Where Can I Go For Help On Living Life?
Gurus tell us, “you are your own truth,” or “no one gets to define you but you.” Others tell us, “love yourself” or “never judge others”. Still others talk about yoga or some special course of supplements. Talk about confusing. Then some life crisis occurs. Or a relationship breaks down when our friends perceive that our “love yourself stuff” is just old arrogance in a new guise. A diagnosis of cancer rocks our world and anxiety takes over.
Where can we go for help. To the book that millions in every generation have gone to for wisdom and practical help. The Bible. There we will find ultimate truth about changeless ethical standards, who we are as men and women, how we should live and relate to one another, and how we can conquer the demons within. Although modern men and women think they have it all together and where to go for help they are sadly mistaken unless they turn to the collation of what God has revealed about reality in common revelation, special revelation, and in the incarnation of God’s Son at Christmas.
The Bible is a miracle! Imagine 40 different authors writing 66 different books over 1500 years recording a progressive and unified revelation of God and his dealings with mankind. In spite of this astounding diversity of authors, writing styles, literary genres, and time frames it is one unified and authoritative revelation of God’s will for mankind. “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 Timothy 3:16,17). They are “the holy Scriptures which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:15).
Scripture is inspired, or as the NIV states, “God-breathed.” Scripture is authoritative; it must be believed and obeyed. Scripture is sufficient for a person to be saved and equipped for every good work. We need no other revelation. It’s content evaluates as truth or false all human ideas and philosophies.
Do you doubt its authenticity? Well, consider what Jesus said about it. “Your word is truth” (John 17:17). In quoting a Psalm he said, “The Scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35). “For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Matthew 5:18). After his resurrection he talked with two men on the road to Emmaus. ‘Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead”’ (Luke 24:44-46).
To be an obedient follower of Christ, one must believe and act upon the inspired, authoritative, sufficient Word of God as contained in the 66 books of the Old and New Testament. Our lives should be spent probing its pages.
But you may think that it is hard to understand. Do we need scholars to explain the essential truths of the Scripture to us? Is its meaning so mysterious and archaic that ordinary, untrained people cannot understand it? It is not helpful to believe that the Scriptures are inspired, authoritative and sufficient in their teaching of all we need for life and godliness, if for understanding we need scholarly interpreters.
Before the Protestant Reformation, the Roman Church taught that understanding of the true meaning of the Scriptures comes through the mediation of that church and its priests. They held that the Bible was too complicated and mysterious for ordinary men to understand. For this reason the Bible had not been translated into common languages. Tyndale, Martin Luther and others of the reformers revolutionized access to the Bible through their translations. This marvelous work continues today around the world.
The miracle about Scripture, besides its existence, is that it is understandable by an ordinary person in all it says about what is necessary for salvation and holy living. (Psalm 119:105,130) (The theological word for this is perspicuous which means clearly expressed and easily understood; lucid.) All Christians are commanded to search the Scriptures. (Acts 17:11) The Scriptures are addressed to all. (Deut. 6:4-9) They are profitable for all. (2 Tim. 3:15-17) This reality does not deny that parts of Scripture are difficult; “there are some things hard to be understood” (2 Peter 3:16). Consider however, the amazing clarity and simplicity of Christ’s teaching.
The essential clarity and simplicity of the Gospel is witnessed every day around the world when untaught men and women take up the Scriptures, understand what they are reading and are converted. This is why we distribute Gospels to people. The text is understandable and able to save through the help of the Holy Spirit illuminating the reader. None of this denies the blessing that preachers, teachers and scholars are to the church. But we must not let anyone rob us of our heritage.
Holy Bible, book divine
Precious Treasure, thou art mine.
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