September 10 - Written with a Purpose

September 10 - Written with a Purpose

The Scriptures were not just given to us on a whim, they were written with a purpose. Actually, they were written with several purposes.

John 20:31 tells us that "These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."

We find prophecies about the coming of the Messiah all throughout the Old Testament. Even with everything pointing to Jesus as the Christ, there were still many questions. John tells us that the scriptures were written to give authenticity to Jesus as the Son of God!

Paul tells us that they were written to give hope to mankind. In Romans 15:4, we read "For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."

In 1 Corinthians 10:11 we read, "These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come."

You know, they say that history repeats itself over and over and that mankind never learns. Now, while I love reading the stories of stupidity and redemption in the Bible, it occurs to me that though I might not do exactly the same things, I make mistakes that are just as dangerous to my soul! Warnings to me? It would be good to take these to heart.

One of the greatest gifts of the scriptures is that it tells us about eternal life with the Father. 1 John 5:13 says, "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life."

Jesus Christ suffered a gruesome death so that we might be redeemed into eternal life. The Word of God assures us over and over that a place is prepared for us and that God desires to welcome us into His home. I'm thankful for that assurance.