THUS SAITH THE LORD!

Has God spoken to us in His written Word? We trust that He has! Nearly everything we do is built on trust. When we eat we trust that we will not be poisoned by the cook. When we go for a walk we trust that other walkers will not bump us out of their way. When someone tells us something we trust that they are telling us the truth. In fact, there is hardly anything we do in our everyday lives that does not involve trust. While we generally trust those we have come to know, we readily trust some people whom we do not know if they are people possessing appropriate authority such as a policeman, or a medical doctor or an airline pilot. The right authority invites and engenders trust. Christians trust the Bible because it derives from the highest authority – >God. In fact, Christians have good reasons for believing that the Bible is divinely inspired and the only infallible and authoritative written Word of God. The Bible is not the only ‘book’ that God has given mankind. Christians believe that God has given two ‘books’ to mankind – the written, authoritative Word of God, and the ‘book of nature’ – and that by either a person may come to know the Creator. But Article 2 of the Belgic Confession (originally written in 1559) states why it is only the Bible which is authoritative:

We know him by two means: first, by the creation, preservation and government of the universe; which is before our eyes as a most elegant book, wherein all creatures, great and small, are as so many characters leading us to contemplate the invisible things of God, namely, His power and divinity, as the apostle Paul saith, Romans 1:20. All which things are sufficient to convince men, and leave them without excuse. Secondly, He makes Himself more clearly and fully known to us by His holy and divine Word, that is to say, as far as is necessary for us to know in this life, to His glory and our salvation.

 

HOW THE BIBLE WAS COMPOSED

Christians believe that the Bible was composed as a result of God superintending certain people, whom He at times: (i) commanded to write His words (Exod. 17:14); or (ii) directed them to record certain historic accounts from their perspective (Num. 33:2); or (iii) guided them to record their prayers and devotional reflections (eg. Psalm 48); or (iv) had them document their verbalised worship of God which could be sung by others (eg. Ps. 9:2); or (v) write letters to address errors and wrong practices among certain believers (eg. Paul’s epistles to churches); or, (vi) write down certain visions they may have received from the Lord (eg. Daniel 10:8ff; Rev. 1:11ff). God also used editors and compilers to produce and preserve parts of His Word (eg. First and Second Kings). For example, king Hezekiah’s scribes had access to some of king Solomon’s proverbs which they compiled together. “These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied” (Prov. 25:1). It also believed that the five books comprising the Psalms, which originated after the Jews return from their exile, was compiled by Ezra who contributed two of the one hundred fifty psalms (Psalm 1 and 119).

 

HOW THE BIBLE WAS DIVINELY INSPIRED

The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy is a written statement of belief formulated by more than 200 evangelical leaders at a conference convened by the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy and held in Chicago in October 1978. These theologians and church leaders formulated a statement of 19 declarations. 

“Holy Scripture, being God’s own Word, written by men prepared and superintended by His Spirit,
is of infallible divine authority in all matters upon which it touches: it is to be believed,
as God’s instruction, in all that it affirms, obeyed, as God’s command, in all that it requires;
embraced, as God’s pledge, in all that it promises”
(The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, Shorter Statement Article 2).

The Bible was composed by God’s superintending of its composition. Having noted that this included God directly revealing His Word to some whom He then commanded to write it down (eg. Rev. 1:11; 14:13; 19:9), we also noted that God directed, led, guided, and moved (2 Pet. 1:21) certain others to write His Word to mankind. This was done by His Holy Spirit “breathing” upon these writers. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17). It therefore appears that some of those used by God to write His Word were aware that this would be result. “The vision of the evenings and the mornings that has been told is true, but seal up the vision, for it refers to many days from now…But you, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase” (Dan. 8:26; 12:4). While others may not have been aware of this. “To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her” (1 Cor. 7:12).

The mystery of how God inspired His Word extends to biblical writers sharing their lack of knowledge of certain events and the Holy Spirit ensuring that this inability to recall was recorded accurately and honestly. For example, “(I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else)” (1 Cor. 1:16). At other times, it is even the same author who is not aware that they are writing what the Spirit has said, but what they are writing comes from the omniscient mind of God! “Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth” (1 Tim. 4:1-3).

 

HOW THE BIBLE IS INFALLIBLE

Christians do not consider that the Bible was divinely mechanically dictated to its writers (unlike Muslims who claim this about their Qur’an). Rather, the Bible’s intended meaning was divinely inspired and infallible (incapable of being wrong) in a way that it is not entirely dependent upon a precise series of words. This feature of the Bible’s divine inspiration has enabled it to be translated into any language from its original source languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek). Translators strive for precision in what the original autographs resembled by doing textual criticism (comparing all the known ancient manuscripts of the Biblical documents to ascertain where scribes and copyists had made errors) and incorporating any new discoveries of more ancient and reliable manuscripts.

Being wholly and verbally God-given, Scripture is without error or fault in all its teaching,
no less in what it states about God’s acts in creation, about the events of world history,
and about its own literary origins under God, than in its witness to God’s saving grace in individual lives.
(The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, Shorter Statement, Article 4)

As our scientific knowledge of the natural world increases, and confirmation of historic events described in the Bible based on archaeological discoveries including discoveries of ancient near eastern (ANE) writings (sometimes recorded on earthenware pottery and tablets) have silenced the criticisms of the Bible’s reliability from yesteryear. For example, the Bible’s scientific claims – such as the creation of the world out of nothing, now referred to scientifically as the Big Bang, was once mocked by critics such as Sir Fred Hoyle (professor of astronomy, Cambridge University) prior to the mid-twentieth century before Edwin Hubble’s discovery of “red shift” was confirmed that the universe must have indeed had a beginning.

In recent times, critics of the Bible have mocked its sexual ethics, particularly its prohibitions against homosexuality and formication, as being out-of-date and written by ‘unenlightened’ people. Some, who claim to be Christians and who affirm that the Bible is indeed God’s Word, yet practice homosexuality, often assert that those parts of the Bible which condemn homosexuality are not divinely inspired. The problem these “gay Christians” have is the irreconcilable words of Christ about gender, sexuality, and marriage in Matthew 15:19-20, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone” and Matthew 19:4-6, “He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” Many ‘gay Christians’ such as activist Matthew Vines now admit that the Bible can not be used to make their case for the compatibility of homosexuality and Christianity.

The Bible’s infallibility is also frequently challenged by those responding to faulty interpretations of the Scriptures, rather than what the Bible actually teaches. For example, as Prof. Daniel Graetzer (Professor of Natural Science and Mathematics, Northwest University, Kirkland Washington) points out, there are things assumed by some Christians which are not stated in the Bible (such as the age of the universe, or the age of our planet, or the date of when homo sapiens appeared on earth) yet are declared as if it does. He notes, “A significant minority of scientists hold this view…The YEC [Young Earth Creation] view is also popular among laypersons who vary in their grasp of the scientific issues involved” (Studies in Human Biology, p. 34).

Often the criticisms of the Bible made by its opponents are based on an interpretation of what it says rather than what it actually says. This is why it is important to understand the principles of hermeneutics – the art and science of interpreting literature – which accommodates how we understand poetry, metaphors, similes, and hyperboles. For example, no one believes that Jesus was claiming He had door-frame hinges just because He said He was a “door”! “So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep” (John 10:7).

 

WHY THE BIBLE IS AUTHORITATIVE

The Bible is authoritative because it claims to be the Word of God. “This God—His way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; He is a shield for all those who take refuge in Him” (Psa. 18:30). The prophets whom God used to write His Word specifically describe these moments of divine inspiration with the expression, “Then the word of the Lord came to me” (for eg. Jer. 42:7; 43:8; Ezek. 1:3; 3:16; 6:1; 7:1; 11:14; 12:1;13:1; 14:2). Jesus described the record of these divinely inspired messages as “the word of God” (Matt. 15:6) and referred to it as “Scripture” (‘the writings’) and declared that “Scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35). Jesus also stated that the “Scripture must be fulfilled” in Him (Luke 22:37; John 13:18; Acts 1:16).

In the New Testament epistles we have internal references to the teaching of the apostles recorded in the Bible as Scripture which the writer of Second Peter states, “Our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures” (2 Pet. 3:15b-16).

We affirm that the text of Scripture is to be interpreted by grammatico-historicaI exegesis,
taking account of its literary forms and devices, and that Scripture is to interpret Scripture.
We deny the legitimacy of any treatment of the text or quest for sources lying behind it
that leads to relativizing, dehistoricizlng, or discounting its teaching, or rejecting its claims to authorship.
(The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, Shorter Statement, Article XVIII)

Within the sixty-six books of Scriptures we have a unified and coherent revelation from God about His identity as the Creator, the Law-giver, the Redeemer, the Saviour, and the Final Judge. Its sixty-six books tell one story – God’s plan of redemption and conquest over and ultimate vanquishing of evil. Within the Scripture is the revelation of how to be reconciled to God by having our sins forgiven through Christ. It is the Scriptures which assure us that we have one mediator between us and God the Father – Jesus the Christ (1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 9:15; 12:24) through whom we can directly appeal. It is within the Scriptures that we find the commands of God for how we are to live, conduct our lives, order our affairs, treat others, and prioritise our worship of God. Thus, we are not permitted to just be “hearers” of God’s Word, we are to accept its authority and be compliant with its commands and imperatives (Rom. 2:13; 1 Tim. 4:16; James 1:22-23) – because it is the Word of God. Has God spoken to us in His written Word? We trust that He has! Does the world know what it says? I doubt it. This is why we need to tell them and declare, “Thus saith the Lord!”

Your Pastor,

Andrew

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HOW TO BE A SUCCESSFUL INVESTOR

 

In the now classic 1926 story by George Samuel Clason, The Richest Man in Babylon, set in ancient Babylon around 4,000 years ago, he describes the frustration that a craftsman was experiencing because of his inability to get ahead. His clients were wealthy aristocrats who always seemed to be always getting richer. Yet, no matter how hard he worked he always seemed to be barely making ends meet. This led him to investigate how one might change his circumstances from struggling to succeeding. The result of his investigation was aided by an opportunity to talk with ‘the richest man in Babylon’ who told him that there was only one way for anyone to change their circumstances from poor to rich: invest. This, the wealthy man told the craftsman, was what all those who were rich did, and it was not what anyone poor was doing. The advice this craftsman received (and then implemented) was not a get-rich-scheme, but rather, it was a plan that involved budgeting, saving, and investing. The craftsman implemented the plan and, over time, he too became rich.

But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant!
You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed?
Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers,
and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.
Matthew 25:26-27

 

HOW TO INVEST

Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it…he who doesn’t…pays it.”
― Albert Einstein

Investing to most people involves money. Money usually represents the exchange of a person’s time, which is a portion of their life. With money a person can live – but our Creator does not want anyone to live for money (Heb. 13:5). But our Creator has designed this world to be able to abundantly provide for every inhabitant of this planet because He has made a significant investment into this world to enable it to be so. When God created Adam and the First Woman, it was an investment into this world. This investment would eventually result in the world’s billions of people who have since been born. God is therefore the Ultimate investor. And it should be readily seen that He has created His image-bearers to also be investors. It’s no accident that after the first eleven foundational chapters of Genesis, the remaining chapters all narrate the stories of significant investors: Abraham (Gen. 24:35); Isaac (Gen. 26:12); Jacob (Gen. 30:43); and Joseph (Gen. 41:49, 56).

In Robert Kiyosaki’s 1997 best-selling book, Rich Dad Poor Dad, he states that there are 6 levels of financial investing beginning with:

(i) saving money; then

(ii) banking your money; then

(iii) investing into a cash-management/mutual fund; then

(iv) investing into a business such as shares or a rental property. 

“Investing involves taking a risk that also usually involves a sacrifice – in the hope and likelihood – that it will produce increase, multiplication and growth.”

It’s not just business-people who are investors. Farmers are investors. Gardeners are investors. Mothers and fathers are investors. Kids church workers, Youth pastors, Home Group Leaders, and worship team leaders are all investors. In fact, we are all investors – it’s just that some people have learned how to do it well. Dave Ramsey is someone who has learned to do it well. By the age of 26 Dave had become a multi-millionaire from flipping real-estate. He then over-extended his business loan and without notice his bank was acquired by another bank who demanded that he clear his multi-million dollar loan immediately. As a result, Dave Ramsey went bankrupt. When he hit rock-bottom he was determined to recover. It was at this time that he encountered Christ. His newfound faith in Christ led him to search the Scriptures to learn everything that God had said about handling money. Dave concluded that God instructed His people to manage their money by doing 5 things – including investing. By doing these five things Dave Ramsey has now become a multi-millionaire again which has enabled him to live debt-free and to undertake much philanthropic projects. His five things that he sees prescribed in God’s Word for every believer is a little different from Kiyosaki’s list.

(i) Set a monthly budget and keep to it.

(ii) Get out of debt and cease using credit cards.

(iii) Tithe.

(iv) Save.

(v) Invest.

His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.
You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much.
Enter into the joy of your master.’
Matthew 25:31

INVESTING MORE THAN JUST MONEY

¶ The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,
and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
Second Corinthians 9:6

Followers of Christ should learn: how to live with financial integrity; how to live debt-free; and, how to invest their money. John Wesley reported said that believers should earn as much as they can, save as much as they can, and give as much as they can. Some believers have mistakenly said that they don’t care about money. In one sense this is a correct attitude toward money (Jer. 9:23), but in another sense it does not reflect the overall message of God’s Word about how a believer should regard money. The Bible calls believers to steward (“manage”) their money wisely (1Cor. 4:2). Handling money wisely enables a husband and father to provide for his wife and children, build reserves for life’s unforeseen circumstance, and save for the future when there will no further income from his employment.

But investing does not just involve money – especially for the believer. The principles of investing also apply to our own lives by investing into our relationship with Christ through deepening our knowledge of God and His Word; prayerfully growing our capacity to serve Him; worshipfully learning how to emulate the attitudes of Christ in dealing with people, and sharing our time to serve and help others. You can invest into your own life by taking the time to learn, receive training, and develop new skills.

¶ You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus,
and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses
entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.
Second Timothy 2:1-2

Perhaps one of the most rewarding ways a believer can invest more than just money is by investing their time, expertise, experience, and presence into others. Mothers and fathers naturally do this with their own children. Any mother will tell you that mothering several children is a very demanding job that requires much sacrifice on their part but that they do it gladly because they know that the time and training they invest to the sons and daughters will one day produce a huge dividend. Elders and pastors within a church do the same thing for those in their church community. And God will often use you to invest briefly into the soul of another just for a significant moment with a word of encouragement or a timely gift.

If we want to see future generations of believers seeking the Lord and striving to serve Him more passionately, it will require that we each become prayer investors. Do you realise that your prayers will ‘live’ on after you have long passed away? You can begin to invest prayers by praying for those who will be ministering God’s Word the following Sunday. You can invest your prayers into the next generation of leaders within our church by praying for their future development. And you can, as I do, be praying for leaders of our church and state that are yet to be born! Be a prayer investor! 

 

THE CHALLENGE TO BECOME AN INVESTOR

Let me sum up. The most basic form of investing was described by Christ in the parable of the talents where He described it as putting money with the money-lenders to earn interest. Albert Einstein stated that compound interest is “the eighth wonder of the world”! When some people hear the word ‘investing’ they might think that it only involves money. Investing involves thinking about present action and the future consequences of those actions. And then acting in a way that sacrifices present income to invest in a richer future. Understood in a much broader sense, investing can – and should – mean thinking about much more than just money. It can involve investing time, effort, wisdom, training, and prayer. Investing done well results in increased wealth and riches which is not just limited to financial rewards. It is exemplified in the biblical promise, “You reap what you sow.” Each generation is responsible to steward the resources that are at its disposal. These resources are managed by individuals, families, communities, states, nations and the Church. Church leaders have a duty to invest well into the spiritual resources that shape culture to the glory of God so that a tree is planted for the next generations will be the ones who enjoy its shade. Will you invest your life, your time, talents, and treasure into a future reward that you may not even live to witness or enjoy?

¶ These all died in faith, not having received the things promised,
but having seen them and greeted them from afar,
and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.
Hebrews 11:13

Your Pastor,

Andrew

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WHY FINDING TRUTH MATTERS

What value do people find in religion? Perhaps for many Hindus they might be attracted to its diversity and inclusiveness. Perhaps for many Buddhists they might be attracted to its offer of peacefulness. Perhaps for many Jews and proselytes they might be attracted to its long history and traditions. Perhaps for many Muslims they might be attracted to its strength of convictions, its muscularity. And perhaps for most Christians they may have been attracted to Christianity because it is true. Christianity is grounded in the truth. We live in a very spiritual world where 99% of the world’s population profess one form of religion or another. Within our spiritual world there are spiritual forces at work that particularly oppose Christianity because of its truth claims – and in fact, these forces go so far as to deny truth itself! These forces vigorously attempt to hinder people from seeing the truth by confusing even the concept of truth with vacuous suggestions whispered in people’s inner ears, such as find your truth — as if there are different versions of the truth each contradicting each other. Because truth is the greatest strength of Christianity, every follower of Christ and His Word should know the truth and why it is true.

The truth claims of Christianity are subject to the same tests and requirements of proof that any truth claims are subject to: can the claim be tested? and, can the truth claim be verified? In the case of Christianity the answer to both questions is affirmative.  

¶ And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
John 1:14, 17

C.S. (Jack) Lewis (author of The Chronicles of Narnia) and J.R.R. Tolkien (author of Lord of The Rings) were good friends. They both worked at Oxford University and caught up with each other every week at their local establishment. C.S. Lewis was not a Christian, in fact, he self-described himself as an atheist. In both of their worlds ancient and classic literature reigned – especially its mythology. To scholars of such literature mythology was how the people of long ago wrote about the inter-connectedness of this world with the supernatural realm. Stories of flying dragons, hideously evil creatures, heroes of great courage and military prowess, talking animals, and demigods all revealed something about the truths which the people of those by-gone eras sought to capture.

One day Tolkien and Lewis were walking taking a walk and talking about spiritual matters. Tolkien put a question and a proposition to Lewis. After asking Jack if he enjoyed reading mythology (which Lewis did) he asked Jack if he knew what it was that separated Christianity from all other “myths”? Lewis didn’t know. Then Tolkien said: Jack, Christianity is true myth! It actually happened! That’s the thing which distinguishes it from all other myths. This conversation had a profound effect upon Lewis. He came to see that his friend was correct. A short time afterwards, unable to get this new and glorious thought out of his mind, C.S. Lewis came to accept, albeit reluctantly, that he now had no choice but to become a Christian—because it was true. 

This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour,
who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
First Timothy 2:3-4

The thing that distinguishes Christianity from all other religions is that its claims are true. That is, they are verifiable and testable. (Read more here.)

If you are ever asked, Why are you a Christian? I hope I can show you why you should answer, “Because I have good reason for believing it’s true!” Conversely, if you are ever asked, “But why not be a Buddhist, or a Hindu, or a Muslim?” I hope you will come to know that you also have good reasons for replying, “Because I have good reasons for believing they are not true.”

How can we determine whether a claim is true or false?

Some people think there are different kinds of truth — my truth, their truth, and your truth. But how do they know that their assessment of truth is true? After all, their assessment – that there is my/their/your truth might just be based on their truth rather than the truth. Truth has certain qualities that distinguishes it from what is false-

1.  Truth corresponds to reality.
2.  Truth is verifiable (that is, if it is true, it can be evidentially shown to be so).
3.  Truth is falsifiable (that is, if it is false, it can be evidentially shown to be so).
4.  Truth is sometimes testable (that is, claims that are experiential can be tested by experience – including scientific claims, historic claims, and existential claims).

We have good reasons for the believing that the Bible is true because it is the divinely inspired, reliable and authoritative Word of God which has been superintendedly preserved by the Holy Spirit (read more about this).

The sum of your Word is truth,
and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.
Psalm 119:160

What you believe determines how you behave, how you treat others, and how you respond to life’s setbacks — and ultimately how you will die. If you believe that you are indestructible you are going to cross a highway of speeding cars hurtling in both directions in quite a different way to me (I will use the overpass by the way). If you believe that God is an angry god who demands appeasement from you outweighing your good deeds over against your bad deeds – then you are going to live differently to a Christian — and you will also die differently because you will never know whether you have done enough good deeds to appeasement angry-god. Following Christ and accepting His claims and commands as true will result in the follower living quite differently compared to those who have no hope (Eph. 2:12).

O LORD, do not your eyes look for truth?
You have struck them down,
but they felt no anguish;
You have consumed them,
but they refused to take correction.
They have made their faces harder than rock;
they have refused to repent.
Jeremiah 5:3

The challenge that those who know the truth have is to share it winsomely to a world who hates the truth because it is like a bright light being shone into their darkness (John 1:9-11). But just because there are spiritual forces which are literally hell-bent on keeping people from seeing and understanding the truth it does not mean that we should cower to their intimidation and keep silent (Eph. 5:11). Truth should be contended for in a culture that has often been beguiled by lies (Jude 3). We, the Church, are called to be custodians of the truth revealed in God’s revelation of His Word to mankind. This may mean that we won’t win the approval or applause of man, but when we do so gently with respect from a heart that genuinely loves it will challenge those in the media, those in the legislature, and sometimes even those in pulpits.  

If I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God,
which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.
First Timothy 3:15

This is why finding truth matters!

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.