God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

 

This verse reveals much more to us then what we might at first realize. GOD didn't just give HIS Son, but HE gave HIS Son to accomplish a mission. This demonstrates GOD's ability to bring to pass HIS will upon the human stage.

GOD's Son wasn't simply given, but He was given as promised! For thousands of years GOD had promised that one day the Seed would come to do HIS calling. One day the Promised Seed, the Promised Son, would come and accomplish all GOD's will. Yet that is only half of what this verse reveals.

The passage not only tells us that GOD is able to plan and control events in human history, but even more than this, that GOD is able to preserve a record of those events. Because! why would GOD love the world, giving HIS Son as HE did, and then not preserve a record, a witness of those events surrounding the life of HIS Son, so that the world could read, believe, and not perish? We must have a knowledge of what GOD's Son did in order for us to be able to believe and not perish. Therefore, as important as it was for GOD to give HIS Son, it must be just as important that the record of what HIS Son did be preserved.  This is the glorious truth of this verse. This is the glorious truth of the Bible itself. This is the glorious truth of the witness of GOD.

Our greatest requirement as Christians boils down to just two fundamental points, two paramount questions. First, were the texts from which the Bible was originally translated inspired by GOD? And if so, do we have today an accurate representation of those original texts? It all revolves around these two simple points because, if we do not have confidence that the Bible is GOD's testimony of HIS mighty works, then what testimony have we?

Without an inspired Bible which accurately depicts the events surrounding the work of HIS Son, the fabric of our faith dissolves before us. Without the inspired Bible there is no clear picture of who the Savior is, and what He was about. Without something true to believe, there can be no true believer, no true Christian. If we cannot rely on the Bible as our accurate source of truth, then there is no true concept of the Resurrection, there is no true foundation for our Salvation, there is nothing sure. Nothing to live for beyond satisfying our daily desires.

Understanding this is the foundation of all our enlightenment, because unless we believe that GOD is able to inspire and preserve the witness of HIS works, then we are blind to the reality the we today possess this witness. This is the whole point upon which everything turns. Did or did not GOD inspire the writing of the Bible, and once written did HE preserve HIS inspiration?

We must come to believe that either the Bible was inspired by GOD or else accept that it evolved over the ages from the writings of men. If we believe that the Bible was inspired, and more important that HE preserved HIS inspiration, then the entire Book must fit together as one complete whole, without any contradictions. Each part must compliment and contribute to the others. If, however, we reject that inspiration and decide that the writing of the Bible was solely dependant upon the traditions of man, that it just evolved over the ages, then we must expect to find many contradictions.

As an example, when one Gospel tells us that two thieves were crucified with Yeshua [Jesus] while another Gospel reports that it was two robbers, do we think we see a contradiction, or do we search for an explanation? Are the two Gospels contradicting one another or are they complimenting one another? This is the mental fork in the road for each of us! One way reveals to us the ability of GOD to accurately record and preserve the true history of an event while the other way suggests HIS inability or unwillingness to record and preserve those same events. Which way we think will determine our end, our destination.

If those writings are only chance interpretations of the events surrounding the life of GOD's Son, then not much is lost by not believing them. But on the other hand, if those writings are indeed GOD's testimony concerning the life of HIS Son, then all is hopelessly lost for whosoever chooses not to believe them.

According to JOHN 3:16, whosoever fails to believe GOD's testimony concerning HIS Son is going to perish! Howbeit, whosoever believes GOD's testimony concerning HIS Son will have everlasting life! If the Bible is true, if it is indeed inspired by GOD, then to reject it is to reject GOD. If the Bible is GOD's testimony concerning HIS Son, then to reject or accept it is the same as rejecting or accepting GOD. It really is that simple.

Let us consider just a few short samplings of this witness as preserved for us in the Bible. I encourage you to read these words very thoughtfully.

JOHN 12:44-50  Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.  And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me.  I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.  And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.  He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.  For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.  And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.

the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day

If this was a true saying from GOD's Son, echoing down through the ages, then to not believe it is most assuredly a fearful and dangerous road to tread. If we have heard His words, the same words that we read from the holy page, but do not believe those words to be true, then according to GOD's own testimony, as spoken by HIS Son and written by His disciple, we are abiding in darkness. If we believe not, if we reject His words (these very words found in the Gospel of JOHN) as being true, we will be held accountable in the last day.

If these words that we read are truly the words that He spoke, then they are indeed the words that GOD Almighty gave Him to speak. If that is true, these words are then GOD's testimony to the world.

I would think that one would want undeniable proof, proof that is absolutely conclusive that these words are not true before they would hazard to not believe them.  If GOD sent HIS Son that the world might not perish, then to deny that Son, which according to the above passage is to reject His words, can result in nothing else but to perish.

Let us consider and ponder another of these sayings.

LUKE 9:26 For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels.

If we deny these words in John's Gospel, then we simultaneously deny the record of the Son in John's Gospel. If we are to believe the Son, we must believe His words. It will not do to think, say or even confess Yeshua as Lord if we do not believe His words. It is the height of arrogance to think we are a Christian and then conclude that the Scriptures are not inspired or do not represent true events.

Some seem to think that they believe in GOD or that Jesus is their Lord, but they just don't believe the Bible accurately represents the truth. Doesn't that sound a little absurd? Think! What would we know of GOD and HIS Son without the Bible?

If not the Bible, where did GOD preserve the record of all that HIS Son accomplished? Would GOD give HIS only begotten Son to die such an horrendous death and then not preserve some testimony of His life, death and resurrection? Isn't the answer evident? And yet how few acknowledge the Scriptures to be inspired, and how few others believe them to be accurately written by holy men of GOD?!

2 PETER 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

To believe that these scriptures were inspired and accurately written by holy men of GOD, is to believe that they are one harmonious whole, from GENESIS to REVELATION.  We don't have four evangelist telling four different histories about GOD's Son, but what we have is four different evangelists telling one story from four different perspectives. Each book, each epistle offers its own piece of one grand puzzle. No part can contradict another part, for if GOD be the one author, all inspired writers must be in agreement. This is what inspiration is, to be moved by GOD's spirit to write, speak or act in some way.

LUKE 12:11-12  And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say:  For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say.

If GOD was able to give these disciples words to speak so as to be a witness against these magistrates, then HE most assuredly was able to give other disciples words to write so as to be a witness of HIS mighty works. What other explanation is there for the amazing and wonderful Book we call the Bible? What other book gives us the history of our Race? What other book gives us the purpose of the ages? What other book explains what lies for us beyond the grave? What other book has been preserved for us down through the eons? Where else can one find the wisdom of PROVERBS? Where else can one see the simplistic truth taught in the Sermon on the Mount?

And yet this Book was not written by some really smart philosopher who compiled all the wisdom of the ages into a single volume. No, this Book was written by more than forty different writers over the span of fifteen centuries, hardly ever referencing any other work outside of itself. Moreover, during these ages and since, the forces of evil have relentlessly worked at destroying this Book, by imprisoning, torturing and murdering its writers, its readers and its believers. And yet it prevails. GOD's testimony still speaks to an unbelieving world.

Let us go forward from today holding up as our only rule of faith this Holy Book. Let us attempt to forget all the garbage we have been taught. Let us wipe the slate clean, if we can. Let us reject all of the leaders who have led us into this dire place of doubt and unbelief. Let us wrestle free from the chains of religious tradition and measure every concept by HIS revealed truth.

 

This is the Christian's Greatest Need