God’s True Compass
All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17 – NASB)
I had a discussion recently with a man who was very complimentary toward the Bible; he said it was the best book of any in the world to guide one on the path of life.
He did, however, add a “but” to this complimentary assessment: “But,” he said, while God has inspired a lot of the Bible, human beings have come along and corrupted it. They have added things of purely human origin, and he mentioned certain teachings from the Bible he didn’t particularly like.
The immediate question that came to mind at this was, “Who then is to decide what is inspired and what is not? Is it to be left to the fickle likes and dislikes of the individual? If what this man said was true, who could trust the Bible as an absolutely reliable guide to the critical issues of life?”
Either all the Bible is God’s Word, or you wouldn’t know if you could trust it when the chips were down and you were in the midst of a crisis. Lying on you death-bed, how would you know for sure if what it said about Heaven and Hell and Eternity was true? How would you know for sure your sins were forgiven, or that the blood of Christ could cleanse you from all sin? It would be a tragic guessing game, with nothing to comfort the heart and give assurance of salvation.
Our text tells us: All Scripture is inspired by God…
What does all mean if it doesn’t mean ALL? Nothing in the Bible is excluded from being inspired by God. It is God-breathed. You can trust it at all times and in all situations.
Let me use a homely illustration:
What if someone gives you a compass when you are about to embark on a journey across a wilderness? As they hand it over they tell you it sometimes points to true North, and sometimes not; it is sometimes reliable and sometimes not. Would you then have confidence to embark on your journey with such an instrument to guide you? I think not.
Either you have to believe ALL the Bible is inspired, or none of it is. There are no fence-sitters allowed here. As for me, I will stake my life – my eternal destiny – on the assumption that the entire Bible is the only reliable guide to faith and conduct.
God’s True Compass
(© Friday 4th July 2014 – by Christopher Shennan)
I found this wondrous book of God:
The Bible, from Heaven ‘twas sent;
I am certain it will never
Lead me astray – I’m confident.
I’ve rested all my future hope
On the pure truth that’s inside it;
There’s not a thing that came from Man –
I know for sure God inspired it.
I will not pick and choose, dear friend,
What I’ll approve and what I won’t;
I’ll do what it says I must do,
And I’ll listen when it says “Don’t!”
The Bible has been my comfort;
It has never led me astray –
It has saved me from destruction,
And it has taught me how to pray.
Never accept the sad notion:
Only part of God’s Word is true.
No, dear friend, such a notion
Can only be harmful to you.
You never can trust a compass
If it only works part of the time;
The Bible works for me always –
All of its promises are mine.
My website: http://www.christophershennan.ca
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CNShennan
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristopherShennanAuthor
Picture by Joanne Shennan
Gems of Discovery - Nuggets of Truth 