Is the Bible True?
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Announcements:
CPT: God’s word is pure, points to God’s protection, and is complete.
Purpose: Encourage discipleship in the church through more Bible engagement.
CPS: God’s word is perfect and sufficient for all that you need.
Introduction
Attention - Is the Bible true? That is the question that we are dealing with today in our God Questions series. Last week, we talked about the evidence of creation, and how creation points to a Creator. But with the Bible, what we are really asking is about special revelation. The God that exists in reality, has he indeed specially revealed information about himself in a book?
When we are talking about the Bible, we aren’t actually talking about a book. We are really talking about a collection of books. I think of the Bible like a large bookcase in a library. You walk up to the shelf in the library, and you can take any book off the shelf and start reading it. The Bible is like that. It is a collection of 66 books, 39 in the OT, and 27 in the NT. It is a collection of books written over at least 1500 years.
New discipleship books - How to Study the Bible for Yourself by Tim LaHaye.
Illustration: In 2006, I picked up this small book called How to Study the Bible for Yourself. We actually just got some copies of that book, if you’re interested. It is in our Welcome Center. I picked up this book, and it spoke about the Bible as something vital to our existence. It quoted Jesus in Matt. 4:4 where he says, “Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
I thought to myself, that is it. I am saying that I am a Christian, but do I really understand what I am saying? The book had this Bible study plan, and I started using it. Over the next year, I read through the NT multiple times, as well as some of the OT.
I actually brought the Bible I used in 2006 with me today. It is a Bible that is dear to me, that I keep as a reminder of what God started in my life that year. I started writing notes on the sides of this Bible.
What was incredible about the Bible is that, it wasn’t like any other book. I could read the same book every day, the same words that I read yesterday, and there would be something new every day. God would bring something out every day as I was reading and applying his word to my life.
I find the power of God’s Word as incredible. You can read it every day and never run out of how God uses it in your life. But what does that mean? What does the Bible actually say about itself? How can we know that the Bible is true? We will be in Proverbs looking at two verses, Proverbs 30:5-6.
Scripture Reading
5 Every word of God is pure; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
6 Don’t add to his words, or he will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.
Pray
In looking at this question, is the Bible true, we’ll be looking at it through what the Bible says about itself. As we look at these two verses in Proverbs, this says specific things about the Bible.
First,
God’s Word is perfect and refines a person.
God’s Word is perfect and refines a person.
State the point; Anchor the point; Validate the point; Explain the point
Text: Proverbs 30:5; Psalm 12:6; 18:30; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Ezekiel 2:2
God's Word acts like a refinery in our life. When applied to our life, God’s Word brings out what he wants in our life. God’s Word is perfect and shows us how to live life in obedience to God. Prophecy shows the perfection of God’s special revelation.
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God’s Word acts like a refinery
In looking at this question, “Is the Bible true,” we will first look at the Bible’s claims about itself. What does the Bible actually say about God’s Word? In this, we are looking at Proverbs 30:5-6. In verse 5, it says:
5 Every word of God is pure; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
It’s first claim is that God’s word is “pure.” Now that word for “pure” has to do with a type of refining or testing. It’s the act of refining and purifying metal, especially silver. Now, in refining metals, you have to treat the metal to a very high heat to remove the impurities from the metal.
When you are refining precious metals like silver, you need to separate the silver from the waste. It is an intense process, but it is a necessary process to get to desired precious metal into its pure state.
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צָרַף (ṣārap). vb. smelt, refine, test. Describes the act of refining metal or the act of God testing people or trying their hearts.
The verb ṣārap literally denotes the process of purifying metals (especially silver) by melting them. This process is used as a metaphor for purifying or refining people (e.g., Isa 1:25; Jer 6:29; Zech 13:9; Psa 66:10). The word is generally used to denote God testing people (Judg 7:4), including the Israelites (Jer 9:6; Isa 48:10; Zech 13:9; Psa 66:10), Joseph (Psa 105:19), and a psalmist (Psa 17:3). The verb ṣārap can also be used to describe the word of Yahweh as being proven, tried, or refined (Psa 18:31; 119:140; Prov 30:5).
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The Bible says that God’s Word is like this refining process. It starts to expose and purify what God wants to bring out. His Word is doing this smelting process within the human heart. The Psalmist also talks about this in Psalm 12:6:
6 The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times.
The claim here is that as you apply God’s Word to your heart, the Lord uses his word to shape and mold you, to expose the waste and set it aside, and to purify your ways to bring out the precious metals of your heart, which is obedience to his word.
Evidence of refining nature of Scripture
Now is God’s Word able to refine a person? What’s interesting about the Bible is that, as we walk about it, the Bible is an old book. The most recent words in this book are 2,000 years old. Some of the oldest words are 3,000 years old or older. Yet, what’s amazing is that thousands of years later, it continues to change hearts, minds, and souls.
The message within the Bible has thousands of years of witnesses, of people taking a complete 180 degree turn in their life because of the message in this book. It’s not a book that you complete. Many books, you read it, say, “That was nice,” and then put it on the shelf. It’s only the message in this book, the Bible, that never gets old.
Even those that read it through are never done. The message in here is like a refining fire in their hearts. They read and re-read and re-read, and God continues to use it to expose and develop people into how he wants them to be.
God’s word is perfect through it’s inspiration
The reason for it’s refining nature is because it is perfect. The psalmist said it this way in Psalm 18:30:
30 God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is pure. He is a shield to all who take refuge in him.
The word of the Lord is able to purify because God’s way is perfect. And that is really what the Bible exposes. You know, everyone wants to do things their own way. But if you want a life that is purified by God, you need to live your life according to God’s way.
The Bible exposes God’s way for mankind to live. Paul told Timothy this about the Bible in 2 Timothy 3:16:
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness,
The description of all Scripture being inspired by God, that in the Greek has the literal idea of being God-breathed. Now, when we are talking about the Bible, we don’t deny that it was written by men. What we say is that the Bible was written by men as God breathed and moved within them, in such a way that God used their language to bring about exactly what he wanted to say.
Peter described this process in 2 Peter 1:20-21:
20 Above all, you know this: No prophecy of Scripture comes from the prophet’s own interpretation,
21 because no prophecy ever came by the will of man; instead, men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
The Bible, as it was written, God filled these writers and led them to write what he wanted to say to humanity. God used different types of people in different scenarios. One example of how this could have looked like is seen in the book of Ezekiel, where the prophet describes an experience he had in Ezekiel 2:2:
2 As he spoke to me, the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and I listened to the one who was speaking to me.
Ezekiel describes himself being filled with God’s Spirit and listening to God’s Word, which he then wrote down. This is not to say God always dictated, but that everything in God’s Word is perfect in its original autograph, being exactly what God wanted to say to mankind.
Evidence of prophecy
One of the biggest evidences of the Bible’s truth is the evidence of prophecy. What you will see in prophecy is that the Bible predicts the future correctly over and over again, and never gets it wrong.
For instance, just look at the prophecies about the coming Messiah.
Gen. 49:10: The Messiah will come from the tribe of Judah
Ps. 89:3-4: The Messiah will come through the line of David
Mal. 3:1: A messenger will clear the way for the Messiah
Is. 7:14: The Messiah will be born of a virgin
Mic. 5:2: The Messiah will be born in Bethlehem
Hos. 11:1: The Messiah will come out of Egypt
Is. 35:5: The Messiah will make the blind see and the deaf hear
Zec. 11:12-13: The Messiah will be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver
Is. 53:7: The Messiah will be quiet before his accusers
Zec. 12:10: The Messiah will be pierced
Is. 53:6: The Messiah will take on the sins of the world
Jesus fulfilled each prophecy perfectly, written hundreds of years before he was born. These prophecies are so specific, that there is no way this could happen by chance.
Heading: Suppose I go out to the store and purchase Powerball tickets. I go out and I buy one ticket. The numbers come out, and I win. I’m rich! Then let’s say I go out and play again a week later, and I win again. Then I go out a month later, play again, and win. Then I go out six months later, buy one ticket, and win, A year later, go out and buy one ticket, and win.
What would you say? You would say I was cheating. Why? Because that’s impossible. You don’t go, buy 1 ticket, and win every time. In order for that to happen, it couldn’t happen by chance. I would need special information. I would need someone in the lottery office giving me the numbers.
When we are looking at the evidence of prophecy, that is what are seeing. We see the evidence of it coming out correctly over and over and over again. Without any of the other evidence that we speak of today, the evidence of prophecy means the prophets had to have had special information. They received their information from the only one who knows the future. They wrote as God moved them and said what he wanted them to say. The Bible is God’s Word.
And because it is God’s Word, that’s why it is pure, God uses his word to refine the person as they apply his message to their hearts.
God’s Word is perfect and refines a person.
Second,
God’s Word shows his protection in directing our path.
God’s Word shows his protection in directing our path.
State the point; Anchor the point; Validate the point; Explain the point
Text: Prov. 30:5; Psalm 84:11; Psalm 119:105; 19:8
God’s Word points to the protection of God. God’s Word is meant to direct our path to live according to God’s plan and for his purpose. God’s Word enlightens our heart and changes our outlook on life.
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God’s Word shows faith in God as a refuge
In describing God’s Word, Proverbs 3:5 talks about the refuge and shield that we have in God. It says this in verse 5.
5 Every word of God is pure; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
So in the same context of God’s Word as this refining message, that as we apply his Word to our life, it begins to clear the waste and bring forth the precious metal that God seeks in our life, the Proverb describes the refuge and protection of God.
There is a similar description of this in Psalm 84:11:
11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield. The Lord grants favor and honor; he does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity.
So what is being set up here? The message is this: Those who are obedient to follow God’s way, those who read God’s Word and live by it, who live within the integrity of God’s message, will see the protection of God in their life.
Evidence of protection in God’s way
Is this true? Consider what society might look like if they applied God’s word to their life. We would have a society where husbands and wives stayed together, where husbands loved their wives as Christ loved the church.
We would have a society where people would love their enemies and pray for those who persecuted them. We would have a society that was generous, who worshipped the Lord with their lives and gathered regularly to worship God. We would have a society that prayed regularly, that lived in the joy of the Lord.
But what do we have instead? We have a society that does the opposite of that. We have a society filled with divorce, filled with lust, filled with idolatry and hatred against others. We live in a society not living according to God’s Word, where they believe their way is better. What we find is a society not living under God’s protection.
God’s word directs our path and enlightens the heart
God’s Word is meant to direct our path so we can live under the protection of God, as we live our lives according to his plan and for his purpose. The Psalmist says this about God’s Word in Psalm 119:105:
105 Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path.
God’s Word gives us a direction for our path, as we surrender to his will and seek his plan for our life. This process of application and the refining of God’s Word is a light to direct our path. The Psalmist also says this in Psalm 19:8:
8 The precepts of the Lord are right, making the heart glad; the command of the Lord is radiant, making the eyes light up.
Now “precepts” is a translation of a Hebrew word which means “instructions, procedure” or “rule of personal conduct.” The Lord’s instructions are right. What does following the instruction of the Lord do? It makes the heart glad. It makes the eyes light up.
As we engage with God’s Word, it gives us direction which brings a sense of clarity, peace, and joy in a person’s life.
Heading: In 2006 through 2007, I engaged with the Bible daily. I was a new Christian, and I determined that before I had my physical breakfast in the morning, I would have my spiritual breakfast by reading God’s Word.
As I read through the New Testament, there was a new direction in my life growing. I remember reading through the book of Hebrews, and reading in chapter 11 of all of these people who lived their lives by faith. If you read through that chapter, you will see person after person who engaged with God, who took God at his word, who trusted in God.
This brought me to chapter 12, which is kind of a summation of these people of faith. It talks about these great cloud of witnesses. I’ve seen that in the Bible, but also in life. There are these people who’s lives have been changed by trusting in God by faith, trusting in the message they read in this Bible.
That brought me to Hebrews 12:2, which has been a life verse for me. When we talk about the Bible giving us direction for our path, Hebrews 12:2 was my direction. It says there that we are to keep our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.
That is a direction that I have sought to keep in my life. When I get off track, it’s normally when I have not followed God’s direction. Keep your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith. That is a direction from God the lightens my life, lightens my heart, and keeps me focused on what God has for me.
God’s Word is perfect and refines a person.
God’s Word shows his protection in directing our path.
Third,
God’s Word is complete in its revelation to humanity.
God’s Word is complete in its revelation to humanity.
State the point; Anchor the point; Validate the point; Explain the point
Text: Prov. 30:6; Matt. 15:1-6; Rom. 7:22-8:2
God’s Word is complete and tells us all that we need to know from God. God’s Word exposes things about us and points to our need for a Savior.
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God’s Word tells us all that we need to know
Proverb 3:5-6 ends us with a warning about God’s Word. Take a look at verse 6.
6 Don’t add to his words, or he will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.
Do not add or take away anything from God’s Word. Anything more or less than God’s Word is insufficient. There is a completeness to God’s Word.
God’s Word may not tell you everything you may want to know. It doesn’t tell you exactly how many angels exist in the universe, for instance. But God’s Word is complete. It tells man everything that man need to know.
Temptation to add to God’s Word
Men always seem to want to add to God’s Word. Why is that? It’s not because it is insufficient. Rather, it is because there is an inherent authority in God’s Word that people recognize.
The Lord dealt with this in his ministry. Take a look at Matthew 15:1-6:
1 Then Jesus was approached by Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem, who asked,
2 “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat.”
3 He answered them, “Why do you break God’s commandment because of your tradition?
4 For God said: Honor your father and your mother; and, Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.
5 But you say, ‘Whoever tells his father or mother, “Whatever benefit you might have received from me is a gift committed to the temple,”
6 he does not have to honor his father.’ In this way, you have nullified the word of God because of your tradition.
The Pharisees held to something here called the “traditions of the elders.” But notice that as they held to this tradition as authoritative, they ended up taking away from the Law, because the tradition of the elders ended up causing them to not honor their father and mother. Therefore, they were rebuked by the Lord and proved to be a liar.
Why is that? This is an amazing thing with God’s Word. Whenever you attempt to add in your own ideas, you end up adding to or taking away from God’s Word.
Evidence of the Law’s Perfection
It is in fact this perfection of God’s Word that is perhaps the most difficult thing to deal. God’s Word, when applied to your life, ends up holding up a mirror to yourself.
This was the issue with the Law. As those Pharisees were attempting to add to the Law, the Law ends up rebuking them. That’s also what happens to us with the Law. Anytime in our self-righteousness and pride that we attempt to think that we have it all together, the Law holds up an uncomfortable mirror to us.
Just think of those ten commandments in Exodus 20. Just the first one, you shall have no other gods besides God. Well, don’t we see times in our own life when we’ve trusted in things rather than in God alone.
When you go through the list of ten, each one just condemns. Paul wrestles with this perfection of God’s Word in the Law, how the Law just shows to us that we are not perfect. Look at this in Romans 7:22:
22 For in my inner self I delight in God’s law,
23 but I see a different law in the parts of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and taking me prisoner to the law of sin in the parts of my body.
24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?
25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I myself am serving the law of God, but with my flesh, the law of sin.
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus,
2 because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.
What is this saying? I realize as I look into God’s Word that it is perfect, it is pure, it is refining. There is a reality that I realize in God’s Word that it is reflecting issues about my own life.
But God’s Law leaves us there, in condemnation. All that I see in the Law is the fact that I am a sinner. And that is the point! God’s Word exposes to me and you our own need for a Savior. That is the point of the book. We are sinners in need of salvation.
Isn’t it good to know that God didn’t leave us at the Law? He didn’t leave us in condemnation. Because of Christ, because of the cross, because Jesus has taken on my sin at the cross, I am free.
That is the point of the book. That is what God is revealing to humanity. The book points exposes our sin, our rebellion against God, and it exposes his plan for redemption. The message of God is that people need Jesus. We need the salvation that only Jesus brings.
Heading: What happens when we stand in front of a mirror? We stand in front of a mirror, and we start to see all of the flaws, don’t we? We see that we are getting a bit older, maybe gaining a little weight. Maybe we see some hairs out of place, or like me, we are struggling to find some hair. We see stains in the clothes we didn’t know were there, or wrinkles, or whatever else. The mirror doesn’t hide any information. It exposes the reality of who we are.
When we look at the Bible, we see that as well. God’s Word exposes all the things we hid deep down. God’s Word exposes our need for God. The good news is that God didn’t leave us with our imperfections. He took on our imperfections on the cross, our sins on the cross, so that you and I can be free.
God’s Word says that if we believe in the Lord Jesus, we can be free. Today can be that day for you, if you would turn to Christ in faith, and believe in him.
Conclusion
God’s Word is perfect and refines a person.
God’s Word shows his protection in directing our path.
God’s Word is complete in its revelation to humanity.
Conclude
Have you heard the message today and realized that you need Jesus? Are you ready to put your faith in Jesus? We want to pray with you, and celebrate your new life. Please see one of our pastors after the service.
Blanks: perfect; refines; protection; directing; complete; revelation.
Prayer
Last Song
Doxology
24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you;
25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’
24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy,
25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.
You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!
