Applying Biblical Authority, #3

APPLYING BIBLICAL AUTHORITY, #3

Galatians 1:6-9

Introduction: The authority of the Bible is an important study (Col 3:17; John 16:13-15).  The Bible authorizes our actions through direct statements, and by use of both specific and generic authority.  Today, we shall study another aspect of authority: Implication.

   I. Definitions

      A. Explicit: "Clearly stated; distinctly expressed; definite; plain to see; readily observable."

      B. Implicit: "Suggested or to be understood though not plainly expressed; inherent; an essential part or condition."

      C. Illustration: Explicit: "John is taller than Joe; Joe is taller than Jim."  Implication: John is taller than Jim!

 II. Illustrations Of Implication In The Bible

       A. Genesis 13:1 - How can we know that Lot went to Egypt with Abram?

       B. 2 Chronicles 34:1-3 - How can we know the age of Josiah when he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem?

       C. Matthew 3:16 - How can we know Jesus went down into the water when He was baptized?

       D. Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15,16; Luke 24:47 - How can we know that infants are not subjects of the Great Commission?

       E. 1 Timothy 3:1-7 - How can we know that a woman or a teen- ager is not qualified to serve as a bishop/elder?

       F. Ephesians 1:22,23; 4:4 - Over how many churches is Jesus the Head?  Ephesians 5:23 - Of how many churches is Jesus the Savior?

III. Jesus' Use Of Implication

      A. Matthew 21:23-27 - "The baptism of John, was it from        heaven or from men?"

      B. Matthew 22:31,32 - "But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?"

Conclusion: "The reason I am bound by God's word is not that I read it but that HE wrote it.  The reason I am bound by those things implicit in His Word is NOT that I inferred it BUT that HE implied it."  (Robert Camp, The Spiritual Sword, July, 1970, p. 50).