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The term bible means a book. Actually, the Bible is a collection of sixty-six books, written by about forty men over a period of about 1,600 years. What relevance does this ancient library have to modern man? How much attention should it be given?
A Divine Revelation
From beginning to end, the Bible claims to be a revelation from God. The expression thus says the Lord or some equivalent occurs over 2,000 times in the Old Testament. Peter said of those writings, “No prophecy of Scripture was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:21 ). The New Testament makes similar claims. Jesus came to earth to reveal God’s will (John 1:18 ). He began that work, then promised to send the Holy Spirit to the apostles to complete it. “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. . .” (John 16:13 ). Therefore the apostles could say, “…recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment” (1 Corinthians 14:37 ).
A Complete Revelation
If the Spirit did what Jesus said He would, all truth was revealed to the apostles. Jude says the faith “was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). Peter affirms that “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who has called us by His own glory and excellence” (2 Peter 1:3 ). Divine revelation was completed. That being the case, there was nothing left for God to reveal later though other books, church leaders, etc.
A Valuable Revelation
God revealed Himself to us so we can know how to please Him, so we can know how to conduct ourselves to make the make the most of life. Moses said, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law” (Deuteronomy 29:29 ). Later the Apostle Paul affirmed, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Jesus said God’s word is truth (John 17:17 ).
The Bible reveals religious truth. Apart from it, our conception of God or ideas about what pleases Him are nothing more than guesswork. The Bible contains sufficient internal evidence to prove itself to be what it claims. It convicts us of sin. It teaches us what we must do to be made right with God. It tells us how to live righteously and worship acceptably. In short, it is God’s instruction book for life.
A Respected Revelation
The Bible is a communication from God; obviously, we had better pay attention to it (2 Peter 1:19 ). The New Testament is the specific portion which applies directly to us (Galatians 3:24-25 ). It is the standard by which we will be judged (John 12:48 ). Our eternal destiny hangs in the balance.
Since the Bible is God’s word, is no surprise that we are warned throughout not to tamper with its contents. “You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you” (Deuteronomy 4:2 ). “…learn not to exceed what is written…” (1 Corinthians 4:6 ). “. . . the Scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35 ).
“Therefore putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves” (James 1:21-22 ).
The Bible claims to be a revelation from God, all we need in order to know His will for us (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:3 ). “So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is” (Ephesians 5:17 ). How does the Bible tell us what God wants? Or, asked another way, How do we establish Bible authority?
Commands Stated
Often God directly states what He wants us to do or not do: “Thou shalt. . .,” “Thou shalt not. . .” At times there may be a list of things we must do or be, for example, the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23 . Or, there may be a list of things we must not do or be, such as Paul’s list in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 of those who will not inherit the kingdom of God. More often, these stated commands are interspersed throughout the New Testament writings. They address both individual and group conduct. They deal with a variety of issues: initial salvation requirements; how to worship; how we conduct various relationships; right and wrong speech, thinking, and conduct; and so on.
Commands Illustrated
God’s directly stated commands include the instruction to follow the example of those who have His approval. Peter said of Jesus, “. . . Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps” (1 Peter 2:21 ). Paul wrote, “Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us” (Philippians 3:17 ). When we study of the lives of God-approved men and women, we learn by illustration the conduct God accepts. Studying individuals helps us know how to apply Bible principles. Studying churches helps us understand God’s plan regarding our collective efforts.
Of course, no one except Jesus was flawless, and the Bible objectively reports about its characters, good and bad. Therefore, a little discernment is necessary. Yet honest Bible students have little trouble seeing those traits worthy of imitation. Negatively, we can also learn much from the mistakes of people in Bible times.
Commands Implied
Jesus routinely expected people to draw implications from Scripture, as well as live by its precepts and examples. For example, He indicated that the Pharisees should have implied from Genesis 2:24 that God does not allow divorce (see Matthew 19:3-6 ), or that the Sadducees should have implied from Exodus 3:6 that there is life after death (see Matthew 22:31-32 ).
Again, caution is in order. We must be sure the text necessarily implies some conclusion, that we are not reading something into it that is not there. For example, some have justified the practice of infant baptism on the basis of Bible references to a household being baptized (Acts 16:15, 33 ). They reason that since the household included infants, infant baptism was the practice. But babies in the household are an assumption; are there not many families with no infants? Besides, that interpretation ignores prerequisites to baptism such as faith (Acts 8:36-37 ).
What about Silence?
What shall we do when God is silent, when He says neither “Thou shalt” nor “Thou shalt not”? At first glance, it may seem that we are on safe ground as long as we have no specific prohibition. But is that the case? The purpose of revelation is so that we may “understand what the will of the Lord is” (Ephesians 5:17 ). Surely it is not necessary for God to itemize everything He does not want it order to tell us what He does want. We know a thing pleases God if He said so; we don’t know if He is silent. Long ago Moses wrote, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law” (Deuteronomy 29:29 ).
What God has said warns us against presumptuously engaging activities which He has not authorized. The Bible closes with a caution not to add to or take from what is written (Revelation 22:18-19 ). We are “not to exceed what is written” (1 Corinthians 4:6 ). We must abide in Jesus’ word in order to truly be His disciples (John 8:31 ). “Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son” (2 John 9).
Have you ever been called a liar? Chances are, you didn’t like it! Well, how do you suppose God likes being called a liar? Would anyone really do that? Yes indeed. John wrote, “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar…” (1 Jn. 1:10 ). How so? God testifies that all have sinned (Rom. 3:23 ). If we deny that, we make Him a liar.
Using this simple approach, it is clear that God is often charged with lying. Every time someone denies what God affirms in the Bible, they are in essence calling Him a liar.
Those who teach evolution say God lied about how we got here. He says He created us in the beginning (Gen. 1:1 ). The evolutionist, despite having no definite information as to when or how we arrived, says whatever the truth is, it is anything but what God said.
A lot of folks believe God lied about money. He said that he who loves money will not be satisfied with money (Ecc. 5:10 ), and that even when we have an abundance, life is more than our possessions (Lk. 12:15 ). The way some folks prize their things, it is evident they really don’t believe that. They say God lied.
A good many preachers make God a liar about salvation. He said, “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved…” (Mk. 16:16 ). They say baptism has nothing to do with it. God lied.
Too many think God lied about divorce and remarriage. He said, “Whoever divorces his wife, except for fornication, and marries another woman commits adultery…” (Mt. 19:9 ). Many of us say whoever doesn’t mean whoever, fornication isn’t the only exception, and in the end, adultery isn’t really adultery. God didn’t get anything right on this subject!
God says a Christian may be severed from Christ and fall from grace (Gal. 5:4 ). Yet how many say that cannot happen?
God says the gospel is His power to salvation (Rom. 1:16 ). Man often says that is not enough carnal incentives must be added to attract (and keep) people.
Do not be deceived. It is the devil who is the liar, the father of lies (Jn. 8:44 ).
What will be the eternal destiny of good people? By “good” I mean kind, decent, caring, morally upright folks. They may or may not be religious. Nevertheless, you won’t find finer folks: your helpful neighbor, your kind friend, your sweet grandmother. It is easy to assume they will be in heaven; indeed, is hard to think anything else. But will that be the case? All we know about anyone’s eternal destiny is what God says in Scripture. A case recorded in Acts 10 sheds considerable light on the question.
Good People Need to Be Saved
The focus of this text is a man named Cornelius. He is pictured in the finest way (vv. 1, 2, 22). He was a devout man, one who feared God. (Fearing God was a technical expression used to denote Gentiles who accepted the Jewish religion in part.) He feared God with all his household, including one of his soldiers (v. 7), indicating that he was spiritually-minded enough to influence others to follow his example. He gave many alms to the Jewish people, not just the token gestures that are the common marks of “generosity.” He prayed to God continually. In the story, we find him praying at 3:00 in the afternoon. He was a righteous or just man, dealing fairly with his fellow-man. He was well spoken of by the entire Jewish nation. That would be a remarkable reputation for any man, but is especially so in this case because Cornelius was a Roman centurion!
Could there be a finer man? How many of us measure up to this description? How many would view Cornelius as lost in sin and headed for hell? That is precisely what he was. As he was praying, an angel appeared to him and gave him a single instruction: “Send to Joppa, and have Simon, who is also called Peter, brought here; and he shall speak words to you by which you will be saved, you and all your household” (11:14-15).
Why Good People Need to Be Saved
It is almost startling for the Bible to present this man as one in need of salvation. Yet he was. The problem was not his goodness; it was his sin. What sins had he committed? We do not know. But he was guilty of some. All are. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23 ). And the consequence of sin for Cornelius was death. “For the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23 ). So it is for all. People’s “goodness” has nothing to do with their being lost. Sin is the problem.
What is the solution to sin? Too many think good works will somehow make up for their wrongs. That was not the message Peter brought to Cornelius. Oh, he mentioned the essentiality of doing what is right (v. 35), but that is not enough. Peter preached that peace with God is through Jesus Christ (v. 36), that forgiveness of sins is in His name (v. 43). His sermon spoke of the proofs that Jesus offered to sustain the claim that He alone is the way to God: His miracles (v. 38), especially His resurrection from the dead (vv. 40-42), and countless Old Testament prophecies that He fulfilled (v. 43).
All have sinned, sin separates us from God, and salvation is only in Christ. These are the facts, no matter what we might like to believe. We must come to grips with them. Our failure to do so explains why we struggle so with the concept of good people being lost.
How Good People Are Saved
The text identifies four components of Cornelius salvation (and ours):
One, he had to hear the gospel. The words by which he and his household would be saved were Peter’s message that Jesus died for our sins.
Two, he had to believe that message, put his trust in Jesus as the means of being right with God. “Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes receives forgiveness of sins” (v. 43). This is so foundational that it is often stated as the summary of man’s response, just as “grace” is for God’s provisions (Ephesians 2:8 ).
Three, he had to repent (11:18). Repentance leads to life. It is a change of heart that says I will live as God directs from now on. Of course, to be genuine it must be demonstrated in a change of life. One has not repented who persists in the same sinful way of living.
Four, he had to be baptized in water. “…Then Peter answered, ‘Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he? And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ” (vv. 46-48). In his first sermon, Peter explained that baptism is for forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38 ).
Knowing what you now know, do you want to stand before the Lord in judgment based solely on your own “goodness,” or would you rather be there having accepted His offer of salvation in Christ?