(ThyBlackMan.com) Brethren
Let’s never take the Word of God for granted and assume that just because we have heard a particular Scripture many times before that we have received the full revelation of said Scripture.
For example, the following Scripture is one we’ve all heard many times.
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. – 2 Timothy 2:15 KJV
This is one of many Scriptures that is taken out-of-context, and unfortunately, the true meaning of it is traditionally lost. Whenever I have been taught this Scripture in the past, I remember focusing very heavily on the word “study,” and the image that I had in my mind was that of preparing for an exam in school. This led me to always want to “study” the Word of God like I was studying for an Algebra test and I became the consummate Scripture quoting believer. But “to study” in terms of a test is not the context of this Scripture.
The word “study” comes from the Greek word “spoudazó,” which means to move speedily by showing full diligence (fully applying oneself); acting fervently (with a speedy commitment) to accomplish all that God assigns through faith (“His spiritual persuasion in a believer”). So the word “spoudazó” paints a picture of the condition of the (spiritual) heart, diligence; while the word “study,” like I mentioned above, paints a picture of a mental activity, like preparing for a test.
So a more accurate translation of this Scripture might read, “Earnestly seek to commend yourself to God as a servant who, because of his straightforward dealing with the word of truth, has no reason to feel any shame.” – Weymouth New Testament
This translation reveals a different posture than that of studying for a test, because the word “study” in the King James Version is simply a mistranslation from the Greek text.
The emphasis on a teaching from this text should be to posture our hearts towards God rather than to bombard our minds with thinking and mental activity. Now, it is important that we align our thinking and mental activity with God’s ways, but my purpose with this message is to refocus our attention on the true context of this particular Scripture, which is to fashion our hearts towards God.
Be mindful and be open to search the Scriptures to ensure that the messages we hear about the Scriptures are sound and contextual. God’s Word is always true, but there are instances where human error or secular thinking have been used as a mechanism to cloud the Word of God from shining through to us in its purest form.
Think on these things.
Staff Writer; Brian Ganges
One can connect follow this Christian brother over at; B. Ganages. Also drop an email at; BrianG@ThyBlackMan.com.