Before the holidays, I completed a short series on evidence that supports the divine inspiration of the Bible. The information presented throughout several articles was a tiny slither of the totality of evidence that could be offered but hopefully served as a sample of the type of evidence available to support its divine inspiration. Assured by the mass of evidence that the Bible has a divine source, it would be a great tragedy if the truth it contains was beyond our capability of comprehension.
The truth of the matter is that the scriptures can be understood. Consider the fact that we know that God has been portrayed as all-knowing. This being the case, why would an all-knowing God give the people of His creation a collection of writings that He (being all-knowing) knew we could not possibly fully comprehend? This would make absolutely no sense and, in fact, be counterproductive to serving as a medium by which He has communicated His will to the inhabitance of His creation.
On the forefront, what Peter wrote in 2 Peter 3:14-16 should be noted and rightly understood. Here Peter states that the scriptures contain some things that are hard to understand. But there is an enormous chasm between hard and impossible. Anyone can understand something difficult to wrap their minds around… in fact, most people did so throughout their school years. Peter notes that only the unstable and ignorant ultimately twist the scriptures to their destruction. We can all fix our ignorance by diligent study of the scriptures. The unstable, unfortunately, are driven by evil motivations not firmly rooted in a pursuit of truth.
Furthermore, if the Bible cannot be understood, then God authored within its passages lies. Consider the claims of the following verses.
John 17:17 says that the Word of God is truth, and John 8:32 states that knowledge of the truth will make us free.
John 20:30-31 and Romans 10:13-17 both indicate that one may become a believer by reading or hearing the written Word of God.
2 Timothy 3:14-15 states that the Holy Scriptures can provide the wisdom that leads to salvation.
Acts 17:10-12 says that knowing the scriptures will enable us to discern between a true and a false teacher. This message is of vital importance to all who desire to earnestly seek after the truth that leads to salvation, for there are more than most realize in the world today preaching and teaching a gospel and doctrines that are not the clear message of the scriptures but are somewhat counterintuitive to God’s truth. If you do not diligently study the scriptures for yourself, you do not honestly know the source of what you believe and follow… is it of man or God?
Romans 1:15-17 declares that the Word of God is His power of salvation.
Acts 20:32 states that the Word of God can build us up and give us an inheritance.
Matthew 7:24 says that hearing and doing the teachings of Jesus (those teaching contained in the New Testament) will result in our becoming like the wise man who built his house upon the rock.
James 1:21 proclaims that the Word of God can save our souls. James further states in James 1:25, “But whoso looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deeds.”
Trusting that all these statements are factual, God has given us a great and wonderful book we can study and understand fully. He has reached down and, through divinely inspired writers, given us a book of truth that holds the only way to be reconciled to Him and gain the promised heavenly inheritance granted to all who would diligently follow the Words which make one wise to His offer of salvation.
(Carl Hartman is the Minister at Main Street Church of Christ in Lockney)
