Why I Trust the Bible

(First let me say that John Piper addresses this exceptionally well at http://theresurgence.com/2014/09/23/resurgence-leadership-032-why-i-trust-the-scriptures-part-1 and it was John Piper that sort of 'inspired' this post.)

Why do Christians, in the face of opposition, and an abundance of critiques against the Bible,  still trust the Bible and believe it? 

Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul; 

the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple; 

8 the precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart; 

the commandment of the LORD is pure,
enlightening the eyes; 

9 the fear of the LORD is clean,
enduring forever; 

the rules of the LORD are true,
and righteous altogether. 

10 More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold; 

sweeter also than honey and drippings
of the honeycomb. 

11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned; 

in keeping them there is great reward. 

12 Who can discern his errors? 

Declare me innocent from hidden faults. 

13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; 

let them not have dominion over me! 

Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression. 

14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart 

be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. 

Why do I believe the Bible? Is it smart to believe the Bible? Does it do any good to give Bibles to people? Are there any good reasons to not believe it?

You know what I have found about trusting God’s word? It’s hard to remember all the arguments for it if someone was to ask you. I have books on apologetics where I can look up good info on it's trustworthiness. But if I run into a man on the street who asks me why I believe it, not only can I not remember all those details, but I don't think they are likely to convince him anyway! I mean, I guess I should be able to, I am a preacher! I went to Seminary!

I can tell you details about the Bible. How many prophecies fulfilled, how many authors there are and yet they all agree about things. But in a few days, you’d have trouble remembering all that too! 

For instance, one group of scholars counted, 1,817 prophetic predictions in scripture. Most of which have already been fulfilled in incredible detail and the remainder we fully expect to come to pass as well, they just haven't happened yet. 191 of those are prophecies about the coming Jewish Messiah. Close to 100 of those have been fulfilled, accurately, and the remainder we expect at His return and in eternity.

But 3 days, from now, ask yourself, how many prophecies are there? Do you still remember?

Now it is good to know and hear these things. It is good to know that Geisler and Howe wrote The Big Book of Bible Difficulties, taking on the accusation of 800 errors in scripture and refuted each one of them. Good info! But I believe there is another approach to this whole question.

So I want to take a whole different approach to this.

First, what do we trust it for? What does it Do for us?  

It reveals the principles by which God judges us, and therefore is…the true center of Christian 

union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions 

should be tried. All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is…the focus of divine revelation[1].

Bottom line: The Bible gives us the Law, which tells us about the Holiness of God! And it tells us how far we fall short of God’s Holiness!

     It’s the basis for Christian union. I find myself in agreement with Baptists the most. But, guess what, I also have a lot of agreement with Presbyterians, Methodists and Yes, even Pentecostals – well some of them. If they are true believers and hold to the same gospel of Salvation by Grace thru faith I do. I know the Founders of the Lutherans, Presbyterians and Methodists believed that! But it also means I’m wary about other groups. While I have much in common with Catholics and the Church of Christ, in my opinion, they add works to the process of salvation. That is a big problem for me. Don’t get me wrong; There are true Christians among the Catholics and Church of Christ. And, there are lost people among the Baptists! But if we adhere to the clear teaching of scripture on salvation, on the nature of God and man, then we can have true Christian union. But, It also tells me some groups Like Mormons & Jehovah’s Witnesses are Not Christian at all.

   Also, it gives us a basis for our Behavior and Beliefs! How we should act, how we should think and believe is directed in the Scriptures. Even with all the technology, and the way the world has changed, you can't find a moral or ethical question the Bible doesn’t have something to say about it!

   And Most Important: The Bible Tells us about Jesus! Not Just the New Testament! Genesis 3 tells us about Him. The rituals of Leviticus, Psalms of David, Joshua, Isaiah, Hosea, Jeremiah, even Malachi do, too. Then of course Matthew, Mark, Luke and John do it Supremely Well! There’s not a book on earth that can tell us about Jesus and how He came to save like the Bible!

Second, Why is this important today? 

1) More people today deny the existence of Truth. Oh there is your truth and my truth but there is No Universal truth to a lot of people. That idea begins to trickle down to all of us! In fact, It is taught that if someone comes along claiming truth, then really they just have an agenda to control you!

2) Others say there is truth but the Bible is a mixture of truth and error. To them the Bible is so full of myths, contradictions, absurdities, and even Divine Sins, where God got things Wrong!

3) There are more books competing with the Bible as Holy Books. Used to be the Quran was way over in the Syrian and Iraq. Now it’s here. And the Bhagavad Gita, the Vedas etc. These are flooding the world! We need to flood the world with the Bible! 

4) And, it’s Important today because the Bible DOES make exclusive claims! It claims to be inspired by God! Look at these claims:

2nd Timothy 3:16  All Scripture is breathed out by God...

John 14:6 (Jesus says) I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father, but by me. 

Act 4:12 ...neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven... 

whereby we must be saved.

Last, Why Trust it? Is it just a blind leap of faith? Or is there something more?

John Piper gives a great example of why ‘blind trust’ doesn’t honor God. 

Suppose you were walking down the street and a guy comes up with a brown bag full of cash and says "go put this in the bank for me, here’s the bank and my account #" and then he runs off without explaining. What would you think? This guy is crazy. Not only that he’s stupid. He doesn’t know me. I know I’m trustworthy but he doesn’t. There’s nothing about that situation that gives you any credit. It’s all about his foolishness. 

But, suppose he runs up gives you all that and you stop and say, "why are you doing this? You don’t know me." And he says, "Oh yes I do. I have watched you. You’re a man of integrity. I've asked many about you and each of them says you are trustworthy. So I've done my homework and I know I can count on you. Now I have to take care of an emergency…"

Now it’s about Your character, and your trustworthiness. Many Christians don’t really do their homework. The preacher says, “Trust God” so they’re like "OK, we’ll do it." I don’t think that works well for them when troubles come, but it’s good enough for now. 

So why trust the Bible? Why Trust that it’s God’s Word?

Look at:

2nd Corinthians 4:2 But we have renounced disgraceful,
underhanded ways. 

We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's
word, but by the open statement of the truth 

we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience 

in the sight of God. 

3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those
who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world
has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, 

to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel
of the glory of Christ, 

who is the image of God. 

5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves,
but Jesus Christ as Lord, 

with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 

6 For God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," 

has shone in our hearts to give the light
of the knowledge of the glory of God 

in the face of Jesus Christ. 

Notice Paul is talking about the Word of God, the gospel and the knowledge of the Glory of God. 

All of these phrases refer to scripture. But there is a single, watershed event that makes all the difference. Has this event has happened to you?

6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," 

has shone in our hearts

to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God 

in the face of Jesus Christ. 

Let me talk about me a second. WHY DO I BELIEVE THE BIBLE? Because God has pierced the darkness of my heart with the light of His Glory, and this glory takes on the Face of Jesus Christ. Bottom line? I Have Met Jesus Christ! I know the “Living Word”! You say, “well that’s just your subjective experience!” 

True, but I have found the Word of God “Self-Authenticating.” I appreciate all the “Reasons” like how many Bible prophecies have been fulfilled, how accurate its history is, and how beautifully its written and how all these writers from over hundreds of years all have the same view of God. Great!

But I know Jesus! I have met Jesus! He has changed my life! I have encountered the Glory of God. The outshining of His Shekinah Glory in the Person of Jesus Christ! HOW CAN I NOT BELIEVE?

And if you have met him, you know you can trust His word, too.

 

I didn’t answer the Question why should everybody in the world believe the Bible. I answered the Question why I do and you should!

You desperately need an encounter with God, where you have been convinced by the Holy Spirit, that you are a sinner.

And because you are a sinner you are headed for an eternity of separation and suffering.

But Jesus communicates His Love for you in that while we were all sinners Christ Died for us!

And if you will Repent and Believe the Good news, that Jesus Christ has paid the penalty for your sins by shedding His own blood..

And if you will place your trust in Christ...

 He Will Forgive! He will give Eternal Life.

And you will Know the Truth and the Truth Will set you free!

John 16:13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth...

---

[1] BF&M 2000

William Tyndale - Gave His Life For the Word of God

Driving the M4 toward Bristol, you’ll see a tall tower up on a ridge. The tower is called the Tyndale monument. On the monument is the statement that Wm Tyndale first translated the NT into English from the Greek. (insert marker here) (from the Greek-Wycliffe had done it from the Vulgate-not as accurate). He was martyred 10/6/1536.
Born near Bristol around 1494, His family was from the valley of the Tyn. Hence “Tyndale”. He was registered at Oxford at 13, got his bachelors at 17. He went to Cambridge got his Masters at 20 in 1515. Think about this year for a second. It was 2 years before Martin Luther nailed his theses on the church door in Wittenburg, Germany. This is only 23 years after Columbus sailed. It’s the age of Da Vinci and Michelangelo, Its Renaissance and Reformation. It was also the age of the great philosopher and translator, Erasmus. He didn't study under Erasmus but he was the one who compiled the Greek new testament that was later used as the basis for the KJV. Tyndale studied all of Erasmus’ writings but especially the Greek New Testament.
But remember; when it came to religion, there was only one church.
I hear people say, we shouldn't have all these different churches. We Christians are all divided. Well if having one church leads to the corruption and the false doctrine of salvation that the Catholic church was guilty of in the middle ages, then I’m glad there are many different kinds of churches. In fact, I say the more the merrier! BUT, let’s try to love one another, and not tear each other down. I know men who are Bible church pastors, Methodists, and reformed Baptist, and Christian Missionary Alliance, and even Church of Christ folks, that I would stand shoulder to shoulder with, because I know they love the Lord and hold fast to sound doctrine. I also know of folks in all those groups that I would have to graciously decline to work with because there are problems with their doctrines and Bible beliefs. Unfortunately there are some Baptists that fall into that category, too.
But in Tyndale’s day, the RCC (Roman Catholic Church) had a monopoly. And neither they nor the government allowed people to start their own church. Tyndale and his colleagues began to discuss what was going on with Luther in Germany. And the reform work that Erasmus was talking about. They met at the White Horse, a pub in Cambridge, talking about the corruption in the RCC, and some folks didn't like that. In fact, people began to make accusations against them that were unfounded. Tyndale didn't mind being lied about but he didn't want to be classified as a troublemaker; he wanted to make a difference.
So He left school and got a job as a tutor, Sir John Walsh was his employer. Sir John was close to King Henry and took part in the Kings Coronation. (He was the King’s champion, a ceremonial post sort of like an unofficial head of the Secret Service.) Tyndale was treated like a member of the family and met many great guests and got to discuss the issues of the day. Often Tyndale disagreed with the guests but he always humbly pointed them toward the answer found in scripture.
Pretty soon he was invited to preach at churches all over the area. He started preaching out doors for the crowds. But that got him in trouble. A local priest branded him as a heretic, and threatened to expel those that went to hear him from the church. Remember, there’s only one church.
He wrote around that time that while he was sowing in one field, the devil was working in another. He said, “what can I do? I can’t be everywhere at once. Oh if only Christians had the Bible in their own language.”
He was brought up on charges, but nobody stood up to accuse him so he was dismissed. That was good but the priest got angrier. They got a theologian to come and try to fix him. The theologian was very impressed with Tyndale’s knowledge of scripture, but as he realized that the more Tyndale knew of scripture the further he got from the Catholic Church. So he said, it would be better for a person to be without God’s word than be without the pope.
That horrified Tyndale, that this man would put the pope above the Bible. He said a famous statement at that time: “I defy the Pope, and all his laws; and if God spares my life, I will cause the boy that drives the plow in England to know more of the Scriptures than he (the pope) does!” He was determined to get the scriptures into people hands.

       As much as 85% of the KJV was copied straight from Tyndale.

He went to London to visit with Bishop Tunstall who was known a great Greek scholar. He wanted to go to work for him to translate the Bible. But the Bishop was uncomfortable with the Bible in the people’s language. Isn't that odd? A bishop who didn't want people to read the Bible.
He didn't know what to do but realized he couldn't translate the Bible in England. So he traveled to Germany and later France. This is still before Luther began his break from the church.
He hired a printer to begin to print his New Testament version. Matthew and Mark were printed, but one of the workers let it slip that they were printing a Bible in English. The authorities shut it down. But before they did Tyndale and his helper grabbed arm loads of printed sheets and had them sent out and smuggled into England.
He found another printer, and in 1526 the first copies of the NT in English began to show up in England. They smuggled them inside bales of wool and sacks of grain. In London, Bishop Tunstall found out about it, condemned it, had copies publicly burned and warned booksellers not to carry it. 1 shilling and 8 pence would get you a bound copy of the NT. About half a week’s labor for the common man. Many, many copies made it to England. The more the King and the church opposed it, the more people wanted it. It got to the point where a person risked death if they were caught with a Bible.
A new archbishop had a new plan. Buy them all up. They were able to buy a fresh load coming in, but what he didn't know was that the seller was sympathetic to Tyndale and he turned all the money over to Tyndale who then could pay for another large printing of the NT. Tyndale was wanted ‘dead or alive’. He also published a number of other books. He was the most popular writer in England. King Henry got a copy from Anne Boleyn and really liked it at first.
Tyndale then decided he needed to get the OT (Old Testament) into the hands of the plowman, too. Problem: Nobody was teaching Hebrew at this time. There was a lot of anti-Jewish sentiment in Europe at this time and Jewish people who knew Hebrew who would teach it to gentiles were rare as were gentiles willing to work with a Jew.
How did he learn it? Nobody knows. He was proficient in 8 languages so he might have taught himself.
He finished the Pentateuch (First 5 books of the OT) in 1529. But something happened. He was in a shipwreck off the coast of Holland. He lost his manuscripts, his money, and all copies of the Pentateuch. He was discouraged. But he ran into an old college buddy, Miles Coverdale. Coverdale encouraged him. In one year the Pentateuch was redone and published. He did Jonah and other books in 1531. Back in England, Sir Thomas More (an English lawyer, philosopher, author, statesman, churchman, Renaissance humanist and important Councillor to Henry VIII. Also Lord Chancellor from 1529 to 1532) had written against him. Tyndale replied to him in print and that was spread around England. Many friends were harassed and tortured. Merchants were ruined. King Henry petitioned Charles the 5th of Germany to hand over Tyndale. In early 1534 Thomas Poyntz took him in. He was a relative of the lady Tyndale had worked for many years ago, Mrs.Walsh.
While with the Poyntz he completed a revision of the NT in 1534. But in 1535 somebody hired a friend of Tyndale's, a man named Phillips, to kidnap Tyndale. Tyndale was arrested and placed in the castle at Flanders in Belgium. He was there for 500 days, but during that time he wrote a book “Faith alone justifies before God.”
Many people visited him. Many tried to get him to recant his beliefs to get forgiveness from the church. But his work continued even while in prison. There is a letter he wrote to the prison governor. He asked him to get him a warmer cap and coat, a piece of cloth for his legs. These were things that he owned that were taken away when he was imprisoned. He also asked for a candle. Then he said “above all…permit me to have my Hebrew Bible, Hebrew grammar, and Hebrew dictionary.” He was STILL working. His friend Coverdale had completed an OT translated from Latin not Hebrew. Matthew completed one too. Both had Tyndale’s NT, and much of his OT. They dedicated their Bibles to King Henry. By now the old Bishops had died and King Henry’s advisers said that this Bible was very accurate. SO, Henry said, every church in England should have one. This was the answer to Tyndale’s prayer.
Tyndale only finished about half the OT when he died, but the Geneva Bible came along in 1560 relying heavily on Tyndale and somewhat on Coverdale and Matthew. Then in 1611, the KJV, the most published Bible in the world-and 80 to 85% of it was Tyndale’s.
Yet Tyndale died in prison for his faith.

And as those Bibles with Tyndale’s work spread all over England, things began to happen. First there was an English reformation where the church broke off from Rome. But it didn't reform very much so other groups came into being. They wanted to purify the church and make it holy again. They got the nickname puritans.
They were not allowed to worship as they wished so they went to different places. Some came to America.
Many died. But through God’s providence He brought pagan native Americans to help them survive. And yes, many bad things happened to the native Americans and to the settlers over the years. But many of these believers from England reached out to the Indians with the gospel. And many were saved.

Why?
Because Faith alone justifies-Faith in Christ and His work frees us from all the penalties of sin before God.

Do you have faith in God? Have you put your faith in Jesus Christ and His death for you on the cross? Have you turned from your sinful ways and knelt at the feet of the risen Christ?

Lessons
Importance of Word of God in the hands of the people. You need the Bible to know God!

We must preach the Word of God. Proclaiming a It as believers.

We must believe in the sufficiency of the Word of God. It is enough. Traditions aren’t needed. Just preach and read the scriptures.

The Word must be our authority. Acts 5 …you decide, as for us we must obey God rather than man. The Word of God is higher than any earthly authority. We are to try every spirit.

We must embrace the Word of God ourselves. Many have debated scripture without embracing its truth.

Don’t be discouraged when bringing the word of God. Don’t let setbacks stop you.

And remember the greatest lesson of scripture was the title of one of Tyndale’s books: Faith alone justifies before God.

What kind of faith is this that people have spent their lives for? What kind of faith is it that people have died for? It’s the faith revealed to us in this book.
Here it is in a nutshell: God almighty has revealed himself to us in Jesus Christ. And Jesus saves!

For more information:
http://www.prca.org/books/portraits/tyndale.htm
William Tyndale - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
www.williamtyndale.com

Should We Challenge the Values, Ethics, or Portrayals of God in Scripture

A professor at Messiah College recently said:

"When the Church grandly proclaims the Bible to be the Word of God, it gives the impression that the words of Scripture are above critique and beyond reproach. We are taught to read, revere, and embrace the Bible. We are not taught to challenge its values, ethics, or portrayals of God."

I discovered this quote here: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtlife/2013/02/can-a-messiah-college-ot-professor-really-teach-the-bibles-immoral/ An excellent initial rebuttal by Dr. Owen Strachan, Professor SBTS and Christian rapper.

And the original blog is here: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/peterenns/2013/02/when-the-good-book-is-bad-challenging-the-bibles-violent-portrayals-of-god/

Here’s something about the author of the quote above: Dr. Eric Seibert, Professor of Old Testament, Messiah College. Much of Seibert’s work is centered on addressing the problematic portrayals of God in the Old Testament, especially his violence. He is the author of Disturbing Divine Behavior: Troubling Old Testament Images of God (Fortress 2009) and The Violence of Scripture: Overcoming the Old Testament’s Troubling Legacy (Fortress 2012). Seibert is also a licensed minister in the Brethren in Christ Church and the Director of the Peace and Conflict Studies Initiative at Messiah College. He is currently working on his third book, Disarming the Church: Why Christians Must Forsake Violence to Follow Jesus (Cascade).

And one more link by another reviewer: http://questiontradition.wordpress.com/2013/02/03/the-good-book-is-good/

OK, here’s the deal. As the reviewer in the link at wordpress (just above) points out, there’s a difference between a friendly discussion at Starbucks and keeping a wolf out of your sheep. Dr. Seibert obviously has a problem with God Almighty and has taken it upon himself to de-violence God, and perhaps even to emasculate Him; and, to do so in addressing the church. In other words he is a wolf among the sheep.

But let me talk to you as if across the coffee table. (Laying down the gun I would use on the wolf, and I’m sure Dr. Seibert would not approve of that imagery.) Does the Bible have Sin in it? Certainly! Is God ever the author of sin, as in its originator? No. Does God act Sovereignly to affect people in such a way that their sin becomes greater? Yes. Take Pharaoh for example, God hardened His heart. But that is a far cry from what Dr. Seibert is saying. And I point this out because he is not alone!

Dr, Seibert said, “the Church … gives the impression that the words of Scripture are above critique and beyond reproach.” Well, yes, and it should. The words are above reproach. That doesn't mean we are to emulate everyone in scripture. We should not brag like Joseph, lust like David, or deny Christ like Peter. We are not to use violence to advance our own ends. But then we are not the nation of Israel, executing God's judgment on groups of people who had taken the land that God promised Abraham. The USA is not Israel. I’m not even positive that modern day Israel is the same Israel of the Bible. (But I would err on the side of caution and not stand against modern day Israel either.)

But that’s not what Dr. Seibert said; he said we are too use human judgment to critique the Word of God, and that we should bring reproach upon it. That’s something else altogether!

He also says, “We are not taught to challenge its values, ethics, or portrayals of God." Implying, I believe, that we should do so!

I believe we are called to study and understand it’s portrayals of God. Sometimes those portrayals are conditioned toward human understanding and attribute to God certain emotions that in humans would be borderline, if not fully, sinful or at least human-centered. Emotions like jealousy, anger, shock, and revenge come to mind. But to understand God is to see these played out in a divine and holy way. No one else has the right to be jealous except God the creator and deliverer. God is wrathful God and He has the right to be because He is also the God of perfect love. Not knowing Love like He does keeps me from fully understanding His wrath and anger.

I also want to say there is room in the Christian life for a discussion on the role of violence and whether Christian passivity in the face of violence is always right. While I believe in the concept of a “just war” I’m not sure I’ve seen one in my life time. Maybe so, maybe not. But I do not believe the OT passages that Seibert has trouble with teach me to go to war, or use violence, especially at the drop of a hat. What we need is responsible teaching and understanding of scripture not his way of dealing with it.

There are difficult to understand passages in the Bible. I do not find the bloody wars of Israel to be joyful portrayals except to note when the shackles of oppression are thrown off. I do not rejoice in the doctrine of Hell. Which is more fully developed by Christ Himself that any OT prophet. But I know this. His ways are higher than mine. His thoughts are higher than mine. His love and holiness and vengeance and wrath are greater than mine and I trust Him.

Chas. Spurgeon on Church Growth - A Guest Blog

Does it really need to be more complicated than this? 

Have people changed so much in 125 years? 

Most importantly, has the gospel lost it's power?

Spurgeon:

Are you afraid that preaching the gospel will not win souls? Are you despondent as to success in God’s way? Is this why you pine for clever oratory? Is this why you must have music, and architecture, and flowers and millinery? After all, is it by might and power, and not by the Spirit of God? It is even so in the opinion of many.

Brethren beloved, there are many things which I might allow to other worshipers which I have denied myself in conducting the worship of this congregation. I have long worked out before your very eyes the experiment of the unaided attractiveness of the gospel of Jesus. Our service is severely plain. No man ever comes hither to gratify his eye with art, or his ear with music. I have set before you, these many years, nothing but Christ crucified, and the simplicity of the gospel; yet where will you find such a crowd as this gathered together this morning? Where will you find such a multitude as this meeting Sabbath after Sabbath, for five-and-thirty years? I have shown you nothing but the cross, the cross without flowers of oratory, the cross without diamonds of ecclesiastical rank, the cross without the buttress of boastful science. It is abundantly sufficient to attract men first to itself, and afterwards to eternal life!

In this house we have proved successfully, these many years, this great truth, that the gospel plainly preached will gain an audience, convert sinners, and build up and sustain a church. We beseech the people of God to mark that there is no need to try doubtful expedients and questionable methods. God will save by the gospel still: only let it be the gospel in its purity. This grand old sword will cleave a man’s chine [i.e., spine], and split a rock in halves.

How is it that it does so little of its old conquering work? I will tell you. Do you see the scabbard of artistic work, so wonderfully elaborated? Full many keep the sword in this scabbard, and therefore its edge never gets to its work. Pull off that scabbard. Fling that fine sheath to Hades, and then see how, in the Lord’s hands, that glorious two-handed sword will mow down fields of men as mowers level the grass with their scythes.

There is no need to go down to Egypt for help. To invite the devil to help Christ is shameful. Please God, we shall see prosperity yet, when the church of God is resolved never to seek it except in God’s own way.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, 1888, vol. 34, p. 563

The Vote and the Christ-Follower: 2012

The Vote and the Christ-Follower: 2012

November 6^th, a very important day in the life of our country. The whole country is thinking and talking politics during this election season. What does God have to say about politics? Does God’s Word give us instructions on how we should vote or respond to the outcome of the vote? The answer to both of those questions is a resounding “YES”!  There is something the Cross has to say about Washington. That doesn't mean we mix politics and religion. When that happens usually all that’s left is politics. But we are to be Salt and Light in our nation.

1) Vote. It’s estimated that between 17 and 30 million evangelicals did not vote in 2008. While it’s true that you will not find a verse that says “Thou shalt vote,” biblical principles clearly lead us to the conclusion that Christians bear a unique responsibility to “speak the truth” in the public square. Voting is an important means of doing just that!

2) Vote the Bible. Politics is like a football game. The two teams are the parties, and usually, they’re trying to tackle each other to the ground!  The church is much like the third group of individuals on the field; we’re the ones wearing stripes, the referees.  As Christians we’re not beholden to a political party, no matter what our voting card may say. Like football refs, we are bound to the Rule-book and our role is to consistently remind the two teams of the rules. As Christ-followers, we are called to stand on the authority of God’s Word and vote in accordance with what God has already said! This means we vote for candidates whose views are most in keeping with the Bible. When clear biblical issues are on the ballot we vote for what God has said even if it’s unpopular in our society.

What kind of issues? I can name a few: There’s concern for the poor and concern for justice; the life of the unborn and the sanctity of marriage between men and women; there is our stewardship of creation and involvement in war; not to mention economic, religious, and civil freedoms for all citizens.

3) Remember, voting is only one way we bring the truth of scripture to bear on society. We talk to our neighbors. We act in volunteer opportunities, give money to those working in areas we support, and even the old fashioned way of writing letters to our representatives in government.

4) Trust that God is on His Throne! Ultimately we can’t control the outcome of elections. We control our vote. We can pray and ask God for His mercy and grace on our nation, to give us leaders after His heart. We can’t control elections but, we serve a God who is in complete control!

When we wake up on November 7^th, whether the candidates we like have won or lost, God is still on His throne! Vote, but don’t fix your hope on Romney or Obama— fix your hope on Jesus Christ!

No Matter Who is Elected,

It won’t change what Christ did on the cross.

It won’t change who wins in the end.

It should not change who we are as God’s people,

speaking out for truth, righteousness and

the Good News of Jesus Christ!

We don’t know how end times will unfold or what America’s role will be, but we know God will do it His way. At the end of all things, there will be Christ, and a blood-covered people gathered around His throne from every nation.

That’s where history is headed, so let’s be at peace in the church! Mar 9:50 Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another."

Be encouraged by Scriptures like Dan 4:35, Isa 40:17, and Rom 13:1. God’s Kingdom is marching on!

Adapted and edited from an article by Scott Wilson (which I liked and used but tweaked, edited, and rewrote) @ http://www.baptisttwentyone.com By Clark Dunlap.

The Word of God in 2 Tim 3:16-17

A Baptist Distinctive: The Word of God

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ill) Many years ago in a play in Moscow theater, Russian actor, Alexander Rostovzev, was supposed to read 2 verses from the Matthew 5, remove his gown, and cry out, "Give me my tuxedo and top hat!" But as he read the words, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted," he began to tremble. Instead of following the script, he kept reading, ignoring the coughs, and foot-stamping of his fellow actors. Finally, recalling a verse he had learned in his childhood he prayed, "Lord, remember me when You come intoYour kingdom!" Before the curtain was lowered, Alexander trusted in Jesus Christ.[1] That is the power of the gospel!

The Word of God has come under a lot of criticism in the last 150 years. It didn’t start then but it’s gotten worse. It’s not just other religions, it’s also the atheists, agnostics, communists and secular humanists. Then those “enlightened” attitudes trickle down to the church and so-called Christians start denying the truth and power of God.

Ill) A book, Reforming Fundamentalism, says 85% of the students in one of USA's largest evangelical seminaries said they do not believe in the inerrancy of Scripture. Then, a 1987 poll of 7400. ministers in the U.S.A in reveals that when asked if they believed the Scriptures are the inspired, inerrant Word of God in faith, history, and secular matters:

95% of Episcopalians said "No." 87% of Methodists said "No."
82% of Presbyterians said "No." 77% of American Lutherans said "No."
67% of American Baptists said "No." [2] I don't know the percentage of Southern Baptists, but many of them deny the inerrancy of scripture, too.

1.What does that mean, inerrancy? Without error. Infallible, perfectly trustworthy. This isn’t a new issue. Back in 1963 (ancient church history to some folks) the Baptist Faith & Message said the Bible was the word of God without any mixture of error. That sounds like inerrancy!.The 2000 BF&M agrees. BUT, What does the BIBLE say?

2 Tim 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God,

Do we need to say more? All of Scripture! Not some of it!

Is given how? By the breath of God. That’s what inspired means. Does God make mistakes? I mean has He ever? No. He is a rock his work is perfect! (Deut 32:4) His word is perfect. The word he delivered to the writers of scripture was perfect. God didn’t speak to them in King James English, or in Lutheran German, or in Catholic Latin. The writers spoke three languages primarily: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. This is the language the scriptures were written in. And let me shock you a little bit. NO Following TRANSLATION IS PERFECT. No translation of anything is perfect.

Ill) If you translated the rules of baseball into some Polynesian language some words just wouldn’t translate. So you give it your best shot. Try translating “Lamb of God’ to people who have never heard of sheep. That’s why so many preachers study Hebrew & Greek to get at the purest meaning of the words. But, another problem. The New Testament was written 2000 years ago. Old Testament as much as 6000 years. I can only guess what their life was like and what their words meant then and today.

Now this unsettles some people. “Oh no! How can we trust it if no translation is perfect?” Well, just because English versions aren’t perfect doesn’t mean they don’t get very close, they do. Most words in the Bible translate fairly easily.

Then we have the benefit of many scholarly people who study it and give us their ideas. But most importantly, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us as we study the Bible. (Read 2Pe 1:19-21).

2. If the Bible is perfect then it must have Authority. I mean we believe that God wrote it and that gives it authority but if it is really tested and true then whether someone believes in God or not, the authority of scripture still stands.

Authority doesn’t mean everything in the Bible is true, the words are completely accurate, but not necessarily every statement in the story is true. Did you know there are LIES in the Bible?

Example; Genesis 3:4; Satan told Eve, "You will not surely die." Satan lied and Eve died.

BUT, Authority does mean that everything God spoke, directly or through a prophet, is true:

2 Tim 3:16 also says it ‘is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:’

Doctrine is the truths of God. Reproof tells us what we are doing wrong. Correction tells us how to do things right. And Instruction in Righteousness is God telling us how to do it right the next time.

There is a right and wrong. There is black and white. The scriptures can rebuke us and correct us and teach us.

Psa 25:8, Good and upright is the Lord therefore will He teach sinners in the way. The meek will he guide in judgment, the meek will He teach His ways.

Somebody once said, the reason many people don’t believe the Bible is not because it contradicts itself, but because it contradicts them! Or, to paraphrase a Seminary professor, rather than deconstruct the Bible, let the Bible deconstruct you!

The Bible, being the perfect word of God has the authority to tell us how to believe and how to behave. It will instruct us if we let it.

Ill) In the year A.D. 303, the Emperor Diocletian issued a decree to extinguish the spreading flames of Christianity. His primary objective was destroy all the bibles. When officials enforced the decree in North Africa, Felix the Bishop of Tibjuca, was ordered to hand over his Scriptures. Some judges were willing to accept scraps of parchment, but Felix refused to surrender one scrap of the Word of God to Caesar. He resisted compromise. He was finally shipped to Rome where he paid for his stubbornness with his life. On August 30, as the record puts it, "with pious obstinacy," he laid down his life rather than surrender his Bible. WHY? Because the Bible has more authority than the State. More than kings, presidents, or Emperors.[3]

3.Then 2 Tim 3:17 says: That the man of God may be perfect (or mature), thoroughly furnished unto all good works. There’s the Inerrancy, the Authority and then there is the Power of Scripture.

Remember last week when I said that the famous Evangelist Charles Finney, didn’t believe that Salvation was a miracle. Listen, it’s the greatest miracle of all! It takes Divine power to do that. Anybody can say, "Yes, I’d rather go to Heaven than Hell." Or, I’d rather be good than bad. That’s not salvation.

Salvation is the radical change I n a person’s spirit. They pass from spiritual death to life! Their spiritual eyes are opened and they begin –FOR THE FIRST TIME- to understand spiritual things.

Last week we read Rom 1:16; The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the POWER of God for salvation! Why does it take the power of God? Because, the natural man doesn’t understand the things of the Spirit.

Look:

1Co 2:14 But the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness to him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Then, 1Ti 4:16 Take heed to thyself, and unto doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

And, Psa 119:97 Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day. 98 Thy commandments make me wiser than mine enemies…

The Bible is not to be read one time and laid aside. Listen to these verses:

1Ti 4:13 give attendance to reading,exhortation, & to doctrine.

2Ti 1:13 Hold fast the form of sound words,

2Ti 2:2 the things thou hast heard … commit to faithful men

2Ti 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, …

2Ti 3:14 But continue in the things which thou hast learned …

15 that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures

2Ti 4:2 Preach the word; … reprove, rebuke, exhort

It’s not our job to save souls. We can’t, none of us have the power to save souls. Only the word of God can defeat the enemy! I’ve heard folks say, “back in 1953 brother Joe saved me.” Well unless he pulled you out of the river when you were drowning, he didn’t save you, Jesus did! And He did it with the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Spurgeon said, I believe God can save anyone anywhere at anytime, it just so happens he does it where the gospel is being preached!

Our job is to deliver the gospel. God’s word will do the rest! It will not return void or empty handed. That doesn’t mean it will always save the one you hope it will. But it will leave them without excuse in the Day of Judgment. They will always know they heard the gospel. They may complain someday they didn’t understand what was at stake. (But the Apostle addresses that in Rom 9:20…(read 20-24))**

I’m glad to say that Southern Baptists are known as those who stopped the growing theological liberalism in their ranks and turned it around back in 1980. But we must be vigilant not to water down the Bible. It IS our only hope of salvation.

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**Rom 9:20 No, but, O man, who are you who replies against God? Shall the thing formed say to Him who formed it, Why have you made me this way? 21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel to honor and another to dishonor? 22 What if God, willing to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction; 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy which He had before prepared to glory; 24 whom He also called, not only us, of Jews, but also of the nations? 25 As He also says in Hosea, "I will call those not My people, My people; and those not beloved, Beloved." 26 And it shall be, in the place where it was said to them. "You are not My people; there they shall be called sons of the living God."

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[1] J.K. Johnston, Why Christians Sin, Discovery House, 1992, p. 121.

[2] The Gideon, January, 1994, pp. 12-13. Book by George Marsden; poll by sociologist Jeffery Hadden

[3] Christian Theology in Plain Language, p. 41.

Good Ol' Saint Billy Tyndale

Driving the M4 toward Bristol, you’ll see a tall tower up on a ridge. The tower is the Tyndale monument. On it is the statement that Wm. Tyndale first translated the NT into English from the Greek. (From the Greek, Wycliffe had done it from the Vulgate-not as accurate). He was martyred 10/6/1536.

Born near Bristol around 1494, His family was from the valley of the Tyn. Hence “Tyndale”. He was registered at Oxford at 13, got his bachelors at 17. He went to Cambridge, got his Masters at 20 in 1515. Think about this year for a second. It was 2 years before Martin Luther nailed his theses on the church door in Wittenburg Germany. This is only 23 years after Columbus sailed. It’s the age of Da Vinci and Michelangelo, Its Renaissance and Reformation. It was also the age of the great philosopher and translator, Erasmus. He didn’t study under Erasmus but he was the one who compiled the Greek new testament that was later used as the basis for the KJV. Tyndale studied all of Erasmus’ writings but especially the Greek New Testament.

But remember; when it came to religion, there was only one church. Often I hear people say, we shouldn’t have all these different churches. We Christians are all divided. Well if having one church leads to the corruption and false doctrine of salvation that the Catholic church was guilty of in the middle ages, then I’m glad there are many different kinds of churches. In fact, I say the more the merrier! BUT, let’s try to love one another, and not tear each other down. I know men who are Bible church pastors, Methodists, reformed Baptists, and Christian Missionary Alliance; and even Church of Christ folks!, that I would stand shoulder to shoulder with, because I know they love Jesus and hold fast to sound doctrine. I also know of folks in all those groups that I would have to graciously decline to work with because there are problems with their doctrines and Bible beliefs. Unfortunately there are some Baptists (My own denomination) that fall into that category, too.
But in Tyndale’s day, the RCC had a monopoly. And neither they nor the government allowed people to start their own churches. Tyndale and his colleagues began to discuss what was going on with Luther in Germany and the reform work Erasmus was talking about. They met at the "White Horse Inn", a pub in Cambridge, talking about the corruption in the RCC, and some folks didn’t like that. In fact, people began to make accusations against them that were unfounded. Tyndale didn’t mind being lied about but he didn’t want to be classified as a troublemaker; he wanted to make a difference.
So He left school and got a job as a tutor, Sir John Walsh was his employer. He was close to King Henry and took part in the Kings Coronation. (He was the King’s champion, a ceremonial post sort of like unofficial head of the Secret Service.) Tyndale was treated like a member of the family and met many great guests and got to discuss the issues of the day. Often Tyndale disagreed with the guests but he always humbly pointed them toward the answer found in scripture.
Pretty soon he was invited to preach at churches all over the area. He started preaching out doors for the crowds. But that got him in trouble. A local priest branded him as a heretic, and threatened to expel those that went to hear him from the church. Remember, there’s only one church. He wrote around that time that while he was sowing in one field, the devil was working in another. He said, “what can I do? I can’t be everywhere at once. Oh if only Christians had the Bible in their own language.” He was brought up on charges, but nobody stood up to accuse him so he was dismissed. That was good but the priest got angrier. They got a theologian to come and try to fix him. The theologian was very impressed with Tyndale’s knowledge of scripture, but as he realized that the more Tyndale knew of scripture the further he got from the Catholic Church. So he said, it would be better for a person to be without God’s word (law) than be without the pope.
That horrified Tyndale, that this man would put the pope above the Bible. He said a famous statement at that time: “I defy the Pope, and all his laws; and if God spares my life, I will cause the boy that drives the plow in England to know more of the Scriptures than he does (the pope)!” He was determined to get the scriptures into people hands. As much as 85% of the KJV was copied straight from Tyndale.
He went to London to visit with Bishop Tunstall who he heard was a great Greek scholar. He wanted to go to work for him to translate the Bible. But the Bishop was uncomfortable with the Bible in the people’s language. Isn’t that odd? A bishop who didn’t want people to read the Bible.

He didn’t know what to do but realized that he couldn’t translate the Bible in England. So he traveled to Germany and later France. This is still before Luther began his break from the church. He hired a printer to begin to print his NT. Matthew and Mark were printed, but one of the workers let it slip that they were printing a Bible in English. The authorities shut it down. But before they did Tyndale and his helper grabbed arm loads of printed sheets and had them sent out and smuggled into England.

He found another printer, and in 1526 the first copies of the NT in English began to show up in England. They were sent inside bales of wool and sacks of grain. In London, Bishop Tunstall found out about it, condemned it, had copies publicly burned and warned booksellers not to carry it. 1 shilling and 8 pence would get you a bound copy of the NT. About half a week’s labor for the common man. Many, many copies made it to England. The more the King and the church opposed it, the more people wanted it. It got to the point where a person risked death if they were caught with a Bible.

A new archbishop had a new plan. Buy them all up. They were able to buy a fresh load coming in, but what he didn’t know was that the seller was sympathetic to Tyndale and he turned all the money over to Tyndale who then could pay for another large printing of the NT. Tyndale was wanted ‘dead or alive’. He also published a number of other books. He was the most popular writer in England. King Henry got a copy from Anne Boleyn and really liked it at first.
Tyndale then decided he needed to get the OT into the hands of the plowman, too. Problem: Nobody was teaching Hebrew at this time. There was a lot of anti-Jewish sentiment in Europe at this time and Jewish people who knew Hebrew who would teach it to gentiles were rare as were gentiles willing to work with a Jew. How did he learn it? Nobody knows. He was proficient in 8 languages so he might have taught himself.
He finished the Pentateuch in 1529. But something happened. He was in a shipwreck off the coast of Holland. He lost his manuscripts, his money, and all copies of the Pentateuch. He was discouraged. But he ran into an old college buddy, Miles Coverdale. Coverdale encouraged him. In one year the Pentateuch was redone and published. He did Jonah and other books in 1531. Back in England, Sir Thomas More had written against him. Tyndale replied to him in print and that was spread around England. Many friends were harassed and tortured. Merchants were ruined. King Henry petitioned Charles the 5th of Germany to hand over Tyndale. In early 1534 Thomas Poyntz took him in. He was a relative of the lady Tyndale had worked for many years ago, Mrs.Walsh.
A man named Phillips befriended him. While with the Poyntz he completed a revision of the NT in 1534, but in 1535 somebody hired Phillips to kidnap Tyndale. Tyndale was arrested and placed in the castle at Flanders in Belgium. He was there for 500 days, but during that time he wrote a book “Faith alone justifies before God.”
Many people visited him. Many tried to get him to recant his beliefs to get forgiveness from the church. But his work continued even while in prison. There is a letter he wrote to the prison governor. He asked him to get him a warmer cap and coat, a piece of cloth for his legs. These were things that he owned that were taken away when he was imprisoned. He also asked for a candle. Then he said “above all…permit me to have my Hebrew Bible, Hebrew grammar, and Hebrew dictionary.” He was STILL working. Coverdale had completed an OT translated from Latin not Hebrew. Matthew completed one too. Both had Tyndale’s NT, and much of his OT. They dedicated their Bibles to King Henry. By now the old Bishops had died and King Henry’s advisors said that this Bible was very accurate. SO, Henry said, every church in England should have one. This was the answer to Tyndale’s prayer. The Geneva Bible came, then in 1611, the KJV, the most published Bible in the world-85% of it was Tyndale’s work. Tyndale died in prison for his faith.

Lessons
Importance of Word of God in the hands of the people. You need the Bible to know God!

We must preach the Word of God. Proclaiming it as believers.

We must believe in the sufficiency of the Word of God. It is enough. Traditions aren’t needed. Just preach and read the scriptures.

The Word must be our authority. Acts 5 …you decide, as for us we must obey God rather than man. The Word of God is higher than any earthly authority. We are to try every spirit.

We must embrace the Word of God ourselves. Many have debated scripture without embracing its truth.

Don’t be discouraged when bringing the word of God. Don’t let setbacks stop you.

And remember the greatest lesson of scripture was the title of one of Tyndale’s books: Faith alone justifies before God.

What kind of faith is this that people have spent their lives for? What kind of faith is it that people have died for? It’s the faith revealed to us in this book.
Here it is in a nutshell: God almighty has revealed himself to us in Jesus Christ. And Jesus saves!

And as those Bibles with Tyndale’s work spread all over England, things began to happen. First there was an English reformation where the church broke off from Rome. But it didn’t reform very much so other groups came into being. They wanted to purify the church and make it holy again. They got the nickname puritans.
They were not allowed to worship as they wished so they went to different places. Some came to America.
Many died. But through God’s providence He brought pagan native Americans to help them survive. And yes, many bad things happened to the native Americans and to the settlers over the years. But many of these believers from England reached out to the Indians with the gospel. And many were saved.

Why?
Because Faith alone justifies-frees us from all the penalties of sin-before God.

Do you have faith in God? Have you put your faith in Jesus Christ and His death for you on the cross?



http://www.prca.org/books/portraits/tyndale.htm

William Tyndale - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

www.williamtyndale.com