Rightly Dividing the Word (Part 1)
2 Timothy 2:15
Now that we have covered our 3 part series on how to study the Bible, we will look at the 2nd part of 2Timothy 2:15 which shows us that we must rightly divide the word of truth. In this lesson we will begin to rightly divide by looking at the word righteous instead of the word saved. The word saved can mean several things. Like for instance in 1 Timothy 2:15 it means something other than salvation in the sense of being right with God. Note women are not made righteous by bearing children. Saved here is clearly not implying salvation as it would in Ephesians 2:8-9. Because of this using the word saved when looking at the different time periods of the Bible can be confusing, so we will focus on the word righteous.
The word righteous better explains the differences that are found when it comes to being right with God throughout different periods of time in the Bible. In this lesson we will use a simple definition for the word righteous.
Righteous – being right in the eyes of God.
Some people who were righteous before the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ:
1) Able (Hebrews 11:4 ; 1 John 3:12)
- Abel by faith offered a more excellent sacrifice and obtained witness that he was righteous.
- In 1 John we see that Cain killed Abel because Abel’s works were righteous and his were evil.
2) Noah (Hebrews 11:7)
- Noah by faith built the ark and became heir of righteousness.
3) Elisabeth and Zacharias (Luke 1:5-6)
- Elisabeth and Zacharias are both said to be righteous walking in the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
Looking at the examples above we see that there is both faith and works connected with their righteousness. Therefore, it is safe to say that After Adam sinned and before Jesus was resurrected when a man did by faith what God told him to do, he was seen as righteous by God.
What about after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ?
In Romans 3:9-20 Paul lays out the condition of lost men whether they are Jews or Gentiles. But note verse 10. “There is none righteous, no, not one:” This will seem like a contradiction considering that we just listed four people above who the bible said were righteous, but as we will see it is not. If it is not a contradiction then what is Romans talking about.
In Romans 3:21-28 we see that Paul goes on to explain the righteousness of God which is Jesus Christ and how it is based on faith without the works of the Law. This shows us that there is a difference between personal righteousness which is doing by faith what God said and the righteousness of God which is by faith in Jesus Christ.
Paul becomes the example for this in Philippians 3:4-9. Paul says that as a Pharisee he was righteous by the works of the Law, even blameless as Elisabeth and Zacharias. But then he goes on to say that he would rather have the righteousness of God which is by faith in Jesus Christ than his own personal righteousness (verse 9).
The Solution to man’s problem of righteousness:
Man’s greatest need is to be righteous in the eyes of God. Before Jesus Christ came, took man’s place as a sinner, and satisfied the demands of a righteous God, God granted personal righteousness to someone when they did by faith what he told them to do.
After Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection God will now grant his righteousness to a man based only on faith in the works of Jesus Christ. This is why the apostle Paul said over and over again in his epistles that man is not justified (justified means to be declared righteous before God) by works but by the faith of Jesus Christ (Romans 3:21-28 ; Galatians 2:16).
In the next lesson in this series, we will take this difference we have learned regarding personal righteousness verses God’s righteousness and see how it applies once again through the Bible. Which in turn will allow us to gain a better understanding of how to rightly divide the word of truth and why it is so important.