Good Directions

I was thinking this morning how hearing about grace is like getting good directions to where we need to go.

"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel - not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ." - Galatians 1:6-7 ESV

"Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness," - 2 Timothy 2:14-16 ESV

The first word in the phrase 'ruin the hearers' in 2 Timothy is the Greek word Katastrophē (Strong's G2692). The grace message leaves the hearer in a state of approval but other messages are confusing and they explain a route that is impractical or impossible to follow.

Grace points to Christ's cross and says, 'Go that way. That happened for you. That event belongs to You. Pick it up. It's not heavy. That cross will remove your wrong burdens.'

We are called to the grace of Christ. The message beckons us to come and be accepted.

Arguments can ruin the hearer. They can cause a catastrophe. A person just flees the scene with no direction or resolution and ends up in trouble.

A 'right handling' of the scripture will result in mercy, peace and contentment. That is what the Bible is directing man towards. God is warning us away from disaster and directing us to safety.

The cross is our lighthouse that stands tall and visible in the light and gives off a beacon of light in the fog and darkness. Thank God for His wonderful lighthouse. It has brought me safely home many times.

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