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This online correspondence course has
frequently quoted from the Bible. This is by design. The Bible is
a book unlike any other. It makes an astonishing claim for itself:
All Scripture is given by
inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof,
for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man
of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy
3:16-17)
That is, the Bible claims it is from God. David, one of
the men God used to write the Bible, even said, "The Spirit
of the Lord spoke by
me, and His word was on my tongue." (2 Samuel 23:2)
The word "inspiration" in 2 Timothy 3:16 means
"God-breathed." This tells us that the Bible comes from
the mouth and the mind of God, even though He didn't personally
write a word of the Bible! God used about forty different human writers who lived at
different times in a 1,500-year period to give the world His word.
The perfect harmony of these writers' work is convincing evidence
that they were all guided by one mind, the mind of God. Some
of these writers wrote exactly what God told them
(Deuteronomy 31:24).
Others wrote what they actually saw
(John 20:30-31).
Others wrote what eyewitnesses told them
(Acts 1:1-4).
But all of
the writers were perfectly guided by God's Spirit. The
writers were inspired, and the book they produced is inspired.
God's messengers for the Old Testament were called prophets.
2 Peter 1:21 says, "For prophecy never came by the will
of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy
Spirit."
God's messenger for the New Testament was Jesus Christ.
Jesus promised His apostles, "However, when He, the Spirit of
truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not
speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak;
and He will tell you all things to come." (John 16:13)
So on judgment day, what do you think God will use to judge the
world? Certainly not the words of Mohammed (the Koran) or of
Joseph Smith (the Book of Mormon). It will be the words of Jesus,
as found in the Bible.
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