Sermon 03-08-20

Sermon 03-08-20

2 Timothy 3:10-17  Reading  

God has given us His word.  He wrote a book.  Over 1500 years using 40 writers, God inspired the words of the Bible.  

We have in book form and on our phones, tablets and computers, the greatest book ever written.

The Bible tells us the human story, where we came from, when we were created, what we are made to be like, how we fell into sin and death, who created us and who we owe our very being to.  The Bible tells us what our purpose is and how to walk in it.  That’s great to have!  But better yet, the Bible tells us who God is, what God is like and what God has done and is doing to have a relationship with us. 

There is more to the Bible than just words on pages.  The Bible is words on pages, but whose words, and O, what words are these!  

The Bible is a physical book, but it is also a spiritual book.  It has its origin with God, who is Spirit, and was written by men who were moved by the Holy Spirit of God.

The classic Christian doctrine of the Bible is that it is God inspired, inerrant, Holy Scriptures.  It is our final authority for all things concerning our Christian faith and practice.  We have no higher place to go than this book, God’s written word, to find His instruction.  Through the Bible we test all teachings and even spiritual leadings.  When the Bible teaches us to be led by the Spirit, that starts with being led by the Bible itself, the pure spiritual milk of the word! Remember, it is the Bible that tells us to be led by the Spirit.” 

What if a person is ignorant of God’s word in scripture, particularly if they have no access to a Bible, will God lead them by His Holy Spirit directly?  Romans 10:14 asks, “How can they call on the one they have not believed, and how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?  How can they hear without someone preaching to them?  Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God!  Even if God directly spoke to someone who had never heard the Bible, I know this, it would never, ever contradict what God has already authorized in the Bible.  In fact, the Bible itself tells us to test the Spirits to see if they are from God.  How would you test those spirits?  By the Holy Spirit inspired words God has given us in the Bible.  

God won’t contradict Himself.  Jesus fulfills the Old Testament, He doesn’t abolish it. Jesus told us that His words would never pass away.  The Old Testament speaks of God’s word in Psalm 19 and 119 reminding us that the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.  The testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple.  The precepts of the Lord are right giving joy to the heart.  The ordinances of the Lord are sure and altogether righteous.  God always speaks the truth.  It is eternal, unchanging, life giving and perfect word of truth.  

God’s word does not need our upgrading, or updating.  Now it is true that the Bible, as we have it in English, is a translation.  Some translations are good, and some are just plain bad.  I guess some people think that if you want to sell a book, make a new translation of the Bible.  At least that’s what it looks like.  If you really want to see that the original words of the Bible look like, get online and go to Biblehub.com and find the tab entitled “interlinear.” Then go to whatever passage you wish and you will see the Hebrew or Greek word that the Bible was originally written in, and above it, a corresponding English word translating it for you.  You will also see a number. Click on that number and you will get a list of every passage where that word occurs in the Bible, and a dictionary definition of the original word.  With a little time, you can get used to reading the Bible this way.  Then, compare it to your translation and see how closely if follows.  If you find your English translation changing the wording, go to the dictionary and see if the change is justified.  

Do you believe that the Bible is God’s word?  Do you believe what 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says about it?

How about what James 1:21 says?

How about what 1 Peter 1:23-25 and 2 Peter 1:19-21?

Jesus said, If anyone hears these words of mine and does them is like a wise man who builds his house on the rock.  The rains came, the streams rose, the winds blew and beat against that house, but it stood firm because it was founded on the rock.  But whoever hears these words of mine and does not do them is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.  What happened to his house when the storms came?  It fell with a great crash.

Today it’s much more popular to listen to our culture than to seek counsel in the Bible. Today’s social norms and American culture are not a safe place to build your life.

The Bible is God’s Spiritual book for building a spiritual life that will last forever in glory.

Let me share this with you: David Young’s book, A Grand Illusion How progressive Christianity Undermines Biblical Faith.  P. 62, 71-72.