HE IS AN AUTHOR
1. People sometimes read books solely based upon an author.
2. For about as long as I can remember my dad has enjoyed a certain western writer for several years.
3. If dad saw one of this man’s books, he assumed he would enjoy it.
WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT, WE SHOULD THINK OF HIM AS AN AUTHOR
a) God says the Holy Spirit wrote books.
b) Moments ago we heard the final two verses from 2 Pet. 1.
c) As Peter closed this chapter he said men “spoke from God.”
2) Peter described those men, who authored Bible books, in a very specific way.
3) He said Bible authors were “moved by the Holy Spirit.”
4) Today we sometimes find people who have questions about the Bible.
a) Can it be trusted? Is it reliable? How accurate is it?
b) Peter says what we know as the Scriptures were authored by the Holy Spirit.
c) This is why Paul was able to say in 2 Tim. 3:16, all scripture is “inspired.”
d) Literally the word inspired in 2 Tim. 3 meant God breathed.
e) When the books of the Bible were given, God helped the writers.
5) Back in 2 Pet. 1:21 another word is noteworthy.
6) An apostle said writers were “moved” by the Holy Spirit.
7) Moved might be translated “carried along.” It was the Holy Spirit who helped them write.
8) When we look at the Bible books, we find that the writers were not creative.
9) They didn’t make up things on their own.
10) It was the Holy Spirit who carried them along and guided them.
11) This is a magnificent claim, and it challenges people to come to the Bible and test it.
a) Did the Bible really result from divine help or did Peter say something untrue?
b) Consider some of the things said by people during the last few centuries.
12) In 1773 King George the 2nd said the American colonies had little stomach for revolution.
13) He was wrong.
14) In 1912 the Titanic was declared unsinkable. That ship sank.
15) Back in 1939 the New York Times made a comment about television.
16) Since people had to look intently at the screens, it was said t.v. wouldn’t be watched.
17) It was said people would not have time for television.
18) At the start of the 19th century an astronomy professor spoke about flying.
19) He said high speed air travel was impossible because people would suffocate.
20) Numerous predictions were made, but time after time people were wrong.
21) Is the Bible like these predictions of men—full of information that is interesting but inaccurate?
22) Or is it a book that is completely accurate, time and time again?
a) A quick examination of the Scriptures reveals the existence of numerous prophecies.
b) Bible writers made prediction upon prediction.
c) Fact after fact is found within the pages of the Bible.
d) All this information has been checked and re-checked, and it is correct.
e) Time has passed and passed, but time has only established the truthfulness of the message.
f) How can the Bible be right time after time, but people in the world be wrong?
23) We have already given the answer based upon 2 Pet. 1 and 2 Tim. 3.
24) Bible writers were “carried along” as God’s Spirit guided them.
25) Someone has said that a fourth of the Bible is predictive prophecy.
26) That to me seems to be a high percentage, so let’s say the amount is only a tenth.
27) Pick up your Bible and mentally divide it into 10 parts.
28) Imagine one of these ten parts dealing with nothing but future predictions.
29) A high percentage of these predictions have already been fulfilled.
30) Imagine a 10th of your Bible making predictions and each one comes true.
31) Such a book cannot have been written by mere men.
32) Only God can author such a book.
33) I once read a
statement by a preacher who said he objected to the expression “Bible
stories.”
He said story is often associated with fables, myths, and nursery
rhymes.
34) Since the Bible is not in these categories, we should not say “Bible stories.”
35) His point was probably a little over the top, but we would agree on this much:
a) The Bible is not a book of stories in the sense that its information is untrue.
b) The events actually happened, and we have a dependable account of what occurred.
c) Jesus said Jonah was swallowed by a great whale, Mt. 12:39-40.
d) Jesus spoke about man being from the beginning, Mt. 19:4.
e) He also talked about Solomon, the queen of Sheba, the people of Sodom.
f) Abraham was treated as a real person as were Noah and the flood.
36) We need to tell people the Bible is vastly different from all other books.
37) One of the other verses read tonight was 2 Pet. 1:16.
38) Let’s look at that text again – READ.
a) Being guided by the Holy Spirit, men did not follow clever fables.
b) God’s word is not a book that deceives people.
c) There are documents, however, which are in this category.
d) From time to time we hear about the Quran.
e) I want to cite some verses from this volume.
f) See how they strike you (Quran, 3:97).
39) Mohammed described heaven and here is part of his portrayal of the after-life:
a) 76:15 — people are severed drinks in silver containers.
b) 76:17 — These drinks consist of many delicious flavors.
c) 76:18 — They come from a special stream.
d) 76:19 — Immortal servants who look like scattered pearls serve the drinks.
e) 76:21 — These servants will wear green, velvet, and satin clothing.
f) 78:32 — Orchids and grapes will be available.
g) 78:33 — Magnificent spouses will also be available (given to those in heaven).
40) That description sounds like it was written by men, and it was.
41) We can read the books of men and they shout, “from man, not God.”
42) Upon reading the Bible, we find a book that is entirely different.
43) When we look at the Bible we find three basic options concerning its origin:
a) It was written by men who were good, men who were evil/misguided, or God.
b) In more than 2,000 places in just the Old Testament the Bible claims to be from God.
c) Would good men tell the same lie (the Bible is from God when it is not) more than 2,000 times?
d) Noe.
44) What about the Scriptures having been written by evil people or people who were misguided?
a) We can answer this question by studying Bible books.
b) In the scriptures, people are called to holiness and righteous living.
c) Sin is condemned; righteousness is exalted.
d) All men are called to the highest standard of purity and morality.
e) Eternal doom it pronounced upon sinners.
f) Misguided people make mistakes—lots of mistakes.
45) If we reject the first two answers, only remains: God authored this book.
46) This is an important point to be aware of and emphasize in our day and time.
a) At the present hour we live in a time of superb technology.
b) If we want to find out something, the information can be had almost instantly.
c) It is no longer necessary to wait till the library opens.
d) We can go to a computer and with a few key strokes, find out almost anything.
e) We can read about health issues, food recipes, and even shop.
f) News is available whenever we want it.
g) Many super stores are open 24-hours a day, 7 days a week.
47) With all that we have, we might ask why turn to a book that is thousands of years old?
48) Why esteem and treasure this book above any other thing in our life?
49) Millions of other books have been written. Many good books have been penned in recent times.
50) Why go back to a document that is ancient?
51) Our answer has already been given: Because it was authored by the Holy Spirit.
52) Only the Spirit of God could produce a volume like we have.
a) When we look at the Scriptures we find that 40 men were used to produce it.
b) The Spirit worked through these men for a total period of about 1,600 years.
c) During this time no passage ever had to be revised.
d) Three different languages were used to compose this volume: Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic.
e) People from various walks of life were used by the Spirit in writing the Scriptures.
53) There were prophets like Jeremiah.
54) Amos was a shepherd. David was a king.
55) Nehemiah was a servant, Luke a doctor, and Matthew was a tax collector.
56) Paul was an ex-Pharisee.
57) Bible writers came from three different continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe.
58) Different settings were used to the write in Bible.
59) From desert sands to the prison walls the Holy Spirit helped people write God’s word.
60) Since the bb is a divine product, it will always be relevant and important.
a) It is through the Bible that we get information not found anywhere else.
b) Men often wonder about creation—how did everything begin?
c) What is the real purpose of life?
d) Is their a being greater than mankind?
e) Only one source provides true and authoritative answers for these questions.
61) Because the Bible is such a book Jesus described it in very precise terms.
a) He said it is the “Word of God” (Mk. 7:13).
b) He referred to it as “Scripture” (Lk 4:21).
c) In Mk. 7:8 He calls it “commandment of God.”
d) When Jesus answered His critics and even the devil himself, He quoted the Bible.
62) If we believe the Bible is God’s word, we must cling to it with all our being.
63) We pledge to read it, love it, and follow it no matter what the cost.
64) Is this our choice? Are we convinced that the Scriptures are true?