“For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.” I Thes. 2:13(NKJV)
The word of God tells us that we are soil and His Word is seed. Seed is sowed into the soil and the soil then receives the seed and depending on the condition of the soil produces a crop. The only problem with this is that our “enemy” is also sowing “tares.” Furthermore, tares are sometimes hard to tell from good “seed.” They can only be told apart as they mature.
God’s Word is always dependable and will produce the right crop as it matures in our lives. “Seed” from another source is to be carefully examined and compared to the true word of God. It can’t just be “close” it must be “exact.” The Bible says “the truth will make you free.” The true Word will liberate you from everything including sin and religious traditions. Religious bondage can be worse than the bondage of sin. The reason being is that we can see what sin is doing to us but we cannot see the negative effects of incorrect doctrine and legalism because they are disguised as God’s will for us.
Living by the correct word will lift the burden we cannot carry. Remember Jesus said, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” The grace of God does not free us to sin; it frees us from sin. Sin no longer has dominion over us. We are not pondering the thought, “under grace it doesn’t matter what I do it is forgiven.” We understand that “we are raised above the corruption of the world” because it is not our nature to follow a sinful path.
“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” Rom. 8:2(NKJV)