“Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.”

Most of my life I have heard people in various roles who love to tell us what God thinks of what we do, who we are, and how we live. Lately, God—and even portions of His Word—have been used to justify political positions, social responsibilities, and even interpersonal issues. Sometimes they’re helpful. More often than not, these are from people misusing Scripture to make their point—sometimes out of ignorance and occasionally with intentional deception. I don’t know that one is worse than the other. This verse, as well as those at the end of Revelation, seem to tell us neither is acceptable. I’ve referred in the past to the time when Satan quoted Scripture to Jesus. If he had been accurately quoting the Word, Jesus would have had to obey it. Obviously, that didn’t happen. The reality is that Satan was misquoting Scripture to try to get Jesus to follow him. He does the same with us. Often he does that through people in society, and occasionally he even does it through people we know and love. It is dangerous—not only for the hearer, but also for the one who speaks and mishandles God’s truth. As a teacher, this truth weighs heavily on me whenever I prepare to speak and when I deliver a message, whether written in these devotions or shared with a group. We all have a responsibility to know God’s Word, and then we have a responsibility to express it very, very carefully. And even then, we must offer a caveat for others to check it out for themselves and be sure we are accurate. Today, be very careful with God’s Word. #BeTheEdge

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15 NIV