STUDY

2 TIMOTHY 2:15 “STUDY TO SHEW THYSELF APPROVED UNTO GOD, A WORKMAN THAT NEEDETH NOT TO BE ASHAMED, RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD OF TRUTH.” (KJV)
   “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (NKJV)
   “..accurately handling the word of truth.” (NASB)
   “..rightly handling the word of truth.” (RSV, ASV)
   “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (NIV)
   “Be a good workman, one who does not need to be ashamed when God examines your work. Know what his Word says and means.” (TLB)

     “Studying is the active, purposeful process of acquiring knowledge through reading, memorizing and reviewing, essential for academic success. Effective techniques include active recall, spaced repetition, note taking and memorization.” Wow. I should have started with this verse in Chapter 1 of Hide the Word. This kind of hits the theme of these books, doesn’t it?

     I spent over twenty years of my life feeling like I looked like the man in the photo above. I don’t look that young any more, but I can identify with countless hours reading, memorizing and studying the books and notes I had to try to pass the tests.

     I know what most of you are saying. “I spent what felt like long years doing the same…grade school, high school, maybe even some college. I don’t want to do that anymore!”

     In an occupation that required constant and regular studying, it seemed like that studying through my life would probably never end. You might say, “surely that cannot also apply to my Christian life as well!” Well….

     This well-known passage of Scripture gives us some insight into the pastoral counseling of an older Paul to a younger protégé of his, Timothy. And yes, Paul’s advice to him is he needs to study if he is going to learn to be an adequate workman of the ministry and God’s truth.

     I have sat under the leadership of many pastors in my life in numerous churches. I could always tell the ones who had devoted the greatest amounts of time to studying the Word in preparation for being a messenger to me, to the lost and to the world of followers of Jesus in the church. Some just appeared to have worked harder in their studies to become excellent teachers and preachers, sharpening their skills in communication by learning from others and uncounted hours in prayer seeking the Lord to make them the pastors He needed them to be.

     That’s what Paul is doing here with Timothy. By extension of the work of the Holy Spirit, the Lord would have us feel the same way. We should feel like workmen for the Lord. Apparently, we might even feel ashamed if we have not been good workmen or if we have not learned how to divide or handle God’s Words of truth. Read our text verse again.

     The problem, of course, is a lot of times that is going to involve STUDY. We won’t be good workmen without doing the work. And a lot of us would rather not do the work. (Don’t let my words condemn you on that. Pray and ask the Lord if that is true in your life.)

     I am always impressed by my sister-in-law, Nancy and her daughter Anna as ones who are always studying the Word…always looking like the dude above with lots of notebooks, always transcribing notes as they studiously read through their Bibles and participate in their Bible studies. I wish we were all that way.

     I have found it to be true that the more I study the Bible, the more I learn and find out things I hadn’t seen or learned before. Of course, that means one would probably have to be reading the Bible every day to start with. One might need to actually study it, memorize it, devote a lot of time digging into its truths to learn some of the most valuable lessons it has to teach us.

     You say, “That sounds like a lot of work!” Well, yeah! Most learning doesn’t come from osmosis. It come from work. That’s why Paul used the term “workman” to describe what he hoped Timothy would be.

     The best learning comes from getting somewhere quiet, shutting out distractions, reading and re-reading passages, checking out cross references to those passages to give more light to the truth of the words. And yes, memorizing information ends up being the best way to store it for future use when it might be desperately needed.

     The rewards for such hard work are numerous. The first, obvious reward is feeling like we are “approved of God.” Look at the text again. The conclusion of this verse tells us that if we study, if we do the work the Lord has called us to do, His approval will follow. I want the Lord’s approval. I really long for the Lord to tell me, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

     Now to be clear, our salvation is not founded on work. It is founded on our faith in the completed work of Jesus. But I have found that if we are faithful to His calling in our lives, work generally follows our salvation…sometimes, a lot of work. Let’s get to it!

     The second truth here is that we are all workmen…but some of us can be ashamed, primarily because we are not doing the work. Not all versions of this Scripture use the word “study” but they all do all use the word, “ashamed.”

     The Bible teaches that there will be a day in judgment when our works will be tried by fire. Works of straw and hay will be burned up. The gold works of doing the work of the Lord will survive that fire and be added to our rewards in heaven…we will be rewarded according to our works. It even teaches that some, though saved by faith, will have no works to show for it. Again, let’s work for the “well done.”

     Last, we really need to learn to “rightly divide the word of truth.” We can learn to do that if we will study and do the work of a good workman. As believers, we are students of the Word. We just need to work harder to be good students.

     Many times, the reason we don’t know the Word any better than we do is because we don’t want to put in the work to “divide it.” I can see Timothy after this admonition from Paul looking like the young student above with Paul’s numerous manuscripts in front of him. Maybe he was frustrated because he thought he might never have understanding like his teacher. But Paul told him the secret…STUDY, Timothy!

     Study David! Study Steve! Study to learn, study to become a better workman, study to gain more of the approval of God. Again, don’t look at me to determine if this is true. Look in the mirror and ask the Lord if it is true in you. Pray, seek the Lord, ask Him for the strength to do the work that it looks like He has called you to do. You can do it!

     Questions to consider: Are you a hard worker? Is it possible that the approach that we take in our earthly jobs is the same approach we use in our Christian disciplines as well? Does it seem like studying was something you did in school but should not necessarily apply to your Christian life? What are some great tools we can use to help us in our study of the Word? Are there some study Bibles that can help us study better and more effectively? Does the degree to which we dedicate ourselves to study affect our Christian testimony to the world around us?

     Other Scriptures to STUDY: Psalm 119:105 “…a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:11 “Thy word have I hid in my heart…” Ecclesiastes 1:13 “I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven.” Colossians 1:10 “…being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”