Christian Living

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In my forty-nine years of pastoral service, I have witnessed 180 degree adjustments in everything from the basic tenets of faith to doctrines and dogmas that have been altered to fit into the ever changing society. As a Believer you learn to hold on to your faith and commitment. If one is strong enough, one will realize that what goes away will eventually come back again. There will be periodic returns to fundamentals of the Faith, but there is also the danger that Biblical Truths will be modified into “new truths” that will threaten the basis of our Faith. I never thought that the day would come when the Church would fuse into a society service club. Programs abound at such a pace that secular clubs are hard pressed to keep up. The Church needs to have an outreach, but not at the expense of being out of the reach of the Holy Spirit! So much of the Church continues to vacillate with teachings for every type of hearer. Itching ears seem to be the target of teachings and homilies; keep the people happy and excited so their checkbooks stay open. I know there are many who think I am out of touch with the times, and I accept that, but I pray I will never be out of touch with what God is saying through His Word!

The biggest threat to the imperfect Church today is the assault against the Bible. What is so tragic is confessed Believers are challenging the Word Itself. They are using contemporary reasoning to dilute the Bible. They are making the Word of God non-effective through their interpretations. God said what He meant and meant what He said, yet we believe that certain Scriptures have precedence over other Scriptures. We tend to humanize the Bible to make it more acceptable to the reader. Almost every year, new translations abound which tend to substitute God’s intended meaning by implying what He meant to say. The Bible is not made up of multiple choice Scriptures by which you can pick and choose which verses best fit our comfort zone. The Bible is a compilation of the Truths that God deems important for His people. Instead of looking for contradictions in the Word, we must come to the point of accepting the Word of God as it was given. The only error around the Bible is exhibited by the reader who tries to fit God’s Word around his own understanding. There are things I do not understand in the Bible, but I will never reject its truth. When God is ready for me to grasp the intent of a certain verse, the Holy Spirit will open my heart and flood me with understanding.

If we look at the Bible as simply sixty-six books of miscellaneous content, we might as well turn back to Egypt and the old way of life. If we challenge the authority of the Scripture, where do we turn? Some of the major denominations have dared to stand in opposition to the intended Word of God. If they continue to contradict God’s Word, ICHABOD (“the glory of the Lord has departed”) will be displayed over their doors.

The Bible is the physical evidence of God. Jesus is the Word and it is through Him that we have our life. How we treat the Written Word is how we treat the Living Word. The Word is the light unto our path and without it we are like the blind trying to find his way. The challenge to the Church is to either accept the Bible as God’s infallible Word or see it as simply concepts that need to be updated by modern interpretations. What we choose to believe will determine what type of life we will lead.

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