Can You Trust God’s Word?
2 Peter 1:16-21
II Timothy 3:16
This morning I want to answer the question: “Can You Trust God’s Word - The Bible.” People today have many different views of the Bible and of the Christian life.
Signs found in church parking lots:
1. Free Trip to Heaven. Details Inside!
2. How will you spend eternity - Smoking or Non-Smoking.
3. It is unlikely there’ll be a reduction in the wages of sin.
4. If you’re headed in the wrong direction, God allows U-turns.
5. If you don’t like the way you were born, try being born again.
6. If you can’t sleep, don’t count sheep - Talk to the Shepherd.
And the two signs that are relevant to today’s message are:
"Dusty Bibles lead to Dirty Lives. "
"Fight truth decay. Study the Bible daily."
Biblical Bloopers - slightly false scriptural insights from children of Christian and Jewish faiths:
- In the first book of the Bible, Guinessis, God got tired of creating the world, so he took the Sabbath off.
- Adam and Eve were created from an apple tree.
- Noah’s wife was called Joan of Ark.
- Lot’s wife was a pillar of salt by day, but a ball of fire by night.
- Moses led the Hebrews to the Red Sea, where they made unleavened bread, which is bread made without any ingredients.
- The Egyptians were all drowned in the desert.
- Afterward. Moses went up on Mount Cyanide to get the Ten Amendments.
- The First Commandment was when Eve told Adam to eat the apple.
- The Fifth Commandment is "Humor thy father and mother."
- The Seventh Commandment is "Thou shalt not admit adultery."
- The greatest miracle in the Bible is when Joshua told his son to stand still and he obeyed him.
- Solomon, one of David’s sons, has 300 wives and 700 porcupines.
- When Mary heard that she was the mother of Jesus, she sang the Magna Carta.
- When the three wise guys from the east side showed up, they found Jesus and the manager.
- Jesus was born because Mary had an emaculate contraption. St. John, the Blacksmith, dumped water on his head.
- Jesus enunciated the Golden Rule, which is "Do one to others before they do one to you."
- The Bible says a man is only supposed to have one wife. This is called monotony.
It’s important to know the truths of the Bible and not get the scriptures confused or mixed up.
Why do Christians study the Bible and work to pattern their beliefs and lives according to this one book? After all there are many self-help books and many religious books available. Why give the Bible so much authority in your life?
There are lots of books in print with the word "Bible" in the title that have nothing to do with what we’re talking about. There’s "The Beauty Bible," "the Freshwater Fisherman’s Bible," "The Golfer’s Bible," “the Rifleman’s Bible ” even "The Cooking Bible." The Bible I’m talking about is the Old and New Testaments.
Can You Really Trust the Bible?
More than 50,000 different books are published in the United States each year. They cover every subject imaginable, from artichokes to zucchini, from anthropology to zoology, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. People who trust the Bible say it is different from any other book ever published. They say it is the only book authored by God and the only book that shows us how to know Him, how to live, and how to receive eternal life.
Many people don’t agree. They think the Bible is flawed and unreliable, and obviously not written by God. From time to time you hear different people saying:
"The Bible is not scientifically reliable." A person who thinks this way feels that the Bible is full of scientific errors and therefore cannot be trusted in spiritual matters either.
"The Bible is historically inaccurate."
"The Bible is outdated." Not many books are still being printed today that were finished 2,000 years ago.
"The Bible is the work of man."
Can you trust the Bible to be the very Word of God? Turn to 2 Peter 1:16-21 – We have the words of the Apostle Peter.
I. The Bible is Not Cleverly Invented Stories. 1:16
The writer of the Second Letter of Peter had to contend with the dark mood of despair and hopelessness in his own day. He knew that at one time the Christian community had been alert, looking for the imminent return of Christ, but at the close of the first century there was not much enthusiasm for the future
Confronted with the mood of skepticism concerning the last day, Peter affirms in clear-cut terms "the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." Verse 16 – “We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.”
Stories invented by men are interesting both fiction and non-fiction.
For the first five years of school I struggled to learn to read. Finally in fifth grade I could read fairly well. Then in High School reading became a passion especially to read science fiction books. I read all the science fiction books I could find in the school library. I also read books about rockets and the inventions of Warner Von Braun.
Is the Bible like a science fiction book? Is it a book of fairy tales like Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, The Wizard of Oz and Harry Potter?
Peter declares that the Bible is not like any other book written by men. It is unique. Is it comparable to the Koran, book of Mormon or the writings of Buddha? Peter declares in I Peter 1:16 that God’s Word, the Old Testament is the very Word of God. God Word is a Historical Book and verifiable as a fact in history. What we have is the word of God not the words of man.
• The Bible was written by 40 different authors.
• It was written over a period of 1,600 years.
• It was written in three languages: Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic.
• Its writers came from many walks of life: prophet (Jeremiah), priest (Zechariah), shepherd (Amos), king (David), servant (Nehemiah), doctor (Luke), tax collector (Matthew), and Pharisee (Paul).
• It was written on three continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe.
• A gap of more than 400 years separated the writing of the Old Testament from the New Testament
• *The writers inscribed God’s word on sheepskin and goatskin, papyrus and parchment.
*It was written in different settings:
-The first five books were written in the desert wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula.
-At least four letters of Paul were written while he was in prison.
-Daniel wrote from the courts of Babylon
-Some of the psalms were written while David kept sheep in the hills of Judea.
Yet, when you read the Bible as a whole, recorded over all those years by so many different men, written under so many different conditions, you will find that it tells one story and follows one theme.
-It bears the mark of one author – God.
-And there are literally thousands of manuscripts spanning hundreds of years, preserving the complete text of the Bible intact and unaltered proving that the Bible we hold in our hands accurately preserves all that was written. That cannot be said of the writings of Shakespeare or any other book of antiquity.
II. The Bible was Written by Eye-witnesses. 2 Peter 1:16-18
The authors of the Bible wrote what they heard and saw under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Moses wrote about his experiences and what God told him to write in Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Moses didn’t come up on his own the Ten Commandments, but God wrote them on stone tablets. Exodus 20:1, “God spoke all these words…”
The first tablets were broken when Moses came down and saw the sinfulness of the children of Israel worshipping the golden calf crafted by Aaron. In disgust Moses threw the tablets down and the tablets of stone were broken. In Exodus 34:1 God told Moses to make two more stone tablets and God said, “I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke.” We know that God does not lie.
2 Peter 1:16, “We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our lord Jesus Christ, but we were eye witnesses of His majesty.”
Peter gives evidence that the Lord will return by assuring the people that he was not following "cleverly devised myths" but rather he was an "eyewitness of his majesty." In other words, his hope for the future is based upon historical reality. He refers to that shining moment in Jesus’ life when he was transfigured before James, John and Peter on the Mountain of Transfiguration. During that extraordinary experience the three disciples heard a voice from heaven saying: "This is my Son, My Beloved, with whom I am well pleased." Peter and his companions knew that Jesus was unique. Even Moses, the lawgiver, and Elijah, the first of the prophets, were subordinate to Him. Three of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke record the event on the mountain. Peter said: “I was there. I heard the voice. I was an eye witness of the glory and majesty.”
Peter as an eyewitness was saying: “I’m telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help me God.”
In the court of Law an eyewitness carries great weight. An eyewitness can mean the difference between freedom and a life in prison. While working on this message this past week in a hot cabin near Yosemite. The temperature the first day was 105. The television set could get one clear channel. One evening we watched the news program of the trail held in Texas of a man accused of killing several people. He had attempted to kill two young girls. One of the girls died but the other with her throat slit played dead and survived as the only eyewitness in the case. The eyewitness of 11 year old Crystal convicted the man for his crimes.
Archaeology has substantiated numerous customs, places, names, and events mentioned in the New Testament. For example, archaeology has verified the existence of the city of Nazareth, where Jesus was raised, as well as most of the ancient cities mentioned in Acts. Archaeology has documented the accuracy of Luke’s account of Paul’s missionary journeys and has confirmed the periodic Roman censuses that caused Joseph and Mary to be in Bethlehem at the time of Jesus’ birth. Archaeology has authenticated the historicity of Pontius Pilate, who sentenced Jesus to die by crucifixion.
The British archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon dug up Jericho and found that the city fell during a short attack. Vast amounts of grain were found, which shows there was not a long siege. And the walls had fallen outward, as if in a sudden collapse.
Time Magazine (March,1990) in its "Science" section, quotes archaeologist Bryant Wood, who says the city’s walls came tumbling down at just the right time spoken of in the Bible based on pottery evidence.
Peter in writing to New Christians wanted them to have the assurance and trust in the writings of the prophets. He was telling them about the Life of Christ as Truth they can count on. I Peter 1:24-25: “For all men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.”
Since God’s Word is true. Peter admonishes the new believers to live lives of holiness and obey God’s Word. Prepare for the Second Coming of the Lord.
2 Peter 3:10-11 – “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives.”
III. The Bible is Inspired by God.
I Peter 1:19-21
II Timothy 3:16
Holy men of God wrote the Bible as they were moved and carried along in their thoughts by the Holy Spirit. In the Bible we have the very Word of God. The Bible is God inspired and God breathed. God moved in the hearts of men to write His truth through their various personalities. In the Four Gospels we have the life of Christ told by four different personalities, but all in agreement in their writings.
From Genesis to Revelation there is one story of God’s revelation to humankind.
In Old Testament of 39 books we have the story of Creation of the Heavens and the Earth, the Universe and all the stars planets, Sun and moon, plants, sea, animals and human kind.
We have a recorded history of Israel: the Prophets telling of the coming Messiah; the Gospel give the Life of Christ, the Epistles give instructions and encouragement to Christians; Acts give the history of the early church and Revelation tells of the end times- final judgment, creation of a new heaven and a new earth and an eternity with God or an eternity without God.
II Timothy 3:16 “All scripture is God-reathed/inspired and useful for teaching, rebuking, correction and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” If God inspired the Bible- the God said it, I believe it and that settles it.
Christ’s Claims for The Bible. While Jesus Christ was on earth, He affirmed the Bible’s claims for itself. In what He said about it and in the way He used it, the Son of God showed the Bible to be the Word of God. Consider the following:
a. He used titles for the Bible that showed its authenticity:
• "The Word of God" (Mark 7:13; John 10:35).
• "Scripture" (Luke 4:21; John 5:39; 10:35).
• "The commandment of God" (Mark 7:8).
b. He accepted the persons and events mentioned in the Old Testament as historical:
• Adam and Eve (Matthew 19:4-5) .
• Noah and the flood (Matthew 24:37-39).
• Lot, Lot’s wife, and Sodom (Luke 17:28-32).
• Jonah (Matthew 12:38-41).
c. He saw His own words as Scripture and therefore to be believed (John 12:48-49).
d. He held people responsible for what was written in the Scriptures (Matthew 12:3).
e. He used Scripture as conclusive evidence in answering His critics:
• John 10:35, quoting Psalm 82:6.
• Matthew 22:32, quoting Exodus 3:6,15.
• Matthew 22:42-44, quoting Psalm 110:1.
f. He used the authority of Scripture to refute the temptations of Satan in the wilderness (Matthew 4:4,7,10).
In the way Jesus Christ quoted and used the Scriptures, He made it clear that He accepted its claims for itself to be true. While He was on earth, the living Word affirmed the written Word.
A man went to a bookbinder to get a well-used New Testament rebound in leather. He wanted the side binding to read: “The New Testament”. When the job was finished, the binder explained that he just wasn’t able to get all the letters on the side, so he abbreviated - “TNT”.
Some people might like to think they can take some of the powder out of this dynamite, but it’s not possible to disarm God’s word. Comparing the Bible to TNT is appropriate; the author of Hebrews describes the Scriptures as a “double-edged sword” (4:12). The edge of our sword is not dull and cannot be made so by skepticism. Spiritual blindness keeps people from recognizing God in nature and in the revelation of His written word.
Knowing that the Bible is the inspired Word of God – What will you do with God’s Word?
Read your Bible. Get a version that is easy to read. The King James Version is a great translation but not easy to read. The NIV, the Living Bible, The Message or the Bible in Contemporary English are better choices. (Reflection NIV Study Bible)
Study your Bible. Get in a small Bible study group. A home group or a Christian Life Class are excellent ways to study.
Apply the truths to your daily life. Live in obedience to God’s Word.
The Bible is all about the person and work of Jesus and how to walk with Him.
Let’s be a congregation grounded in God’s Word.
