by Rev. Christopher Olalekan O. Alawode

John 14: 5: “Thomas said to Him (Jesus), Lord we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?”

Thomas is one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ that had been following Him from the beginning of His Ministry. Surprisingly, Thomas and other disciples knew not where Jesus was preparing them to go after life. This is also happening to many people in the church nowadays. Jesus took the time to explain the “Way” to His disciples and to all Believers to have no heavenly vision. He says “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” The word of God teaches us the way to live in this world according to God’s directive. This is why every Believer must read the Bible with understanding. The Bible writes, “Your ears shall hear a word behind you saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left” Isaiah 30: 21. The word in the Bible is the language of the Spirit; and you need to be familiar with the word of the Bible for you to be able to understand God’s directives. The truth is that God will never speak whatever will contravene what He says (written) in the Bible to anyone. The Bible writes: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God” John 1: 1-2. The Bible explains further in 1 John 1: 14: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”  It is the viability in the word of God that makes Christianity distinct and unique. Therefore for any Believer not to miss the way he or she needs to read and listen to the word of God consistently and be guided by the Holy Spirit. Christianity is not a religion; every religion compels its believers to cram its law into their heads. The Bible writes, “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” Romans 10: 8-9.

The word of God (Bible) is the “Way” to live your life on earth without compromising your place in the Kingdom of God. Believers need to learn a lesson from the experience of Thomas and the other disciples of Jesus. They had been following Jesus Christ for a while, but they weren’t ashamed to declare their ignorance about the “Way.” Knowledge of the “Way” has nothing to do with the years you have been attending church. There are also many Christians nowadays in the church who believe that their religious attire, their Christian names are all that they need to get to heaven. Thanks to God that the Bible is available for every disciple of Christ to read. There are also many people that believe it is only by regular church attendance that will make them to be qualified for a place in heaven. Such people can be likened to anyone who wears his favourite Football Club’s Jersey, and erroneously believes in his mind that it is by wearing his favourite Club Jersey and attending its Football Matches would make him to become part of the Club’s team. Paul the Apostle, who was formerly known and called Saul, he was a religionist always going after the lives of those who believed in Jesus Christ. It happened one day as he was on his way to persecute the Christians that he was confronted by Jesus Christ. The Bible writes, “As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shown around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” The Bible writes, “And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads” That was the beginning of Paul’s new life.

Believers were first called ‘Christians” in Antioch; this was because they observed that the lifestyles of the disciples of Jesus Christ was similar to His own – Acts 11: 26. The word of God says, “You shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Matthew 7: 16-19. The “Way of God is His Word” and it teaches love and peace. The Bible writes, “But I say to you who hear; Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you” Luke 6: 27. The epistle of Paul to the Romans writes, “Therefore if your enemies is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head” Romans 12: 20.The epistle of James writes, “Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” James 1:22. The word of God is not ephemeral and it cannot be overtaken by time. Every word in the Bible is backed by the immutability of God’s counsel. The Bible writes, “For men indeed swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all disputes. Thus God determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the  hope set before us” Hebrews 6: 17-18. 

The word of God is prophetic and healing; and as it speaks to an individual it also speaks to the Assembly of Believers. It warns every Believer to avoid the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. The Nicolaitans are some so-called Christians who compromise the word of God to suit their own ways. The Bible writes, “Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth” Revelations 2: 15-16. The modern Nicolaitans are also those who give fake prophecies and false visions to mislead people.  Every true prophecy must be spiritually inspired and the Spirit will never contradict the word of God. Jeremiah 5: 12-13 writes: “They have lied about the Lord, and said, “It is not He. Neither will evil come upon us, nor shall we see sword or famine. And the prophets become wind, for the word is not in them. Thus shall it be done to them” The Bible cannot lie, and God cannot contradict Himself. His word in Deuteronomy writes: “And if you say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?” The Bible writes, “When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not happen or come to pass that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him” Deuteronomy 18: 21-22. Every Believer must hold the word of God as a treasure, which should not be neglected; studying it every day will keep the mind at rest; especially when it is read with spiritual understanding. Don’t read the Bible the way that you read the Daily Newspapers; if you read it in that way, you will miss the message from the Holy Spirit. It is when you study the Bible, and not just by reading it, that the Spirit of God will give you more understanding. The Bible writes, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be” Luke 12: 34. The word of God is very comprehensive; it is the “Law” and also the “Way.” You are a chosen one to whom the Bible writes, “For you brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5: 13-14.

It is very sad that some Christian Assemblies nowadays devote less time to teach the word; the time that should be devoted to the word is compromised for unrelated ceremonies and fake miracles. Miracles do not produce faith; only the word of God can produce faith – “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” Romans 10: 17. The Bible writes further: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” Matthew 24: 35. Scoffers are warned in the last days in 2 Peter 3: 1-10: “But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word are reserved for fire until the day of judgement and perdition of ungodly. But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day”. When the word of God is not given priority in any Church Assembly the power of God is being limited; the more reason why many fake pastors resort to fake miracles. Most times we limit God by not taking Him by His word; the experience of the children of Israel in the wilderness attests to this. The Bible writes in Psalm 78: 40-41: “How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, and grieved Him in the desert! Yes, again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel”.

Many of our failures in life are caused by our disobedience to the word of God; He makes us a promise: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you” Psalm 32: 8-9. The disobedient walk in their own counsel; some people could not walk in God’s way because they lack the knowledge of God’s guidance (His word).  The Bible makes it clear that forever will the way of God be contrasted with the way of man. His way is His word; and once His word is neglected His way will disappear. The Bible writes, “Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, whose heart is set on pilgrimage” Psalm 84: 5. Definitely, there is no blessing for the man who follows the way of man. The way of man is in himself and the way of God is in His word. Moses and Aaron were men who always look up to God for directives while they were leading the children out of Egypt; they always listen and understand God’s word before acting. The Bible writes, “You led Your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron” Psalm 78: 19.God did not choose Moses and Aaron based on their perfection or skill; He chose them by Himself to lead the children of Israel by His word. The ways of God aren’t the same with the way of man. One can walk uprightly only when one is guided by God’s word; and doing this brings God’s grace: “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly” Psalm 84: 11.

The word of God is a Believer’s pathfinder; whoever neglects God’s word is bound to go astray. Therefore, a Believer needs to be familiar with God’s word. Familiarity means knowing what God’s word says on any issue and not trusting your own wisdom – Proverbs 3: 3-5. It is the only way to avoid taking God for granted. The Bible writes, “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion, as in the in the day of trials in the wilderness. When your fathers tested Me; they tried Me, though they saw My work. For forty years I was grieved with that generation. And said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts, and they do not know My ways. So I swore in My wrath, they shall not enter rest.” Psalm 95: 8-11. Lack of knowledge does not exempt anyone from God’s wrath. The epistle of Paul to the Romans writes in Romans 14: 12, “So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.”  God expects us to seek the truth and not be ignorant; His word says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me, because you have forgotten the law of your God I also will forget your children” Hosea 4: 6.

* Thank you for taking the time to read this message; the Bible is a “Believer’s Companion” and also the “Pathfinder.” Please read your Bible to verify whether the verses quoted align with this message. The Lord God will not forget you and your children in Jesus Christ’s name, Amen! Have a beautiful week.