This verse is the key that unlocks a treasure chest of God’s dispensational truth concerning the Body of Christ !

We (represented by Timothy) are instructed by God (represented by Paul) to identify and separate things that differ in the Scriptures. The Bible is bound into one book for our convenience, but it is not bound together into one doctrine. The Bible was written for us… but not all of it is written to us. Most of the Bible is written to and about Biblical Israel: their past and their future. A very small volume of the Bible is to and about the present. Of all the things to rightly divide in the Bible, this is the most important one: separate the Body of Christ from Biblical Israel.

We must rightly divide what is written to Israel and what is written to the Body of Christ.

This one verse (2 Timothy 2:15) is the key that opens up a whole new understanding of the Bible: to a deeper appreciation of every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God in written form. An entire book could be written just on the wisdom presented in this one verse of Scripture. It was penned by the apostle Paul in his last epistle which was likely the final of all the pieces of canonical Scripture written.

This verse offers only two positions of standing before God: approved or ashamed. Whatever doctrine that we adopt and follow for us should be THE DOCTRINE that is approvable before God: not man!

The “word of truth” is the same as “all scripture” in 2 Timothy 3:16, which also concerns correct doctrine. There are many things to rightly divide in the Bible in order to develop sound and correct doctrine. If we lean not on our own understanding and trust in the Lord with all our heart, He will rightly divide our path through His word (Pv 2).

As we read through the Bible as it is written, we can see with our mind that God is dealing with different groups of people in different ways under different administrations as time progresses. God progressively reveals His plan and purpose for the ages through miracles, types, shadows, symbolisms, prophets, parables, mysteries, revelations, etc. using certain persons of His choice out all the population of mankind.

The confusion and difficulties arise when we try to lump everything in the Bible together and then try to make some “spiritual” sense of it. Failure to rightly divide the word of truth results in erroneous doctrines of men.

The most common error: trying to make the ordinances of Israel (Jew) applicable to the Body of Christ (Gentile).

This could be the main reason that there are thousands of Christian denominations: divided by confusion.

There is a dividing line in the New Testament that is invisible to the eye, but not to the spirit. The context and hope of the Acts period is different than the context and the hope of Paul’s epistles written after Acts ended. Acts 28:28 is evidence of a great change in God’s plan. The Acts period prolonged the kingdom hope for the Jew in that they were given 35 additional years to repent and acknowledge Christ as their promised Messiah. But their stubbornness and failure seemed to be a victory for Satan…until God revealed a secret hidden since the world began (Eph 3:9, Col 1:26). While God stopped His time clock with Israel, He offered salvation to all the nations and would call out His ekklesia, the Body of Christ, with Christ as the Head. After the Body is fulfilled (filled full), God will redeem and restore Israel. He will resume with the hope of Israel and will fulfill His covenants with them.

The Body of Christ is separate in its calling and hope and has no part in the kingdom of heaven with Israel.

We must rightly divide the two ministries of Paul: one during the Acts period and another after the Acts Period.

The doctrine of the Body of Christ in this present time is found in Paul’s seven post-Acts epistles: 1 Timothy, Titus, Philippians, Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, and 2 Timothy. Let the Holy Spirit guide you into all truth (John 16:13).