The Bible - Inspired

April 1, 2007

Mike Larsen

Adult Sunday School

2 Timothy 3:16

 

Introduction:  As we move forward in our discipleship series we come to the topic of the Bible itself.  We have looked at our salvation, Repentance, Justification by faith, Baptism, and now the Bible.  The Word of God.  Modern culture exists in a state of confusion.  People today float through life with absolutely no direction.  Why do they have no real direction or purpose?  Without a rudder, every ship would float aimlessly at sea.  Without a steering wheel, all cars would wildly crash into one another as there would be nothing to control their direction.  A world without the Word of God is a sea of anarchy and a winding, treacherous, and hopeless road.  In this kind of chaotic world, the Bible is God’s guide to man for survival, purpose, success and our only prescription for hope.

 

Of all the books that have been written throughout history, the Bible is the only one that can rightfully claim God as its author.  Since those first words that God gave human authors to record, the Bible has been attacked by haters of God.  And, in all of those attacks, never once has the Word of God been disproved.  It is because of its enormous value that the Word of God has been attacked by Satan and his followers throughout history.  The attacks started on earth with Satan himself when he tried to modify the Word of God and then discounted it all together.  Gen 3:1-4.   The Bible is the most important book in the history of mankind.  It is a book that not only tells of man’s separation from God, but also how man can be reconciled back to God through the Person of Jesus Christ – making it a document of extreme eternal importance.  In addition, the Bible shares with mankind the very mind of God and prescribes to its readers the lifestyle that God expects of His children.

The Bible consists of 66 books.  39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the new.  It is 100% historically accurate as well as 100% scientifically accurate.  Archeology and science prove the Bible correct time and time again and they will continue to so as long as there is archeology and real science.  Years before advancements of science discover a truth, it was already written by God.  Some examples are:

 

-           Leviticus 17:11  The life of the flesh is in the Blood..  We know now that this is true.

-           Job 26:7           “He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.”  We know now that the earth is suspended in space.

-           Isaiah 40:42      “It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth,..     What did Columbus have to fear.  If only man would have believed the scriptures they would have known the earth was not flat.

-           Hebrews 1:2     “…by whom also he made the worlds;”  We now know there are other planets than ours.

-           Job 41             we see dinosaurs

-           The latest I have been considering is the discussion on the age of the earth.  The question is, “The stars are millions of light years away.   “How can the earth only be 6,000 years old since we should not be able to see the light of the stars yet?”  Isaiah 42:5.  God made the heavens and stretched them out.  This is stated in 5 places in the Bible.  God created the sun, moon and stars on the 4th day of creation.  There are 3 heavens as you recall the 1st heaven which is the air we breathe, the 2nd heaven which is where the planets and stars are and the 3rd heaven is where God is headquartered.  Isaiah says that God created the heavens, and stretched them out.   That could explain why creation saw the stars immediately.  God made the heavens to show His handy work so God had to make man be able to see them.  If we take Isaiah literally then God created the heavens close to the earth and then stretched them out to their current distance filling the pipeline with light.  No matter how technical the discussion gets, God’s words are accurate and trustworthy.  Boggling the mind of even the smartest of created beings.

If only man would believe every word of scripture.  Pastor tells the story of how the Standard Oil Company discovered oil in Egypt.  An executive for Standard Oil was reading his Bible, in Exodus chapter 2, about the baby Moses being placed in the river.  The 3rd verse says the little ark he was placed in was daubed with slime and pitch.  The executive figured where there is pitch there must be oil.  He was right because God’s word was exactly accurate.

There are many statements in the Bible that have been proven to be true after originally being considered absurd.  Eventually you come to the conclusion that it is all true. 

 

The Bible is called seed to sow, milk to drink, meat to eat, a mirror to see ourselves, water to drink and wash with, law, light to direct, a hammer to break stony hearts, and a sword to divide the thoughts and intents of our hearts and to enter the spiritual battle with.

 

George Washington said:    “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”

 

Charles Dickens said, “The New Testament is the very best book that ever was or ever will be known in the world.”

 

Andrew Jackson said, “That book, sir, is the rock on which our republic rests.”  (Oh that our congress would believe that today)

 

Abraham Lincoln said, “I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man.  All the good from the savior of the world is communicated to us through this book.”

 

Horace Greeley said, “It is impossible to mentally or socially enslave a Bible-reading people.  The principles of the Bible are the ground work of human freedom.

 

Yes the Bible is a special book for sure.  It was written over a period of 1500 years by 40 different people from all walks of life and yet is tells one continuing story.  Fitting together perfectly for practical literal instruction as well as communicating the spiritual things of God.   The authors were from different places and in different circumstances from prison to the palace.  They wrote to different people for different purposes yet never contradict each other.  All this diversity and amazingly Jesus Christ is the central theme of it all.  The historical and scientific accuracy also make it impossible for the authors to know fully what they were writing.  It would be impossible for it all to fit perfectly without error unless the Spirit did the work.    And that is exactly what He did. 

 

What is the Bible?

 

The Bible is the complete and authoritative revelation of the truth of God to mankind.  Every word was inspired (God Breathed) and written down exactly how God intended it to be.  It was not just the truth for those living at the time of the original writing; it is truth for all time for all people. 

The Bible is the only book that can truly have the word Holy in front of it. Man is instructed to treasure the Word of God above all else.  Proverbs 7:2 says, “Keep my commandments, and live: and my law as the apple of thine eye”  The apple of your eye means the pupil or center of your life.  God’s Word is to be the center of the Christian life.  Without God’s Word life makes no sense whatsoever.  It is to be the sprocket or hub of the wheel where all the spokes of your life tie together.

 

I.             God Breathed  The scriptures are the only literature in the world that are literally God-Breathed.  It is also why the Bible contains no errors.

A.     2 Pet 1:16-21  Holy men spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.  The Holy Ghost caused every word of the profits to come out and every work written of scripture to be penned.  We do not follow fables of men but the inspired Word of God.

B.      2 Tim 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God…  The scripture was not written by man alone as critics may say.  God breathed the scriptures and men were used of God to pen them.  It is also perfect instruction as it makes the man of God perfect or complete.  The Word of God is all you need to live your life the way God wants you to live it.

Some people say that the Bible was just written by men.  That is not a very logical position.  If man could have written the Bible he wouldn’t have!  The Bible does not come down in man’s favor!  Mark Twain said, “It is not what I don’t understand about the Bible bothers me, but what I do understand.”  If man wrote the Bible he would remove Hell and Judgment due the sinner, dying to self daily, and the blood sacrifice.  He would show God as love only and himself as good.  But that is not the message of the Bible is it?  Not at all!  The message of the Bible is that we are all sinners and rebellious at heart.  Desperately wicked in fact. 

 

No, the scriptures God’s people have been using and following are not cunning fables crafted by men, but the very Words of God himself.

 

II.           God’s Word is our authority.

 

A.     Mat 4:4  Jesus was terribly hungry.  He deferred his power to the authority of God’s Word.  In other places Jesus said not his will but the fathers.  God’s word is the authority over you.

 

III.       God’s Word is truth

A.     John 17:17. God’s word is truth

 

B.      Jesus is the Word of God so He could say He was the way, the Truth, and the Life.  Jesus is Truth.

 

IV.        The Word of God is complete. 

 

A.     Rev 22:18-19  God promises great judgment to anyone who adds to or takes away from the Bible.

     V.      The Word of God is powerful to change us

A.     2 Cor 3:18  We look into the Word of God and it changes us

B.      Psalm 19:7-8  The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul

C.     2 Tim 3:15  The scriptures make us wise and lead us to salvations.  Even a little child can understand.

D.     2 Tim 3:17  The Word of God helps us grow to completion

E.      James 1:23-25 The perfect law of liberty will change us if we are a doer of the word.

 

        VI.      The Word of God is our guide

A.     Heb 4:12     Keeps our thoughts pure.  It is the discerner.  It cuts to the heart and convicts us so we change.

B.      Psalm 119:105.  Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.

 

 

Conclusion: Every word of the Bible is by inspiration of God.  It is given to us for our good to be used for guidance in every area of our lives.  It is the guide for raising our families, working our jobs, worshiping in church, talking to our neighbors, playing baseball, managing our employees, loving our wives, viewing the world around us.  It applies to every area of our life without exception.

 

Next week we will look at the word of God and it’s preservation.