The Word To LIve By: 5-19-26
Phil Waggoner
He himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. 1 Peter 2:24
The Word To Live By: This is a scripture that is part of my daily confession, not to mention the times when an ache or pain crops up and it just comes out of my mouth. I also see in this Scripture that part of the promise here is when I was born again. I died unto sin and, therefore, have the ability to live a righteous life. The funny thing (funny in a weird way) is, even though they are part of the same sentence, I never tied the two of them together. I believe living a righteous life is part of living a healthy life, and I base that opinion on several scriptures. Psalm 107:20, “He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. (The word “destruction” there means destructive behavior. Unrighteous behavior is destructive behavior.) Proverbs 4:20-22, “My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight; keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those who find them and health to all their body.” The words or sayings of God become life and health to you when you know them, say them, and do them to the best of your ability. (Don’t forget that mercy and goodness are constantly following you.) To live unto righteousness means to live a righteous lifestyle. Be a person of integrity. In other words, don’t lie, cheat or steal on any level. What do I mean on any level? Don’t take things that are not yours because you feel you deserve them. Little white lies are lies; I don’t care what color they are. Unjust treatment at the hands of someone in authority is not an excuse to complain or talk negatively about them behind their backs. Let me quote some scripture out of 1 Peter 2 leading up to verse 24. Verse 1, “Put aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and slander.” Instead, verse 2, “Long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation…” I’m going to continue this tomorrow. There is too much life-giving instruction in this chapter to not highlight. However, I want to make it clear that I am not saying sickness and disease and tribulations in life come because you or someone you know are not living a righteous life. There are many contributing factors in our everyday life that can lead to negative circumstances. I am telling you you don’t have to stay there. (I didn’t.) I’m just telling you the more I learn about the will of God for people, and apply it to my life, the better it gets.
Read through the Bible in a year: Acts 26:1-18; Ruth 3-4; Psalms 48;
Read through the New Testament and Proverbs: Proverbs 19, John 1:27-51, 2 Peter 1
Wholesome speech is a tree of life, but dishonest talk breaks the spirit. Proverbs 15:4 CEB
The sum of Thy Word is Truth Psalm 119:160