The Bible: The Invincible

May 20, 2007

Taken from the May 20, 2007 ‘Faith' section of the Frontiersman Newspaper.

The official nickname for the Air Force's new F-22 fighter is Raptor.

Raptors are very strong, unusually large birds.

They have hooked beaks and sharp talons. The name Raptor was chosen for the F-22 because it incorporates the strongest characteristics of all birds of prey. It emulates the flight of the owl with its stealth.

It carries out swift attacks like a hawk with its speed. It expends as little energy as it has to in flight, much like the condor that coasts on air currents. It has the speed of a falcon and the agility of a hawk. The F-22 is an awesome weapon.

As Christians we possess a more potent weapon - the Word of God. Satan always attacks the Bible. Superior weaponry is critical to winning any war.

In the temptation in the wilderness Jesus defeated Satan with Scripture. Jesus believed the Bible is exactly what it claims to be- the authoritative, inspired, inerrant Word of God.

Jesus said, &#8220Every word . . . proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Jesus affirmed the Scriptures to be &#8220the Word of God” (Mark 7:13) - not the word of man.

The Apostle Paul agreed on this point. &#8220All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).

Inspiration means that the Bible is God breathed (theopneustos). Being the very breath of God, what the Bible says, God says.

War is no time to experiment with inferior weaponry. When in danger, you must rely upon what you absolutely know will bring victory. What did Jesus believe about the Bible? A survey of the four gospels reveals that Jesus believed four facts concerning the Bible.

The first fact is that Jesus believed all the books of the Bible are inspired. Jesus believed all the Bible is inspired- not just parts of it. Referring to the totality of Scripture, Jesus said, &#8220From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished before the altar and the House of God, yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation” (Luke 11:515).

&#8220The blood of Abel” is mentioned in Genesis 4:8 in the first book of the Old Testament. &#8220The blood of Zechariah” is mentioned in 2 Chronicles 24:20-21- the last book of the Hebrew Old Testament. Jesus used a literary device called inclusion.

By saying &#8220from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah” He said, &#8220from the start to finish.” Today we might say, &#8220From Genesis to Revelation.” Or, &#8220From start to finish.”

But what about the New Testament written after the resurrection of Jesus? In John 16:13 Jesus promised, &#8220But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.” The New Testament books are the fulfillment of this teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit.

The second fact is that Jesus believed all the words of the Bible are inspired. Jesus said, &#8220Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Jesus said that every word of the Bible proceeds from God. Not just the general thoughts, not only some of the words- but all the words.

The third fact Jesus believed is that all the letters of the Bible are inspired. Christ said, &#8220For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letterŠ. shall pass away” (Matthew 5:18).

The smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet is the yodh. It is so small that it looks like an inverted apostrophe (‘) or the dot above the letter i.

Even the smallest letter, the yodh, is inspired by God wherever it is found in Scripture.

The fourth fact is that Jesus believed that all the strokes of all the letters are inspired. Again, Jesus said, &#8220Not the smallest Š stroke shall pass away” (Matthew 5:18). Steve Lawson says, &#8220A stroke, called a serif, was the smallest marking in the Hebrew alphabet.

It was a small line on several Hebrew letters that distinguished the two smallest letters. It was just a small extension or protrusion on a letter. Just a tiny, hyphen-like stroke. A minuscule eyelash. That's how far Jesus believed inspiration extended to all of Scripture.”

Putting all this together, Jesus believed that divine inspiration extended to all the strokes of all the letters of all the words of all the books of the Bible.

Liberal skeptics often attack four stories from the Old Testament - Adam and Eve, Noah and the Flood, Sodom and Gomorrah and Jonah and the great fish. Yet, Jesus personally believed in all four of these stories as they are recorded in the Bible.

He accepted their historical authenticity (Adam and Even in Matthew 19:4; Noah and the Flood in Matthew 24:37-39; Sodom and Gomorrah in Luke 17:28-30; Jonah and the fish in Matthew 12:38-40).

We can argue from the greater to the lesser. If He believed these most controversial stories in the Bible to be literally true, then certainly He believed all of the biblical record to be true.

Imagine a general during a time of conflict leaving the F-22 Raptor unused. No sane general would do such a thing.

Don't leave your Bible on the shelf. Read the Bible. Study the Word of God. Let it point you to the Messiah Jesus.

He died for you on the cross. He bore your sins. Let it be the foundation for your life. Build your life upon it.

Ethan Hansen is Pastor of Faith Bible Fellowship in Big Lake. Contact him at ethanchansen @gci.net