Isn't The Bible Outdated?

Text: 1 Peter 1:23-2:3; 2 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Tim. 3:15-17

Theme: The Bible is still relevant because of its origin, central theme, enduring character, unique power, and usefulness to humanity. 

Relevance:

Why is the Bible so important? The Bible is … a massive historical presence. Its influence on nearly every area of life is difficult to exaggerate. Suffice it to say, the world would be a darker, uglier, crueler place than we can imagine if it were not for the light, beauty, and love revealed in the Bible. –Max Anders

If we do not understand how important the Bible is we will miss the opportunity we have to learn and apply its wisdom in life. We are living in a time when the perceived value of the Bible for society, culture, and individuals is diminishing. We must understand the importance of the Bible so that we will know why we should champion the message of the Bible for society, culture, and the individual.(Anders)

Introduction:

Christianity is the true worship and service of the true God, humankind’s Creator and Redeemer. It is a religion that rests on revelation: nobody would know the truth about God, or be able to relate to him in a personal way, had not God first acted to make himself known. But God has so acted, and the sixty-six books of the Bible, thirty-nine written before Christ came and twenty-seven after, are together the record, interpretation, expression, and embodiment of his self-disclosure. God and godliness are the Bible’s uniting themes. –Packer, J. I.: Concise Theology

Lesson:

I.                   The Divine Origin of the Bible—Where did the Bible Come from?

A.     The Fact of the Divine Origin of the Bible.

1.  The Bible claims this for itself.

                                                                     i.            For the Old Testament.

a.       The Old Testament came from God (2Tim 3:16-17).

b.       The Scriptures are God-breathed.

c.       The entire Bible is inspired.

                                                                   ii.            For the New Testament.

a.       Peter refers to Paul’s letters as Scripture (2 Pet. 3:15-16), and Paul called Luke’s gospel Scripture in 1 Timothy 5:18, where he quotes the words of Luke 10:7.

b.       1 Thess. 2:13—“For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but, as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”

c.       The Holy Spirit superintended the giving of the Word and helps us understand it (Jn. 14:26; 16:13; 15:26, 27).

2.  The Bible evidences this for itself.

                                                                     i.            By its tremendous unity throughout in spite of the forty different writers.

                                                                   ii.            By its consistent and continuous emphasis on God, Christ, and godliness throughout in spite of the fact it was written over the course of 1, 500 years.

                                                                  iii.            This unity and consistency points to One Author of Scripture—the Holy Spirit.

B.     The Meaning of the Divine Origin of the Bible.

1.  Revelation (1Cor. 2:9-11).

                                                                     i.            To know the mind of God, there must be some revelation from Him. The word "revelation" simply means a revealing, and in theology is applied to God's revealing of Himself to mankind.

                                                                   ii.            Without revelation, we would not know anything about God -or even that there is a God. Thus we begin this study with the premise that God desires to make Himself known to man, and has in fact revealed Himself at various times and in different ways (Deut. 29:29)

                                                                  iii.            Hebrews 1:1-2,  God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, [2] Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

2.  Inspiration (1Cor. 2:12, 13).

                                                                     i.          Inspiration deals with God giving us the Bible and overseeing the process of recording His revelation without error.  Having revealed Himself to man, God then had this revelation recorded in written form.

                                                                   ii.            Inspiration refers to God as the Author of the Bible.

a.       He inspired the very words of Scripture (Jer. 1:9; Matt. 24:35; 1Cor 2:13).

b.       The entire body of Scripture is equally inspired—“all” (2Tim. 3:16).

c.       The Scriptures are the product of divine and human cooperation—this is known as confluent inspiration (Acts 4:25; 13:35; Isa. 8:1).

d.       The Scriptures are free of error in their teaching (Ps. 119:160; Jn. 17:17).

                                                                  iii.            Since the Bible is given to mankind by inspiration of God then it is not merely the writings of men but they find their source in Jehovah. The reliability of the Scriptures rest in the Power, Sovereignty, and Wisdom of an All Mighty God, and not human strength or frailty! See 2 Peter 1:20, 21.

                                                                 iv.            Since God inspired the Bible it must be true from beginning to end (Ps. 119:160).

3. Illumination (1Cor. 2:14-3:4).

                                                                     i.          Illumination refers to the ministry of the Holy Spirit that enables believers to properly understand Scripture. This is not how we received God’s Word, only how we understand what God has written.

                                                                   ii.            The Author of the Bible really is the best Interpreter and Teacher of His Book (Jn. 14:26; 16:13; 1Jn. 2:20, 27)!

                                                                  iii.            Greater illumination and spiritual discernment will come with obedience, disciplined study, faith, and maturity in the Word (Matt. 13:12; Mark 4:24, 25; Heb. 5:11-14). There is no short cut to an in dept Biblical perspective.

a.       God does not communicate to us through occult practices and methods (Lev. 19:26, 31).

b.       Pursue the wisdom that comes from God; it is far superior to demonic and worldly wisdom (Dan. 1:16-21; 2:10, 19-23, 28-30).

II.                The Central Theme of the Bible—What does the Bible say to us?

A.     The Central Theme is God and Godliness (John 17:3; Eph. 1:17-20).

1. Do You Really Know Him? There’s a big difference between knowing about someone, and really knowing that person. Many people make this mistake when it comes to knowing God. They think that because they have gone to church a few times or have read bits and pieces of the Bible, they know God. But that’s not necessarily true! You can have stacks of factual information about God filed away in your mind, but not have a personal relationship with Him. (Packer)

                                                                     i.            When you really know someone, you know many things about that person—that person’s goals, concerns, and joys. You know that person’s heart.

                                                                   ii.            How about you? Do you know a lot of information about God, or do you really know God’s heart?

                                                                  iii.            Knowing About God Is Not the Same as Knowing God.

a.       Many people have knowledge about religion, Christianity, and the Bible. But intellectual knowledge is not the same as vital faith. Knowing about God is not the same as having a personal relationship with Him.

b.       This is clear from everyday relationships. Reading books on marriage is not the same as spending time with your spouse. Knowing someone’s phone number is a far cry from enjoying friendship with that person. Knowing who one’s customers are is not the same as dealing with a specific customer.

c.       In the same way, knowing God involves far more than knowing about Him. Information alone does not produce tangible faith. To be sure, right thinking is involved in faith, but faith is more than mere knowledge. (Anders)

2. Scripture speaks of “knowing” God as the spiritual person’s ideal lifestyle. Particularly, ‘knowing God’ is the fullness of a faith-relationship with Him that brings salvation and eternal life.  A relationship that generates love, hope, obedience, and joy. (See, for example, Exod. 33:13; Jer. 31:34; Heb. 8:8-12; Dan. 11:32; John 17:3; Gal. 4:8-9; Eph. 1:17-19; 3:19; Phil. 3:8-11; 2 Tim. 1:12.) (Packer)

                                                                     i.            There are three dimensions of this knowledge. The first is intellectual (knowing the truth about God: Deut. 7:9; Ps. 100:3); secondly is volitional (trusting, obeying, and worshiping God in terms of that truth); and lastly moral (practicing justice and love: Jer. 22:16; 1 John 4:7-8).

                                                                   ii.            The knowledge-relationship is reciprocal, implying covenantal affection on both sides: we know God as ours because he knows us as his (John 10:14; Gal. 4:9; 2 Tim. 2:19). (Packer)

                                                                  iii.            All Scripture has been given to help us know God in this way. Let us labor to use it for its proper purpose. –Adapted from Packer, J. I.: Concise Theology

3. The knowledge of God and His grace for daily living are disclosed in the promises of God—the Scriptures (2Pet. 1:2-4). The Scriptures reveal God that we might know Him and interact with Him accordingly—godliness.

4. Of all the names given to the Bible, “The Word of God” (Mark 7:13; Rom. 10:17; 2 Cor. 2:17; Heb. 4:12; 1 Thess. 2:13) is doubtless the most significant, impressive, and complete. This title not only implies authority and authorship, but also the Bible’s great theme—God. (Prisk)

B.     The Central Personality is Jesus Christ (Jn. 5:39, 46, 47).

They did not realize that the OT Scriptures telling of the coming Messiah were actually telling about Jesus. It is terrible to think that men with the Scriptures in their hands could be so blind. But it was even more inexcusable that after the Lord Jesus spoke to them in this way, they still refused to accept Him. … The main subject of the OT was the coming of Christ. If anyone misses that in studying the OT, he misses the most important part of it. –MacDonald: Believer's Bible Commentary

1. The Bible tells us about Jesus Christ (Luke 24:27, 44).

2. Look for the Lord Jesus as you read and study and the entire Bible will begin to open up to you.

C.     The Central Presentation is Christ’s Suffering and Glory (1Peter 1:10, 11).

1. The OT is Christ predicted; the Gospels is Christ provided; Acts is Christ proclaimed; the Epistles is Christ possessed; and the Revelation is Christ predominant.

2. In the OT we see Christ as Prophet, Priest, and King in types and prophecy.  In the Gospels he is Prophet; in Acts and the Epistles He is Priest; and in the Revelation He is King.

3. The OT presents the Christ of prophecy; the Gospels the Christ of history; in Acts and the Epistles he is the Christ of experience; and the Revelation, the Christ of glory.

III.             The Enduring Character of the Bible—Can we be certain we have the Bible today?

Without the Bible's teachings on the preservation of the Scriptures, we could never be sure we have the Bible today. Clearly Paul and Timothy believed they had in their possession the Scriptures two thousand years ago (2 Tim. 3:15-17). They did not have the original autographs (from 1500 to 450 years before) but they did have accurate copies of them. Paul viewed these copies as Scripture. We should view accurate copies and faithful translations (German, English, Spanish, and Japaneses) as Scripture today. 

A.     The Bible is an Eternal Book (Ps. 33:11; 119:98; Matt. 24:35).

1. If God inspired the Bible to insure we would have exactly what He said, then it only make sense that He would undertake to ensure that the Bible remains available to humanity in a pure form.

2. Faith accepts the fact that God will keep His promise to preserve His Word, working providentially by the same Spirit through the process of copying and translation to give us the very words He desires—Robert J. Sargent

3. On numerous occasions, Satan has attempted to remove the Bible from the face of the earth. Hellish decrees by wicked men have seen the Bible banned, burnt, and banished, then battered by scornful critics. …Down through the centuries God has marvelously and miraculously preserved His Word from destruction.—Robert J. Sargent

B.     The Bible is an Extended Book (Ps. 12:6, 7).

Like the purest silver known the Lord’s words are completely pure and perfectly true. What God says is truly untarnished, fully dependable and utterly reliable. There is no deceit, no flattery, no double meaning, no error in God’s Word. The Bible can be fully trusted.

1. Consider the extent of preservation—“words.”

2. Consider the period of preservation—“for ever.”

3. Consider the Person of preservation—“Thou.”

4. Consider other clear statements of God’s intent to maintain the Bible in perpetuity and purity (Ps. 119:89, 152, 160; 1Pet. 1:23, 25). God’s Word is still His Word when properly copied and translated. This is difficult to grasp, but the Bible teaches it repeatedly. We are always wise to believe God instead of men. (Sargent)

C.     The Bible is an Enduring Book (1Pet. 1:24, 25).

1. God’s Word is imperishable, living, and enduring. His incorruptible Word stands forever. This never dying seed is the message of good news which was preached to sinners and by it we are born again. It is the source of our eternal life.

2. Being born again . . . by the word of God. How tenuous [weak] a matter regeneration seems to the human mind, resting, as it does, only on God’s word. But Peter quotes Isaiah’s grand assertion that this seemingly frail, invisible entity—God’s word—will outlast all natural phenomena (Isa 40:6-8). And this is the word that gives significance to their faith and to themselves. –Pfeiffer, Charles F. : The Wycliffe Bible Commentary

3. I personally use the King James Bible (KJV) because of it's faithful textual origins, the method of its translation, the spiritual devotion and skill of its translators, and 400 years history of divine blessings, revivals, and great awakenings throughout the English speaking world. It is absolutely peerless among modern English translations.

IV.              The Unique Power of the Bible—What can the Bible do for us?

The Bible is not a dusty old book of dead history, useless stories, and exaggerated myths. Instead it is alive with piercing and penetrating power—a truly powerful book (Heb. 4:12).

A.     It is the Medium of Spiritual Life.

1. People are born again through faith in the life giving message of the Gospel (1Pet. 1:23; Js. 1:18; Ps. 19:7). The Spirit uses the seed of the Word to produce the miracle of the new birth.

2.  In James 1:18, “begat” means “to breed forth,” “to be born,” “to generate” (figuratively).

                                                                     i.            “Begat” is used metaphorically to describe the gracious act of God in giving to repentant sinners the nature and disposition of “children” imparting to us spiritual life–a new nature.

                                                                   ii.            See the following verses (John 3:3, 5, 7; 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 5, 18).

3. Our Heavenly Father gave us the New Birth by the “Word of truth”–the Gospel (2 Cor 6:7; Col 1:5; Eph 1:13; 2 Tim 2:15).

                                                                     i.The Gospel is the message marked by truth (1Cor. 15:1-4), the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

                                                                   ii.We hear about the gift of birth through the reading and preaching of the Gospel, and we respond to it in faith. We apply the message to ourselves and our needs. We receive the offered gift. It is God’s gift as he gives it and becomes our gift when we receive it.

B.     It is the Method of Spiritual Cleansing (1Pet. 1:22; 2:1; Ps. 119:9).

1. Christians are cleansed and purified through its teachings by adhering to the Bible (Jn. 15:3; 17:17; Eph. 5:26).

2. The Bible has the power to reveal and point out our sinfulness in thought, motive, and deed. It also directs us to the priesthood of Christ and the cleansing power of His blood for purging and decontamination.

3. By reading and obeying the Scriptures a Christian becomes more Christ-like and daily his life is kept from that which defiles his heart, spirit, mind, body, and soul. But a neglect of the Word on a daily basis permits filth and wickedness to accumulate in the soul and practices. Sin creeps into our habits when we neglect the Word.

C.     It is the Means of Spiritual Growth (1Pet. 2:2; Matt. 4:4).

1. Bible reading, study, and meditation provide food to nourish the soul of the believer. This is essential to real spiritual growth (Ps. 1:1-3; Josh. 1:8).

2. This obligation flows from our new birth. It is to have an insatiable craving for the pure spiritual milk of the word. While sinful practices will stunt spiritual growth; the good Word of God nourishes it.  Both young and old in the faith, are to have a thirst for Scripture likened unto hungry infants who cry for milk at mealtime. Cultivate a healthy appetite for God’s Word. Our desire for the Word should be as strong as a healthy baby who impatiently, aggressively, determinedly sucks and swallows.

3. One solid motivation for studying the Word is to grow up in the Lord. Spiritual maturity should be a priority for every believer in Christ (Eph. 2:21; 4:15; 2Thess. 1:3; 2Pet. 3:18).

D.     It is the Message of Spiritual Men (1Pet. 1:25).

1. The message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (1Cor. 15:1-4; Rom. 1:16; 4:25).

2. The apostles Peter and Paul preached this message to their generation. It was adequate then and it is still sufficient for the need of fallen mankind today.

3. This gospel is to be preached around the world to every creature in our generation also.

V.                 The Spiritual Application of the Bible (2 Tim. 3:16)—How should the Bible fit in my life?

Tens of millions of adults are rediscovering the Bible and are seeking a deeper relationship with God. A recent poll reported in U.S. News & World Report revealed that “more than 80 percent [of Americans], including 71 percent of college graduates, believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God.” In the same poll, 76 percent of the respondents believe that “God is a heavenly father who can be reached by prayers.” He is not merely an “idea” or an “impersonal creator.”

Yet, questions abound concerning the Bible and God, especially in regard to what it means to be a contemporary Christian in a secular society. Does being a Christian mean you should give up your career and become a monk? Should you donate your designer clothing to the poor and replace them with drab rags? If being a Christian means following Jesus, how can you bridge the two-thousand-year gap between His time and ours? What does it mean to be like Jesus today? –Ken Abraham and Dietrich Gruen: Experiencing the Word in Your Life

A.     Scripture is Profitable for Doctrine. That is it tells us what is right (2 Tim. 3:16).

1. Doctrine is what the Word says on any given subject—Bible teachings. Teaching refers to the content of truth. It always flows from and is consistent with Scripture.

2. Since the Bible is “inspired or God-breathed,” we are reminded of its authority. Bible teachings are not like mere human opinions; they are backed with divine authority. Doctrine that contradicts biblical teachings is to be rejected, corrected, or replaced by accurate teaching.

3. Doctrine—What basic truth does God wants me to know and is taught in this passage?

B.     Scripture is Profitable for Reproof. That is it tells us what is wrong (2 Tim. 3:16).

1. Reproof exposes areas in our thinking and behavior that do not line up with the Word.  Reproof is rebuking sin. Yes, God's Word rebukes and reproves our sinfulness. 

2. The initial impact of true doctrine involves the confrontation of false teaching and understanding. The offensiveness of some who teach biblical truth may have to be excused, but the offensiveness of biblical truth to error and evil requires no apology.

3. Reproof—What error in judgment, understanding, or behavior might this passage be reproving in my life?

C.     Scripture is Profitable for Correction. That is it tells us how to make it right (2 Tim. 3:16).

1. Correction is taking the necessary steps to correct whatever is wrong. It includes confessing and forsaking the wrong. Correction helps us straighten out errors.

2. In the area of correction, the Scriptures have two roles: (1) they provide a complete presentation of the teaching, where only part of the truth has been present; and (2) they provide for a right understanding and application where true doctrine may have been taught but has not taken effect.

3. Correction—How might this passage correct, balance, or direct me?

D.     Scripture is Profitable for Instruction. That is it tells us how to keep it right (2 Tim. 3:16).

1. Instruction in Righteousness is using the Bible as a handbook for living. It shows us how God intended for us to live righteously. Training in righteous living shows us how to please and glorify God. (MacDonald)

2. The ideal setting for doctrine includes the kind of preparation that minimizes the need for later reproof and correction. The nature of Scripture allows us to teach it confidently to our children and to learn from it ourselves.

3. Instruction (Training)—What does this passage present to prepare me for some future spiritual challenge?

Conclusion:

Knowing these truths about the Bible, how then should we respond to it? What Scripture says, God says; for, in a manner comparable only to the deeper mystery of the Incarnation, the Bible is both fully human and fully divine. So all its manifold contents—histories, prophecies, poems, songs, wisdom writings, sermons, statistics, letters, and whatever else—should be received as from God, and all that Bible writers teach should be revered as God’s authoritative instruction. Christians should be grateful to God for the gift of his written Word, and conscientious in basing their faith and life entirely and exclusively upon it. Otherwise, we cannot ever honor or please him as he calls us to do. –Packer, J. I.: Concise Theology