Written Word or Living Word?

[Gideon300]

There is a good deal of debate about the "best" version of the Bible. Reactions vary from "who cares?" to "there is only one, the King James". I have another point of view that I think worth considering.

Tell me which is better, to know about a book someone has written or to know the author? If you have only the book, you will have to work out the meaning yourself. Since we are all fallible, there is always the risk of a misunderstanding. Now if you the author personally, you can ask him, "What do you mean by this?" He can then explain it to you.

God did not give us a Bible and leave us to work it out for ourselves. Lord Jesus gave us His Holy Spirit, whose role is to lead us into the truth. It's not His only role, but it is vital. If we study the Bible, we will find that the Lord Jesus is the Truth and He is also the Word. We can therefore be assured that the Holy Spirit will reveal the Lord Jesus, and what He has done for us and who we are in Him. The Holy Spirit will never contradict the written Word, but the written Word alone is not sufficient (Ephesians 1:17).

Does God speak today? Definitely. For example, I had a question for God. Why did He permit Adam and Eve to populate the earth? Could He not dismiss them and start again? They died spiritually when they sinned. God was not obliged to help them, but He did. I did not get an answer immediately, but I could not let the question go. After a few days, the Lord spoke to me. This is what He said:

The Lord said to me that in a way, He did terminate Adam and Eve and start again. God included the whole human race in the death of Christ on the cross. All that is of Adam has been terminated. When Jesus rose again, it was as the "Last Adam", the "second Man". So the Lord Jesus is the founder of a new race of men, we now call Christians. Our ancestry (spiritually) is traced to Jesus, not to Adam.

Every word that the Lord spoke to me can be confirmed by the Bible. Yet what He said to me is not specifically stated in the Bible.

It is possible to value the Bible more than the One who gave it to us. Arguments about the "best" version are fruitless. The "best" version of God's word is the Lord Jesus and the best Teacher is the Holy Spirit. By all means study God's Word. I have spent hours at a time doing just that. But without the help of the Holy Spirit, all we will get is mental knowledge. This is a recipe for spiritual pride. (1 Corinthians 8:1). We need revelation imparted to our spirit man. We will see that revelation is a gift, not something we earned. There is no room for pride. We come to God as needy people who do not know, and cannot know without His help.

 

[BigSky2021]

Thank you for sharing. That's happened to me. Asking God a question and then, after some time, an answer appears. It's uncanny but this has happened to me many, many times. But only in the last few years. When my eyes and ears began to seek his Word. I was an agnostic most of my life. But things changed when I hit some rough times and began conversations with believers. So I began to pray. And ask questions. And then lo and behold, answers began appearing. In print, on the radio, a podcast, a billboard, maybe meeting a person. But the answer was given. And a series of these revelations lead me to the Truth of the Word which is Christ. I prayed my thanks and asked for even more insight, and it was given.

When it happens, you just know it. Unmistakable.

 

[Gideon300]

Thank you for sharing. That's happened to me. Asking God a question and then, after some time, an answer appears. It's uncanny but this has happened to me many, many times. But only in the last few years. When my eyes and ears began to seek his Word. I was an agnostic most of my life. But things changed when I hit some rough times and began conversations with believers. So I began to pray. And ask questions. And then lo and behold, answers began appearing. In print, on the radio, a podcast, a billboard, maybe meeting a person. But the answer was given. And a series of these revelations lead me to the Truth of the Word which is Christ. I prayed my thanks and asked for even more insight, and it was given.

When it happens, you just know it. Unmistakable.

Yes. During one of my low times, I was driving along an unfamiliar road. There was a huge sign on the side of a building. It simply said, "Jesus Cares". It was just what I needed to be reminded of at the time. I've had many similar experiences. God is real and knows how to get through to us, even when we are too busy worrying to listen.

 

[JaumeJ]

Amen, He is ever diligent to our true needs.

 

[p_rehbein]

To the Author:

Are you saying Adam and Eve were lost? Are you saying they will reside in hell for all eternity?

 

[CS1]

There is a good deal of debate about the "best" version of the Bible. Reactions vary from "who cares?" to "there is only one, the King James". I have another point of view that I think worth considering.

Tell me which is better, to know about a book someone has written or to know the author? If you have only the book, you will have to work out the meaning yourself. Since we are all fallible, there is always the risk of a misunderstanding. Now if you the author personally, you can ask him, "What do you mean by this?" He can then explain it to you.

God did not give us a Bible and leave us to work it out for ourselves. Lord Jesus gave us His Holy Spirit, whose role is to lead us into the truth. It's not His only role, but it is vital. If we study the Bible, we will find that the Lord Jesus is the Truth and He is also the Word. We can therefore be assured that the Holy Spirit will reveal the Lord Jesus, and what He has done for us and who we are in Him. The Holy Spirit will never contradict the written Word, but the written Word alone is not sufficient (Ephesians 1:17).

Does God speak today? Definitely. For example, I had a question for God. Why did He permit Adam and Eve to populate the earth? Could He not dismiss them and start again? They died spiritually when they sinned. God was not obliged to help them, but He did. I did not get an answer immediately, but I could not let the question go. After a few days, the Lord spoke to me. This is what He said:

The Lord said to me that in a way, He did terminate Adam and Eve and start again. God included the whole human race in the death of Christ on the cross. All that is of Adam has been terminated. When Jesus rose again, it was as the "Last Adam", the "second Man". So the Lord Jesus is the founder of a new race of men, we now call Christians. Our ancestry (spiritually) is traced to Jesus, not to Adam.

Every word that the Lord spoke to me can be confirmed by the Bible. Yet what He said to me is not specifically stated in the Bible.

It is possible to value the Bible more than the One who gave it to us. Arguments about the "best" version are fruitless. The "best" version of God's word is the Lord Jesus and the best Teacher is the Holy Spirit. By all means study God's Word. I have spent hours at a time doing just that. But without the help of the Holy Spirit, all we will get is mental knowledge. This is a recipe for spiritual pride. (1 Corinthians 8:1). We need revelation imparted to our spirit man. We will see that revelation is a gift, not something we earned. There is no room for pride. We come to God as needy people who do not know, and cannot know without His help.

If you don't know Jesus as your Lord and Savior the KJV will not save you.

 

[Gideon300]

To the Author:

Are you saying Adam and Eve were lost? Are you saying they will reside in hell for all eternity?

Not necessarily. I don't know. I do know that in Adam, all died spiritually. If God saw that Adam and Eve had faith, I believe that the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus would have availed for Adam. Abel had faith, Cain did not. The very early days of human life are a bit of a mystery to me and I've never been motivated to find out more. One day, all will be revealed.

 

[ResidentAlien]

Generally I agree. However, the Lord established the church, His body, as His method for the propagation of the gospel. We need pastors and teachers to help us understand God's word. Maybe we might not see eye-to-eye with them, but learning together is still better than being a lone wolf; that isn't God's way. I can't tell you how many people I've met who say all they need is a Bible and the Holy Spirit; but their ideas are way off base. What they think is the Holy Spirit is really their own mind. This is usually how cults get started.

They died spiritually when they sinned.

Now, as for what you say here: a question. This is a very common idea, but if they died spiritually, and we inherited their spiritually dead state, how is it a person can go to hell for all eternity. I've heard countless sermons where preachers say, "You have an eternal spirit which will suffer eternal torment if you don't repent and accept Christ." But how can that be if we're dead spiritually? I do believe we possess an eternal spirit, but the "death" spoken of in Genesis was simply bodily death, in my opinion.

 

[Nehemiah6]

Arguments about the "best" version are fruitless.

How can they be fruitless when God commands us to sift the wheat from the chaff? He also tells us to refrain from calling good evil and evil good.

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my Word, let him speak my Word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD.

Knowing the Author of the Bible is vitally important. But so is knowing which Bible He gave and which He did not. If an English translation has served Christians for over 400 years, it means that God has put His stamp of approval on it.

 

[OrphanedRepublican]

BigSky said: "But things changed when I hit some rough times and began conversations with believers."

which reminded me of:

Psalm 119:67 Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.
Psalm 119:71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.
Psalm 119:75 I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.
Psalm 119:107 I am afflicted very much: quicken me, O LORD, according unto thy word.

 

[Gideon300]

Generally I agree. However, the Lord established the church, His body, as His method for the propagation of the gospel. We need pastors and teachers to help us understand God's word. Maybe we might not see eye-to-eye with them, but learning together is still better than being a lone wolf; that isn't God's way. I can't tell you how many people I've met who say all they need is a Bible and the Holy Spirit; but their ideas are way off base. What they think is the Holy Spirit is really their own mind. This is usually how cults get started.



Now, as for what you say here: a question. This is a very common idea, but if they died spiritually, and we inherited their spiritually dead state, how is it a person can go to hell for all eternity. I've heard countless sermons where preachers say, "You have an eternal spirit which will suffer eternal torment if you don't repent and accept Christ." But how can that be if we're dead spiritually? I do believe we possess an eternal spirit, but the "death" spoken of in Genesis was simply bodily death, in my opinion.

That makes no sense. The human race is born dead in trespass and sin. How can that be anything but spiritual death? Death obviously does not mean the end of existence. There is physical death sooner or later. Then there is the judgement. Those who are still dead spiritually are eternally separated from God. They are judged according to their works. That is what is commonly, but wrongly, called hell.

Those who are born again, i.e. spiritually alive, are rewarded according their kingdom work in this life.

 

[Gideon300]

How can they be fruitless when God commands us to sift the wheat from the chaff? He also tells us to refrain from calling good evil and evil good.

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my Word, let him speak my Word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD.

Knowing the Author of the Bible is vitally important. But so is knowing which Bible He gave and which He did not. If an English translation has served Christians for over 400 years, it means that God has put His stamp of approval on it.

It's not served me for the last 50 years. Countless other Christians manage quite well with other versions. And how about non-English speakers? The KJV is useless to them.

 

[Blik]

It is so important to remember the author when we read scripture. We need to keep in mind all His attributes, especially when we read the old testament. The people who illustrate what God is telling us in the old testament thought in a different way than we do today, centuries of time separate us. Yet the God that breathed that word is the very same God with the very same ways as the God we have today. It is important to remember that.

God even changed his commands that He gave to them, telling them for example, to cut foreskin as a sign they belonged to him, and telling us to belong to Him in our hearts. As God perfected His commands we must remember it is the very same God with the same ways that gave the first commands.

Some people have the idea that a strange God told people to kill animals to feed Him in the old testament. That is not true of our eternal God. God gave blood on the altar as Christ was in eternal time, that symbolic blood of Christ (a shadow of Christ) was blood sacrificed for salvation. That incomplete salvation was called atonement.

Our God is eternal, the same all through eternity.

We need to study the old testament, not as history only, but as outlines of what all of it symbolized of Christ. All of it. The temple, the sacrificial system, the camp in the wilderness, the holy wars--all of it.

 

[Mission21]

It's not served me for the last 50 years. Countless other Christians manage quite well with other versions. And how about non-English speakers? The KJV is useless to them.

Good point..
- I agree.
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There are Christians nearly in every country.. around the world.