In Paul’s second letter to Timothy he told Timothy to rightly divide the word of truth after studying it.  (II Timothy 2:15) “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”  The fact that one can rightly divide the word of truth leaves the implication that one could also wrongly divide the word of truth.  The term dividing means: “to cut straight; to direct aright; to set forth truthfully; without perversion or distortion.”  - [Perschbacher’s New Analytical Greek Lexicon].  Christians today need to realize that wrongly directing the studied word of God can lead their souls, and others they may influence to error, which brings forth eternal damnation.

Further definitions may also help us in our study of this subject.  The “word of truth” can be defined simply by studying the scriptures.  (Ephesians 1:13) “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation…”   The word of truth is the word of the Gospel of your salvation.  The Gospel is to be preached to the world (Mark 16:15-16).  The Gospel would include the message of the church [which is the kingdom] (Matthew 24:14).  We also can realize from Ephesians 1:13, that this Gospel message provides faith as they in Ephesus believed.  (Romans 10:17) “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”  When we divide the word of truth and study it we are studying the saving message of the Lord, the power of God (Romans 1:16).

This question baffles this author as well.  After Paul had told Timothy to preach the word, he also wrote this: (II Timothy 4:3-4) “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”  Paul mentioned that those who would not obey sound doctrine are those who follow after their own lusts.  I was attempting to study with an individual who was a Christian already in his own mind, yet not in practice.  The subject of marriage, divorce, and remarriage came up.  This man gave the following scenario.  “Suppose you Brian are studying with two alien sinners.  They tell you that they both had been in marriages before they met and those marriages ended.  You questioned some of this situation and found that fornication was not the reason behind the divorce.  What would you do?”  I answered this question with the only biblical answer I know.  First, I added that if they brought this situation to my attention I might wonder if they thought themselves that there was some question to the validity of their current situation.  I then stated that one who is married and divorced for reasons other than fornication has no scriptural right to remarry.  (Matthew 19:3-9) “The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?  And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?  Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.  They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away?  He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.”  The Bible is clear, this would be an adulterous relationship, not a scriptural marriage.  These individuals would have to repent prior to ever seeking to be converted.  They would have to change their current status.  This is what the Bible teaches.  (Acts 3:19) “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.”  See also (Acts 2:38 and Acts 26:20).

The reason I used the above example is because of the reasoning behind the man’s questions.  He quickly jumped to the defensive and revealed his “deck of cards”.  The scenario was he and his wife.  He then began to wrongly divide the word of God.  He argued that the only sin a non-Christian can commit is the sin of not being obedient to the Gospel.  I then began asking him what sin was.  He needed to read the biblical definition of the term.  (I John 3:4) “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.”  Sin is transgression of the Law.  We are under the Law of Christ, the New Testament Law (Hebrews 1:1-2 and James 1:25) and Matthew 19:9 is surely His words of which we are told not to reject (John 12:48).  The point of the example is that this man wrongly divided the word of truth for his own desires.

The heart of man is the soil in which the word of God is planted (Luke 8:11).  The Bereans had the right heart as they “received the word with all readiness of mind” (Acts 17:11).  One must be ready to allow the word of God to work in their heart.  The heart is our place of intention (Hebrews 4:12-13).  If our intention is to make the word of God fit into our lifestyle instead of making our lifestyles fit into God’s word then our intention will make us to wrongly divide the word of truth.  The hearer of God’s word needs to take it, make the application properly, and do what is commanded.  (James 1:22-25) “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.  For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:  For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.  But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.”  It is with our hearts that we believe (Romans 10:10) and that same heart can reject based on it’s own desires (Psalms 10:3).

We can take the word, study it, and do the right things.  We must first make the decision that this is what we will do.  There is no reason to sit and study the word without intending on applying it.  It is only the truth that will set us free (John 8:32).  The truth is the word of God.  When man takes it, perverts it, and others follow it that is then the word of men not the word of God folks are obeying.  When a person makes God’s word perverted they should not be listened to, not even for an hour (Galatians 2:4-5).  Error is best known by the fruits it produces (Matthew 7:15-20).  Wrongly dividing God’s word is soul damning (Revelation 22:18-19).  Changing the word of God into a lie is simply serving creature more than creator (Romans 1:25).