WHY SHOULD I TRUST THE BIBLE?

The Bible has long been the “best-selling book” in the world, and especially here in our country. However, the buying of the book and affirming its value does not mean people even read it –let alone build their lives on it…or find it reliable. Certainly, many want to dismiss it and Christianity saying they are based on a flawed document and principles. But the Bible continually shows us it trustworthiness and reliability, and we can trust it in all matters. We recently studied Psalms 139 and 19. Now we turn to Psalm 119, the longest psalm (and the longest chapter in the Bible), and it is also longer than 30 entire books in the Bible. It is comprised of 22 stanzas, and each stanza begins with a successive letter in the Hebrew alphabet. The acrostic psalm lifts up the wonders and perfections of God’s Word. But more importantly, Psalm 119 points us to the benefits we receive as we rely on the truths of Scripture. The theme of this lesson is-“The only safe place to build our lives in on God’s Word”.

Read Psalm 119:137-144

This psalm is a love poem written about the Law of God. It poetically brings forth the virtues and practical value of the Word of God. Most believe this poem was written by Ezra, in a time of persecution, perhaps during a period when idol worshippers were in charge, and the worshippers of Yahweh were on the run (vv. 8, 139, 141, 143, 153, and 154). Even in the midst of this extreme trials and hardship, the psalmist praises the Law of God “as his most precious treasure (vv. 72, 127), as his source of joy and delight (vv. 16, 24, 47, and 70), as the goal of his knowledge and standard of conduct in his life (vv. 12, 26, 64, and 68), and as the object of his love (v. 47). This breakdown by verses helps us to know that the psalmist had a love affair with the Word of God- and helps us to more fully understand Psalm 119.

Though the Bible was once regarded as a reliable source of principles for life and even government, it is no longer. What are some reasons people question the reliability of the Bible? (They don’t know what the Bible says. They don’t believe it. It has fairy tails or they are just stories.)How does knowing these reasons help us understand the Bible? (Helps our belief, helps us to talk with others about the Bible.) People often say, “You can’t trust the Bible. After all, it has been changed so many times over the years. And it is disproved by science.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Of all the ancient manuscripts considered trustworthy by scholars, the Bible is the best attested and most reliable work in existence today. And where history and the Bible seemed to disagree, further archaeological study has repeatedly vindicated the Bible. Many points that science uses to discredit the Bible have been shown false, and more will come as God chooses to reveal them. (Check the comments of the recent Ham vs. Nye debate.) Where science and the Bible seem in conflict, there is either a misunderstanding of the Bible, or science still has more to learn.

However, one need not prove the Bible, for the Bible proves itself. Biblical principles guided our Founding Fathers as they created the greatest (not perfect) form of government in history. In addition, lives built upon the principles in Scripture are like sturdy steel ships that safely sail the stormy seas of life. The psalmist answers any thought that there is no absolute standard of right or wrong with – you are righteous, Lord. Righteous simply means morally right, correct, or proper. Everything God does is by the Book, for He wrote the Book. One of the unifying themes of the Bible is that God is the standard of rightness in the universe. His judgments and decrees are altogether trustworthy. So the Bible is something to be obeyed. Obeying the law, as presented by the Bible, establishes fellowship with the living God. It also provides light and guidance. The psalms’ meaning is clearly apparent to those who read it thoroughly.

Read Psalm 119:1-8

In 2 Timothy 3:16, we are told- “All Scripture is inspired by God”. The Scripture is the product of God’s Holy Spirit working through people and is profitable. The Scriptures are God’s Word, in God’s Word we hear God’s voice, and God’s voice brings healing. Psalm 107:20 says, “He sent His Word and healed them; He rescued them from the Pit”. One key point of this psalm is that obedience to God’s law is the way to happiness. The poet asked divine help in understanding and keeping the law (vv.1-8). God’s Word in one’s heart brings joy and protects the believer from sin (vv. 9-16).

The law is not a substitute for God but a guide to doing His Will. It is not a burden to the psalmist but a joy. The “statues” represent the written law of God. The “word” is a dynamic communication of God’s Will for mankind. Sometimes the law is also presented as “promise”. Each verse in Psalm 119 is built around a different word which is a synonym for the Word of God. The word “law” occurs 25 times; “word” appears 23 times; “statues” and “commandments are used 22 times; and “surety”, “appointment” and “faithfulness” are used once. So the basis theme of the psalm is the law of God. The psalm sang the praise of the law under all kinds of circumstances, persecution, false accusation, temptation and intellectual doubt. The psalmist is writing a repetitive meditation on the beauty of God’s Word and how it helps us stay pure and grow in faith with a sincere heart. Such repetition of the use of God’s Word was common in the Hebrew culture. People did not have personal copies of the Scriptures, so God’s people memorized His Word and passed it along daily. The structure of this psalm allowed for easy memorization.

As believers, we need to daily “seek Him with all our heat”. We might start with Matthew 5-7, which reveals how believers behave in God’s kingdom.  Then go to Romans 6-8 that examines our sin problem and how to overcome it. Next turn to Ephesians 4-6 and learn how to have godly relationships in the church, in the home, and at work, and how to put on an all-important armor of God that is needed to defeat the devil. Verse 2 tells us that “Happy are those” who daily seek God in the pages of His Word. Building our lives upon God’s Word certainly works, for it will lead us to happiness like a laser targeting system will lead a missile to its target. God’s Word truly is the only safe place to build our lives, and it is true for everyone! In conclusion, we can trust the Bible because of all the promises of the Bible that has already been fulfilled and all of the witnesses of the people that have lived before us. So it is reliable and trustworthy but also the lives of those –like us- who follow its decrees, precepts, and instructions are witness that we can trust the Bible.

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YAHWEH OUR GOD 1

In a baby dedication ceremony, the pastor’s giving the meaning of the child’s name is impressive. Many parents choose names because they are family names or because they are familiar and pleasant sounding. Some names reflect the parent’s desire that their children will develop exemplary character. Most parents want their children’s names to be more than identifying labels.

They want the names to reflect the children’s uniqueness or their individuality. They recognize that names are important.

The Scriptures contain many names for God. These multiple names suggest that God cannot be pressed into the perimeters of human language. He is much more than any name or number of names can express. Yet the name by which He makes Himself known- Yahweh- is foundational in our admittedly limited understanding of Him. It identifies Him as the personal God who stands alone, who has always existed, and who does not change. Our culture has the false notion that many gods exist or many expressions of God exist. Of course this is diametrically opposed to what

The Bible teaches about the one true God’s character and nature. It’s important for us to discover the significance of God’s name – doing so can help us trust Him and live confidently in a religiously diverse culture.

Read Exodus 6:2-8 Yahweh Promises

There are more than 100 different names and titles for God and Jesus in the Bible. What is your favorite name or names for God and why? (I guess mine is “Lord”.) God declared, “I am Yahweh”. KJV version is “I am the Lord”. In Hebrew language, the letters YHWH (based on the verb “to be”) occurred with no vowels. Suggested translations include “I am what I am”, “I will be what I will be”, “I will be (or continue to be) who I always have been”, and “I am He who is”. This leads to common suggestion for the meaning of Yahweh –“I am what I will reveal to you who I am”. God was reaffirming His historical relation to the patriarchs but here there is a difference in the revelation. Verse 3 tells us that God said He appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as “God Almighty” (El Shaddai in Hebrew). This indicates a difference in the way they had known Him and the way He was going to be known in the Exodus from Egypt. The earlier emphasis had been upon the power of God. The new emphasis was to be on His presence, His existence. There are several instances prior to Moses’ time where the name of Yahweh is used in the Old Testament (Gen 15:2, 8; 16:2; 24:31; 38:13). However, it is clear that the real understanding of the nature of God took a major step forward in the Exodus experience. God gave Moses the reason Moses could trust Him to deliver the Israelites from Pharaoh’s clutches.

Small problems need only small answers. But when we face great problems, God has an opportunity to exercise His great power. As the Hebrews troubles grew steadily worse God planned to intervene with His mighty power and perform great miracles to deliver them. Big problems put you in a perfect position to watch God give big answers. God’s promises in these verses were fulfilled to the letter when the Hebrews left Egypt. He freed them from slavery, became their God and accepted them as people. Then He led them to the land He had promised. When God redeems us from sin, He delivers us, accepts us, and becomes our God. Then He leads us to new life as we follow Him. God would make the Hebrews His covenant people. God wants a personal, covenant relationship, which involves mutual responsibilities, with all people. He wants to be involved in our lives.

Read Exodus 15:1-3 Yahweh Keeps His promise

Music played an important part in Israel’s worship and celebration. Singing was an expression of love and thanks, and it was a creative way to pass down oral traditions. The song of Moses was likely the oldest recorded song in the world. It was a festive epic poem celebrating God’s victory, lifting the hearts and voices of the people outward and upward. After being delivered from great danger, they sang with joy! Psalms and hymns can be great ways to express relief, praise and thanks when we have been through trouble. God kept His promise and the people felt led to sing about it. What memories do you have of your parents or even grandparents singing? (Mother would sometimes sing a lullaby. She seldom sang. I was the one always singing.) If you were to write a song about God victoriously keeping His promises or providing help in your life, what events would you include in that song? (Always present, I could always talk with HIM, helping in going to Air Force, helping in getting a college degree, and praising Him for sending Barbara my way.) Music has always been a big part in my life. Barbara sang in two Big Bands, Shelly has done solo work since she was fourteen, Ric is currently in the music business in Nashville, and I have been in a church choir since I was 18. I remember the choir Barbara and I joined in Biloxi while in the Air Force tech school. The church director looked and talked like Yul Brynner, but had a marvelous voice.

Read Exodus 15:11-13 Yahweh Stands Alone

In verses 4-10, in picturesque, poetic language, the joyful song of praise to Yahweh chronicled the destruction of Pharaoh’s Army in the Red Sea. Throughout Moses hymn, the focus is on Yahweh and His redemptive action. Verse 11 contains two rhetorical questions (Lord, who is like you among the gods? and Who is like you…?) whose expected answers are “NO ONE”. No one among the gods was like Yahweh. He was in class by Himself, with no peers. The Israelites did not acknowledge other gods’ existence; other nations’ so-called gods were fictional. They certainly knew that the Egyptians had their idols and “gods”; but they were saying that Yahweh alone is the true, LIVING GOD; all others were false.

In a similar song, Hannah proclaims the complementary answers to the questions of verse 11- “There is none holy like the Lord; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God” (1 Sam. 2:2). The following verses, beginning with verse 13, like the song as a whole (v.9), describe Israel’s journey out of Egypt and into the land of Canaan. They anticipate the fear that will befall the surrounding peoples, the Philistines, the Edomites, and the Moabites, as well as the Canaanites.  They were growing in their faith and confidence in Yahweh. The term “redeemed” in verse 13, refers to God’s dealings for the sake of His people, rescuing them from danger and fostering the conditions in which their faithfulness may flourish (EX. 6:6; Ps. 74:2; 77:15; 106:10; Isa. 52:9; 62:12; 41:14).

Yahweh stretched out His right hand and exerted His might. The singers used human terms to describe God’s redeeming act for them. The phrase “right hand” signified strength and victory. God exercised His great power to free His people. The Israelites expressed their confidence that Yahweh would continue to “lead” them with His “faithful love”. The reference to His “holy dwelling” may also have referred to the future Jerusalem sanctuary, but they more likely were still focused on the promise land of Canaan. The Bible makes it clear that God is God alone- the Only One we should worship. Other religion’s claims need not intimidate us. The Christian faith’s exclusivity means we do not accept the idea of other gods, but we respect others’ right to hold differing views. We should, however, always explain the one true God and the one true way to Heaven- in love!

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GOD’S LOVE IS LIKE THE PERFECT  “FATHER”

In the final four chapters Hosea shifts to the theme of God’s intense love for Israel. God had always loved Israel as a parent loves a stubborn child and that is why He would not release Israel from the consequences of its behavior. The Israelites were sinful, and they would be punished like a rebellious son brought by his parents before the elders (Deuteronomy 21:18-21). All through Israel’s sad history, God repeatedly offered to restore the nation, if only it would turn to Him. By stubbornly refusing God’s invitation, the northern kingdom had sealed its doom. It would be destroyed as a nation never to rise again.

Read Hosea 11:1-2 God Pursues Us

The prophet Hosea began his message by picturing God as a rejected husband who nonetheless lovingly forgave and received His “wayward wife” back. Hosea has here shifted his imagery of God from a husband to a father- not as an abusive father but as a tender father wanting His children close. (We hear many stories about abusive fathers today.) (It breaks my heart to hear about these fathers.)Hosea depicted Israel as God’s son and then told of God’s nurturing activity toward him (Israel). Is there a lesson here for us? (God is our true example for how fathers should act toward their children.) Then Hosea referred to the fledgling nation in Egypt as “a child”, with all of the dependency and vulnerability that the word suggests. God shows His unlimited devotion to His people through the word “loved”. The phrase “My son” conveys intimacy and relationship. The word “called” means more than its normal use. It refers to the covenant terminology (Jeremiah 31:32) and implies the formation of a relationship. Here it means that Israel was adopted as God’s “son”. Like a father, God loved, trained and provided for His son Israel. Through Hosea, the Lord revealed how His love for Israel was not returned. In fact, Israel seemed to go even further from God. Think back to Exodus and how the people acted over & over as they were being “rescued” from Egypt.

Read Hosea 11:3-4 God Nurtures Us

Believers are not exempt from temptations surrounding others. In fact, Satan takes great delight when God’s children fail. So Satan tempts them all the more. God tries to bring us back to Him. The Lord nurtured Israel in six decisive ways. First, He taught Ephraim to walk. “Ephraim” as a name was given to Joseph’s youngest son (Gen. 41:5-52) but later became a designation for Israel (northern kingdom). Second, Hosea pictured God as taking them in His arms, which conveys love, security and protection to His children. Third, God healed them, which was another attempt to restore them to wholeness. Fourth, God led them with human cords and ropes of kindness. This was an agrarian image of a man leading his ox. So God was trying to lead His people with the loving care given a valued animal. Fifth, God would ease the yokes from their jaws. This is a picture of a light, poorly fitting yoke that would hurt the oxen and needed to be “eased”. Sixth, like a farmer feeding his animals, the Lord bent down to give them food. So again God was stretching or inclining toward His people with His love, His power and His resources for protection. So the question has to be –How could Israel be so blind? However,, the better question for us to discuss a bit is: How does God nurture us? (Think about what He has dome for us in the past and asking Him how He wants to nurture us today. Verse 4 signifies a true covenant based on God’s love (Jeremiah 31:3).

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A LIFESTYLE OF MEDITATION

What images comes to mind when you read or hear the word meditation? My guess is that many of us have the mental picture of a person sitting cross-legged on a floor, eyes closed, and face serene. I have seen this exact scene a few times on the television. Many Eastern religions involve the practice of meditation. Christian meditation differs from the practices of those religions by filling our minds with God’s truth, instead of emptying our minds. Meditation practices must be tempered with sound doctrine. We can find it a real challenge to dedicate time to meditate. The harder it is, the more important it is to do it.

Read Psalm 119:11-16 Focus on the Word

The basic theme of the Psalms is the law of God. The original Hebrew version of the psalms was written in rhymes, and the word psalm means “praise”. The word “law” occurs 25 times in the psalms and other forms of that word appear 22 times. The law is not a substitute for God but a guide to doing His will. The basic point of the psalms is that obedience to God’s law is the way to happiness. God’s word in one’s heart brings joy and protects the believer from sin. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible and it is written as a song of praise for God’s law. It celebrates the law as God’s gracious gift to His people, not as a heavy burden imposed on them. It is written undoubtedly out of extensive meditation on God’s mercy. Meditate means “study”, which can be accomplished by reading God’s word, memorizing scriptures, and then applying them in our daily living. So a very good method to strengthen our relationship with God is to meditate on His written word until meditation becomes spontaneous. Meditation through memorization will become a vital part of our Christian journey only if we make it a priority. Keeping God’s word in our hearts is a deterrent to sin. This alone should inspire us to memorize scripture, but we need also to put God’s word to work in our lives. God’s guidelines help us follow His path and avoid paths that lead to destruction.

Read Mark 1:35-39 Fellowship Through Prayer

Leading up to these scriptures, Jesus and His disciples entered Capernaum, where Jesus put in a full day’s work. He taught in the synagogue, where He cast out an unclean spirit (vv 21-28).  Then they went to Simon and Andrew’s house, where Jesus healed Simon’s mother-in-law (vv 29-31). When darkness signaled the Sabbath’s close, people brought sick and demon-possessed individuals to the house where Jesus was and He healed many of them (vv 32-34). Likely He was exhausted (yes, Jesus in human form could get tired). So after a short night’s sleep, Jesus arose very early, while it was still dark and found a quiet place to pray (v35). Ask: Where are some places that we can go to pray? Also what are some of things we can sacrifice or give up to permit time to pray?  (Any quiet place- and give up TV, recreation, leisure reading, hobbies, etc.)

Simon Peter and his companions (other disciples) hunted for Jesus. Jesus was praying for the will of His Father. He trying to seek God’s will about where to preach- staying in Capernaum with its unending demands or broadening His ministry throughout all of Galilee (vv 38-39). The Romans divided the land of Israel into three separate regions; Galilee, Samaria, and Judea. Galilee was the northern most region, and area about 60 miles long and 30 miles wide. Jesus did much of His ministry in this area. Remember He and His disciples had to walk everywhere. This area was an ideal place for Him to teach since there were over 250 towns concentrated, with many synagogues, in Galilee. So Jesus was giving us a clear pattern to follow when He would get off by Himself and pray before He made major decisions, especially involving significant journeys! If Jesus does this, it has to good for us.

Truths and applications for our living practically leap from this scripture passage. Among these are: 1) Jesus’ ministry for His Father grew out of His relationship with the Father. Our effectiveness as God’s servant depends on the depth of our relationship with Him. 2) Prayer was a channel for the divine resources Jesus needed for His work. Prayer and Meditation enable us to tap into God’s resources that enable us to serve Him productively. 3) Prayer nourished and empowered Jesus’ life of faith.

Read Psalm 1:1-3 Fruit of Time Well Spent

Interpreters have described Psalm 1 as a gateway or threshold psalm for the entire Book of Psalms. It summarizes the whole book and the psalmist had meditated extensively on the wisdom of studying and obeying God’s law. The psalmist began with a joyous, enthusiastic exclamation that some have rendered “oh the happiness (or blessedness) of”. We are told that we should enjoy the joy of obeying God and refuse to listen to those who discredit or ridicule Him. Do you have any friends or relatives who tear down your faith? We are told in Psalms to pick our friends carefully. We can’t do much about our relatives. God doesn’t judge people on the basis of race, sex, or national origin. He judges us on the basis of our faith in Him and our response to His revealed will. Those who diligently try to obey God’s will are blessed. (I know this is not new and we tend to hear it a lot but there are times in our lives when a reminder is very important.) Only two paths of life lay before us- God’s way of obedience or the way of rebellion and destruction.

Verse 2 presents a sharp contrast to the negative descriptions in verse 1. It again tells us we can learn how to follow God by meditating on His word. Let’s review together how we can meditate. What does verse 3 say to you, individually? (Spending time reading the Bible, and thinking and studying what we read. Memorizing scripture and having them ready for when needed.) (Verse 3- The more we delight in obeying God, the more fruitful we are.) If you want God’s blessing, make friends with those who love God and His word. The phrase “they prosper in all they do” does not mean immunity to failure or difficulties. It does not mean success in everything that is not in God’s will.  What the Bible means by prosperity is when we apply God’s wisdom, the fruit (results) we bear will be good and will receive God’s approval. To achieve anything worthwhile, we must have God’s Word in our hearts.

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