Our ultimate source of truth must come from the scripture because it is the living Word of God (Hebrews 4:12), and Jesus is the living Word made flesh."In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us..." John 1:1,14
If we want to know Jesus, the living Word, we must seek out the scriptures with all our hearts. When we do this, we will find Him and we will find the truth.
"You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. 'I will be found by you,' declares the LORD." Jeremiah 29:13-14
"Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:16
"All Scripture is inspired by God..." 2 Timothy 3:16
"The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever." Psalm 119:160
"Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth." John 17:17
"For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." 2 Timothy 4:3,4
"Pilate said to Him, Then You are a King? Jesus answered, You say it! [You speak correctly!] For I am a King. [Certainly I am a King!] This is why I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the Truth. Everyone who is of the Truth [who is a friend of the Truth, who belongs to the Truth] hears and listens to My voice." John 18:37
"The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever." Psalm 119:160
"Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth." John 17:17
"For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." 2 Timothy 4:3,4
"Pilate said to Him, Then You are a King? Jesus answered, You say it! [You speak correctly!] For I am a King. [Certainly I am a King!] This is why I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the Truth. Everyone who is of the Truth [who is a friend of the Truth, who belongs to the Truth] hears and listens to My voice." John 18:37
23 comments:
Thanks for sharing this! I am often surprised when Christian's say they haven't read the Bible-- it is definitely a must.
Blessings~
Amen! It all starts here!
my hubby and i were just talking about this last night...while Scripture is Truth, at the same time, the Bible isn't a simple FAQ sheet with all the answers. (hubby's words) We need to go right to the source with our questions (God) rather than soley (sp?) use it as an instruction manual or recipe for a good life. It's the relationship that matters, right?
oh, and thanks for all the Pajama Mama love! ;)
I have a quick question about this topic. I'm wondering, with so many translations,and because sometimes semantics matter, how do you know which one is the infallible word of God? Sometimes I see quotes from the Bible that I don't even recognize because they differ so much from my own.
And what about understanding the context of the verse? For example the whole "turn the other cheek" thing? I've heard it explained that actually,at that time, because of the hand the Roman soldiers would use to strike people had to be a certain one (no TP in those days or something like that, seriously) they would strike a person on one side of the face, so to turn the other cheek was actually an act of defiance, which is very different than how the verse is usually understood. This is just one example. There are many others where if taken literally without understanding of the context of the times of Jesus, one may not understand the meaning properly. Any thoughts?
Suzanne,
May I ask what bible you use?
Give me some time on this question because it is true that we need to look at scripture in context and sometimes through a historical lens. I know there is someone out there who could answer this question better than I could! I do know that I trust the bible (I compare many translations, use commentaries, etc.), and I trust that it is living and God will speak to me through it.
Amen, sister!
Amen!
Okay, so I really don't want to get into a debate about all the different translations. But many years ago as I was sitting in church as a teenager I came across Mark 16:9-20 in my NIV bible, parts were seperated and removed. As I asked others about this I never got a good answer. The passage has to do with Christ's resurrection- which is a BIG thing, right? Also, in Philipp. 2:5-6 between the NIV and the KJV the verses are completely opposite.
Anyway, they were just things I've noticed through the years, and I just never got good answers for the reasons. Maybe someone here knows.
Love these verses. Especially Jeremiah 29:13-14 - takes my breath away.
Stop by and visit sometime!
Beth
Great truths! Thanks for sharing this poignant reminder!
Thank you for shareing the truth of His word with your readers. At 40 Days of Worship (my blog) I try to do the same thing by sharing my thoughts and reflections from my personal bible study. I love not only reading scripture but discussing my thoughts but learning from other people's comments.
Nicole
http://nicolenwick.wordpress.com
Thank you Sarah for your answer. It is beautiful but as a couple others have pointed out, while Scripture is Divinly inspired it is a good starting place. As you quoted Christ is the Word. And the last verse of the Gospel of John (paraphrase) say if you tried to write down everything He said and did it the world could not contain the books. So my question is more like, "Is Scripture the ONLY source of truth?"
And I guess there is a second question, after Jesus went back to heaven there was no New Testament. Paul hadn't even converted yet. Then he did and others wrote books. Most of the apostles wrote "gospels" so who is the authority that decided Scripture would be what it is and aren't we then trusting "men" to make that decision for us and not just God.
Thanks for your insight again.
Hi Jenni, :)
You always have great questions, I love it!
I'm going to let my husband take this one:
There has to be some foundation of truth. You can't have five people stating something is true - something is either true or untrue. How do you judge what is true and what isn't? You go to the very foundation of truth, the bible. Without a foundation, there is no discrepancy to what is true and what is not, otherwise truth is based on man's opinion in his sinful nature.
The Bible is the ultimate source of truth. As far as it being the only source of truth I see it as so: Example, If you were to state something and it was relationally the same truth that the bible also conveyed then you would be a "source of truth". However if I stated something the was in contradiction to the Bible and stated it as truth then obviously I am not a source of truth. It all goes back to what the Bible says and how it applies to our lives. If someone makes a statement or opinion I usually check it with what the God has to say about it and use Him as my ultimate source of truth. This is what I mean about the Bible being my ultimate source of truth. When someone states something that does not jive with what the Bible has to say it sends a red flag to me and I see as being untrue.
Bottom line, there are many sources of truth in that as long as it lines up with what the bible says, then it's a source of truth. Therefore it is not the only source, but it is the ultimate source.
One more thing...
Don't ever just take a man's "word for it" (Pastor, Bishop, me), test it against what the bible has to say.
:)
Jenni, I'll get back to you on the second question when I have a little more time! :)
I love to explain to my children how we come to know the Lord because He speaks to us. Through the scriptures and through the natural world around us we learn of His love, His order, and His beauty and majesty.
Great post!
"There has to be some foundation of truth." What about Timothy 3:16 that says "The pillar and foundation of the truth is the church"? This is why I asked the two questions together. It seems to me they go hand in hand. There has to be some authority that gave us the Bible. And if so then is that the only thing they(he/she) can say authoritatively? Sorry I am asking too many questions? There's another one. :(
Sarah Mae - BEAUTIFUL! Jesus Christ has so many aspects to His Lordship - and TRUTH is one of them. That's why He's the Living Waters - The Way - The Life... Great overview!
Jenni - this is turning theological - I recommend this series (it has 1- parts, but is worth the read...if you have time!):
In Defense of Sola Scriptura
http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/category/sola-scriptura/
I am going to post about this as well hopefully sometime soon...maybe Sunday...
Sarah,
I look forward to your post. As far as reading something else, well I have. I was very curious what your thoughts on this were. I didn't realize that we couldn't discuss theology. Sorry.
Jenni, we can talk theology, and I will give you my thoughts...I only pointed out the other site because they are far more "knowledgeable" than I am in matters of theology.
I think this is a wonderful discussion! :)
Sarah,
Thanks for the clarification. I am not trying to be difficult. I sometimes misread what people mean my there comments. I find online conversations challenging sometimes.
That having been said, I did go to the website and am very interested in reading the whole discussion there as I am very curious about the two questions I posed to you.
That scripture says "the church" is the pillar and foundation of truth and that the Gospel of John says there are many other things that Jesus said and did that are not in scripture. And based on my understanding of Sola-Scriptura those things He did would not be true which then would contradict Jesus being the "Way, the Truth..." and that would then make scripture not true which puts us in a big circle. Yuck! So again I am looking forward to reading the website and your thoughts. Thank you again.
Great post - glad you addressed that! And you're doing a great job in the comment discussion (and your hubby too!)! I'll keep praying for you to keep up your mental and physical strength my friend! :)
Post a Comment