Monday, June 12, 2017

June 13, 2017

"All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal." Psalm 119:160


Have you ever thought that some of the critical problems that people have with the Bible might actually be in the heart and mind of the critic?

Yesterday in my message I mentioned several attitudes that people have toward the Scriptures:

1) It Is A Storybook - The Bible is filled with dramatic stories but it can't be taken seriously.

2) It Is A Spiritual Scam - Devious men wrote the Bible to gain control over people's hearts and minds.

3) It Is Sacred Literature - The Bible should be revered as a holy book, like the Koran or others religious writings.

4) It Is A Smorgasbord - Some who believe in the Bible pick and choose the parts that they and reject the parts that make them uncomfortable. They make the Bible work for them.

5) It Is Spirit-Inspired - What the Word says about itself is God inspired every word and there are no errors.

Whichever view of the Scriptures you adopt will obviously influence how you view the accuracy and veracity of the Bible. If you approach the Bible from any of the first four positions you will be prone to reading into the Scriptures rather than reading from them.

If you are skeptical about the truth of God's Word and believe it is prone to error, I ask you to extend the same courtesy that is extended to a witness in a courtroom. Listen to the testimony it gives in its own behalf.

"All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal." Psalm 119:160

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness....." II Timothy 3:16

Here's what Jesus said about the Bible:

".....Scripture cannot be broken" John 10:35

"I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished." Matthew 5:18

It is clear from theses verses and a number of others that Jesus fully believed the Bible was the inspired Word of God. So, if you cannot believe in Jesus and doubt what He believed about the Bible.

So, here are a couple of things to ponder today:

Am I reading into the Bible or am I reading out of it?

Am I treating the Word of God like a smorgasbord?

Honest answers to those questions could radically change your relationship to the Word.