What Sets Apart the Bible? - 2 Timothy 3:14-17

Faith Fellowship Boca · What Sets Apart the Bible? - 2 Timothy 3:14-17

I.  The Uniqueness of the Bible as Literature

 

A.  The Bible is Unique in its Authorship.

 

**  The Bible was written by more than 35 authors.

 

B.  The Bible is Unique in its Chronology.

 

**  The writing of the Bible spanned 40 generations over more than 1500 years.

 

C.  The Bible is Unique in its Verifiability.

 

**  There are more than 10,000 manuscripts verifying the consistency of the Bible.

 

Note:  The next closest work is Homer’s, Iliad, with only 643 manuscripts.

 

D.  The Bible is Unique in its Purpose.

 

**  The Bible is the story of God’s redemptive work throughout human history.

 

Note: That’s why some things are left out.  For example: Dinosaurs.

 

 

II.  The Uniqueness of the Bible as Holy

 

Intent #1 - God uses the Bible as a guidebook to salvation.

 

2 Timothy 3:15 – “…from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”

 

Intent #2 -  God endows the Bible with a distinctive nature.

 

2 Timothy 3:16 – “All scripture is inspired by God…”

 

** 4 Views of “Inspiration”

 

1.     Limited or Natural: The Liberal View 

 

** The “ideas” of the Bible are from God but not the words.  

 

2.     Transcendence: The Neo-Orthodox View 

 

** There is nothing inherently unique about the words of the Bible, but the are inspired by God “sometimes” to meet circumstantial needs.

 

3.     Dictation: The Fundamentalist View 

 

** God literally told the writers each word to write. Authors were transcribers who wrote each word as God dictated.

 

4.     Plenary (sometimes called, Verbal Inspiration): The Evangelical View 

 

 ** Every word (not just the ideas) is God’s Word, though written with the personality within the context of the writer. 

 

2 Peter 1:21 – “For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

 

Norman Geisler and Ron Brooks, When Skeptics Ask – “The human writer is seen as one who has received a revelation and actively participates in its writing, while God gives the revelation and oversees the writing.”  

 

Intent #3 -  God designed the Bible to be transformative. 

 

2 Timothy 3:16 – “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful…”

 

Point:  The Bible is practical only WHEN  we embrace and employ it.

 

 

III.  The Uniqueness of the Bible for You 

 

When We Engage the Bible…

 

Application #1 –We learn directly from God.

 

2 Timothy 3:16 – “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching…”

 

Application #2 –  We learn to live righteously for God.

 

2 Timothy 3:16 – “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction…”

 

Application #3 -  We become better prepared for life’s challenges.

 

2 Timothy 3:16 – “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness…”

 

Application #4 – We are adept at fulfilling God’s purposes.

 

2 Timothy 3:17 – “so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”

 

The Transfiguration Message

Faith Fellowship Boca · The Transfiguration Message - Luke 9:22-36

 Luke 9:22-36

Note: The disciples mistook their Ecstatic Experience as God’s Message.

 

The Implicit (Hidden) Message of the Transfiguration

 

vs. 30-31 – “Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.”

 

“Departure” = Exodus ...which taught the Israelites life Lessons on: 

 

·      Release from oppression

·      God will provide, sometimes miraculously

·      Following and Trusting God’s guidance.

·      Seeking God’s promised destiny

 

** For Jesus, this meant a journey - 

 

...in the wilderness – the darkness and confusion of  experiencing Sin for the first time.

 

...of trusting the Father’s guidance and will.

 

...that fulfilled God’s ultimate destiny of Eternal Life

 

The Explicit (Obvious) Message of the Transfiguration

 

Message 1 – Jesus will Suffer.

 

v. 22 - Jesus said, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.”

 

Question: How do we know that the disciples missed this? 

 

Answer: Because there was no sorrow.

 

Message 2 – Daily “Cross Bearing” is not an Option.

 

v. 23 - “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. ²⁴ For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.

 

** Daily Cross bearing means:

 

1.     Absolute submission to God’s Will (i.e.: Deny yourself)

2.     Absolute obedience to God’s Teachings

 

Pastor Tony Evans - “Our identity is to be rooted in the Imago Dei, in the image of God. But we’ve gotten so ingrained in the thinking of the culture, that we wind up being parakeets to what the society is saying, rather than taking a solid, loving but clear stance on what God is saying.”

 

Message 3 – Listen to Jesus.

 

vs. 34-35 – “While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ³⁵ A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.”

 

Note: There is a difference between hearing and listening.

 

Question: How do we know that the disciples weren’t listening? 

 

Answer: Because the Father had to interrupt Peter mid-sentence.

 

 

 

Point: 

 

The Disciples were getting caught up in the experience.

 

They started to react by building...but God said, 

“Slow down and LISTEN... 

 

don’t DO right now...just LISTEN.”

 

 

 

 

What about Miracles? - John 14:10-14

Faith Fellowship Boca · What about Miracles? - John 14:10-14

I.  Explanations for the “Miraculous”

 

A.  A “Scientific” Explanation

 

“Miracle” = Extraordinary work of Natural Law.

 

Michael Ruse, Darwinism Defended, “Miracles live outside of Science, which by definition deals with the natural, the repeatable, that which is grounded by law.”

 

Christian Response:  Miracles are not a violation of the Laws of Nature, they are God working within these Laws.

 

B.  A “Mythological” Explanation

 

“Miracle” = Legend.

 

Rudolf Bultmann, Kerygma and Myth – Given our scientific advancements it is “no longer possible for anyone seriously to hold to the New Testament view.”

 

August Reinhold – “We only describe an apparent miracle as ‘miraculous’ due to our own misunderstanding of the laws of nature.” 

 

Christian Response:  The rational mind is limited in its ability to explain the extraordinary power and person of God.

 

C.  A “Pantheistic” Explanation

 

“Miracle” = a Manipulation of the Universe

 

Illustration: The “Force” in Star Wars

 

David Spangler, Reflection on the Christ – “Christ is the same force as Lucifer but moving in seemingly the opposite direction.”

 

Christian Response:  If miracles are simply human manipulation, there would be more miracles.

 

D. A “Metaphysical” Explanation

 

“Miracle” = Something we cannot explain it through reason.

 

Immanuel Kant – “All our knowledge begins with the senses, proceeds then to the understanding, and ends with reason. There is nothing higher than reason. Nothing is divine but what is agreeable to reason.”

 

Unknown: “Metaphysics is not religion because religion involves act of faith, faith guiding reason. In case of metaphysics, it limits its certitude on reason alone.”

 

Christian Response: Our ability to reason is limited. Therefore, we cannot explain things though we can verifythem.

 

E.  A “Biblical” Explanation

 

“Miracles” = God’s supernatural interventions.

 

Gary Habermas, In Defense of Miracles – Miracles are a “testimony to the compassion of God for human beings benighted by sin and circumstances.”

 

Note:  If God does not exist, miracles cannot be real.

 

Point:  Miracles confirm God’s continued presence in the world and in your life.

 

John 14:11 – Jesus said, “Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.” 

 

 

II.   Why You Can Believe that God does Miracles

 

1.  God wants the best for you.

 

John 10:10 – Jesus said, “My purpose is to give life in all its fullness.”

 

Point:  When you truly need a miracle, God will provide it.

 

2. Miracles attract us to God.  

 

Miracles drive us to consider: “WHY did that happen?” ...as much as “How did that happen?”

 

The Answer: Why?  God was pleased to bless his own.

 

Philippians 2:13 – “For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him.”  (NLT)

 

3. Miracles build faith.  

 

John 14:12 – “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.”

 

2 Corinthians 9:8 – “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”

 

Point:  Faith frees us to not only ask for a miracle, but to trust God’s response.

 

Raises the Question: Is it only “miraculous” when God does the extraordinary... or is the natural course also part of his intervention?

 

4.  God is generous with his Beloved.

 

Augustine – “God is always trying to give good things to us, but our hands are too full to receive them.”

 

John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

 

John 14:13-14 – “I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. ¹⁴ You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”

 

Ephesians 3:20 – “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think,  according to the power at work within us...”  (ESV)

 

Point: Miracles are God’s unexpected gifts for his family.

Is Jesus the Only Way to Salvation? - John 14:1-10

Faith Fellowship Boca · Is Jesus the Only Way of Salvation?

I.  How are we Saved?

Approach #1 (World) – God will accept any honest attempt.

   

Rabbi Schmeley Boteach – “I am absolutely against any religion that says one faith is superior to another.  I don’t see how that is anything different than spiritual racism.”

 

 Approach #2 (Bible) – God has his prescribed way.

  

John 14:6  -  Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

 

 

** In this Proclamation, Jesus is:

1. Limiting our options.

 

See:     Parable of the Sheep and Goats (Matthew 25:32-46)

            Parable of the Wheat and Tares (Matthew 13:18-30)

 

Key Teaching –  “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed.”  (Matthew 25:41, NIV)

 

2.  Revealing the option that God ordained.

 

Deuteronomy 5:32 – “You must therefore be careful to do as the LORD your God has commanded you; you shall not turn to the right or to the left.”

 

Isaiah 30:21 – “And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’”

 

John 14:9 - Jesus said to Philip, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.

 

 

 

II. When did God Decide the Plan of Salvation?

 

Option 1: Arminianism (i.e.: IN RESPONSE to the Fall/Lapse)

 

Order of Incidents:  God Creates, God has foreknowledge of the Fall, Decree to Provide a Savior, Decree to provide a means for repentance and belief, Foreknowledge of those who will repent and believe, Decree to save those who repent and believe.

 

Note: Arminianism removes the emphasis of salvation away from God’s sovereign will and onto the will of a person.  In short, salvation is dependent on human will more than God’s will.  Christ’s death did not accomplish anyone’s redemption but merely made salvation available for all.

 

Option 2: Infralapsarianism (i.e.: AFTER the Fall/Lapse)

 

Order of Decisions by God:  Creation, Mankind has Freedom to Sin, Who will God save 

(predestination), Provide a Savior 

 

Note: Infralapsarianism focuses on God allowing the fall and providing salvation through election.

 

Option 3: Supralapsarianism (i.e.: BEFORE the Fall/Lapse)

 

Order of Decisions by God:  The Election of the Chosen, Creation, Mankind has Freedom to Sin, Provision for Salvation through Jesus Christ

 

Note: Supralapsarianism focuses on God ordaining the fall as a means of salvation that was predetermined before creation. 

 

** Which is True?  No one knows.

 

 

III.  In coming to earth, Jesus revealed God’s…

 

…Way

 

Acts 4:12 – “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”  

 

Application: Jesus does more than tell us about the way to God, he leads us along the path.

 

…Truth

 

Psalm 86:11 – “Teach me your way, O Lord, that I might walk in your truth.”

 

Application:  Jesus does more than teach us truth, he is the truth of God.

 

…Life

 

Romans 10:13 – “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  

 

Application:  Jesus offers us what he IS himself…a life that is NOT in bondage to death.

"How Do We Know God Exists?" - Romans 1:16-25

Faith Fellowship Boca · How Do We Know God Exists? - Romans 1:16-25

 

 

“God is not discoverable or demonstrable by purely scientific means, 

unfortunately for the scientifically minded.  But that really proves nothing. 

It simply means that the wrong instruments are being used for the job.”

 

J.B. Phillips (For This Day)

 

 

Philosophical Proofs of the Existence of God

 

Proof #1 –  Causation.

 

Thesis: Everything that has a beginning needs a cause.

 

“Anti-Proof” Refutation:  The Earth is eternal.

 

Carl Sagan (Cosmos) – “The cosmos is all that is, or ever was, or ever will be.”

 

“Anti-Proof” Refutation #2:  The Big Bang Theory

 

**  The logical question, “Where did all the matter that created the Big Bang originate?”

 

Proof #2 –  Complexity: The “Design” or “Teleological”  Argument

 

Thesis:  Complex designs in the universe must have had a designer.

 

Proof #3 – Conscience:  The “Universal Moral  Law” Argument

 

Thesis:  Every culture has an innate, common sense of right and wrong.

 

St. Augustine’s Explanation – All of humanity was made in the Image of God.  

 

Proof #4 – The Christological Proof.

 

See: John 14:7 

 

Point:  In Jesus, we have living proof of the existence of God.

II.  The Bible and the Existence of God

 

Truth #1 –  None of us can plead ignorance.

 

Romans 1:20 – “Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. So they are without excuse.”  

 

Question:  Since we all “know” God exists…what are we doing in response to that “knowledge”?

 

Truth #2 – God will not force anyone to believe in him…he only invites us.

 

Romans 1:24 – “Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity.”  

 

Joshua 24:14-15 - “So honor the Lord and serve him wholeheartedly. Put away forever the idols your ancestors worshiped. Serve the Lord alone.  But if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve.  But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”

 

Application:  We have more than enough “evidence”  to choose to believe.

 

Truth #3 – God wants you to enjoy him.  

 

Romans 1:22-23 – “Claiming to be wise, they became fools; and they exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling a mortal human being or birds or four-footed animals or reptiles.”  

 

**  “Glory” = the unmistakable charisma/aura of God

 

Question:  Is that which you enjoy most in life able to prepare you for eternity?

 

Truth #4 – To know God is to revere him.

 

Romans 1:17 – “For in it [the Gospel of Jesus Christ] the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, ‘The one who is righteous will live by faith.’”  

 

Luke 14:11 – Jesus said, “For the proud will be humbled, but the humble will be honored.”  (NLT)

 

1 Peter 5:6 – “So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in his good time he will honor you.”  (NLT)