HOLDING ON TO TRUTH - WHAT IS THE BIBLE?

Sep 18

We trust today’s message encouraged and guided you in your journey of following Jesus. These notes are meant to help you remember and reflect on the message, help you go deeper into study on the subject, or be used for a sermon group discussion. CLICK HERE to find a discussion group. Enjoy!

Sermon Title: What Is The Bible?

Main Scripture: Psalm 19:1-14; 2 Tim. 3:16-17

If you’re going through this discussion with a community group this week consider taking the time to read the provided scripture to catch everyone up!

Summary:

What is the Bible? The answer to that question seems pretty simple, but maybe we overlook just how grand and important the Bible is for everyday life. Pastor Ryan gave us a little taste of theology by showing us that through the pages of the Bible we see affirmations of God’s general revelation (creation) and God’s special revelation (Scripture and Jesus). The Bible is God’s way of revealing Himself, His truth, His ways and His purposes for all of creation. We learned that the Bible was written by 40 different writers but ultimately God was the author inspiring and guiding through the Holy Spirit what has been recorded. Pastor Ryan said this is why we believe the Bible to be inerrant and infallible, without and incapable of error. God is truth and God does not lie and scripture claims that God inspired all scripture for our teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness. Pastor Ryan ended the message by showing us that the Bible is the framework and lenses by which we see the world, which is also called a Biblical worldview. Calvary Church has and always will hold and teach from a Biblical Worldview.

Notes:

I wear glasses or corrective lenses because I am unable to see objects clearly from far away. You are blurry but there is no definition. My view of this world would be blurry and distorted if I did not have my glasses. I would probably guess wrong when picking a person out of a crowd or I would cause car accidents and potentially hurt myself or someone else if I did not wear my glasses. So I am extremely grateful for the invention of eyeglasses because they allow me to see life in a clearer way. The Bible serves us in a similar way. The Bible helps us see and know God. The Bible helps us know our purpose and place in this world. My eyes are hindered by imperfections inherited from genetics. Humanity has been hindered by sin. We are unable to clearly know God, love God, find salvation, and live a holy life without the revelation of God’s Word. Much like my corrective lenses, the Bible is God's revelation on what is truth, correcting our assumptions, teaching our beliefs, and consequently showing us how to live.

We’re going to see today that The Bible is God’s chosen instrument to reveal Himself, today. The Bible is also the framework and lens that forms our Biblical worldview.

Psalm 19:1-14 NLT

This psalm displays God’s general revelation and His special revelation, which prompts David’s (and our) self-examination.

V.1-6 God’s nature and might are evident in all of His creation. Scripture affirms God as the creator. Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning, God created…”
V. 7-11 God’s Word revives the soul, trustworthy and a great reward for those who obey them.
V. 12-14 V. 12-14 God’s revelation of himself invokes a beautiful and pure response, a desire to be in a holy and pleasing relationship with God.

General Revelation:

All of creation

Did you see the harvest moon a little over a week ago? It was stunning.
Romans 1:20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

Morals/Our innate ability to know right and wrong.

Romans 2:14 Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. 15 They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. 16 And this is the message I proclaim—that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone’s secret life.

The Bible affirms what we see in God’s general revelation.

Special Revelation: The written Word and the living Word, Jesus

The Bible is the infallible and authoritative Word of God.

2 Tim 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
“When Paul speaks of all scripture, he is definitely referring to the complete OT, but also to those portions of the NT that were then in existence. In 1 Tim. 5:18, he quotes the Gospel of Luke (10:7) as Scripture. And Peter speaks of Paul’s Epistles as Scriptures (2 Peter 3:16). Today we are justified in applying this verse to the entire Bible.” -William MacDonald
The scriptures originated from God, not from man. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, God directed the writers on what to write, still leaving their unique personalities and styles of writing (1 Cor. 2:13; 2 Pet. 1:20-21).
We believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God which means without error. We believe the Bible is the infallible Word of God which means it is incapable of error so it's reliable and trustworthy. (It’s important to note that infallibility is applied only to the original manuscripts, the parchments upon which the Old and New Testament authors wrote their messages. What we have today are copies of copies, therefore, it is possible that errors in transmission have crept into the text. But these errors are minor spelling or grammar, not the distortion of core doctrine and beliefs found in scripture.)
Together both ideas express that all Scripture comes to us as the very words of God, who is truth and does not lie. Therefore, scripture is reliable, true, and free of error.
The Bible is like no other book because it is the authoritative Word of God. The Bible is full of God's wisdom, knowledge, and power.
The Unity of Scripture. God is the divine author of all scripture. This is why critics of the Bible find stunning unity throughout the whole Bible. The Bible is a collection of 66 books, written over the span of 1500+ years, on 3 different continents in 3 languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek) by 40 different authors from different backgrounds such as Shepherds, kings, scholars, fishermen, prophets, a military general, a cupbearer, doctor, and a priest. These writers penned narratives, history, laws, poetry, prophecy, proverbs, and circular letters while in palaces, prisons, the wilderness, and places of exile. Meanwhile, they all have stunning harmony and unity in recorded events and one message: the message of God’s redemptive for all creation.

The Living Word - Jesus

John 1:14 So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.
Hebrews 1:1-3 Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. 2 And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son, he created the universe. 3 The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God…
I was thinking about how those who live in the city don’t see much of God’s handiwork in the sky. It made me think about how we can be so engulfed by the world that we don’t see God as we should or as easily as we could. Just because we don’t see the stars doesn’t mean they don’t exist. Sometimes you just need to get away from all the worldly lights to see God’s light. God chose to come close to us so we can see Him in this world through the life and light of Jesus Christ.

The Bible is the frame and lens for our Biblical Worldview

A worldview is the set of beliefs about fundamental aspects of Reality that ground and influence all one's perceiving, thinking, knowing, and doing. - Oregon State University
A Biblical Worldview is an overarching view of the world based on God’s revealed truth, The Bible, which directs our life in this world. A Biblical worldview shapes our beliefs about God, Creation, Humanity, Moral order, and purpose. - Biblical Worldview Institute
In a nutshell: The Bible is our trusted and reliable framework by which we view God, ourselves, our world, and how we ought to live in it.

Biblical Worldview Statistics (Show Chart)

By Dr. Tracy F. Munsil, Executive Director | May 12, 2022, |CRC, American Worldview Inventory 2022 From the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University

A new nationwide survey of America’s Christian pastors shows that a majority of pastors lack a biblical worldview. In fact, just slightly more than a third (37%) possess a biblical worldview and the majority—62%—hold a hybrid worldview known as Syncretism.
Syncretism. The latest report from the AWVI 2022 found that the prevailing worldview among pastors is best described as Syncretism, the blending of ideas and applications from a variety of holistic worldviews into a unique but inconsistent combination that represents their personal preferences.
More than six of every 10 pastors (62%) hold a syncretistic worldview. This trend is also being seen more widely in American culture, with almost nine out of 10 U.S. adults (88%) embracing Syncretism as their primary worldview, according to a report from last year’s study of competing worldviews in the American Worldview Inventory 2021.
The survey’s findings were based on 54 questions in eight categories related to a biblical worldview. Within those eight categories, the only one where a majority of pastors affirm a biblical worldview is related to the purpose and calling of life (57 percent). A minority of pastors hold a biblical worldview in the other seven categories: family and the value of life (47 percent); God, creation and history (44 percent); personal faith practices (43 percent); sin, salvation and one’s relationship to God (43 percent); human character and human nature (40 percent); lifestyle, personal behavior and relationships (40 percent); and beliefs and behaviors related to the Bible, truth and morality.
A big concern for next-gen: “A person’s worldview primarily develops before the age of 13, then goes through a period of refinement during their teens and twenties. Therefore, from a worldview development perspective, a church’s most important ministers are the Children’s Pastor and the Youth Pastor,” Barna said.

As veteran researcher and CRC Director of Research George Barna explains, “It’s just further evidence that the culture is influencing the American church much more than Christian churches are influencing the culture.”

Close

Psalms 12:1 NLT Help, O Lord, for the godly are fast disappearing! The faithful have vanished from the earth!
Psalm 19 reveals that David held a Biblical worldview. David believed God was the creator of the universe. David believed and trusted God’s Word as truth, therefore, experiencing the joy and reward of obeying God’s Word. David lived his life according to the scriptures, prompting him to live a holy and faithful life to God inwardly and outwardly.

Without God’s Word, we would be lost. We wouldn’t know about God, Jesus, salvation, our identity, and our purpose in this life. When I thought about it more this week it made me appreciate even more that God chose to reveal Himself not only through creation but through His Son and the Holy Scriptures. Praise the Lord.

Today, 176 million Americans claim to be Christians—69% of the population. Yet, only 6% of U.S. adults—which is 9% of those identifying as Christians—possess a biblical worldview, believing the Bible to be accurate and reliable, among other convictions.

https://julieroys.com/george-barna-survey-biblical-worldview/

Discussion:

What was a big takeaway for you from this sermon?
What stuck out to you from Psalm 19?
What is general revelation and what are the two forms of special revelation?
What are some Biblical worldviews that are traditionally and historically foundational for Christians but are now being questioned?
How do we live and apply this message to our lives?

The most important decision you will ever make!

Are you ready to experience salvation and be transformed? We encourage you to process this decision with a strong believer and when you’re ready say a simple prayer like this from your heart: Dear God, I acknowledge and admit I have sinned. I see my need for Jesus Christ. I believe in Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I believe I am forgiven and cleansed of my sin by His death. I also believe I have eternal life because of His resurrection from the dead. I repent, I turn away from my old ways and I choose to live my life to worship you and follow Jesus, amen!

We would love to know if you made the decision to accept this wonderful gift from God. Let us know here.

Pray Together

We hoped you found this AFTER THE SERMON discussion helpful for your walk with Jesus. We pray you can find ways to apply it this week!

Ryan Coon