Rightly Dividing the Word of God (Part 1)
Many
people exclaim, “Read the Bible? Study the Bible? Believe the Bible? You’ve got
to be kidding!” Here is why you must get into your Bible.
If
we think something to be true, does that make it the truth? This is not an easy
question for human beings to answer. Man’s history abounds with examples of
people believing error even when the facts prove otherwise. For example, for
centuries, people believed the Earth was flat. The Earth has always been a
sphere of course, yet those who knew and proclaimed that truth were ostracized,
persecuted, imprisoned and even executed. Today, to believe the Earth is flat
would seem ridiculous.
Beliefs
about heaven are another example. Recently, abc News featured a two-hour
Barbara Walters special titled Heaven—Where Is It? How Do We Get There?
Advertisements for the special said it was the hot topic in America. A recent
abc News poll showed that 9 out of 10 Americans believe in heaven. For two
hours, people from different religious, social and cultural backgrounds gave
their views of heaven. Walters even questioned the Dalai Lama about the
Buddhist perspective. It was crystal clear that not everyone agreed on what
heaven is or how to get there. Yet, each individual questioned believed his or
her view was the truth!
An
atheist claiming heaven is a myth stated: “Heaven doesn’t exist, hell doesn’t
exist.” A Muslim said, “We are told we will be in comfortable homes, reclining
on silk couches … so we’re given the delights of sex, the delights of wine, the
delights of food with all their positive things without their negative
aspects.” An actor claiming to be Buddhist said, “I don’t think necessarily
heaven and hell happen in some other life. I think it’s right now.” A
well-known “Christian” minister, claiming to speak from the Bible, described
heaven as “a place where you can eat all that you want and not get fat.” The
program showed how confused most humans—including Bible-believing
Christians—are about the afterlife.
Think
on this. Not every person interviewed could be right! Who had the truth? When
disagreements arise, on whatever topic, how do we determine who is right and
who is wrong?
Cause of Spiritual Error
Why
are human beings confused about the most serious spiritual questions? Jesus
Christ stated clearly that the cause of spiritual misunderstanding is the lack
of scriptural knowledge and belief in an all-powerful God.
In
Christ’s day, the Sadducees taught there is no resurrection. Christ disagreed.
When questioned on the subject, He taught them, “Ye do err, not knowing the
scriptures, nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29). Our time is no different.
Most don’t know the Scriptures or God. Be honest. How many people actually read
the Bible? Who thoroughly study the Bible? Who actually believes what they read
and study? These are fair questions. Realize, the Sadducees were sincere
religious people who did not believe what they read. They did not know God or
His purpose for man.
The
Bible is the only source of spiritual truth for all mankind. Although most
people will not accept that statement—it is the truth! The Bible gives
easy-to-understand answers to life’s most important questions. In fact, the
Bible gives the real answer about heaven. Surprisingly, the answer is not what
most people—even professing Christian ministers—think. Even though humans want
to go to heaven, the Bible shows that God wants to move to this Earth
(Revelation 21:1-3). The majority of biblical doctrines are quite different
from what people actually believe and do. This is the very reason most people
reject the Bible. For example, the Bible does not sanction observing Sunday,
Christmas and Easter. The word trinity does not appear in the Bible.
The
problem with humanity is we want to believe what we think—to create our own
truth. The Bible challenges our thinking and quashes our cherished beliefs.
When
praying the night before His execution, Jesus Christ said, “Thy word is truth”
(John 17:17). Only God’s Word is the truth. Jesus Christ allowed for no other.
We are not saying that the Bible contains all truth. It provides the primary
foundation for the production of all knowledge. When we want truthful answers
to vital spiritual questions—like, What is God? What is man? Why is man? Where
is man going? Why is there evil? Why is there human suffering?—we must turn to
the Bible, not to what men think. see Part 2
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