, not
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  just by your own feelings or the world's ideas.
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  So take up this book, read it, study it, submit to its
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  training, even when it's reproof stings a little.
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  Because in doing that you'll find yourself becoming fit,
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  competent, fully furnished for every single thing God has
• 18:59
  planned for you to do. The same word that created the
• 19:02
  universe, the same word that saves souls, is the Word that
• 19:05
  will sustain you and equip you all the way to the end.