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 The Power of Scripture 

Recently, I published a post on the Authority of Scripture. In that post, I talked about how we must return to the belief in the absolute authority of scripture for our faith walk as believers: That the scriptures must govern ALL the practices of the Church. That statement shouldn’t be revolutionary, but it is. Many have left the Bible behind in their pursuit of God. The scriptures teach the opposite. When we are truly pursuing God, our love for the scriptures grow. And there’s significant reasons for loving the scriptures. One of those reasons is the Power of Scripture. That’s what I’d like to talk about in this post. 

The Apostle Paul, in writing to his son in the faith, Apostle Timothy, states, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” 2 Tim. 3:16, 17. Here, the Apostle Paul is establishing the authority of scripture for the Church’s belief structure. Yet, before he does that, he establishes what we’re talking about in this post — The Power of Scripture.

What do I mean? In 2 Timothy 3:15, the Apostle Paul states to Apostle Timothy, “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” Right here, when writing to the Apostle Timothy, is reminding him of what he knows — The Power of Scripture. In fact, he uses the Greek word Dunamis — the same word used to describe the power we receive as believers through the Baptism of the Holy Spirit — for the power that we receive through the scriptures. Where? The words “which are able” in 2 Timothy 3:15 in the Greek is Dumamis — or miracle working power — the same power given on the Day of Pentecost — is given through the scriptures. 

Yes, the scriptures have power to make us wise unto salvation in Christ Jesus. In other words, scripture reveals the saving, delivering, and healing power of Christ to the Church. And that’s what we lack as the Church today. For us to have the power of scripture, we must return to our belief in the Authority of Scripture. The Authority of Scripture is hidden in its power for the one who reads, studies, believes, and practices the scripture in their daily walk. And the Apostle Paul is reminding the Apostle Timothy of the truth about scripture he learned as a young Jewish person from his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice, whose faith he followed. 

Notice, it was the Apostle Timothy’s mother and grandmother who instilled in him a love for scripture. That is one of the greatest gifts you can give to any child. Marilyn Hickey once shared a story about a woman who was in her congregation. That woman had a son who was mentally disabled. She went to Marilyn Hickey as a pastor and asked her what she should do. Marilyn Hickey said she should have her son learn and remember the scriptures. So she and her son would memorize scripture. Year after year went by. That woman’s son, a son who was considered mentally disabled, became the valedictorian of his graduating high school class. 

That’s the power of scripture: it can turn a mind that’s mentally disabled and rearrange it, rewire it, and change it to where it’s now empowered to do great things. That’s the power of scripture in practical application. That’s the power the Church needs today. Yet, to have that power we must practice what the Apostle Paul preached — the scriptures have power. That’s right! Hidden within the pages of the Bible is God’s power. In fact, it’s Christ Himself who teaches what happens when scripture enters our lives — we become like God.

In John 10:35, Jesus states, “If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;” “do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?” Jn. 10:36, NKJV. Here, the Jewish people took up stones to stone Christ for saying what the thought was blasphemous, “I am the Son of God”. To prove His point, He points to a scripture in the Old Testament, Psalm 82:6, NKJV, which says, “I said, ‘You are gods, And all of you are children of the Most High.’” What Jesus said here has been the subject of numerous debates. But I’m going to simplify it. What Jesus was saying is God’s Word, when we receive it, changes us. Quite literally, it turns us into “gods”. 

Let me clarify further: I’m not saying there are any other gods. No, there’s one God and Father. Jesus wasn’t saying there are other gods. No, God forbid. Rather, He was pointing to the power of God’s Word to transform a man or woman and comparing that to His calling as “the Word was made flesh, and [who] dwelt among us”. Jn. 1:14. Christ was pointing to what happened when the Word of God came to Moses, the man of God. What happened when the Word of God came to Moses? “I have made you as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet.” Exod. 7:1, NKJV. God’s Word, quite literally, changed the prophet Moses in the eyes of Pharoah and Aaron. 

That’s the Power of Scripture. Scripture changes us, supernaturally, miraculously, abundantly, to where we become something greater than an ordinary man or woman. God’s Word transforms us. It transformed so many men and women of God, even to the point where believers looked to them as being like God. That’s what happened to Moses, Jesus, John the Baptist, Charles Finney, Oral Roberts, Joyce Meyer, Kenneth Hagin, T.L. Osborn, Smith Wigglesworth, Kathryn Kuhlman, and numerous other men and women of God. They were changed because the Word of God came to them and entered their lives.

My point in this post: It can do the same for you. The Scriptures have unbridled power coursing through them. That power is released into our lives when we read, study, meditate upon, memorize, believe, practice, and do what is contained in them. God’s Word is chock full of power waiting to be released in the lives of those who choose it. And we make that choice. The Bible has been given to the world. It’s the most sold and given book in the history of the world. Still, it’s one of the least read books for most people, including believers, and even leaders in the Church. That must change. We need a revival of the Bible. That precedes a revival of the Spirit. Always.

If we want God’s power, that power is hidden in His Word. We must read, study, meditate upon, and memorize it so we may do it. Then, and only then, will God’s power be restored to the Church. And that’s what we need. 

Let us pray!

— Scott Wallis