Living By the Word

“But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’“ Matthew 4:4 

I don’t want to get on a soapbox here, but it seems like fewer and fewer people are living or even attempting to live by the Word of God these days. If you and I were going to build a house in which everything fits properly into place, we would have to choose a standard by which we measure things. We don’t have the luxury of using inches and feet one day and centimeters and meters the next. 

The Word of God is the standard by which we should live. We can’t just choose the parts we like and ignore those things that seem a little harder to swallow. We’re not allowed to make up doctrines and try to fit them into our theology or slant the sacred scriptures to suit our needs. They are the standard by which everything else is measured. 

From Scriptures we see that the Word of God is: alive (Heb. 4:12), powerful (Heb. 4:12), eternal (Mt. 24:35), true (John 17:17), flawless (Ps. 12:6), God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16), and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16). No wonder Jesus said, “People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

The Word of God is a treasure trove of wisdom and instruction against which we can measure right and wrong. It’s a lamp to guide our feet (Ps. 119:105). If we measure our lives against the Word of God, we are sure to stay on the path of righteousness and avoid a whole lot of trouble.