THE FOUNDATION OF CHRISTIANITY
PSALM 11:3
INTRODUCTION:
1. ILL: Kareem Abdul Jabar Several years ago Roy Firestone interviewed the legendary basketball player Kareem Abdul Jabar. During the interview, Firestone Asked Jabar if there was one coach that he had during his career that influenced him the most. Immediately, Jabar answered, “Yes, John Wooten of UCLA.” Firestone then asked him what it was that made him so special. Kareem’s answer is worth noting. He said, “He was an ardent student and teacher of the fundamentals of basketball.” He then went on to tell the story of how on the very first day of practice, Coach Wooten taught the whole team how to put on their socks so as to never get a blister, and how to tie their shoes so that they will never come untied. Now that is basic!
2. We call ourselves “fundamentalists.” Why? Not because we are narrow minded and mean spirited like some would think. No! It is because we believe in the “fundamentals of the faith.”
3. What is the hallmark of a fundamentalist? What is the foundation of our Christian faith? What is the bedrock of our belief system?
4. Some would say it is the fact that we believe in one God, and that He is a Trinity. Others say that it is the fact that Jesus shed His blood for us. Still others would say that the love of God is the foundation.
5. All of these are to be held in the highest esteem! However, I believe that the foundation of the Christian faith is a belief, yea, rather, a conviction that the Bible is the Word of God! We could know none of these apart from His Word!
6. Bob Jones Sr. said, “A fundamentalist is a person who is soundly converted and born again through faith in the blood of Christ, who believes that the Bible is God’s Word, who is willing to defend the Scripture with his life’s blood, who preaches and proclaims the Word, and who seeks to obey it.”
7. ILL: Vince Lombardi Vince Lombardi was one of the winningest coaches who ever coached in the NFL. Once, after losing a game, he called for a team meeting in the locker room. As he faced these season hardened men who knew football in and out, he held up a football and announced, “Men, this is a football!” He then began to remind them of some of the basics of the game and said, “Men, we must get back to the basics.” Lombardi knew the importance of never forgetting the basics of the game. He believed that the strength of their game lay in the foundations of football – the very basics.
8. The same is true of the Christian life! If we forget that the basic premise of Christianity is that we are a people of the Book, we will lose out on this game called life!
9. The problem is that many times the Bible becomes so familiar to us that we pay It very little attention. However, our faith in the Bible makes us what we are!
10. Kellogg’s Corn Flakes ran an add several years ago which said, “Taste them again for the first time.” Today, I invite you to taste the Bible again for the first time!
11. THEREFORE, WE MUST GET BACK TO THE BIBLE
WHY?
I. BECAUSE THE BIBLE IS PROFITABLE: (II TIMOTHY 3:16-17)
1. II Timothy 3:16-17
2. The word “inspiration” Is theoneustos in the Greek and simply means, “God- breathed.” This verse testifies to the unique character of the Scripture and means that the Bible is the result of God’s creative breath. It was not only written by men, but was literally authored by God.
3. B.B. Warfield said, “The Bible is the Word of God in such a way that when the Bible speaks, God speaks.”
4. II Peter 1:20-21 “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.”
5. The Bible came from God through the men who wrote it. God superintended these human authors so that, using their individual personalities, they composed and recorded without error God’s Word to man.
6. The Bible is the greatest book ever written. It is not simply one book, but an entire library of books covering the whole range of literature. It includes history, poetry, drama, biography, prophecy, philosophy, science, and inspirational reading.
7. The Bible was written over a period of 1,500 years, by over 40 authors, in several different countries. It has been translated into more than 1,200 languages and still remains the number one selling book in the world.
8. It is a book of divine instruction. It offers comfort in sorrow, guidance in perplexity, advice for our problems, rebuke for our sins, and daily inspiration for every need.
9. Notice what the Bible is profitable for – Doctrine: it tells us what to believe. Reproof: it tells us what is wrong. Correction: it tells us how to fix what is wrong. Instruction in righteousness: it tells us what is right and how to live. It makes us Perfect (spiritually mature): it gives us everything we need to do what God wants us to do. Throughly furnished: it provides all we need for life and ministry.
10. More than all of this, the Bible alone truly answers life’s greatest questions. “Where have I come from?” “Where am I going?” “Why am I here?” “How can I know the truth?” It reveals the truth about God, explains the origin of man, points out the only way of salvation and eternal life, and answers the age-old problems of sin and suffering.
11. POEM: The Precious Bible - Anonymous Though the cover is worn and the pages are torn, And though places bear traces of tears; Yet more precious than gold is this book worn and old, That can shatter and scatter my fears.
When I prayerfully look at this precious old book, Many pleasures and treasures I see; Many tokens of love from the Father above, Who is nearest and dearest to me.
This old book is my guide, ‘Tis a friend by my side, It will lighten and brighten my way; And each promise I find soothes and gladdens my mind, As I read it and heed it each day.
II. BECAUSE THE BIBLE IS POWERFUL: (HEBREWS 4:12)
1. Hebrews 4:12
2. First, the Bible is alive
3. The word “quick” literally means “living or alive.” God’s word is not archaic, old, or out of date – It is alive! It deals with the problems of today as easily as it dealt with the problems of yesterday! People are still led by God’s Word today
4. Psalm 119:105 “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
5. Second, the Bible is active
6. The word “powerful” means “active or energizing.” God’s word is not inept or inactive – it is at work today just as it was in years gone by. People are still saved by the power of God’s word!
7. Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”
8. ILL: Charles Spurgeon One-day, a skeptic and unbeliever laid into Spurgeon about the subject of the Bible. Spurgeon said nothing. The skeptic asked, “Mr. Spurgeon, will you not defend the Bible?” Spurgeon laughed and retorted, “Defend the Bible? That would be like trying to defend a lion. Just let the lion loose and he will defend himself!”
9. Isaiah 55:11 “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it.”
III. BECAUSE THE BIBLE IS PRESERVED: (PSALM 12:6-7)
1. Psalm 12:6-7
2. In this verse, God promised to preserve or to keep his word intact from the time it was written throughout the ages. This begs the question, “Where has God preserved His Word?” I believe that, for the English-speaking people, God has preserved His Word in the King James Version of the Bible!
3. However, Many people view the King James issue in the wrong way. It is not a matter of Jacobean English verses Modern English. It is an issue of whether or not God’s people have the faith to believe that He keeps His promises!
4. One, the King James is based on the proper manuscripts.
5. The King James Version is based upon the superior manuscript called the “Majority Text” or the “Received Text.” This text consists of the Hebrew “Masoretic Text” (O.T.) and the Greek “Textus Receptus” (N.T.).
6. These manuscripts that the KJV came from are said to not be as old as the others. The reason for this is that the KJV ones were used much more than the other ones because they were considered by Christians to be the Word of God. The others were considered corrupt because of the deletions and differences in them.
7. Other versions contain some of the Word of God. The KJV is the Word of God.
8. ILL: Gone With The Wind
My favorite movie is "Gone with the Wind." I personally own a copy of it. When it comes on TV I will not watch it! Why?The reason is simple - I do not want to watch the edited version. Similarly, I do not want to read an edited Bible either.
9. Two, the King James has stood the test of time.
10. For nearly four hundred years the King James Version has enjoyed the unparalleled blessing of God upon its reading and preaching! Every true revival that has taken place in an English speaking country has had the KJV at its roots!
IV. BECAUSE THE BIBLE IS PERMANENT: (PSALM 119:89)
1. Psalm 119:89
2. The songwriter wrote, “The Bible stands like a rock undaunted, mid the raging storms of time. It’s pages burn with the truth eternal, and they glow with a light sublime.”
3. The Word of God has been complete in heaven for all eternity and, try as they have, no-one can ever destroy it! It is indestructible because God has promised so!
4. Jesus believed that even the Vowel marking in the Hebrew Old Testament would last forever.
5. Matthew 5:18 “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law until all be fulfilled.”
6. The jot is the smallest Hebrew letter, yohd, which looks like an apostraphe (‘). A tittle is a very small extension on several Hebrew letters which the letters from other that are similar to them.
7. ILL: Ingersoll, Payne, & Voltaire Ingersoll held up a copy of the Bible and said, “In fifteen I’ll have this book in the morgue.’ Fifteen years later, Ingersoll was in the morgue and the Bible lived on.
Voltaire said that in one hundred years the Bible would be an outdated, outmoded, and forgotten book, to be found only in museums. When the one hundred years were up, Voltaire’s house was owned by the Geneva Bible Society and used to print and store Bibles. Thomas Payne said that within one generation the Bible would no longer be printed. However, upon his death the same printing press he used to print that garbage, was being used to print new Bibles!
8. Psalm 119:160 “Thy word is true from the very beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.”
9. POEM: The Anvil - John Clifford Last eve I paused beside the blacksmith’s door, And heard the anvil ring the vesper chime; Then looking in upon the floor, Old hammers worn with beating year of time. "How many anvil’s have you had," said I, "To wear and batter all these hammers so?" "just one," said he; and then with twinkling eye, "The anvil wears the hammers out, you know." And so I thought, "the anvil of God’s Word, For ages skeptic blows have beat upon; Yet though the noise of falling blows was heard, The anvil is unharmed, the hammers gone!"
10. Isaiah 40:8 “The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand forever.”
V. BECAUSE THE BIBLE IS PERFECT: (PROVERBS 30:5)
1. Proverbs 30:5
2. The word “pure” in verse 5 literally means “refined, purged, separated from impurities.” Therefore, the Word of God is completely free from imperfections.
3. This fact demands that the words of Scripture be held in the highest regard and that they must not be considered to be in error in any way! Furthermore, no part of it should ever be neglected or regarded as less important.
4. The Psalmist wrote, “Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.” Also, Paul states in Titus 1:2 that God can not lie.
5. If one takes these statements literally, it logically follows that since God knows all things and can not lie and since He inspired the Bible – The Bible must be without error.
6. How could an omniscient God inspire a book that is anything less than absolutely accurate in every are of which it speaks? It could not, for that would be a logical impossibility.
7. Norman Geisler, writing of the inerrancy of the Scriptures, proclaimed, “As any student of reason knows, this is a valid line of reasoning. So, if the premise is true, the conclusion is also true. The Bible clearly declares Itself to be the Word of God. It also informs us that God cannot err. The conclusion then is inevitable. The bible cannot err. If the Bible erred in anything it affirms, then God would be mistaken. But God cannot make mistakes.”
8. First, the Bible is historically correct.
9. The Bible contains much history. As a result, men have subjected it to intense historical investigation. The most significant area of investigation comes from the science called archeology.
10. Notice what several archaeologists have said.
11. William Albright wrote, “There can be no doubt that archaeology has confirmed the historicity of the Old Testament tradition.”
12. Nelson Glueck adds, “It may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a Biblical reference.”
13. Frederick Owen concludes, “After one-hundred sixty-five years of archaeological research it may be stated that the large amount of learned men have pooled their efforts and picked up the threads of ancient life from a thousand city mounds and woven them into a pattern which agrees perfectly with the lives and recorded deed of bible characters.”
14. Although, archaeology does not “prove” that the Bible is true, it lends credibility to Its historical claims.
15. Second, the Bible is scientifically correct.
16. The Bible gives the most accurate, definite, brief statement of the blood in the body. Scientists have never been able to form a better statement. However, the Bible made the statement over 3,500 years ago, and science has only discovered it in the last 150 years.
17. Leviticus 17:11 “The life of the flesh is in the blood.”
18. Long before men learned by scientific investigation the facts about the earth and the universe, the Bible revealed many of the facts we now know to be true.
19. In every area, which the Bible speaks, the Bible is correct. It is our final authority!
CONCLUSION:
1. Joshua 1:8 “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then shalt thou make thy way prosperous, and then shalt thou have good success.”
2. Psalm 119:97 “O how I love thy law! It is my meditation all the day long.”
3. You can not know God apart from His holy Word! Therefore, if you do not have a relationship with the Bible, you have no relationship with God! You may be related to Him by the new birth, but you are not in a growing relationship with Him!
