God is the creator of the universe and all things therein (Isaiah 45:18; Colossians 1:16). He created man in His image, giving him a never-dying soul (Genesis 1:26). The Divine Architect of this physical world is also the author of the Bible (2 Samuel 23:2; 1 Corinthians 2:13; 4:37; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21).
The Bible is not intended to be a ball of clay which each man may fashion to his own liking; to the contrary, God conveys specific directives in His word that man must follow and pronounces a curse upon anyone who would tamper with it (Deuteronomy 4:2; Proverbs 30:6; Revelation 22:18-19). The Bible instructs us regarding our origin, our place, our purpose, and our intended destiny. One does not have to go very far in the Bible to find examples of God explaining how the account is intended to be a precedent for the generations following.
In the creation of man, his dominion over the animals is explained (Genesis 1:26-28). When Eve was first presented to Adam, instructive words are immediately given in Genesis 2:24 regarding God’s plan for marriage, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” Moreover, later sections of the Bible refer back to God’s intended order from the beginning as the premise for why man should conduct himself in a certain way. Jesus refers back to the creation of man and woman in His answers to the Pharisees regarding marriage, divorce and remarriage (Matthew 19:4-5; Mark 10:6-9). The inspired apostle Paul gave the order of creation and the deception involved in the first sin as the basis for the roles of men and women in the church (1 Timothy 2:13-14). In Psalm 100:2, the Psalmist gives the fact that God created us and not we ourselves as the reason for why we ought to worship Him. Paul references God’s role as creator of all things to rebuke the idolatry present in Athens (Acts 17:23-27).
In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus gives the picture of two men who built houses. The wise man built on the rock. The foolish man built on the sand. When the storm came the wise man’s house stood while the foolish man’s was destroyed. While both men heard the words of Jesus, the difference between these two was that the wise man did what Jesus said while the foolish man did not (Matthew 7:24, 26). At VBS, we sing a song with the children that illustrates this lesson from our Lord. It is tremendously important for young people to learn God’s blueprints for their lives. Each day of our lives we are building. If we insist on building wherever and however we want, then heartache and disaster awaits us in this life and especially in the life to come. The sooner an individual begins following God’s blueprints in life, the more harmful mistakes can be avoided.
We live in a world today where people want no limits. Many are ready to throw the blueprints out the window. They say their desire is to make their own mistakes and live their own way of life. But God sees the whole picture. He created us and knows our natures. He knows what is best for us. Constructing a building without a blueprint or plan whatsoever leads to frustrating and costly mistakes. This is also true of how we go about life.
If you catch a fish and take it off the hook to be free, you must place it back in the water for it to live for that is its nature. You cannot lay the fish down on the lawn and say, “Be free!” and expect it to live. It will only have true liberty within the parameters of the body of water in which it was intended to live. God places limits on us for our own good. He gives us the parameters of successful living. He deems certain activities sinful not because He has chosen arbitrarily to make them off limits, but rather because they can hurt us. For example, the sin of fornication is against one’s own body (1 Corinthians 6:18); our bodies are not designed for it. When people flout God’s directions, they often suffer for it. Sin has its consequences. Jesus said in John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” The context shows this freedom is freedom from the enslavement of sin (John 8:34-36). Thus, freedom is not lack of all restraint, but rather liberty to live how we ought and realize our fullest potential: going to heaven to be eternally with our God. This is our nature. This is the reason we were created. This is the reason Jesus came to die for us. This is why God has given us His blueprints in the Bible so that we may be eternally free from sin in His heavenly home.
This year at Truth Bible Camp we are focusing on God’s blueprints. We are going to go to the Bible to determine how God wants us to live. Not only will we see from the beginning of creation God’s intentions for our place in the world, the design of marriage, and the differing roles of men and women, but we will also see in the New Testament God’s plan for salvation, His church, worship, evangelism, and benevolence. We encourage everyone to follow the instructions; all else fails.
-Mark Day, Tennessee Bible College’s Truth Bible Camp Director
