Bible Question:
It is my opinion that the new testament in accurate, useful and reliable but not "the word of God". It seems that 2 timothy 3:16 is not refering to the new testament. It had not yet been compiled. It is my opinion that the word of God is Christ and the gospel as in (2 corinthians 2:17,4:2, john 1:1, 1:14) I think the belief that the bible is the word of god is a stumbling block for some people to come to Christ. Do we need to believe the bible is the word of God for salvation? Then why do we Christians seem to hold on to this belief? Why do we need to believe the bible is the word of God in order to become a member of a church? Are there any Christian groups or demominations that have my view? I would greatly appreciate your opinion on this subject. |
Bible Answer: Hello hetfield, It appears that you are honestly seeking the truth here and I hope I'm right. Otherwise you would only be trying to stir controversy. Assuming you are in search of the truth let me address your post. Basically, you state that you do not believe that the bible, particularly the New Testament, is the word of God. The problem I have with your premise is that you only use the New Testament to support your belief. The scripture you referred to were all New Testament. I find it peculiar that you would do this. I believe it is important that each of us have reasonable evidence for what we "believe". You are asking for others to give that evidence but you state your own belief without offering evidence of any kind. If you are truly seeking then you must be willing to honestly evaluate the evidence. This can only be done by a real study of the New Testament which must include it's relationship to the Old Testament. What you will find among many things, is that it and the Old Testament both affirm each other. There are others that can articulate this much better than I, but the best approach I believe is for you to begin an honest study for yourself. You say you believe in God. Start your study with prayer and ask Him to show you the truth. More specifically, you asked if it is necessary to believe the bible is the word of God in order to be saved. I would ask, if salvation is not found in the bible, where would one find it? Is the New Testament to be included? Well, the Old Testament does not offer a savior, but only the promise of one. The finished work of the Savior is found in the New Testament, therefore, it must be more than just accurate and reliable. It must be absolute and trustworthy. Otherwise, we can not be sure that the promised savior was and is Jesus Christ and that he has come, died, rose, and ascended finishing the work that does save us. Simply put, witout the New Testament, we have no salvation, but only the promise of a savior to come. So, yes, we must believe the bible is the word of God because without it we have nothing to believe in. But it is not believing this that saves us, it is trusting in the truth and the gracious gift of God through Christ that it teaches us about that saves us. I hope this is helpful, Jeff |