“THY WORD IS A LAMP UNTO MY FEET, AND A LIGHT UNTO MY PATH” (PSALM 119:105).
Scripture functions as a guide by giving us principles to govern our life. You see, the Word of God doesn’t tell us specifically what kind of job to pursue, who to marry, what kind of house to buy, or in what city to live, but Scripture does give us principles. We are called to labor at a vocation, but not on the Lord’s Day! “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God” (Ex. 20:8-10). There are, however, works of necessity and acts of mercy: nurses, policemen, doctors, firemen, nursing homes, hospitals, even feeding livestock on the Lord’s Day are merciful and necessary activities. However, shopping malls, Walmart, grocery stores, restaurants, hardware stores, gas stations, and plowing the fields are not acts of necessity nor works of mercy on the Lord’s Day. Therefore such activities should be avoided as violations of the Fourth Commandment.
Scripture also teaches us the principle of marriage … that a believer is ONLY to marry another believer and that of the opposite gender (1 Cor. 7; 2 Cor. 6:14). The Scripture also gives us principles of Christian stewardship. We know we are to give to the work of the church by tithes and offerings, but Scripture doesn’t specifically say, “You may buy this or you must not buy that.” However, we do know God has given us money to use for His glory so we must not spend it on anything that is contrary to the Law of God. And since these principles are not spelled out in every detail, every believer must know the Scriptures accurately in order to use these principles for God’s glory (1 Cor. 10:31). This only happens by a continual study of the Scriptures. The more we know the Bible the more we know what God requires of us and how best to serve and glorify Him. And so the question is … how much time do you spend studying Scripture? Let me ask you this: How do you make decisions … by the Word of God or by some other standard? If you confess the words of our text, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path”, then you ought to be one who diligently searches God’s Word as a daily habit of your life. Acts 17:11: “These (Bereans) were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.” Would people rank you among the Bereans?