We have now come to the point in this series of articles on how God's word instructs us authoritatively. It is vital that we admit something up front...God doesn't always speak the same way. This shouldn't bother us, for neither do we. As intelligent beings, we communicate differently with others all the time. Why should it be so strange that the God "who made man's mouth" (Ex. 4:11) exhibit this same trait? This article will deal with how God's word instructs us through commands or statements of fact as given by Him.

Some people only accept what God says about something if it is in the form of a positive or negative command. They only pay attention if the Bible says "Thou shalt..." or "Thou shalt not." Are these important? Absolutely!! Are these the only way God communicates through His word? No. The rationale behind this soon becomes apparent... if we cannot find where it says "Thou shalt not...", then we have liberty to do what we want. This is poor Biblical reasoning, for God hasn't always spoken in the form of a command.

Obviously, God does command some things, both positively & negatively. This is easily proven in the Old Testament (Ex. 20:3, 8) as well as in the New Testament (Mt. 26:26-27; 6:19-21). However, we can also be instructed by God through statements of truth. Some passages contain no commands. Nonetheless, there are certain courses of behavior God demands of us, and these texts are clear in declaring such expectations. In the Old Testament, one such example is Prov. 17:15... "He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the righteous, Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD." Is not this message plain? We also find such instruction in the New Testament. A classic example would be The Beatitudes in Mt. 5:3-12. Again, no commands can be found. Yet, the declarative statements given by Christ are authoritative in that they specify the types of behavior He wants to see developed in His followers.

God's commands or statements of fact aimed at us are instructive, and we must obey.