Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Partners - Ron Hammonds
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Partners
Key Scripture: Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (NKJV)
Luke calls this body of freshwater in the Galilee region of Israel, the Lake of Gennesaret. It is interesting to note that of the Gospel writers only Luke calls it a lake and never a sea while the others never refer to it as a lake but only as a sea.
The name Gennesaret comes from the plain of the same name on the Northwestern shore of the lake. This name at times identified this bordering portion of the lake which stretches its shores west and southwards to the city of Tiberias and eastward to Capernaum.
Herein I believe, Luke gives us a definite point at which this event takes place … this northwestern corner cove not far from the fishing village of Magdala.
On this particular morning Jesus is pressed with multitudes of people wanting to crowd ever closer to hear Him and perhaps be the beneficiary of His healing touch. With the press Jesus walks by the water’s edge and finds two empty fishing boats. He chooses Peter’s boat, steps inside and asks the owner to push out a ways from the shore so He could be better seen and heard as He taught the multitudes.
We conclude from the other Gospel writers that this was not Peter’s first encounter with Jesus. Peter willingly complies with the request and provides his boat as a pulpit for this morning’s teaching.
Perhaps tired, maybe hungry and almost certainly a bit frustrated from a long night’s fruitless toil, Peter nonetheless listens to the Word of God. Whatever the topic, no doubt the spirit and the life of the Word entered into Peter’s heart and mind as he heard the Living Word from the Living Word.
When Jesus concludes His teaching He turns to Peter and addresses him directly.
This is no easy suggestion. To launch out sounds simple enough but the task will most likely demand getting out the oars and rowing out a good distance from the shore … out into the deep. Well, the whole lake, 15 miles long, 7 miles wide, 33 miles in circumference is only less than 15 feet deep at it’s deepest. Just how far out does one have to row to get into ‘the deep’?
Added to this … Peter, Andrew his brother, James and John his partners have already been washing their nets, now they would have to be cleaned all over again. This is a hard request for a tired fisherman.
It’s like asking a restaurant owner who has been working all night without selling one meal to reopen the doors, reheat the grill, dirty the pots and pans and prepare food for a huge crowd, after closing time, before he sees his first customer … all of this after you have used his restaurant to hold a bible study after closing hours without prior notice requiring him to stop mopping the floors and sit and listen to your teaching. This is not a simple request!
Yet Peter says:
You know the rest of the story. It seems that:
After Peter and his company went to church and heard the Word of God, work became a whole lot easier and much more productive.
You see … when we partner with God in His business, He partners with us in ours. If you put God first, He will not forget you.
The priority is to go with God to His work first and then He will go with us to ours.
It’s a simple process of sowing and reaping. Even the law of nature requires we sow before we reap!
Notice that God will be indebted to no person. Whatsoever good thing any man does the same shall he receive of the Lord … and it any man gives to the poor he lends to the Lord and the Lord shall repay. The loan of the ship and the giving of tired and weary time were amply repaid with this bountiful harvest of fish.
After they had caught all those fish, in what was perhaps their greatest day, their richest potential, their most fruitful and prosperous business adventure, they left it all to follow the Master.
In conclusion this morning I want to pose and at least in part answer three pertinent questions:
1. Why did Jesus choose Peter?
2. Why did Peter follow Jesus’ requests?
3. How can we apply these truths to our life today?
Conclusion:
1. Why did Jesus choose Peter?
Answer: Of course there are many reasons above none is the element of destiny. However it cannot be missed that Jesus was on the lookout for people to invest in, people to disciple, people with potential to partner with Him in His Kingdom work.
It is for this reason I believe that Jesus chose Peter. Peter was a hard worker, diligent in his business, untiring in his efforts and unafraid of hard work and difficult challenges in life.
Peter had a basic good work ethic. Even though he had worked hard all night and had received nothing for it, he was nonetheless busy washing his nets and preparing them for the next time he would need them.
Jesus is still on the lookout for people who are busily engaged in the affairs of life. The parable of the talents tell us that Jesus has no respect or use for those who just sit idle all day and are wasting their time.
* Jesus wanted to favor Peter.
2. Why did Peter follow Jesus’ request?
Answer: Because of his evident respect for Jesus and His Word. Above his own tiredness, above his own wisdom, above his own experiences, Peter was moved by the Words of Jesus.
* Peter wanted to please Jesus.
3. How can we apply these truths to our life today?
Answer: We can apply these truths to our life today by realizing that:
* One moment of favor is worth a thousand days of labor.
* God needs us to give Him something to work with.
* If we partner with God in His business, He will partner with us in ours.
So, pray like it all depends on God and work like it all depends on you. Don’t forget to go to church, even when you are tired, listen to the Words of Life and as you partner with God in His business, He will partner with you in yours.
Remember our key scripture: You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you … well … it may be His strength but it will still be your labor.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
His Name is - Cheri Osberg
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His Name Is
It really makes a difference when you know someone’s name. It is hard to feel that you have a relationship with someone if you don’t know there name. Have you ever been in a situation where you should know someone’s name, but for the life in you – you can’t remember it?
How many of you parents remember deciding on the names of your children? Should they be named after a parent/family member, my favorite soap opera, baseball player; should there name be different or a popular name, just spelled weird, etc? You probably remember ready books of baby names…like these examples, ‘The Book of Names’ or ‘Name that Baby’…
I know in today’s society a name is just a name – but truly…names do mean something. They correspond directly to the one designated by that name
For example – let’s look up a few of your names:
Jamie means “Following After the Lord” or “Follower of Christ”
Eph. 5:1-2 = “Therefore be followers of God, ….walk in love, as Christ also hath loves us, and hath given himself for us.”
Justin means “One of Justice” or “One Who is Just and Fair”
Proverbs 21:3 = “To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.”
Glenda means “A Quiet Spirit” or “Holy and good”
Psalm 23:2 = “He maketh me lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters”
Christopher or Chris means “Steadfast for Christ”
1 Cor. 15:58 = “Be ye stedfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.”
Connie means “Loyal One” or “Constant; Steadfast”
Psalm 34:1 = “I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
Jason means “The Healing One” or “The Healer”
Isaiah 61:1 = “The Spirit of…God is upon me;…[and] hath anointed me to preach…to heal the brokenhearted.”
Knowing a person’s name adds closeness to the relationship, knowing what their name means…describes who they are.
We also give circumstances in our lives a name like – cancer, debt, betrayal, abuse, addictions, etc…but don’t we know there is a name more powerful than these? We ‘know about’ this name BUT do we KNOW this name?
Hello, His Name Is…
Read Exodus 3:1-12 (NASB)
The Israelites where in captivity and Moses was shepherding his father-in-law’s flock and when he say a burning bush and turned aside – God spoke to him. Moses knew God as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob…but when God told him what he wanted him to do…to go lead the Israelites out of captivity…Moses knew that he need to know more. He knew that for the people to believe him, follow him and trust him…he must know who was sending him…not about his name, but know him!!!
Read Exodus 3:13-14 (NASB)
1. “I AM” in this passage means, Yahweh / Jehovah – “The Lord’.
The Jewish scribes who copied the manuscripts of the Bible felt that Yahweh was such a holy name that they did not even pronounce it. They wrote it without the vowels because it was never spoken aloud (yhwh).
Church, we must get to know the ‘I AM’ – meaning the God who always has been and who always will be! In the Burning Bush, God said that He was the ‘I AM’ not the ‘I am supposed to be’ or ‘some people think I am’.
John 1:1-2 (NASB) – “1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was in the beginning with God.”
Jesus Christ is Yahweh, the God who ‘is’ from endless time before and beyond all time to come.
Hebrews 13:8 (NASB) – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
Many people worship other gods today, living in a NOW society (microwave, TV, Internet, Fast Food mentality) – which is why some have trouble following an eternal God; and unchanging God; an everlasting covenant God, a lifelong commitment God. He is from Everlasting to everlasting (Ps. 90:2).
Know ‘His Name Is’…I AM, Yahweh / Jehovah….THE LORD!!!
Read Genesis 17:1-6 (NASB)
Here is a story where God makes a promise to Abraham, that he will be a father to many nations … you may think that’s not a big deal…but remember, Abraham and Sarah are barren, 90 and 99 years old and thinking that they would never have children.
2. This is where we learn another name of God – ‘His Name Is…El-Shaddai, The Almighty God’
Abraham needed to know God in this way because what He was promising seemed impossible.
El-Shaddai in the Hebrew, emphasizes God’s ability to handle any situation that confronts His people. God was saying here that there was no reason to feel discouraged and defeated, Abram just needed to remember that El-Shaddai would take care of him. The almighty God would not let his mission fail.
Another name to know the meaning of is Satan – it means ‘the Accuser’. Satan, the Accuser…is concerned with your mind. He knows that if he can defeat your thoughts, he’ll defeat your faith.
We learn from Abraham that if we concentrate on our weaknesses, rather than on the might of God, we set a limit on what God can do through us.
You are only as weak as you confess to me. The more you confess God’s power, the more He can do for you!
Gen. 17:1 – When God says, “Be thou blameless,” He means we should live a godly life before Him. We can’t simply choose to sin against God and try to excuse ourselves by saying, ‘I’m only human.’
If you have asked Jesus Christ into your life to be your Lord and Savior, you’re a child of God the Almighty! You are in union with Jesus Christ!
Remind yourself that ‘His Name Is, El-Shaddai, God the Almighty’ – He can handle any problem that faces you today. Know Him and be ready for God to do some marvelous things in your life and in the lives of your children.
Let’s pick up on the story of Abraham, but now he has the promised son – but we see that God will test him.
Read Genesis 22:1-14
3. Here we have another name of God revealed – ‘His Name is…Jehovah-Jireh, The Lord Will Provide’
Can you imagine you and your dad walking up the mountain to make a sacrifice and all he is carrying is some rope, a knife and maybe some wood – I can just see Jay Butts and Hunter…
To do this, Abraham had to know that God is the Provider, Jehovah-Jireh … for He had promised to make him the father of many nations and now he is asking him to sacrifice his own son.
Think about Jacob, he asked his dad – “Dad, where is the sacrifice?” and Abraham said in v. 8 – that God would provide Himself the lamb.
I can imaging Jacob and Abraham, as Jacob allows his dad to bind him with the rope, as he crawls up on the altar and Abraham, as he raises up the knife --- I can almost hear their unison of worship… “Jehovah-Jireh, our Provider…Jehovah-Jireh, our Provider…The Lord who Provides!!!
God did provide and just as He did for Abraham and Jacob – God has done for you and me! He provided the Lamb of God, His Son to be the sacrifice for our sins! He is Jehovah-Jireh, our Provider.
Read 2 Cor. 9:8-11 (TM) – “God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you're ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done. As one psalmist puts it, He throws caution to the winds, giving to the needy in reckless abandon. His right-living, right-giving ways never run out, never wear out. This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you. He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God.”
Jehovah-Jireh, The Lord Will Provide will make sure that:
A. You have a message to share
B. He Provides for your physical needs
C. He will bring fruit from the seed that you sow
D. He promises not only to multiply the fruit of your witnessing, but the fruit of your very way of living.
His Name Is, Jehovah-Jireh: The Lord will provide!
Read Exodus 15:20-26 (NASB)
Here we pick up on the story of Moses – just after he has lead the Israelites out of Egypt and Pharaoh’s army was cast in to the sea.
They begin their travel and come to a place where they need water. So, they forget who God was…that just three days ago He parted the Red Sea, gave them deliverance from their enemies and set them free from their bondage – but now they’re thirsty…is God big enough to take care of that need? Not only are they thirsty but from what God says, they are obviously worried about getting the plagues like the Egyptians and the water that they have is contaminated and not healthy to drink.
4. So, here we find out that ‘His Name is…Jehovah-Rophe, The Lord is My Healer’
See God showed the Israelites that He made their bodies, and He is able to heal them and keep them healthy but His promise came with a requirement, a condition that the Israelites had to meet if they wanted Him to heal them. (v. 25-26)
Always remember, God knows what He is doing. It may seem crazy to you at the time or like a test, but God is Jehovah-Rophe, The Lord our Healer!
In 2 Kings 5 – there is a captain (Naaman) of the army of the King of Aram who was a great warrior but was also a leper. So, they heard about the prophet of Israel, Elisha and King Aram sent a letter, some money and Naaman to the King of Israel hoping that he could be cured. The King of Israel doesn’t know what to do, so Elisha steps in.
Read 2 Kings 5:9-14 (NASB) – Naaman, obeyed the Man of God – even though it seemed silly – and He met Jehovah-Rophe there…The Lord our Healer
Another story:
Read John 9:1-7 (NASB) – The man born was born blind and Jesus spits on clay to make mud and puts it on the man's eyes. Tells him to wash it off – he allows Jesus to do this, he obeys and he is healed. Jehovah-Rophe.
Just like Paul in 2 Cor. 12:7-9 (NASB) – we may not fully understand what God is doing, how it could be to our benefit or how God can be glorified, but He is.
One of my favorite quotes from the Movie – ‘Evan Almighty’ is where God is in the restaurant talking to the wife and he says:
“If someone prays for patience, God can give them an opportunity to be patient. If they pray for courage, God can give them an opportunity to be courageous. If they pray for a family to be close, should God give them warm, fuzzy feelings or give them an opportunity to love each other?”
God wants His people to be healthy – spiritually and physically. So sometimes He is healing (perfecting) our spiritual lives first. He wants His ailing people to be healed.
Isaiah 53:5 (NASB) – “But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.”
John 3:14-15 (NASB) – The Israelites were to look at the brass serpent and receive healing; we are to look unto Christ and receive healing. All of our healing – physical or spiritual – comes from the Lord.
His Name is…Jehovah- Rophe, The Lord Our Healer!
There are many more names of God and I have listed some of His names on a sheet at the information desk to help you learn more about His Name.
When you KNOW Him – you are intimate with Him and when situations comes…just like He did for Moses and Abraham – He is letting Himself be know.
He will be Yahweh, Jehovah the Lord – the great I AM…who was, who is and who is to come!
We have a choice…
• Either pain is your god, or God is your God, Jehovah- Rophe – The Lord Your Healer.
• Either circumstances are your god, or God is your God, Jehovah-Jireh – The Lord Will Provide.
• Is the Accuser in control or is God in Control, El- Shaddai – The Almighty God?
Which is it? You must decide!
His Name is…
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
The Authority of Scripture: Outside Evidences - Chris Isaac
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The Authority of Scripture
Matt 7:24-27
24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.
27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
(NIV)
Introduction
A) Finding the Rock series
1) We’ve talked about Salvation by Grace
2) Then we spent the last four Wednesdays on the Lordship of Christ
3) This week and next we will be on the Authority of Scripture
B) The Purpose of this series
1) Is not just to teach you what we believe here at New Life
2) But why we believe
3) You should know that we Believe the Bible to be the word of God
4) But why do we believe this? That’s what we want to discuss tonight
C) I’m going to approach this on two levels over the next two weeks
1) I’m going to give you both knowledge and wisdom
2) Knowledge is simple facts and information
3) Wisdom is applying that knowledge
4) Example of Joseph interpreting Pharaoh’s dream
5) Tonight I am going to give you knowledge, and next week wisdom
D) Understand that the Bible is under attack
1) The enemy is constantly attacking the Word of God
2) It began in the Garden of Eden and continues to this day.
3) But his attacks on the Bible are his most subtle of attacks, why
(a) He understands the potency of the Word of God
(b) Far more intimately than you or I
4) The Word of God is the thing Satan fears most
(a) He is not afraid of your salvation, because it can’t hurt him
(b) In our spiritual armor described in Ephesians, the Word of God is the only offensive item, all the rest are defensive
Heb 4:12
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. (NIV)
5) Now we said that Satan first attacked the Word of God in the Garden, and I want to look at that attack tonight
(a) And key in on just how the enemy attacks the Authority of God’s Word
Gen 3:1-5
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,
3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'"
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman.
5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (NIV)
6) Notice there were three attacks Satan made
(a) Raised doubt as to the accuracy of the word
Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
(b) Rejected the truth of the word
"You will not surely die,"
(c) Replaced the word
"For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
(d) These are the same attacks, Satan is making today against the Word of God
(e) Satan’s goal in all this is to get you make your own decisions, based upon your knowledge, not God’s
7) This is the error of Noah’s generation
(a) Every man did what was right in his own eyes
(b) And this is where we are heading today
(c) How often have we heard it said what someone does in the privacy of their own home is their own affair
(d) Or what two consenting adults do in private
(e) Now I’m not saying we should be legislating morality, but in our own lives we need to not be determining right and wrong based upon what we think or feel.
I) Raised Doubt as to the accuracy of the word
A) In Today’s sophisticated society the first attack of the enemy on the Word of God is to question the accuracy of scripture
B) Inerrancy
1) Inerrancy is defined as lack of error; infallibility; the belief that the Bible is free from error in matters of science as well as those of faith.
2) The concept of inerrancy has been around since Moses first wrote the Pentateuch 3500 years ago
3) The importance of inerrancy cannot be overstated
(a) The Bible is our tangible source for understanding who God is
(b) If any part of it is inaccurate, then we are left to wonder which parts are true, and which are incorrect.
4) Today most evangelical churches support the position put forth in the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy.
(a) This was agreed upon by most major conservative denominations at a convention in 1978
(b) It states that the Bible is inerrant in its original manuscript.
5) This inerrancy will cover not only faith based issues, but also historical, geographical and scientific issues.
(a) History: example of the Hittites
(b) Geography: archeological discovery of the location of Sodom and Gomorrah
(c) Science: Joshua’s sun standing still recorded by the Babylonians
(d) Also consider the flood
(i) Appears in almost every major form of mythology
(ii) When they dig deep enough archeologist and geologist constantly find evidence of a cataclysmic flood in the layers of the earth.
6) Has every part of the Bible been proven true
(a) No, but they continue to be
(b) But scientist have yet to disprove anything mentioned in scripture
C) The History of the Bible
1) Canonization of Scripture
(a) The Bible was written over a span of roughly 1500 years
(i) During that time many books were written, but not all were included in the cannon of scripture
(ii) To be canonized did not make a book or letter “divinely inspired, it simply recognized the pre-established fact.
(b) To be canonized a book had to meet certain criteria
(i) It was written by a man of God
• The author was recognized by his peers
• He was confirmed by an act of God
• The author was not a false prophet
(ii) The book was divinely inspirational
• It told the truth about God
• It had the power to sanctify and edify
(iii) The book was timeless
• It had to be immediately accepted by the people of the time
• Its message had to have the same relevance 1000 years later.
(c) Let me show you how this played out in the New Testament
(i) The First century church was constantly quoting the books that would eventually form the Bible.
(ii) Why
• Because they were written by men of God
• Because they were recognized as being divinely inspired
• Because they were relevant long after the books were written.
(iii) In fact the early church quoted so much from these books, that if we were to loose every single manuscript and copy of the Bible today, we could still reconstruct the bible based solely upon the quotations made by the early church.
(iv) Every verse in the Bible is recorded in a quotation by the early church, save 11 verses.
2) The issue of inerrancy is based upon the original manuscripts
(a) The problem we have is that the original manuscripts are no longer with us
(b) This is probably a good thing
(i) since if they existed today we would probably see a lot of worshiping of the manuscripts as opposed to worshiping of God
(ii) this already takes place with things like the shroud of Turin
(iii) Was a problem in the old testament with the bronze serpent Aaron made in the wilderness
(c) The question we then have to ask is: How does the Bible we are reading today compare to the original manuscript.
3) Comparing the manuscript
(a) The last book of the Old Testament was written around 400 BC
(b) Until 1945 the earliest manuscript was dated from 900 AD
(c) This left a gap of 1300 years.
(d) This gap was the subject of much debate regarding the accuracy of the Bible.
(e) In 1946 the Dead Sea Scrolls were found
(i) These were a series of scrolls, manuscripts and letters from the Bible as well as other historical notes
(ii) They were dated as being from 100 BC to 100 AD
(f) This cut the gap from 1300 years to 200 years, big difference
4) Comparing these scrolls to our present Bible revealed a mathematical accuracy of 98.83%
5) Of these almost all differences were grammatical or spelling related, and nothing was found to change or challenge the meaning of any passage or doctrine.
D) Lets compare this to other works of history
Author Title Written Earliest Gap # Copies
Caesar Gallic Wars 74 BC 900 AD 974 10
Plato Tetralogies 410 BC 900 AD 1310 7
Tracitus History Books 100 AD 1000 AD 900 1
Herodotus History 450 BC 900 AD 1350 8
Aristotle Poetics 352 BC 1000 AD 1352 5
Pay particular attention to the number of copies. This can be compared to the 5300 Biblical manuscripts
If you walked into any secular college class on English Literature and asked the professor whether or not these classical documents are the same as the original, the reply would always be affirmative.
Yet when asked to apply the same principles for evaluation to the reliability of the Biblical documents and the response would be antagonistic and skeptical
Why…
Because the enemy wants to make you question the Word of God as his first attack.
The Authority of Scripture
Matt 7:24-27
24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.
27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
(NIV)
Introduction
A) Finding the Rock series
1) We’ve talked about Salvation by Grace
2) Then we spent the last four Wednesdays on the Lordship of Christ
3) This week and next we will be on the Authority of Scripture
B) The Purpose of this series
1) Is not just to teach you what we believe here at New Life
2) But why we believe
3) You should know that we Believe the Bible to be the word of God
4) But why do we believe this? That’s what we want to discuss tonight
C) I’m going to approach this on two levels over the next two weeks
1) I’m going to give you both knowledge and wisdom
2) Knowledge is simple facts and information
3) Wisdom is applying that knowledge
4) Example of Joseph interpreting Pharaoh’s dream
5) Tonight I am going to give you knowledge, and next week wisdom
D) Understand that the Bible is under attack
1) The enemy is constantly attacking the Word of God
2) It began in the Garden of Eden and continues to this day.
3) But his attacks on the Bible are his most subtle of attacks, why
(a) He understands the potency of the Word of God
(b) Far more intimately than you or I
4) The Word of God is the thing Satan fears most
(a) He is not afraid of your salvation, because it can’t hurt him
(b) In our spiritual armor described in Ephesians, the Word of God is the only offensive item, all the rest are defensive
Heb 4:12
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. (NIV)
5) Now we said that Satan first attacked the Word of God in the Garden, and I want to look at that attack tonight
(a) And key in on just how the enemy attacks the Authority of God’s Word
Gen 3:1-5
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,
3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'"
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman.
5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (NIV)
6) Notice there were three attacks Satan made
(a) Raised doubt as to the accuracy of the word
Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
(b) Rejected the truth of the word
"You will not surely die,"
(c) Replaced the word
"For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
(d) These are the same attacks, Satan is making today against the Word of God
(e) Satan’s goal in all this is to get you make your own decisions, based upon your knowledge, not God’s
7) This is the error of Noah’s generation
(a) Every man did what was right in his own eyes
(b) And this is where we are heading today
(c) How often have we heard it said what someone does in the privacy of their own home is their own affair
(d) Or what two consenting adults do in private
(e) Now I’m not saying we should be legislating morality, but in our own lives we need to not be determining right and wrong based upon what we think or feel.
I) Raised Doubt as to the accuracy of the word
A) In Today’s sophisticated society the first attack of the enemy on the Word of God is to question the accuracy of scripture
B) Inerrancy
1) Inerrancy is defined as lack of error; infallibility; the belief that the Bible is free from error in matters of science as well as those of faith.
2) The concept of inerrancy has been around since Moses first wrote the Pentateuch 3500 years ago
3) The importance of inerrancy cannot be overstated
(a) The Bible is our tangible source for understanding who God is
(b) If any part of it is inaccurate, then we are left to wonder which parts are true, and which are incorrect.
4) Today most evangelical churches support the position put forth in the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy.
(a) This was agreed upon by most major conservative denominations at a convention in 1978
(b) It states that the Bible is inerrant in its original manuscript.
5) This inerrancy will cover not only faith based issues, but also historical, geographical and scientific issues.
(a) History: example of the Hittites
(b) Geography: archeological discovery of the location of Sodom and Gomorrah
(c) Science: Joshua’s sun standing still recorded by the Babylonians
(d) Also consider the flood
(i) Appears in almost every major form of mythology
(ii) When they dig deep enough archeologist and geologist constantly find evidence of a cataclysmic flood in the layers of the earth.
6) Has every part of the Bible been proven true
(a) No, but they continue to be
(b) But scientist have yet to disprove anything mentioned in scripture
C) The History of the Bible
1) Canonization of Scripture
(a) The Bible was written over a span of roughly 1500 years
(i) During that time many books were written, but not all were included in the cannon of scripture
(ii) To be canonized did not make a book or letter “divinely inspired, it simply recognized the pre-established fact.
(b) To be canonized a book had to meet certain criteria
(i) It was written by a man of God
• The author was recognized by his peers
• He was confirmed by an act of God
• The author was not a false prophet
(ii) The book was divinely inspirational
• It told the truth about God
• It had the power to sanctify and edify
(iii) The book was timeless
• It had to be immediately accepted by the people of the time
• Its message had to have the same relevance 1000 years later.
(c) Let me show you how this played out in the New Testament
(i) The First century church was constantly quoting the books that would eventually form the Bible.
(ii) Why
• Because they were written by men of God
• Because they were recognized as being divinely inspired
• Because they were relevant long after the books were written.
(iii) In fact the early church quoted so much from these books, that if we were to loose every single manuscript and copy of the Bible today, we could still reconstruct the bible based solely upon the quotations made by the early church.
(iv) Every verse in the Bible is recorded in a quotation by the early church, save 11 verses.
2) The issue of inerrancy is based upon the original manuscripts
(a) The problem we have is that the original manuscripts are no longer with us
(b) This is probably a good thing
(i) since if they existed today we would probably see a lot of worshiping of the manuscripts as opposed to worshiping of God
(ii) this already takes place with things like the shroud of Turin
(iii) Was a problem in the old testament with the bronze serpent Aaron made in the wilderness
(c) The question we then have to ask is: How does the Bible we are reading today compare to the original manuscript.
3) Comparing the manuscript
(a) The last book of the Old Testament was written around 400 BC
(b) Until 1945 the earliest manuscript was dated from 900 AD
(c) This left a gap of 1300 years.
(d) This gap was the subject of much debate regarding the accuracy of the Bible.
(e) In 1946 the Dead Sea Scrolls were found
(i) These were a series of scrolls, manuscripts and letters from the Bible as well as other historical notes
(ii) They were dated as being from 100 BC to 100 AD
(f) This cut the gap from 1300 years to 200 years, big difference
4) Comparing these scrolls to our present Bible revealed a mathematical accuracy of 98.83%
5) Of these almost all differences were grammatical or spelling related, and nothing was found to change or challenge the meaning of any passage or doctrine.
D) Lets compare this to other works of history
Author Title Written Earliest Gap # Copies
Caesar Gallic Wars 74 BC 900 AD 974 10
Plato Tetralogies 410 BC 900 AD 1310 7
Tracitus History Books 100 AD 1000 AD 900 1
Herodotus History 450 BC 900 AD 1350 8
Aristotle Poetics 352 BC 1000 AD 1352 5
Pay particular attention to the number of copies. This can be compared to the 5300 Biblical manuscripts
If you walked into any secular college class on English Literature and asked the professor whether or not these classical documents are the same as the original, the reply would always be affirmative.
Yet when asked to apply the same principles for evaluation to the reliability of the Biblical documents and the response would be antagonistic and skeptical
Why…
Because the enemy wants to make you question the Word of God as his first attack.
