THE SPIRITUAL BATTLE – 40 God's Word – The BIBLE – Is Still Under Attack

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). KJV

Loved ones, Satan hates the Godhead, yet he cannot influence them. The devil has therefore launched a subtle all out Spiritual Battle against God’s human creation; i.e., flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12; 1 John 5:19).

We praise God that as we stand strong in Jesus, He has given His Spiritual armor and SWORD, to encourage, defend, and protect His church (Ephesians 6:10-17).

Brief Bible History

The Bible overflows with statements of faith, reverence, and thanksgiving from the lips of men of God throughout both the Old and New Testaments as they spoke regarding God's written Word, the inspired Word that we still have today, the Bible (cf. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14).

The Bible is the result of the direction (inspiration) given to about 40 different writers, spanning approximately 1600 years. God, through the Holy Spirit, breathed into the minds of these writers exactly what He wanted written in His Word.

Testimony Of A Few

Like all other writers of the Bible, the apostle Paul wrote and spoke as he was guided by the Holy Spirit, including his words in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, where he affirmed, "16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works" (cf. Ephesians 3:5).

Peter concurred totally, writing in 2 Peter 1:20-21, “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.”

More than any other writer, King David wrote again and again of his gratitude for God's Word and of his desire to let that Word guide him through life.

Looking only at Psalm 119, let's notice just a few of David's remarks:

"Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee" (v. 11).

"Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law" (v. 18).

"O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day" (v. 97).

“103 How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! 104 Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. 105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (vs. 103-105).

“161 Princes have persecuted me without a cause: but my heart standeth in awe of thy word. 162 I rejoice at thy word, as one that findeth great spoil. 163 I hate and abhor lying: but thy law do I love” (vs. 161-163).

David believed what he heard from God and what he read in the Scriptures. He expressed total confidence that it all came directly from the mind of God, without any changes or errors.

A Departure Foretold (Read 1 Timothy 4:1-6)

How sad it is that, with the passing of time, more and more people, even some who are religious leaders and regarded by many as fervent and faithful spokesmen for God have concluded that the Bible is not actually inspired, is not always reliable, and is not to be regarded as being a completely safe guide for man.

Such thinking is obviously in direct conflict with such inspired passages as Paul's words in 1 Thessalonians 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.”

Christians need to be aware of such heartbreaking information as we are about to share with you. A retired professor of religious studies at one of the “Christian” universities in the central United States has recently written a book in which he makes statements that are clearly contradictory to what the Bible says.

For example, he asserts that all we know about Jesus is what the men who wrote about Him thought about Him. He contends, "Everything in the early Christian gospels is either derived from historical memory, or is borrowed or invented."

This uninspired man then affirms, "In short, everything about Jesus in the gospels is at best hearsay." He further argues that even those sayings of Jesus that are more accepted by historians as being actually sayings of Jesus can only be regarded as historically probable rather than historically certain.

This man goes so far as to brazenly state that the Gospels which were written several years after the lifetime of Jesus "are seriously flawed as history, meaning they are not reporting what happened in an unbiased way."

Let us share this one additional quotation from this man's own pen as he spoke of Jesus: "He did not leave behind a code of conduct to be followed and simply omitted any practical guidance as to how his challenging ideas should be incorporated into daily life."

Perhaps you are by now asking yourself, "How could any highly educated professor who is supposed to be a Bible scholar possibly make such derogatory statements about the Bible, as well as about the very Son of God?"

He claims that some parts of the Word of God are more reliable or more acceptable than others. Why would a person want any part of the Bible if he believes that some parts of it are false and cannot be trusted?

Questions

This brings us to some questions that those who claim to be Christians need to ask themselves. Do you believe the Bible is what it claims to be, the inspired and infallible word of God? Do you believe that parts of it are true and accurate, but that other parts are possibly, or even probably, untrustworthy? These questions are very important.

Some leaders, even in the churches of Christ (Romans 16:16), fine very little fault, if any, with the above professor's thinking. The prevailing convictions and practices can and do change overtime. This is not a new development – it has been occurring through the centuries since Christ brought His church into existence (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2).

Several years ago, a gospel preacher was visiting a “Christian” school. He asked the librarian, “Do your faculty members subscribe to a doctrinal policy regarding the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible?” The response was in the form of a shout, “NO! There are things in the Bible that are not as true as things you read in a Sears, Roebuck catalog.”

Dear friend, is this not the same basic philosophy and attitude as that of the professor mentioned above? It would be wise for all of us to give heed to John's admonition in 1 John 4:1: “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” The basis for our testing of the spirits (teachers) must be the inspired and trustworthy true Word of God (John 17:17).

Shared with you by Samuel A. Matthews, preaching with the Liberty NW church of Christ, meeting in Portland, Oregon, USA. The God of Heaven and Earth is so good, and His love reaches all. He is in control, so trust Him. We love you with the love of the Lord (John 13:34-35).