In this day of infidelity and skepticism, there is no lesson more important than this lesson on the Word of God. Lesson 1 is designed to teach the truth on the inspiration of the Bible. There are those who deny the Bible in its entirety; these men are called infidels. There are those who deny the verbal inspiration of the Bible; these men are called modernists. Then there are those who deny any part of the Bible when it contradicts their denominational creeds. The claim that the Living Oracles make for themselves is that the word of God is perfect, converting the soul. (Psa. 19:7). Jude declares that the faith has been once delivered to the saints. (Jude 3) and Peter adds to this testimony when he declares that God has given us all things that pertain unto life and godliness through the knowledge of Him that called us to glory and virtue. (2 Peter 1:3,4) One of the last warnings of God to His people is that they neither add to nor take from the Sacred Oracles. (Rev. 22:18).
The conclusion to this is that the Bible and the Bible alone is the only creed for the church and to follow it and it alone is its only hope. This is why churches of Christ dare not have any creed but Christ nor any book save the Bible.
1. "Then God , let there be light: and there was light." (Gen. 1:3) This is the very first use of the Word of God mentioned in the Bible.
2. "By the word of the Lord the were made."(Psalms 33:6)
3. "By faith we understand that the were framed by the of God." (Hebrews 11:3)
4. "The word of God is and and sharper than any two edged sword." (Hebrews 4:12)
5. "The word of God gives and to the simple. (Psa.119:130)
6. What is the word of God?
(a) Jeremiah 23:29, "Is not my word like a ? says the Lord; and like a that breaks the rock in pieces?"
(b) John 6:63, "The words that I speak to you are and they are life.
(c) Luke 8:11,"Now the parable is this: the is the word of God.
(d) Ephesians 6:17, "And the of the , which is the word of God."
(e) Psalms 119:105, "Your word is a to my feet, and a to my path."
7. Things that the word of God does for us.
(a) John 17:17,
(b) James 1:21, " your souls." Salvation of the soul is impossible unless we receive with meekness the engrafted word. This shows the necessity of obedience to the word of God.
(c) Psalms 19:7, "The law of the Lord is perfect, the soul". If the law of the Lord is perfect to convert the soul, then creeds, manuals, disciplines and confessions of faith are not necessary!
8. How are we made clean? (John 15:3) Without obedience to the word of God we cannot be made clean in the sight of God.
9. Men are born again when they obey the commandments of the incorruptible which is the of .(1 Peter 1:23)
The new birth cannot be accomplished, according to the inspired Peter until the incorruptible seed, or the word of God is planted in the heart and obeyed. How foreign to God's word is the teaching that a man can be born again by some mysterious force acting on his heart before he has obeyed the dictates of God as expressed in His word.
10. Our attitude toward the word of God is one of being of the word and not only. (James 1:22)
11. How will we be judged? (John 12:48)
12. What will happen to those who take away from the Word of God? (Rev.22:19) God will take away:
his part from
from the
and from the
13. Every preacher is charged to the . (2 Tim. 4:2)
Human opinions, decrees of popes or councils are not part of the true gospel preacher's message. He is to preach the Word only.
14. God's power to save is the . (Rom. 1:16)
15. Do we know anything of God, Christ, heaven, hell, the church, and how to be saved except what we learn from the Bible? Yes or no.
Everything we need is in the Bible. (2 Tim. 3:16)
At the conclusion of this lesson the student can readily see the following facts:
1. That all human creeds are in rebellion to the Word of God.
2. That no man can be saved without complete obedience to the Word of God.
3. That when the book of Revelation was completed, the word of God was settled and sealed by the blood of Christ and it cannot be added to nor taken from. This would forever destroy the claims of those have received present-day revelations that are being appealed to as authority in addition to the Bible. Those who have dug up tablets of gold, journeyed to heaven or had mysterious talks with God must be counted as false prophets.
4. We should all have the utmost respect for the utterances of God and His Word must be the final authority in all matters religious.
***All Bible texts and quotations are taken from the New King James Version. |
