Rebuke Distractions: “True theology doesn’t just lead to endless arguments. True theology leads to action.”

(Via The Batterson Blog – Thoughts on Life and Leadership.)

4. A belief in the truth of scripture inspired under God’s control

This non-negotiable of the faith is as fundimental as believing that God exists. The Bible is our guide book for living. It is the source of what we know about how Jesus lived. In order to follow Jesus, it is essential to hold to the truth of scripture in very high regard. It is the inspired, true, flawless Word of God to our lives.

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

God In Control – From Beginning To The End…
“All scripture is God-breathed” What more do you need to know about the the truth of the Bible? The Bible is under God’s complete control. From it’s writing to its gathering together into one book to it’s copying/translating through the generations, I believe the Holy Spirit was intimately invovled with making sure the Bible remains true to the message God wants to send to His people. Charles Ryre explains the concept of inspiration this way:

God’s superintendence of the human authors so that, using their own individual personalities, they composed and recorded without error His revelation to man in the words of the original autographs. (Charles Ryrie, A Survey of Bible Doctrine (Chicago: Moody Press, 1972), p. 38)

Even to this day, archeology continues to unearth artifacts that support the bible we have today. Examples like the Dead Sea Scrolls confirm many of the key passages of the scriptures. Experts say that the Bible we refer to today is about 98.5% accurate to the earliest manuscripts that they have. The about 1.5% in differences that have been found are minor changes and do not in any way affect the main message of God’s story to us.

Think about that, 4000+ years from the writing of the first books of the Bible and it is still accurate to the original. That is unheard of for any other book in the literary world. Only under God’s control, could something like that occur.

The Purpose Of God’s Word
“is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Why did God watch the formation of the Bible with such care and control? Because it is our guide on understanding who God is and what God has done/is doing.

The Bible is also our training manual on how to follow Jesus and relate to God and man. If we do not read, meditate, and study it, we won’t know how God wants us to live our lives.

The goal of the Bible can be summed up in verse 17 says, “so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” God wants us to be prepared to be used by Him for any good work.

The Spirt and The Bible Work Together
But it is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding. – Job 32:8

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. – 1 Peter 1:21

The writer of Job hits the nail on the head. The only way that to truly understand what the scriptures are saying is through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit makes the unclear, clear. Paul explained it this way to the Corinthians by writing,

And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. – 2 Corinthians 4:3-6

In this passage, Paul wrote about understanding gospel of Christ and how that is a revelation from God, via the Holy Spirit. I believe in the same way, it is the Holy Spirit working in us that reveals the truth of scripture in a way that those who do not have the Spirit (unbelievers) can not understand.

Without a solid foundational belief in the truth of scripture, everything comes into question. God and how He relates to us, Jesus and what He has done for us, and the Holy Spirit with His guiding principles all hinge on the truth of the Bible and its being the inspired, true, flawless Word of God. Those who follow Jesus need to look to our guidebook in this light and utilize it in a more worthy fashion.

3. A consistent, on-going relationship with God built on communication (prayer), trust, and faith.

Communication With The Father
Just like any other relationship, a relationship with the Creator of the Universe needs to have certain elements to it to work. There needs to be a constant, regular, communication. In this case, that happens through prayer.

This prayer thing is far more than just getting on your knees and bowing your head once or twice a day. The communication with God needs to be regular and on-going. As your driving down the road or heading down the hallway to deal with a rebellious child, every minute of every day needs to be focused on communicate to God. When the focus is always on God then your actions in any situation will reflect God.

A great example of this can be seen in the life David. In every situation in his life, he would constantly communicate with God. All throughout the Psalms, prayer are lifted up in both good and bad situations.

Hear, O LORD, my righteous plea;
listen to my cry.
Give ear to my prayer—
it does not rise from deceitful lips.

May my vindication come from you;
may your eyes see what is right.

Though you probe my heart and examine me at night,
though you test me, you will find nothing;
I have resolved that my mouth will not sin. – Psalm 17:1-3

Hear my prayer, O LORD,
listen to my cry for help;
be not deaf to my weeping.
For I dwell with you as an alien,
a stranger, as all my fathers were – Psalm 39:12

I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness
and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High. – Psalm 7:17

Trust And Faith Are Key
A relationship with the God of the Universe absolutely needs to be based on faith and trust.

FAITH: Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. (Hebrews 11:1)

TRUST: reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing (Dictionary.com)

Faith and trust describe our part in the foundational beliefs of following Jesus. Believing in what we can not see and a reliance on a God whose character is worth trusting.

FAITH
It takes faith not only to believe that God exists but also to believe that Jesus lived, died, and was resurrected. Jesus commented on this very thing during a post-resurrection encounter with the disciple Thomas. He said, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.(John 20:29)”

It also takes faith to believe that the Holy Spirit lives within us. Even though the Holy Spirit can not be seen, we know He is resident within us. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. – (I Corinthians 6:19-20)”

It does takes faith to believe the Bible is the true, accurate, and inspired Word of God (Although with all the archaeological evidence proving the Bible it makes it a little easier). Faith is a definitely an important piece to following Jesus with all of our heart.

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith. – Romans 1:16-18

TRUST
Any relationship is not really a relationship without trust. Think of those deep, true, friendships that are in your life. The type of friendship where you can share your heart without worrying about others finding out. It is that kind of deep, trusting, relationship God is looking for with His creation.

God honors that kind of relationship all throughout the Bible:

…the LORD’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him. – Psalm 32:10

Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.- Psalm 40:4

“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. – Jeremiah 17:7

Trusting God and what He says in His Word is a key to truly believing in Jesus and following Him with all your heart.

Without trust, there is no real relationship with God. Without faith, there is no true belief in God. Without a belief in God, there is no following Jesus.