ods wisdom for salvation The Bible is the Word of God. As such, it must be the sole basis in serving Him. Since it contains the truth that will lead us to salvation from punishment on Judgment Day and to the attainment of the promised eternal life, we must value the teachings of God written therein by fulfilling them. Why must we give primary importance to the teachings of the Bible? Why must we use the Bible as the sole basis of our services to God? Is there any substitute for the Bible? What if man uses man-made teachings or follows his own righteousness in serving God? All the major religions of the world have their own sacred texts upon which they base their faith. Islam, the Moslem religion, uses the Koran. The Brahmans of India have their own Vedas. Zoroastrianism, a religion that came from Persia (now Iran), uses the Avesta as their basis of faith. The Confucians of China have the King as their sacred book. Buddhists base their beliefs on the Tripitaka. But over and above all these is the Bible, the Sacred Scriptures recognized by the whole of Christendom. The Bible not only teaches morals but, most importantly, the will of God. How the Bible came to be How did God reveal His words to man? God spoke at various times and in different ways, as is written in Hebrews 1:1-2. God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; The era of the fathers or patriarchs was from the time of the first man created by God to the beginning of the time of the birth of Moses. The era of the prophets ended with the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was also the beginning of the last dispensation of time. God spoke to His people in various ways. How were the words spoken by God preserved and how were they revealed to us? He commanded His servants to commit them to writing, as what He commanded to Prophet Jeremiah, one of those whom God entrusted the writing of His words: Thus speaks the LORD God of Israel saying: ‘Write in a book for yourself all the words that I have spoken to you’ (Jer 30:2). Which book contains the words of God written by His commissioned writers? This is what the apostles called as Holy Scriptures: And that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim 3:15-17). The uniqueness of the Holy Scriptures or the Bible above those used by other religions is that it is inspired by God. Thus, it is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instructing us toward salvation. This is what makes the Bible far beyond and above all other books written by men. The Holy Scriptures are God’s words and not of men. Therefore, when the teachings written therein are taught to us, we should believe that these are God’s words, His will for us to obey. Some argue, however, that since man is prone to commit mistakes, then those people commanded by God to write His words could have committed errors. But how can we be certain that indeed they did not commit any mistakes in writing the Scriptures? This is recorded in the Book of Revelation 10:4: Now when the seven thunders uttered their voices, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, ‘Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and do not write them’. God never left those whom He commissioned to write His words alone. He guarded and guided them. What He willed to be written was what they wrote. Otherwise, He said, “do not write them.” Hence, the Church Of Christ firmly believes that the Bible, as it was written, contains no error. However, there are those who classify the Bible as a mere collection of myths, that is, something beyond the realm of truth. How then can we be certain that the Bible we now use is the true one—the words of God? It is, therefore, imperative for us to examine the words written in the Bible if indeed they have the attributes of the words of God. What is the quality of God’s words? In John 17:17, our Lord Jesus Christ testifies thus: Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. God’s word is truth. What does it mean that the word of God is truth and why is it said to be the truth? This is God’s guarantee concerning His words: Calling a bird of prey from the east, The man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it (Isa 46:11). God’s word is truth because it has fulfillment, unlike man’s words which are oftentimes proven false and go unfulfilled. Rightfully so because God said, “I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass.” Are there words of God that were uttered in the beginning and destined to take place at some later time which have been fulfilled? This is written in Matthew 24:6-8 as foretold by God through our Lord Jesus Christ: And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. The First World War which broke out in 1914 and the Second World War which started in 1939 were the fulfillment of the wars foretold by our Lord Jesus Christ to herald that His Second Coming is near. The war in 1914 was the very first war wherein nations were involved and rumors or news about it was heard throughout the world. Although attempts were made to avert the occurrence of another world war, man’s desire was rendered naught. What was spoken had to come to pass. The Second World War erupted in 1939 to fulfill what was said, “nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.” The two world wars, as foretold, would be followed by famines and pestilences. These, man had also seen fulfilled. Millions suffered from hunger during and after the two world wars. Various calamities, such as earthquakes, plagued mankind. All of these, however, continue. Up to the present time, more and more serious problems are being experienced by the world, bringing untold sufferings into the life of millions. What else did God prophesy that would happen when the end of the world is near? God had foretold that man’s knowledge shall increase. He declared this hundreds of years before the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ and this found fulfillment during our era. This is written in Daniel 12:4: But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase. It is no wonder then that in our time we have seen the dramatic increase of man’s knowledge. Science and technology have modernized and have greatly facilitated communications and transportation. As God declared through Prophet Daniel, “many shall run to and fro.” This has been fulfilled, and its fulfillment proves to us an undeniable truth—the Bible is the true word of God. Even the attitudes of people in these last days have been clearly described by the Bible long ago. Through the apostles, this is what the words of God declare: But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! (2 Tim 3:1-5) We do not have to look far. Right within the confines of our homes we see on television how perilous our time is because of man’s evil works. The rising tide of criminality is so alarming. Wanton crimes continue to be perpetrated against persons and properties. For these, various corrective measures have been imposed such as stricter gun laws and stiffer penalties to deter criminals, but to no avail. Even the sanctity of the home is now endangered, threatened by domestic violence brought about by squabbling couples or disrespectful children. So many lives have been snuffed out. So many dreams have been shattered. All these point to the ultimate conclusion that what is written in the Bible is true. Therefore, we are assured that the Bible we are using now is the true Holy Scriptures because it has the quality of the words of God: What He says will surely happen. The promise to those who believe However, only knowing that the Bible is the word of God is not enough. One should believe in what is written in it and faithfully obey and live by it to benefit from God’s words. What is the significance of believing in God’s words written in the Bible? Apostle John says: And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name (John 20:30-31). What is written in the Bible is enough for us to believe in Christ and attain eternal life. Therefore, we should do away with beliefs and practices such as traditions that are based on man’s teachings. How about books written by man which people also use as bases of their faith like catechism, the Book of Mormon, and all the other books of other religions? Does God allow the use of these books as bases in serving Him? Apostle Paul gives us the answer to this question: Now, brothers, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, “Do not go beyond what is written.” Then you will not take pride in one man over against another (1 Cor 4:6 NIV). Going beyond what is written in the Bible is strictly prohibited by God. Not only did God prohibit this; He also warned anyone on the grave consequence of adding to or taking away from what is written in the Bible. Anyone who does either or both of these prohibitions will not be saved and will be punished by God: I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book (Rev 22:18-19, ibid.). This is the underlying principle upon which the Church Of Christ maintains the profundity and flawlessness of God’s written words in the Holy Scriptures. We should faithfully obey all the teachings of the Bible taught in the Church Of Christ because these are God’s words, His wisdom toward salvation. Source: inc.kabayankokapatidko.org/ The Bible is the Word of God. As such, it must be the sole basis in serving Him. Since it contains the truth that will lead us to salvation from punishment on J...See More Like · · Share · 1271 · 9 hours ago ·
Posted on: Tue, 11 Mar 2014 18:42:09 +0000
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