The Word is Final Authority

Another fundamental rule Orville and I live by is that the Bible is the Word of God/Yahweh, that it is absolute truth, and that it contains the answers to every situation we will ever face in our natural lives.  The Word of God actually became flesh in the form of Jesus/Yahshua — He was all man living on earth while simultaneously still entirely One with the Father, the Invisible Yahweh, Creator of the Universe — and He provided the perfect model for how we are to live on earth.  Everything He did, we are also able to do, if we just believe.

So, because of these beliefs, we do not formulate our own opinions on things that are in the Word; we simply look at what the Word says and attempt to abide by its instructions to the best of our understanding/ability.  This may sound like a difficult or restricted way of life, but it is actually quite easy and freeing.  It drastically reduces the number of arguments and the amount of confusion in our lives, because everything is already laid out clearly for us to follow.

Here are a few examples:

• Money: The Word of God instructs us to give 10% of our income back to God (through the church where we are members) and give offerings on top of that (Malachi 3).  It also instructs us to be generous at all times and give to others liberally.  If we do all of these things cheerfully and consistently we will be well provided for.  We don’t get to have an opinion about it, we just do it.  So when we put together our family budget, tithes, offerings, and acts of kindness to others were required line items.  We didn’t have to fight over that.  Whenever we get some unexpected extra income (which is often, because of our obedience), we look to increase the amounts we’re giving out in those areas.  It works.  God’s happy, we’re happy, and the friends and strangers we get to bless are happy.
• In-laws:  When the Word talks about marriage it says that a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife.  In other words, he will separate himself from his parents in order to bond and become one with his wife.  Depending on the people involved, the separation may need to be more drastic in some situations than others, but the point is that the husband and wife become an inseparable team — they must make decisions together and steer the course of their life together without interference from others.  Respectful advice/guidance is of course fine, but the in-laws’ feelings/wishes should not be allowed to trump the spouse’s.  (That’s enough to convert some folks to Christianity right there!)
• Health: The Word of God says that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, meaning His spirit comes to dwell in us when we receive Yahshua as our salvation.  He wants us healthy and strong so He can use us to help others.  That means we have to do our best to take care of ourselves, not eating or drinking excessively, smoking, doing drugs, etc. etc.

It’s also worth noting that when something comes up where we’re not really sure what the Word says, God still gives us the answer when we pray about it — either through our Pastors, other members of church, friends/family, etc.  So we are open to learning from anyone, young or old, Christian or not, we just evaluate the information in light of the Word rather than our own opinions.  We know God is smarter than us and we have no problem admitting it!