I CHOOSE THE BIBLE AS GOD’S WORD
MATTHEW 4:1-11
WE ARE CONTINUING A SERIES ON THE FOUNDATIONAL CHOICES WE MAKE THAT HAVE ETERNAL CONSEQUENCES IN THE BALANCE. TODAY WE ARE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE FOUNDATIONAL CHOICE OF CHOOSING TO ACCEPT THE BIBLE, IN ITS TOTALITY AS THE INSPIRED WORD OF GOD.
WE ARE ALL LOOKING FOR STABILITY AND CONTROL IN OUR LIVES. WE LIKE TO HAVE MAPS AND MANUALS TO DIRECT US BUT THEY ARE OF NO VALUE, UNLESS YOU CHOOSE TO SUBMIT TO THEIR AUTHORITY.
LOGIC DICTATES THAT IF YOU CHOOSE JESUS CHRIST AS YOUR LORD, THEN HIS TEACHINGS WOULD BE AUTHORITATIVE AS WELL.
JAMES MacDONALD WRITES:
“WHEN GOD’S WORD IS MY AUTHORITY, IT CAN CHANGE THE DIRECTION OF MY HEART, MIND, AND FEET. IT IS GOD’S OFFERING OF SATISFACTION FOR MY EVERY LONGING.”
IN THE BIBLE WE FIND DIRECTION FOR YOUR LIVES, COMFORT IN TIMES OF DISTRESS, AND A REMARKABLE LOVE STORY OF OUR HEAVENLY FATHER AND THE RELATIONSHIP HE WANTS TO HAVE WITH US NOW. IT GIVES US DIRECTION FOR OUR LIVES THAT WILL REWARD US WITH BEAUTIFUL AND LASTING RELATIONSHIPS IN THIS WORLD. IT OFFERS US THE PEACE AND STABILITY OF TELLING US OF OUR ETERNAL HOME.
PAUL WROTE TO TIMOTHY:
2 TIMOTHY 3:16-17:
ALL SCRIPTURE IS GOD-BREATHED AND IS USEFUL FOR TEACHING, REBUKING, CORRECTING AND TRAINING IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, 17 SO THAT THE SERVANT OF GOD P MAY BE THOROUGHLY EQUIPPED FOR EVERY GOOD WORK
I WANT TO SHOW YOU TODAY SOME REASONS TO CONSIDER AS TO WHY YOU SHOULD CHOOSE TO BELIEVE IN THE AUTHORITY OF THE BIBLE AS THE WORD OF GOD. MY HOPE IS THAT WHEN YOU ARE FACED BY CRITICS YOU WILL HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE AND COURAGE TO STAND IN DEFENCE OF THE WORD.
JAMES TELLS US IN CHAPTER FOUR:
JAMES 4:7-8:
SUBMIT YOURSELVES, THEN, TO GOD. RESIST THE DEVIL, AND HE WILL FLEE FROM YOU. 8 COME NEAR TO GOD AND HE WILL COME NEAR TO YOU.
POINT ONE: OUR ROLE MODEL
OUR SCRIPTURE READING PROVIDES US WITH A ROLE MODEL FOR VICTORY.
I FIND IN INTERESTING THAT JESUS’ WILDERNESS EXPERIENCE IS INITIATED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT.
MATTHEW 4:1: THEN JESUS WAS LED BY THE SPIRIT INTO THE WILDERNESS TO BE TEMPTED V BY THE DEVIL.
WHAT THIS MEANS IS THAT GOD WAS IN CONTROL AND HAD A PLAN FOR JESUS’ TEMPTATIONS. ONE REASON WAS TO SHOW US HOW TO OVERCOME THE TRIALS WE FACE IN THIS WORLD.
JESUS COULD HAVE CHOSEN THAT TIME AND PLACE TO DESTROY SATAN. INSTEAD ON ALL THREE OCCASIONS HE CHOSE TO USE THE WORD, AND IN DOING SO TAUGHT US THAT IN ANY SITUATION THAT WE CAN TURN TO THE WORD FOR VICTORY.
HEBREWS 4:15: FOR WE DO NOT HAVE A HIGH PRIEST WHO IS UNABLE TO EMPATHIZE WITH OUR WEAKNESSES, BUT WE HAVE ONE WHO HAS BEEN TEMPTED IN EVERY WAY, JUST AS WE ARE—YET HE DID NOT SIN.
WHEN WE BOW IN SUBMISSION TO THE LORD AND THEN CHOOSE TO RECOGNIZE HIS WORD WITH EQUAL AUTHORITY, WE CAN ENJOY “SOUL SATISFACTION.” IT IS WHEN YOUR HEART FINDS ITS JOY IN OBEDIENCE TO GOD AND IT’S DELIGHT IN GOD’S WORD, IN HIS WAYS, AND IN HIS PURPOSES FOR YOUR LIFE.
POINT TWO: REASONS WHY I CHOOSE TO TRUST THE BIBLE AS GOD’S WORD
I WANT TO LOOK AT JUST A FEW REASONS TO PUT YOUR TRUST IN THE BIBLE AS THE WORD OF GOD.
1. GOD’S WORD IS MY CORRECTION – I CHALLENGE MYSELF WITH IT.
HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN THE BIBLE IS YOUR AUTHORITY? IT IS WHEN IT STOPS YOU DEAD IN YOUR TRACKS. WE ARE CREATURES WHO WANT OUR OWN AGENDA, AND WILL LITERALLY TRICK OURSELVES TO BELIEVE OUR DECISION IS IN THE WILL OF GOD.
PROVERBS 14:12: THERE IS A WAY THAT APPEARS TO BE RIGHT, BUT IN THE END IT LEADS TO DEATH
YOU WILL KNOW THE BIBLE IS YOUR AUTHORITY WHEN IN READING IT, GOD OPENS YOUR EYES TO REALIZE YOUR AGENDA IS NOT WHAT HE WANTS FOR YOU, AND YOU STOP. THIS ALLOWS GOD TO PUT YOU ON COURSE FOR HIS WILL IN YOUR LIFE.
PSALM 119:105: YOUR WORD IS A LAMP FOR MY FEET, A LIGHT ON MY PATH.
2. THE BIBLE IS PREEMINENT BECAUSE OF IT’S PRESERVATION UNDER PERSECUTION.
THE BIBLE HAS ALWAYS BEEN UNDER ATTACK OF SOME FORM. CULTURES LIKE THE EARLY ROMAN EMPIRE HAVE TRIED UNSUCCESSFULLY TO ELIMINTATE IT FROM SOCIETY. TODAY’S SOCIETY IS TRYING TO ELIMINATE THE WORD OF GOD, REMOVING IT FROM GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS, SCHOOLS AND HOSPITALS TO NAME A FEW EXAMPLES, BUT THE RESULT WILL BE THE SAME, UNSUCCESSFUL.
NO OTHER BOOK HAS BEEN SO BURNED, BANNED, AND DEFAMED AS THE BIBLE. YET IT CONTINUES TO RISE FROM THE ASHES IN THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION AND USED TO LEAD PEOPLE TO THE PEACE OF KNOWING JESUS AS SAVIOUR AND FOLLOWING HIM AS LORD AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO UNTIL THE LORD RETURNS.
3. THE BIBLE IS PREEMINENT IN TIME AND ARCHAEOLOGY
MORE THAN 24,000 WHOLE OR PARTIAL MANUSCRIPTS OF THE BIBLE CURRENTLY EXIST. THERE IS OVER 100 TIMES MORE ANCIENT BIBLICAL DOCUMENTS THAT CAN BE STUDIED IN COMPARISON TO THE NEXT MOST COMMONLY COPIED ANCIENT WRITTEN WORD.
THE AMAZING THING IS THE UNITY THAT THESE 24,000 DOCUMENTS HAVE. SIR FREDERICK KENYON, A GREAT AUTHORITY OF NEW TESTAMENT TEXTUAL CRITICISM, SAID:
“NO FUNDAMENTAL DOCTRINE OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH RESTS ON A DISPUTED READING.”
IN 1948 THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS WERE DISCOVERED AND INCLUDED A COMPLETE COPY OF THE BOOK OF ISAIAH. THIS SCROLL WAS 1000 YEARS OLDER THAN THE PREVIOUS OLDEST MANUSCRIPT. IN THE 1000 YEARS OF COPYING AND RECOPYING THE SCRIPT, ONLY ONE WORD IN ISAIAH 53 WAS QUESTIONED, AND IT DID NOT CHANGE THE MEANING OF THE SENTENCE IN ANY WAY. THAT’S UNITY OF THOUGHT.
THE BIBLE SPEAKS OF ACTUAL PLACES AND PEOPLE THAT CAN BE HISTORICALLY PROVEN. ONLY 1% OF ISRAEL HAS BEEN STUDIED BY ARCHAEOLOGISTS, AND YET ALMOST EVERY HISTORICAL FIGURE IN THE BIBLE HAS BEEN CONFIRMED BY EMPERICAL DATA. ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARE CONTINUALLY DISCOVERING ARTIFACTS THAT SUPPORT THE AUTHORITY OF THE SCRIPTURE, AND GIVE US DEEPER INSIGHTS INTO ITS MEANING.
4. THE BIBLE IS PREEMINENT BECAUSE OF THE AGREEMENT OF IT’S WRITERS
FORTY DIFFERENT AUTHORS, OVER A TWO THOUSAND YEAR PERIOD OF TIME, HAVING BACKGROUNDS RANGING FROM FARMERS, KINGS, SHEPHERDS, WISE MEN AND FISHERMEN, WROTE WITH REMARKABLE UNITY. THE REASON FOR THIS IS THAT WHILE THE BIBLE HAD FORTY WRITERS, IT WAS AUTHORED BY GOD.
5. THE BIBLE IS PREEMINENT BECAUSE ALL PROPHECIES HAVE COME TRUE
HUNDREDS OF PROPHECIES ABOUT JESUS CHRIST, HIS LIFE, MINISTRY, HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION, FORETOLD HUNDREDS OF YEARS BEFORE HIS BIRTH HAVE ALL COME TRUE. THE BIBLE IS THE PROOF OF THE ACCURACY OF HIS WORD, AND ALLOWS US TO HAVE FAITH THAT WHAT IS PREDICTED CONCERNING THE LAST DAYS WILL ALSO COME TO PASS.
POINT THREE: WHAT ARE THE REWARDS FOR CHOOSING THE BIBLE AS GOD’S WORD?
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE OFFER TO US IF WE SUBMIT TO IT’S AUTHORITY? I WANT TO SUGGEST SOME THINGS THAT CAN BRING US PEACE AND SATISFACTION.
1. HOPE:
PSALM 118:18: THE LORD HAS CHASTENED ME SEVERELY, BUT HE HAS NOT GIVEN ME OVER TO DEATH.
HOPE IS THE CONFIDENT EXPECTATION THAT BETTER THINGS ARE AHEAD. IT IS THE IDEA THAT WE HAVEN’T TOTALLY MESSED UP AND THAT IT IS NOT TOO LATE FOR US NO MATTER HOW MANY MISTAKES WE HAVE MADE.
2. HELP:
GOD’S WORD IS RESOURCE CENTRAL. YOU WILL FIND WISDOM AND DIRECTION FOR ANY SITUATION YOU MAY FIND YOURSELF IN. IT HAS THE ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS “WHERE DO I TURN” “WHAT DO I DO”.
3. HEALING:
MOST OF US HAVE BEEN HURT BY THINGS THAT HAVE HAPPENED IN OUR LIVES. WE WONDER HOW WE CAN GET PAST THESE HURTS. LOOK WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS.
PSALM 23:3-5:
HE REFRESHES MY SOUL. HE GUIDES ME ALONG THE RIGHT PATHS FOR HIS NAME’S SAKE. 4 EVEN THOUGH I WALK THROUGH THE DARKEST VALLEY, I WILL FEAR NO EVIL, FOR YOU ARE WITH ME; YOUR ROD AND YOUR STAFF, THEY COMFORT ME. 5 YOU PREPARE A TABLE BEFORE ME IN THE PRESENCE OF MY ENEMIES. YOU ANOINT MY HEAD WITH OIL; MY CUP OVERFLOWS.
THE OIL OF V. 5 IS A HEALING OIL THAT SHEPHERDS USED TO PUT ON THE WOUNDS OF THE SHEEP AS THEY CAME TO THE FOLD AT NIGHT. GOD’S WORD CAN BE MEDICINE AND PROVIDE HEALING FOR YOUR SOUL THAT IN OUR STRENGTH IS NOT POSSIBLE.
4. HAPPINESS:
WE CAN FIND HAPPINESS IN GOD’S WORD. GOD CREATED US, SO HE HAS THE BLURPRINT FOR OUR ULTIMATE HAPPINESS
PSALM 1:1-2:
BLESSED IS THE ONE WHO DOES NOT WALK IN STEP WITH THE WICKED OR STAND IN THE WAY THAT SINNERS TAKE OR SIT IN THE COMPANY OF MOCKERS, 2 BUT WHOSE DELIGHT IS IN THE LAW OF THE LORD, AND WHO MEDITATES ON HIS LAW DAY AND NIGHT.
BLESSED MEANS “HAPPY”, AND HAPPY IS THE PERSON WHO KNOWS GOD’S KIND OF “SOUL SATISFACTION” THAT FLOURISHES IN OUR HEARTS.
5. HEAVEN:
THE BIBLE IS WHERE WE FIND OUT ABOUT OUR ETERNAL HOME. WE CAN LEARN HOW TO GET THERE AND WHAT IT WILL BE LIKE.
OUR KNOWLEDGE ABOUT HEAVEN WILL GIVE US GREAT PEACE. I’VE BEEN AT THE BEDSIDE OF MANY PEOPLE WHO ARE DYING, AND THE PEACE AND CALMNESS THAT THEY HAVE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT GOING HOME IS INCREDIBLE. IT REMOVES THE FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN, AND THESE PEOPLE ARE EXCITED TO SEE JESUS. ONLY PEOPLE WHO ARE TOTALLY SUBMITTED TO THE AUTHORITY OF THE SCRIPTURE CAN KNOW THIS.
PEOPLE WHO ARE TOTALLY SUBMITTED TO THE SCRIPTURE CAN KNOW THIS PEACE.
1 CORINTHIANS 2:9-10
HOWEVER, AS IT IS WRITTEN: “WHAT NO EYE HAS SEEN, WHAT NO EAR HAS HEARD, AND WHAT NO HUMAN MIND HAS CONCEIVED”— THE THINGS GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM— 10 THESE ARE THE THINGS GOD HAS REVEALED TO US BY HIS SPIRIT.
GOD’S WORD UNLOCKS MANY OF THE SECRETS OF HEAVEN THAT CAN MAKE US EXCITED ABOUT GOING THERE.
CONCLUSION:
THE BIBLE IS A KEY AVENUE THAT GOD USES TO SPEAK WITH US. IT CONTAINS THE ANSWERS TO ANY PROBLEM YOU WILL EVER ENCOUNTER IN LIFE.
YOU MUST CHOOSE THOUGH TO PUT YOUR FAITH IN IT. IF YOU MAKE THIS CHOICE IT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE, AND BRING YOU INCREDIBLE BLESSING AND PEACE.
