Myths of the Modern Church
#1 Scripture is True if I believe it.
Rev. Charles Worth
True Word Christian Church
2 Timothy 3:16-17 we read: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Introduction: One of the most interesting myths of the modern church is that scripture is only truth as long as long as we agree with it.
Illustration: Subjective truths… The following story actually happened to me in 2005 at a state wide meeting. We had a wonderful time of fellowship the first night, a time of worship and a great message. My spirit was soaring until breakfast on the second day. As I came into the hotel dining room several of my fellow pastors were at a table and invited me to join them. I got a plate of food and cup of coffee and had a seat. It was then that the statement that would change my soul from soaring to troubled was made. Two of the gentlemen at the table were having a heated discussion about scripture when one looked at me and said; “Chuck, you were in the service and seem quite sensible. You understand the concept of ‘Subjective truths’ in scripture don’t you?” Since I was just starting my first cup of coffee of the day I was a little slow of mind, I took a moment and gulped down half that first cup, then I stated; “Well, I guess if you mean the parables that Jesus told, they could be considered subjective in that we do not know for sure that they are historical or stories Jesus made up to teach a particular point.” The gentleman seemed shocked at my answer and said to me, “Come on, please don’t tell me that your one of those people that believe God created this universe and all that is in it in seven literal days; are you?” I took a bite of food, another swig of coffee and thought about my answer carefully. “No, you’re right; I do not believe God created everything in seven days.” To which my breakfast companion seemed relieved, but continuing on I said, “It only took six days on the seventh He rested.”
This was the first of many instances where I found that even the people in leadership of the church try to make scripture fit their beliefs instead of allowing scripture to form their beliefs. Just as this gentleman had tried to make scripture fit the boundaries of evolutionary science many people, including my fellow pastors of all denominations attempt to make scripture fit the beliefs they want it to have.
Illustration: God Said, I believe it, that ends it: One of my pet peeves is a bumper sticker. It reads; “God said it, I believe it and that ends it.” Now many of you may think that is a reasonable statement. I, on the other hand, have a problem with it, you see once God says it that ends it. That makes it truth. Whether or not I believe it is of no consequence. My belief has no bearing in the truth of the matter. Truth is truth and it is promulgated by the will and testimony of God not by the beliefs of those that choose whether or not to follow Him. It is this attitude about scripture that is the problem. We have come to think that our belief is what makes something true or not.
Today however it has become fashionable to preach only about the love and compassion of a loving God not the righteousness and retribution of a just God. We are all so worried about offending someone that we offend God by ignoring or at times even changing the meaning of scripture. Let’s take a look at some other ways the church has changed or ignored scripture.
One hotly contended point for the modern church is the role of homosexuality in the church today. The news of the day is one of confusion for most in the church. It broke the headlines of the liberal media with the election of the Rev. V. Gene Robinson as the first “Gay” bishop of the Episcopal Church. There has been much to follow. The problem as I see it started when we began to refer to scripture we did not like as being a cultural issue. We have done this in many circumstances; women deacons and pastors, dress, premarital sex and homosexuality. The modern church movement claims that all of these things are only forbidden by God due to cultural taboos of the day. I would rather submit that God in His wisdom and righteousness forbade these items because He knew the harm that would be brought to the world if they were “normalized.” Now just to be fair I am going to admit that there are items that are cultural in scripture. While they rode camels and donkeys we ride cars and trucks. They wore sandals and a flowing robe, we wear pants and shoes. Those are cultural issues of scripture. Let’s look at scripture references to some of the items we said are claimed to be cultural.
Women deacons and pastors: 1Timothy 3:2 and 12; “A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;” and “Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.”
The first thing that I want to say is that I have met some women that would be wonderful deacons and pastors. It is not a matter of ability, but eligibility
Illustration A minor voting: I liken this to my daughter; she took AP Government in High School, she probably understood the electoral process better that anyone I knew, she however was not eighteen years old so she couldn’t vote. It has nothing to do with ability and everything to do with eligibility. I do not profess to understand the reasoning behind all that God has commanded.
’Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you. (I Kings 11:38), Please notice there is no reference to us having to understand God’s stance on anything; just do as He says.
Adultery, Premarital sex and Homosexuality: The first thought some of you may have is; “I cannot believe he put these three together.” Well let me tell you a plain truth of scripture; these are sexual sins and all of them are considered an abomination before God. One of the problems in the modern church is that we separate these and place one as more unacceptable than the other two. There is no sin more grievous than another; the only thing that makes a sin more dangerous than others is the propensity to justify the sin. Sexual sins are easily justified in the mind of the sinner; “God just made me that way.” However scripture says;
For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; (Romans 1:26-28)
"But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:28)
Now that is something you do not hear from the pulpit all that often. Sexual sin is one of the hardest for us to overcome. Any of us, no matter what our “sexual orientation”, have desires that when we entertain them in our mind those desires drive us to sin. Again looking at scripture: “Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” (James 1:13-15.) Quite simply this shows that the argument “God made us that way” is false. And no matter which sexual sin is being committed it is still a lie. Just as I have heard homosexuals say; “God made me this way”, I have also heard those committing adultery in and out of the bonds of marriage claim; “God is the one that made me attracted to women” or men as the case may be. These verses from James show us that it is us giving into our own desire that causes us to sin. God will not tempt us into sinning. It is contrary to His very nature to cause those He has called to be holy to sin.
Again I want to emphasize that God did not call cultural issues “sin”. He, being God knew from the beginning of time the cultural differences from the first to the twenty second centuries. Why would He call cultural issues sin and then change His mind. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8) And for those of you that would argue Jesus is God’s Son not God; “Then they said to Him, "Where is Your Father?" Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also." (John 8:19) Here we find Jesus attesting to the fact that He and the Father are one. All one need do is read the first chapter of the Gospel of John to find that it was in fact Jesus that created all things: John 1:1-4; In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And verse 14 reads: And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. This is obviously speaking of Jesus and quite plainly states that He is God.
I know that if people are looking for a way to justify their sin these words will not stop them. But for those that are truly looking for encouragement to stand against the world while it looks for excuses I pray that they find encouragement and hope.
Conclusion: One final thought on the validity of scripture; if some of scripture is not true how could we ever know that we are saved? I see it all the time. “Christians” arguing the validity of scripture and then stating, “but I know that I am saved.” The problem is unless you have a friend that has lived a couple of thousand years and can give you direct testimony of Christ as the risen Lord, the only way we know Him is through scripture. Unless God has visited you much as He did Moses the only way that you know about Him is through scripture. Yet we profess to know Christ and call some of scripture untrue or at best irrelevant. How can we say that Christ died as an offering for our sins with any authority or sincerity and in the next breath question the validity or relevance of another portion of scripture. We are not witness to Christ, scripture is. Our witness is, or should be, to scripture as the inerrant Word of God; as an absolute and uncompromising truth of the Good News of Jesus the Christ.
