Enemy of Soul Winning 5
False
Bibles -
An Enemy
of Soul Winning
In
order to live as a child of God, I must have a perfect Bible. Matthew 4:41,
"But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." Notice
the words, "every word."
If
I have my prayers answered, I must have a perfect Bible. John 15:7, "If
ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it
shall be done unto you." That means that somewhere in the world, there
has to be a perfect Bible.
God
has told us that His words are pure. Psalm 12:6, "The words of the LORD
are pure words: as silver tried in afurnace of earth, punfied seven times."
God
has told us that these pure words would be preserved forever. Psalm 12:7, "Thou shalt keep them, 0 LORD, thou shalt preserve
them for this generation forever." Since
today is a part of
forever, somewhere in the world there must be pure words of God. Hence, it does
not satisfy me for someone to say that only in the original do we have the pure
words of God. Since there are no original manuscripts today, or for that matter,
there are no manuscripts even near the original manuscripts as far as time is
concerned, then what these people are saying is
that
we do not have anywhere today any book that contains the pure words of God. Yet,
I am commanded to preach the Word.
II
Timothy 4:2, "Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season;
reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine."
Now
since the words of God are pure, and since all of the so-called Bibles do not
have the same words, only one can be the real Bible that contains the very words
of God, the pure words of God, and the preserved words of God. The purpose of
this chapter is not to enter into a discussion about the Textus Receptus or
Westcott-Hort; it is simply to say that if God commanded me to preach His Word,
He would have to give me His Word to preach, and certainly His Word is pure,
because the words of God are pure according to the aforementioned Scriptures and
will be preserved forever. This preacher believes that those preserved words are
in the Bible that I hold in my right hand at this very moment-the King James
Bible!
I
have more respect for the person who says that one of the false Bibles contains
the very words of God than for a person who says only the original contains the
very words of God. At least he believes, though wrongly, that we still have the
words of God which are pure. For many, many reasons I believe that the King
James Bible has been preserved in the English language word-for-word. I have to
believe that. I must have the words of God, if I live, if I preach and if I get
my prayers answered.
1.
There are some things that are incorruptible. The
word "incorruptible" means "perfect," "cannot
change," "cannot be improved." If you change something, it must
go to perfection or from perfection, so if something can be changed, it must
have been imperfect and been made perfect, or it must have been perfect and made
imperfect. Let us notice some things that are incorruptible.
(1)
God. Romans
incorruptible
God into an image made like to corruptible
man,
and to birds, and foutfooted beasts, and creeping things." This means God is perfect. He cannot be improved; He cannot change.
He cannot be taken from imperfection to perfection or from perfection to
imperfection.
(2)
Our future crown. I Corinthians
(3)
Our glorified bodies. I Corinthians
(4)
Our inheritance. I Peter 1:4, "To an inheritance incorruptible,
and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you." Our
inheritance will be perfect. It cannot be improved; it cannot be changed.
(5)
The Word of God. I Peter 1:23, "Being born again, not of corruptible
seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth
forever." Psalm 126:6, "He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing
precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves
with him." Luke 8:11, "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word
of God." You will
notice the seed from which we are born again is incorruptible. It is the Word of
God, which liveth and abideth forever. Consequently, you cannot improve it; you
cannot change it. If you do, you must go from imperfection or to
imperfection. Notice in
I
Peter
incorruptible,
just as our crown is incorruptible, just as our glorified body will be
incorruptible, just as Jesus' body is incorruptible, just as our inheritance is
incorruptible; likewise, the Word of God is incorruptible.
Notice
in Psalm 126:6, it is "precious seed." This implies that there is some
seed which is not precious. Luke
2.
The words of God are the genes of regeneration. Titus
3:5, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to
his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy
Ghost." Actually the
word "regeneration" means "to be re-gened." Just as the
genes of my parents brought my old nature into existence, even so the genes of
God brought my new nature into existence. Your old nature is sinful because
there was sin in the genes, but the genes of the Word of God are incorruptible,
meaning that which is born of God; that is, the new nature, cannot sin.
Now
if the very words of God must be pure, and if in fact the King James Bible
contains the preserved words of God, then any other words are not the words of
God. This means that the Revised Version is not precious seed because it is not
incorruptible. This means that the Good News for Modern Man is not
precious seed, because it is not incorruptible. This means that the Living
Bible is not precious seed because it is not incorruptible. This means that
the Reader's Digest Bible is not precious seed, because it is not
incorruptible. This means that the New King James Bible is not precious seed
because it is not incorruptible. This means that the New Scofield
Bible is not precious seed, because it is not incorruptible. This means that
the New International Version (NIV) is not precious seed, and it is not
incorruptible. This means that the American Standard Version is not
precious seed because it is not incorruptible. If the versions do not agree,
then all of them cannot be the very words of God that have been preserved for
us.
3.
The genes of the new birth must be incorruptible. I
Peter 1:23, "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of
incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever." These
words were penned in the first century, but it says that the incorruptible seed
"liveth and abideth for ever." Since today is a part of "for
ever," we must have the incorruptible seed in order to be re-gened, or
regenerated, or born again.
4.
Suppose corruptible seed is used. Can a person then
be
born again from it? You answer that question. According to I Peter
This
is also borne out in Psalm 19:7, "The law of the LORD is perfect,
converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the
simple." Notice the words, "the law of the LORD is perfect,
converting the soul." It is the law of the Lord that converts.
It is the Word of God that regenerates. The Word is the seed, and the seed must
be incorruptible.
7.
The perfect Word of God must be used if a person grows in grace. 1
Peter 2:2, "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye
may grow thereby." Notice that it is the "sincere" Word of
God by which we grow in grace. So, to grow in grace, we must have the sincere
(pure) Word of God.
This
same thing is taught in Deuteronomy 4:10, 36, "Specially the day that
thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the Lord said unto me,
Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may
learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they
may teach their children. Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he
might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou
heardest his words out of the midst of the fire."
Notice
the words of God are what teach us, and from the words of God we are to be
instructed. If they are in fact words of God, they must be pure, because a pure
God could not give impure words, and an incorruptible God could not give
corruptible words.
8.
These words of God are perfect. There are several things in the Bible
that are called perfect.
(1)
His work is perfect. Deuteronomy
32:4, "He is the
Rock,
his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a
God
of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he."
(2)
His way is perfect. Psalm
(3)
The Heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48, "Be
ye
therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."
(4)
The glorified body will be perfect. I
Corinthians
(5)
The law of the Lord is perfect. Psalm 19:7, "The law of the Lord
is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of theLord is sure, making wise
the simple." So we must have an incorruptible, perfect Word of God. To
say that this could be found only in the original manuscripts is to say we have
no words of God today that are perfect, which means we have no perfect Book to
preach, we have no perfect Book to read, we have no perfect Book by which
to grow, and we have no perfect Seed by which we can be born again or re-gened
or regenerated.
9.
There are several ways that the words of God are made into impure
words by translators and theologians (selfstyled).
(1)
They add to the Word of God. Proverbs
30:5, 6, "Every word of God is pure; he is a shield unto them that put
their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou
be found a liar." Notice
several things in these verses. First, every word of God is pure. Psalm
119:140, "Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it."
Psalm 12:6, "The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a
furnace of earth, purified seven times." Psalm 19:8, "The statutes of
the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure,
enlightening the eyes." Second, in Proverbs 30:6, we are told not to
add to these words. Third, in verse 6 the Bible says that He reproves those who
do add to His words.
Then
in verse 6 also, the Bible says that those who do add to His words are liars.
Now
notice Deuteronomy 4:2a, "Ye shall not add unto the word which I command
you...." We are commanded not to add to His Word.
(2)
They take away from the words of God.
Deuteronomy
4:2, "Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye
diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God
which I command you." God
plainly commands that we not diminish His Word.
Now
notice Revelation
shall
take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from
the things which are written in this book" A
stern rebuke and warning is given to anyone who takes away from the words of
God. This means that God's judgment will rest upon those who try to give us a
condensed Bible.
(3)
They will try to change the Word of God. Jeremiah 26:2, "Thus saith the
Lord; Stand in the court of the LORD'S house, and speak unto all the cities of
Judah, which come to worship in the LORD'S house, all the words that I command
thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word." Here we have a command
not to diminish one word. It is not talking here necessarily about taking words
away but changing a word or diminishing a word. Let the translators of the many
versions take heed and take warning.
In conclusion, one may ask, "What does this have to do with soul winning?" Beloved, it has everything to do with soul winning. If the words of God are the incorruptible seed, and if seed must be incorruptible, if someone is born again, then the soul winner must have a perfect Bible. Thank God, we do!