As the wife of a seminarian, it is not an unusual for me to come across the world in its rawest state of sin. I’m sure that we all encounter the depraved nature of this world on a regular basis. These encounters leave me so broken-hearted that my prayers are full to the brim with petitions for the salvation of strangers all around me. Over the last few weeks this has been a daily, if not hourly, experience. The first question I ask myself is always “why?” The answer is located between the well-loved and worn leather faces of my Bible. At the direction of my God’s Word, I can navigate through my most difficult questions and the dilemmas the world throws at me.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 states that “all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; So that the man of God may be adequate (the ESV renders this “complete”), equipped for every good work.” Paul says that the Scripture is sufficient for all of life, and builds us up for everything in life. It builds the Christian into completeness (cf. Philippians 1:6). I pray this post helps to prove how boundless the sufficiency of Scripture is in regard to the difficult questions of life. I will show that Scripture is sufficient to provide an answer for the depravity that we see around us as well as a way to eternal life.
Why Is Mankind So Messed Up?
The third chapter of Genesis details the fall of mankind. A simple question posited by the Deceiver brought man to his knees. Sin took root in the human heart, and Adam and Eve immediately played the blame game. The Bible makes clear that the curse of sin originated here, and that ever since “the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now” (Romans 8:22). It is commonly perceived in our culture that people are basically good. But this couldn’t be any further from the truth. And we see that only the Bible is sufficient to answer this question.
Is There Any Hope For Mankind On His Own?
Psalm 2 tells us what all of mankind say within their hearts: “Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us.” They want to be rid of God. They do not want His Messiah or His Salvation.
James 4:1-4 lays out the deceit that lies in our hearts. The one who desires to make friends with the world makes himself God’s enemy. Romans 1:17-32 says that mankind loves sin more than God. In fact, they are willing to call sin good and celebrate it. This deliberate exchange of good for evil causes the chasm between God and man to widen as God gives them over to the adultery within their hearts. Selling one’s own brand of wisdom as greater than God’s wisdom is a deadly folly. Only the Word of God is sufficient to answer this question. Mankind would say that they could come to God, and many would perhaps be bold enough to say that they are already good with God.
Is There Any Hope for Mankind At All?
Mankind has always recognized its sinful nature and has always sought a way to God. The problem with this is that mankind seeks for God in the wrong way. They seek by works, but the Bible tells us it is not by works that man can be saved from sin. Paul calls us slaves to sin. This means that we are unable to free ourselves through our own volition. Thankfully, we are offered a solution to our slavery: true freedom to live life to its fullest measure.
In Ecclesiastes, Solomon tells us that before we pursue the fleeting pleasures of this world, we should ground ourselves in the richness of God’s Word so that if all that we have should fail us, we will always have the fruit of the Spirit (cf. Galatians 5:22-23). Solomon was aware of the importance of seeking God and His Word first.
1 Peter 1:13 exhorts the believers to “prepare their minds for action, keep sober in spirit…” To do this one must saturate himself in the Word of God. Saturation means to be full. I think of a sponge after doing dishes. You can touch the sponge, and a bit of water will seep out. If you squeeze it much more will be released. So we are to immerse ourselves in the Word continually so that we can be full of God’s Word to combat the sin that still dwells in our flesh. If we neglect to saturate ourselves, the struggle to maintain the fruit of the Spirit during tribulation will be very hard.
Christ provides that freedom through His sacrifice on the cross, rendering the sinful soul who repents clean and worthy to stand before a holy and righteous God. We have a sin problem which makes us unable to be close to God, because He is holy and pure. But God provided a way for us to fellowship with Him again. Scripture tells us that only Jesus’ blood and righteousness removes the stain of sin, and that His atonement was provided so that we might have communion with the Father. Therefore, we have hope in Jesus: hope that can never be taken from us. It is eternal and everlasting. And it will be made complete when we go to meet Jesus — whether it be at the Rapture or the end of our earthly sojourn (cf. 2 Peter 1:4, 1 John 1:3).
Conclusion
I have found the Bible to be more than sufficient to answer the questions and solve issues that arise during the course of life, and I entreat those who turn to worldly wisdom for comfort and solace to turn to the Word of God instead. For the beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord (Proverbs 9:10), and that wisdom is found in His Word.
