“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, entreat you to walk in a manner
worthy of the calling with which you have been called.” - Ephesians 4:1
Knowing and obeying God’s Word helps us walk worthy by protecting us from
sin.
While we are discussing the importance of knowing right doctrine before right
duty, let’s see one way knowing the Bible helps us to walk worthy: it protects
us from sin. From time to time you might hear people who have a fatalistic
attitude toward sin saying, “I couldn’t help myself” or “The Devil made me do
it.” Such excuses are foolish for Christians to make since God has given us the
means to resist temptation. The psalmist said, “Thy word I have treasured in my
heart, that I may not sin against Thee” (Ps. 119:11). Without knowledge, we are
defenseless and vulnerable. Knowing God’s truth—by study and by
application—enables us to say no to sin and yes to righteousness. Anyone who
puts his faith in Jesus Christ but who does not keep God’s Word constantly at
the forefront of his mind will find himself entrapped in sin again and again.
Although we must know God’s Word to defend ourselves against sin and to obey
God’s will, there is a danger. Once we know His truth, we are held accountable
for what we know.
Second Peter 2:21 speaks of apostates, those who knew about Jesus Christ but
returned to their former life without ever committing themselves to Him:
“It would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness,
than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment delivered to them.”
James 4:17 says, “To one who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to
him it is sin.”
So not knowing is better than knowing and not obeying. What’s best, of
course, is knowing the Word and obeying it, because it is our spiritual
nourishment: “Like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it
you may grow in respect to salvation” (1 Peter 2:2). For a Christian, neglecting
the Word is spiritual starvation.
~JM, Strength for Today
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