Is the BIBLE.....RELIABLE??????

To answer this question, we must ask another.

What the Bible IS NOT.

1. The Bible is not a systematic theology book. The Bible was not written to communicate a set of beliefs or a cognitive framework for understanding God.

Matthew 5:17 “Don’t suppose for a minute that I have come to demolish the Scriptures— either God’s Law or the Prophets. I’m not here to demolish but to complete. I am going to put it all together, pull it all together in a vast panorama. Matthew 5:21, 27, 31, 38, 43

Even theological statements fall under the context of the relationships in the story.

2. The Bible is not a science book. The Bible was not written to explain the dinosaurs, the lost day in Joshua, or whether a day is a thousand years or a thousand years is a day, or the fossil record.

Even in the mention of natural/scientific/cosmological events, the point is about the created world’s relationship to God, about our relationship to creation, and most importantly, our relationship to God.

By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. Romans 1:20

3. The Bible is not a history book.
The Bible was not written to give a chronological account of the development of Ancient Near Eastern civilizations from 6000BC-2000AD, including the reigns of Rameses, Melchizedek, or the modern-day Bush Dynasty.

Even in the explanation of historical events, the point is about God connecting with mankind throughout history; the Bible was written to intersect history, not to record it.

4. The Bible is not simply a handbook for living.
The Bible was not written to give us a formulaic system of earning God’s favor, or developing seven habits of highly effective people, or Rx.

But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard. Galatians 5:22

Even the ethical/moral teachings are rooted in a personal, dynamic relationship with the Living God.

SO WHAT IS THE BIBLE?????

1. The Bible Is a Plumb Line.
Amos 7:7-8 God showed me this vision: My Master was standing beside a wall. In his hand he held a plumb line. 8 God said to me, "What do you see, Amos?" I said, "A plumb line." Then my Master said, "Look what I've done. I've hung a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel. I've spared them for the last time. This is it!

2 Timothy 3:15b-16 There's nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God's way.

My responsibility is to stay connected to God –to follow Him – and not to skip the relationship and go for the religion.

2. The Bible Is a Love Story of God’s revelation to humanity.
“I believe God’s Word is His love letter to the human race.” C. S. Lewis

Even if it was written in Scripture long ago, you can be sure it's written for us. God wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will do next. Romans 15:4

SO IS THE BIBLE RELIABLE???

Yes, it’s reliable for why it exists. The Bible exists to connect me to God through a relationship with Jesus, as I begin to believe.

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