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THEME: I Am Fifth
Series: Hills
TITLE: The Words of Life
Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:16-17
The Words of Life
CS Lewis:
“You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you.”
We believe that the Bible is the divinely inspired, written Word of God, without error in its original language, and sufficient enough for all to know God’s desire. (From the OVCF Statement of Beliefs)
I. INSPIRATION AND RELIABILITY OF THE BIBLE
The Bible is composed of (66 different books) and was written by (over 40 different authors) spanning across (1600 years.) There are an estimated 5-6 billion copies in existence.
Here’s what we don’t mean when we say that the Bible is the divinely inspired, written Word of God:
1.) God (wrote it for) the authors.
2.) God (dictated it to) the authors word-for-word
Here’s what we do mean: Through His Spirit’s leading and infinite power God used human beings to compose the Word, allowing them to express their own (literary styles) within the context of their own languages and cultures. And yet, His (message and intent) were preserved in the process and outcome.
Reliability – Trustworthy or consistently good in its quality. Is what the Bible contains – from ideas to history to geography and more – trustworthy or not? EX: If the Bible is full of historical and factual errors or blatantly contradicts itself, it’s hard to trust it or view it as reliable IS the Bible Reliable???
II. THE BIBLE IS THE DRIVING MEANS OF KNOWING GOD AND FOLLOWING HIM
1.) The Bible is (God’s love) extended to us.
2.) All of the Bible (points us to Jesus) and the (life he gives).
3.) The Bible, in tandem with (the Holy Spirit), works to transform us.
The crux of the matter is this: Do you love the Word? Do you love the Author? He loves you. May we become people who delight in the Word of God – who live by it – who memorize it – who can’t get enough of it.
