Date:   02/12/06

Text:   2 Timothy 3:15-17

Title:   A People of the Book

Theme: Since the Christian God is one who has spoken to us in the Bible, therefore His Word must be at the center of our personal and corporate life .

Introduction:

  This slide explains the mission of HCC. It tells us about who we are and what we do. At different times, different churches may have different visions, such as: a church without walls, a church where relationship is the cornerstone, but the mission seldom changes. In February we're looking at different aspects of this church's mission. Last Sunday we learned about Worship. This morning we want to focus on the Word, the Bible, the ministry of the Word.

  In recent years, there is a popular idea about how the we acquired our Bible. We see TV programs and feature articles in Time, Newsweek and US News and World report. The theory is: by the 4 th century, there were many Christian writings circulating in the Christian church. So a group of Christian leaders met at Nicene and decided which of them were proper and authoritative. As a result of this meeting, 66 books were chosen and formed the Bible we have today. Therefore, today, we can easily override their decisions, either to ignore or add to what is already in the Bible. After all, the original decision was made by a group of men 17 centuries ago. Why should their decision be binding today?

  From 1985 to 1993, there was a group of so called ‘Biblical Scholars' who met periodically to decide which of Jesus' teaching should be included in the Gospels. The result was that 80% of Jesus'' saying should be taken out of the Bible. This is similar to what Thomas Jefferson did in the early 19 th century. He took out the miracle accounts and doctrinal statements; and kept Jesus' ethical teachings. This was called the Jefferson Bible.

  So, what is the Bible and what shall we do with it?

I.   God speaks to us in the Bible.

  Besides showing you what the Bible is, I want to explain and discuss with you some of the basic presuppositions underlying this subject. As Christians living in this 21 st century, we need to equip ourselves so we can explain to our children and non-Christian friends not only what we believe but also why.

  Certainly, the existence of God is the very basic premise of our discussions. If there is no God, then the discussion on the Bible is really irrelevant. If there is a God, what would he be like? When people find themselves in desperate situations, what would they do? They pray to a God. What is the basic assumption behind this? If there is a God, this God should be able to hear us, right? If there is a God, how can we know him? By definition, God is infinite and therefore as finite human beings, there is no way we can know or understand him. The only way we can know God is for him to tells us about himself. Not only this, he must also talk to us in words and language we understand. Without this, we just can't know him. All we have is speculations.

  When we take a look at the sacred books of different religions, we'll find that Christianity is the only religion that believes a God who speaks to man in words we can understand. If we would just turn to the first chapter of Genesis, the phrase ‘God said' or ‘God called' appeared at least 11 times. Then we read about God speaking to Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel and their children. God spoke to Abraham and his descendents. He spoke to Moses, Joshua, Samuel, and later to David and other prophets. This is a God that speaks. And as God spoke to his prophets they recorded it in written words. As these words were written, they were accepted by the Israelites as God's word which they obeyed. By 400 BC, the 39 books of OT as we have it today were completed and treated by the Israelites as God's Word. This is what 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is breathed out by God...”

  While on earth, Jesus taught his disciples and the people around him about the kingdom of God . At the end of his earthly ministry, he told his disciples, Jn 14:26; 16:13, “ But …the Holy Spirit, …. will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you….. …… he will guide you into all the truth, ….. he will declare to you the things that are to come." Later, the disciples wrote down what they heard from Jesus and the new revelations from the Holy Spirit.

  So the apostles were Jesus'' spokesman. Their words had the same authority as Jesus words. Therefore as they wrote their books and letters, the 1 st century Christians accepted them as God's word. By the end of 1 st century, the early church already had a collection of books that are considered sacred, from God and were authoritative. However, by the 4 th century, there were many other letters and books claimed to be written by the apostles. So, in the 4 th century, a group of Christian leaders met and decided to protect what was already accepted as God's word from the other writings that were circulating. And this is the Bible we have today. This Bible is God's word; it is without error and therefore, authoritative.

II.   God speaks to us in the Bible about Himself and His work.

   Now, having explained the origin of this Bible, we now come to take a look at what is inside the Bible.

1.   The Bible teaches us about God's redemptive work.

  Vs.15, “….sacred writings which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” Paul reminded Timothy how the OT scriptures helped him to trust in Jesus Christ. The OT writings point us to Jesus Christ and his work. The NT Gospels and the book of Acts demonstrated the reality of Christ and his disciples' ministries on earth. The epistles further explain and expand Christ's teaching. The entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is about God's redemptive or salvation plan.

2.   The Bible teaches us about matters of faith.

  In this redemptive plan, the Bible also teaches us on matters of faith, or Truth. “ 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” ‘for teaching, for reproof' refers to doctrinal matters. The Bible teaches us what truth is; what is right and accurate about God. Do you want to know about God? Go study the Bible, because in the Bible God tells us about himself.

  Many of us, besides listening to sermons preached here, also listen to sermons preached on TV, radio and tapes. Many best selling books are also sermons. As we read and listen, we are to constantly check with what is in the Bible. Many of the contents are inconsistent or even contrary to what is in the Bible. It is good to remember that a good communicator does not necessarily provide accurate and correct content. Since the Bible is God's word, it is authoritative and the final standard of our faith, everything we hear and read should be measured against this book.

3.   The Bible teaches us how to live.

  “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable ….. for correction, and for training in righteousness,…..” The Bible helps us to correct, change and reform our wrong behaviors and attitudes. It shows us how to live. The Bible teaches us how to love, care and forgive one another. As we read, study and obey the word of God, our lives will be transformed into Christ's image. Moreover, this verse also tells us that we'll be competent and equipped for every good work. This certainly includes serving within and with out the church.

  Here is a good reminder to us. How do we equip people for different kinds of ministry? Teach the congregation different ministry skills. I used to do this and still am doing it. However, looking at this passage, I am also reminded that before we talk about ministry skills, we need to teach and learn the Word. The word of God must be the foundation of our ministry. If not, we are training a group of people who are skilled in doing all kinds of ministry. They are good in designing, promoting and maintaining all kinds of programs. They are what I called “the technocrats” in God's church. They may be skilled in ministry, yet with little understanding of the Word. Ministry skills must find there foundation in God's word.

   In summary, the scripture contains matters of Salvation, doctrine and behavior. They are all inspired from God, therefore without error. Sometimes we hear Christians say, “I accept the bible as God's word in the area of Salvation. But when it comes to creed, moral and ethical issues, the bible is outdated, therefore no longer applicable to the 20 th century. We can only use it as a reference and not a standard.” But in this passage, Paul clearly stated that all scripture, that is all that is in the bible, is from God, therefore without error. Since its God's word, it is our standard in salvation, doctrine and conduct.

III.   Our response to God's word.

  Since the Bible is the word of God, our ultimate reference point in life, what does it mean to us?

  In the OT, the Israelites read, taught and obey the word. Yes, they failed numerous times, but when they turned to God, the reading and teaching of the word was always the priority. Ezra 7:10, “ 10 For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel .” Jesus read and taught the OT scriptures. He directed his disciples to teach his word. In the book of Acts, we read, 17:2, “ 2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures.” vs.11, “ ……., they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” The Bereans heard Paul's teaching and checked it out against the OT scriptures. In light of this, I want to suggest several applications:

•  As a church, HCC must continue to uphold the word. It means that when we pastors preach on Sunday mornings, we must be faithful to what the Bible says. We're to let the text determine our message and not use the Bible as a proof text to support the topic we want to preach. We are to preach the content with proper balance between the Old and New Testament; the gospels and the epistles. For this reason, our sermons in general are expository in nature, often meaning preaching through one book at a time. This will help the congregation to have a more wholistic understanding of the word.

•  As individual Christians, we are to be diligent students of the Word. When we study the word, we remember that the purpose is to understand the meaning of the text. Not what I think and how I feel about it. There is a basic principle we need to remember, there is only one meaning in any given text, , but it may be applied in different ways. And our main responsibility in Bible study is to find out the meaning of the text and learn to encourage one another on how to apply God's word to different life situations. We study the Word personally with our daily reading of the word. We also study the Word with other believers via fellowship and small groups. This is also why going to Sunday school is so important in this and many other churches.

  Beginning in March there is a new SS class called the Bible in 90 Days. “Vido clipping”. There is more information and sign up sheet in the lobby.

  I am always encouraged to see some of you taking part in the Bible Study Fellowship or other silimar Bible study programs across Houston .

•  There is another important aspect of the Word we need to know. In Acts 6:7, 12:24, 19:20, “…the word of God continued to increase…”The disciples had the word, studied the word and they passed it on. The word is not for us to keep. Yes, we hear the word preached and taught on Sunday mornings. We studied the word in SS, in our weekly or monthly fellowship and small group gatherings. This is important and excellent. However, it is equally important to pass it on. How? We begin right where we are. We teach the word to our family members, we teach the word to children, youth and adults in the context of Sunday School in this and other churches. We don't stop here. We also need to teach and share the word where we work and study. I think of the many Bible study groups in different universities in this and other countries. Nearly everywhere you have a group of Chinese students, you can always find a Bible study group, helping many to come to know Christ. There are also Bible study groups in some major companies where Christians come together during the lunch hour and study the Word with their non-Christian friends. I think of some Chinese churches in NA regularly sending their elders and teachers to different parts of Germany to teach the word, to lead and train Bible study leaders. We have the word, and we also pass it on to others.

Conclusion:

  Why do we put such a high premium on the Bible? Because as Christians, we believe there is a God and He is not silent. He not only is high above us, but also speaks to us in a language we can understand. His words are recorded in the Bible. Because the Bible is his word, therefore it is to be the absolute standard for our salvation, faith and conduct. It is true and without errors.

  There was a story about a group of Christians in a Chinese village during the Cultural Revolution. The Bible was forbidden. In this village, there was only one copy of the Bible. So the Christians come together and hand copy it. This is how they continued to read and teach the Word.

  It is my prayer that we take God's Word seriously. It is a book that we study, obey and teach others. We are to be a people of The Book. In the entrance is a poster designed by Cindy. May 2006 be a year that we are worms in God's Word. If we are to be a worm in God's word, then we all need to make some changes. Let us pray.