Justin Kuk brings a message about the Holy Bible, God’s Word to us, our Scriptures.
My goal is that we would leave here today with an understanding that God has spoken and continues to speak through the Bible in a way that is clear, necessary, sufficient, and authoritative and that we would understand how those characteristics impact our lives as Christians.
Before we get there, I’d like to address the question: What is the Bible? It is an important question, one that we may take for granted, particularly if we have grown up around the church, but one that is worthy of consideration.
We often refer to the Bible as though it were one book, yet the Bible is actually composed of 66 books written over a period of around 1500 years by approximately 40 different human authors. Some of these books, such as Luke and Acts, were originally written as one volume and have been divided into separate books in the organization of the scriptures. Some may point to the number of human authors as a reason to question whether the Bible is truly the Word of God or just the product of human minds, but I think the number of authors actually should strengthen our trust in the Bible. Despite the number of human authors and the long time period across which it was written, the Bible shows remarkable unity in its message – from God’s God’s creation of the universe, mankind’s fall and rebellion against God, God’s choosing a people for himself – the nation of Israel – who would ultimately rebel against His commands and ways, but through whom he would raise up a promised Messiah to redeem not only Israel, but also people from all nations and the entire creation itself, the birth of the church which God would use to spread His kingdom through the gospel and message of reconciliation, ending with God’s ultimate triumph over sin and death and the recreation of a new heaven and new earth.
Though the Bible had many different human authors, God is the ultimate source of Scripture.
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
This does not mean that God orally dictated each word of Scripture to the authors, but that the Holy Spirit worked through different writers with different styles, personalities, and backgrounds and inspired them to write exactly what He desired. The Apostle Peter clarified this point:
For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:21)
God has spoken and continues to speak through the Scriptures.
A reasonable question to ask in response to this statement is, “How can we know that Scripture is God-breathed?” There are many responses that could be given to this question, and as someone who is interested in apologetics or the defense of the faith, it is something that I think is important to consider. For the sake of time, however, I would like to focus on one reason to believe that God has spoken to us through the Scriptures, which is that Jesus viewed Scripture as the inerrant, unbreakable Word of God.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, 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. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:17 – 19)
When Jesus refers to the Law or the Prophets, he is referring to all of the Hebrew Scriptures, our Old Testament.
God has spoken and continues to speak through the Scriptures in a way that is clear, necessary, sufficient, and authoritative.
Scripture is Clear
Deuteronomy 30:11-14
In Taking God at His Word, Kevin DeYoung writes: “These high-sounding debates about perspicuity (clarity of Scripture) and hermeneutics (interpretation of Scripture) really have to do with the character of God. Is God wise enough to make himself known? Is he good enough to make himself accessible? Is he gracious enough to communicate in ways that are understandable to the meek and lowly?”
Purpose of the Clarity of God’s Word: To know God
Jeremiah 31:33-34
Purpose of the Clarity of God’s Word: To have an accurate view of ourselves
Hebrews 4:12
Scripture is Necessary
Romans 1:18-20
Romans 10:14-15
Purpose of the Necessity of God’s Word: To lead people to saving faith in Christ
2 Timothy 3:14-15
John 20:30-31
Purpose of the Necessity of God’s Word: To give assurance of salvation to believers in Christ
1 John 5:13
Scripture is Sufficient
This does not mean that Scripture fully addresses every question that we might have or every ethical dilemma that we might face in the modern world. Kevin DeYoung explains, “To affirm the sufficiency of Scripture is not to suggest that the Bible tells us everything we want to know about everything, but it does tell us everything we need to know about what matters most. Scripture does not give exhaustive information on every subject, but in every subject on which it speaks, it says only what is true.”
Purpose of the Sufficiency of God’s Word: Provide direction and guidance
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Psalm 119:105
“All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correction, and training in righteousness…” 2 Timothy 3:16
Purpose of the Sufficiency of God’s Word: To help us to resist temptation
When Jesus was tempted by Satan to turn stones into bread, he responded, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Purpose of the Sufficiency of Scripture: To help us to live holy lives
1 Peter 1:13-15
Scripture is Authoritative
1 Thessalonians 2:13
Isaiah 40:8
Purpose of the Authority of Scripture: To be our final authority in our decision making, theological beliefs, and moral beliefs
Joshua 1:8
Romans 12:2
Purpose of the Authority of God’s Word: To equip us to stand against the lies of the world and the enemy
Ephesians 6:13-17
What Shall We Do in Response?
A. Write any questions or doubts that we might have about the veracity or authority of Scripture. Seek answers with the help of a trusted person. There are intellectually satisfying answers to any questions we might have about the reliability of Scripture (Share personal story about question of inerrancy from Matthew 27).
B. Ask God to increase our desire for the Word
I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. (Psalm 119:16)
C. Read the Word (Reading plans can be helpful)
D. Sing the Word (Randall Goodgame – Sing the Bible series)
E. Memorize the Word.
These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:6-9)
F. Share the Word (Asia Harvest’s Asia Bible Fund [www.asiaharvest.org] – Pay to have Bible’s printed and distributed in Asia for only $3 per Bible)