The Bible is
God’s Word. It’s 1 BIG story. It’s God’s story. It’s a story of Himself and His purpose for
man. Who is God? God was there before all things. He is the Holy Creator and unlike
anyone. He desires to be with us and
wants a relationship with every person.
He created us in His image so we are an exceptional value to Him. He has a plan for us and the world and
nothing can stop His perfect plan.
God reveals
himself in many ways, but mainly He chose to reveal himself through his Word. The Bible was written over 1500
years ago. It was written by 40
different people, in 3 different languages and on 3 different continents. Each writer of the books in the Bible
reflect his own personality, but the words and truth are God's.
There are 66
books in the Bible – 39 in Old Testament, 27 in the New Testament. It has high standards of morality and is the
best-selling book that the world has ever known. No book has ever been more analyzed or
criticized. Why is it attacked? It’s the revelation of God whose message
demands must be destroyed or obeyed.
Many times people have tried to destroy it.
The Bible is
about:
How
the universe and the human race started, how humans sinned and how the
suffering started, and how the human rescue plan of God started -
Gen 3:15 (the promise).
The Bible
reveals:
God,
his creation, his unlimited power and wisdom, his laws, a God of moral
standards, history with God in control, Jesus as a God of compassion, God’s
solution to sin, his special people in a special place, a special family, a
special child: John 3:16 (fulfillment of his promise)
It
also reveals in the book of Revelation the future with a new heaven and a new
earth without pain and cruelty. Only the
righteous will be there with the Lord.
75 % of the
Bible is Old Testament. Jesus came to
fulfill the OT prophecy. God tells how,
why and when Jesus, the Messiah would come.
Proverbs 30:5-6 tells us His Word is flawless. Revelation 22:19 tells us not to add
or take words away from it. We should
not sit around and argue about what it says.
It implies complete authority and we should not debate over it.
Hebrews 4:12 – “For the word
of God is living and active. Sharper
than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit,
joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” So matter what your age, 10 – 110, it can
speak to us.
When you read
the word of God, do you believe it is God speaking to you or do you read it and
then just go back to your regular life?
If God came
in person and told you to stop stealing or cheating, or whatever, wouldn’t you
say, “OK, I will”?
Why wouldn’t
you do it, if God’s Word says to do the same thing?
2 Timothy
3:16-17 – “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching,
rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may
be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
2 Peter
1:20-21– “Above all, you
must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own
interpretation. For prophecy never had
its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried
along by the Holy Spirit”.
The purpose of
the Bible is essential for:
Salvation – it reveals God,
ourselves, our Savior
Teaching – foundation of what we
believe
Conviction – it’s the test of our
action
Training – the rod of discipline
Why do we
believe it’s true?
The Prophets – spoke for God.
Jesus – the Spirit will guide you
into all truth.
Paul – we speak in words taught by
the Spirit.
Peter – not clearly invented myths,
but an eyewitness.
John
– we proclaim what we’ve seen. It speaks with authority.
Many gave their lives for it.
By listening and weighing the evidence.
God created Adam
and Eve in the beginning. They chose to
act independently from God. They sinned
and died spiritually and because of their sin, they would also die
physically. Now we are all under the
curse of sin. We sin when we gossip,
tell lies, with adultery, idol worship, etc.
Because of sin, we are separated from God.
In the Old
Testament God provided a way for man to restore their relationships with Him by
setting up blood sacrifices with animals, but this was only a temporary
solution. We needed a Savior. God Himself came to earth through His Son,
Jesus. Jesus came to save the people
from their sins. He was accused and
condemned by religious authorities and the Roman Empire. He was sentenced to die on a cross. Jesus went willingly. He died a horrible death, but after 3 days He
arose from the dead demonstrating His power and victory over the consequences
of sin, which is death. His resurrection
guaranteed new life for all who believe in Him.
After His death
the Holy Spirit was sent to us to guide us how to live. Jesus promised one day He would return and
take His people, the church, to heaven to be with Him forever. We see this in the end of God’s story in the
book of Revelation. The book of Revelation will be fulfilled exactly how all the other prophecies have been fulfilled. God started
history and He will finish it. All His
plans will come to pass.
Jesus is woven
throughout the Bible and Revelation tells us the end of the story. It ends with the glorious appearing of our
Lord Jesus and the judgment of those who do not and will not believe in Him. What an awesome study this will be!
We, too are part
of this story. We have a chance to
change to world. Like Jesus’ disciples
who traveled the world telling others about Him, we can spread the good news
about Jesus to the unsaved before it’s too late.
The unsaved don’t
know they are headed for destruction and judgment. Who do you know who needs a Savior? Will you share His love and truth with them before it's too late?
Principles:
God created the
world and mankind for His glorious purposes.
Sin separates us
from God and His perfect plan.
The curse is
removed to all who trust in Jesus our living Savior.
Those with faith
in Jesus find great hope in God’s promises of perfect restoration.
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