Anyone who appeals to the Bible as God’s Word is, consciously or unconsciously, dividing what is and isn’t meant for them. This will often happen relatively unnoticed. If you grew up in a particular church, you will follow the divisions they make there. I don’t know anyone who believes that all of Scripture is directly addressed to them. There won’t be many believers who:
- Keep all the dietary laws and other laws from the Old Testament
- Celebrate all the “feasts of the LORD” (Leviticus 23)
- Remove their right eye or cut off their right hand if it offends them (Matthew 5:29-30)
- Etc.
Regarding the proper division of God’s word, Paul tells Timothy:
2 Timothy 2
15 Do your best to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, but one who rightly divides the word of truth.
Trustworthy
In this chapter, Paul points Timothy to his career in serving God. He compares him to a soldier (2 Timothy 2:3), an athlete (2 Timothy 2:5), and a hardworking farmer (2 Timothy 2:6).
Timothy should strive to “present himself approved to God,” meaning someone who has been found trustworthy and reliable by God because he carries out his task carefully and faithfully. The important point Paul raises in this regard is rightly dividing the word of truth.
Timothy, and we too, should rightly divide the word of truth, that is, divide it correctly, and distinguish between what is directly addressed to us and what is not. We should differentiate between what is meant for our time and what isn’t. But how do we do that?