Healthy food for the soul 

You are what you eat, so the saying goes. That must be right. I look at a community of people and I am sure I see several dozen glazed donuts, a few portions of chips, several chocolate bars, and a couple of bags of potatoes.

No wonder eating healthier and losing weight are at the top of most people’s New Year’s resolutions. 

Today we talk about is the Care and Feeding of the Healthy Soul. If there is one verse of scripture that sums it up, it is 1 Timothy 4:8, “train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” Both physical and spiritual training require the right diet.

Jesus knew this, “Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Mt 4:4). Jesus taught his disciples that the Word of God produces life and health in our lives (Mt 13: 23). You need to feed on God’s Word. It’s a matter of your soul’s health.

God’s part, what the Bible can do in our lives. This explains why the Bible is so important for a healthy soul. According to the text, the Word of God benefits in five ways.

First, God’s Word Converts. It makes us “wise unto salvation.” God’s Word contains the truth about life and death, sin and salvation, heaven and hell. The Bible says we are born again “through the living and enduring word of God. … And this is the word that was preached to you” (1 Pt 1:23-25). It says we are included in Christ when we hear the word of truth and believe it (Eph 1:13-14).

Like Timothy in that passage, I first learned of God’s love as a young boy. I eventually accepted Christ because Sunday school teachers, youth leaders, and preachers feed me God’s Word. I can still remember the preacher sitting in our living room, opening his Bible, and explaining what it meant to be a Christian. That’s how people become Christians and set their course for heaven.

The Word of God converts. It also convinces. “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of,” our text encourages. That passage refers back to a previous warning. The chapter begins, “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, — having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” How does a person remain strong in faith in a spiritually crazy world? Not by believing everything he hears! That’s for sure! By sinking his roots deep into the Word of God!

Dwight L. Moody once said, “I used to want a stronger faith. I prayed and I prayed for more faith. Then one day I read in the Bible that “faith comes from hearing and hearing from the Word of God.” So I picked up my Bible and began to read. My faith has been growing ever since!” So will yours.

God’s Word converts. It convinces. It also convicts. That’s what the word rebuke means in our text. The Word is like a mirror. When we look into it, we see our dirty faces. It reveals us for what we are.

Conviction is another word for guilt. We confront the teachings of the Bible. They reveal our sins. We feel guilty. Our problem is that we often hear that guilt is bad. False guilt, yes. Real guilt, no. Feelings of guilt to the soul are like pain to our bodies. Guilt is the warning signal that something is wrong and needs to be fixed. Without it, we would be in real trouble. It is a good thing to be convicted by the Word of God. 

Fourth, the Word Corrects. The term in our text was used by the ancients to describe the setting of a broken bone. It is never enough to know you’re headed the wrong way. We need to know the right way. That’s what God’s Word does. It points the way to forgiveness and a new life. “Thy word is a lamp unto feet and a lamp unto path,” Psalm 119 says.

The Word converts. It convinces. It convicts. It corrects. It offers one more benefit. It completes. Our text says, “All Scripture is useful for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” God’s Word equips us for service. It arms us for the battle against sin and temptation. It prepares us to be used as instruments in the hands of God. Jesus said, “If you abide in me and my words abide in you, you will bear much fruit.” Psalm 19 says it well. It says that God’s Word revives the soul, makes wise the simple, gives joy to the heart and light to the eyes.” Get a firm grip on this book and you will discover the life you’ve always wanted!