What we believe about the Bible really matters because the Bible sets the standard for our lives...

This week we are looking at the second statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church. This second statement addresses what we believe as a church when it comes to Bible. This statement summarizes the answer to the question “How did the Bible come into being? How do we know that the Bible is from God? And is the Bible true and trustworthy?”

So far we have seen that that the Bible is a collection of letters that were written by men who were inspired by God to write the very words of God to humanity. We also talked about the reality that the letters that make up what we call the Bible are without error. We also looked at the reality that the 66 letters in the Bible comprise God’s total written revelation to us, which is referred to in church mumbo jumbo talk as the Canon. In other words, the Holy Spirit not only guided the authors of the letters that make up the Bible, but also guided the letters inclusion into the Bible.

Today, I would like for us to answer the question “How did they know and choose which letters were inspired and which were not?” There were three criteria, or tests, used to determine which letters were placed into what we know as our Bible today. The first test was one of the authority of the human writer.

For the Old Testament, the writer had to be a lawgiver, prophet, or leader. For the New Testament, the book had to be written or backed by someone who had seen the risen Lord, who was known as an Apostle. For example, the Gospel of Mark was written by Mark for Peter. The gospel of Luke was written by Luke for Paul.

The second test was the internal evidence of the letter itself. The content of the letter needed to provide evidence that it was inspired by God and agreed with the rule of faith. For example, a letter that claimed that Jesus and Satan were brothers, for example, would not agree with the rule of faith and would not be inspired. The third test was the verdict of the church. For the Old Testament, there was little debate. Jesus Himself verified the 39 letters of the Old Testament in Matthew 5:17:

"Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.

In terms of the New Testament, the vast majority of the New Testament was affirmed as being inspired by God.  As early as 140 A.D., there was evidence that the early church had already selected the letters that make up The New Testament of our Bibles. By the end of the second century, most of the 27 letters that make up the New Testament had already gained widespread acceptance, especially the four gospels and the letters that were written by the Apostle Paul.

The delay in approving James, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, Jude, Hebrews and Revelation was caused primarily due to questions about authorship and reveals the care and concern with which the early church dealt with the issue of which letters should be preserved and contained as part of the Bible.

And the timeless truth for us today is that we can follow the example of men and women throughout history and place our confident trust in the Bible as being without error as we seek guidance and direction to follow the standards that it sets for us as followers of Jesus. This is what is conveyed in the final section of the doctrinal statement, which states that the Bible is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises."

We see this reality revealed for us by the Apostle Paul in a section of a letter in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of 2 Timothy. We see Paul say the following in 2 Timothy 3:14:

"You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."

In these verses we see Paul reveal for us four different ways that the letters that make up our Bible are useful when it comes to living our day to day lives in a way that follows Jesus. First, Paul explains that the letters that make up the Bible are useful to teach us. In other words, the letters that make up the Bible show us the path that we are to take in our lives as we strive to follow Jesus.

Second, Paul states that the letters that make up the Bible are useful to reproof us. Paul’s point here is that the letters that make up the Bible show us where we have gotten off track and off the path that we are supposed to take in our lives as we strive to follow Jesus. Third, Paul explains that the letters that make up the Bible are useful to correct us. In other words, the letters that make up the Bible show us how to get back on the path of following Jesus after we got off track and off the path that we are supposed to be following as followers of Jesus.

And fourth, Paul states that the letters that make up the Bible are useful for training in righteousness. Paul’s point here is that the letters that make up the Bible show us how to stay and remain on the path when it comes to following Jesus. Paul’s here is revealing for us the reality that, like a Garmin or a navigation app on our cell phone, the Bible provides us the guidance necessary to stay on the path and continue towards the destination of a growing relationship with Jesus that reveals and reflects Jesus to the world.

Now this leads us back to the question that will run throughout this series, which is “Dave does what we believe about the Bible really matter?” And the answer to that question leads us to this timeless truth about why it really matters. And that timeless truth is this: What we believe about the Bible really matters because the Bible sets the standard for our lives. What we believe about the Bible really matters because the Bible is totally true and totally trustworthy.

What we really believe the Bible really matters because the Bible sets the standard for our lives when it comes to living in relationship with Jesus. What we really believe the Bible really matters because the Bible sets the standard for our lives when it comes to our relationship with one another. What we really believe the Bible really matters because the Bible sets the standard for our lives when it comes to how we can come to know Jesus.

What we really believe the Bible really matters because the Bible sets the standard for our lives when it comes to how we can come to live like Jesus. And what we really believe the Bible really matters because the Bible sets the standard for our lives when it comes to how we are to live in community with one another.