“As soon as it was night, the brothers and sisters (in Thessalonica) sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. Upon arrival, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. The people here were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, since they received the word with eagerness and examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. Consequently, many of them believed, including a number of the prominent Greek women as well as men” (Acts 17:10–12).
The Bereans were “more noble.” That’s an interesting statement. Merriam-Webster defines the word “noble” as “possessing outstanding qualities” or “being of high birth, aristocratic” or “superiority of mind or character or of ideals or morals.” The Berean’s nobility was illuminated as “they received the word with eagerness and examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”
They heard Paul’s teaching and preaching, apparently with gladness, but they tested the preacher’s trustworthiness in the light of Scripture. They studied and examined what they heard and compared it to the plumbline of God’s Word.
It says in the great Book of Hezekiah, “God helps those who help themselves” and “God wants you to always be healthy and happy!” Really? You better be like the Bereans and “examine the Scriptures.”
Some of Paul’s last written words were addressed to young Timothy. The aging Apostle warned his young friend, “the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear” (2 Timothy 4:3). Christians in 2022 must read and study and know God’s Word! We must stand against the lies of the Devil!
The Bible is inspired by God and therefore, inerrant. “All Scripture is inspired by God, and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16–17).
The Bible is infallible. God declared, “my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do” (Isaiah 55:11). “The grass withers, the flowers fade, but the word of our God remains forever” (Isaiah 40:8).
And the Bible is authoritative and instructional. “These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deuteronomy 6:6–7). “This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to meditate on it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do” (Joshua 1:8).
The Bible, God’s Written Word is God’s revelation of Himself. It’s inspired, inerrant, infallible, instructional, and authoritative. Like the Bereans, we must know it, trust it, and obey it. Make it “a lamp for (your) feet and a light on (your) path” (Psalm 119:105) because “the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).
