The Bible as Foundation

As a Bible believer, I make my decisions based on God’s Word. I believe the Bible is completely true and free from error. The Bible is inspired, it is living and active, it is profitable, and it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.

Because of this biblical worldview, the Bible is the place to start when making decisions or when telling someone about the Lord. But some object to this on the grounds that, since unbelievers don’t believe the Bible, then we should use other sources to convince them when we are talking about God. I understand that sentiment, but I reject it.

I realize that it might sound like circular logic to tell someone that Jesus is the Son of God “because the Bible says so,” and they should believe the Bible because “the Bible says it is God’s Word.” But here are two things to consider. First, when making a defense of what we believe, we always start with that which holds the most authority. If you start with personal experience, common sense, scientific data, quotes from philosophers, or anything else, that becomes your authority. Starting with the Bible communicates to the other person how much weight the Bible holds in your life. If the Bible is the third or fourth source you cite, you are showing that it isn’t that important to you.

I like how Michael Vlach once put it: “But if another source [besides the Bible] becomes the standard for determining whether the Bible is true, then the battle is lost at step one…The unbeliever is called to obey the Word of the Creator, not sit in judgment over it.”

But the second reason I believe in using the Bible to reach unbelievers is that it is exactly what Paul did. In the city of Lystra the people tried to worship Paul and Barnabas, believing the missionaries were incarnations of their gods. In Acts 14 we read, “But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard this, they tore their clothes and ran in among the multitude, crying out and saying, ‘Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them (v.14-15).’”

Paul’s first instinct was to appeal to the living as God, who was the creator of heaven and earth, an obvious reference to Genesis 1:1. These pagans were not familiar with the Old Testament scrolls, yet that is where Paul began his defense. For the record, I am a firm believer in apologetics. Things mentioned above—science, philosophy, common sense, and even personal experience—can all be used to defend what we believe, but I urge you to always begin with the Scriptures, which should be our highest authority.

It is not philosophy that is living and active, sharper than a two-edged sword. That is the Bible (Hebrews 4:12).

It is not science that is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction. That is the Bible (II Timothy 3:16).

It is not personal experience that is “God-breathed.” That is the Bible (II Timothy 3:16).

It is not common sense that is the power of God that brings salvation. That, too, is the Bible (Romans 1:16).

It was never more simple than when as children we sang,

The B-I-B-L-E, yes that’s the book for me.

I stand alone on the Word of God, the B-I-B-L-E!

To Save a Life

(Like my blog about the peace symbol, this blog was written as a default response to all the parents, students, and other people who are asking my opinion of To Save a Life.) By now you have probably heard of the movie To Save a Life, which opened nation-wide in theaters on January 22nd. The movie deals with so many issues that teens face today, like suicide, cutting, drinking, drugs, premarital sex, teen pregnancy, and abortion. At first glance this movie looks like an awesome resource that we should recommend for our teens, parents, youth pastors, and youth workers. But a closer look at the movie reveals a few disturbing things. For starters, according to pluggedin.com, there are 2 uses of the “A” word, 5 uses of hell (used as a curse word), and once the “D” word is used. There are other crude terms used to describe a girl, and crude terms for referring to sexual activity. There is also a bedroom scene that shows a girl removing a boy’s shirt, then afterwards the girl putting he...

Evangelism

“Preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words.” St. Francis of Assisi is given credit for this famous quote (although that exact phrasing does not appear in any of his writings), and a lot of people would think that this is a great philosophy. His actual quote was that everyone should “preach by their deeds.” Preaching with our deeds is not just a strategy, it is a necessity. We are commanded all through the Scriptures to let our light shine and be a peculiar people. People should be able to look at our lives and see that we are Christians. They should see the love of Christ readily on display, and thus feel compelled to live their lives in the same way. The sermon that we should preach with our lives is a sermon of love, joy, peace, patience, self-control, forgiveness, conviction, etc. But this idea that has emerged that says we should ONLY preach with our deeds is a heresy straight from the devil himself. Think about it: who is the one that does not want you t...

All Things To All Men

One of our favorite verses to use in our evangelism methods is where Paul said that he “becomes all things to all men” so that he might “by all means save some (I Corinthians 9:22).” This is certainly a good idea if we keep it in its proper context and application. For example, I remember a time in high school where I knew a kid that loved skateboarding. Being the chicken that I am, I was never a skateboarder. All he would talk about was skating, and I knew none of his lingo. But to help develop a relationship with him (he was new to our church and didn’t know many people), I brushed up on my skating lingo so I could ask if he had done any sick ollies lately (impressed?). This would be like Paul saying “to the skateboarder, I became a skateboarder.” This is effective and necessary. But then there are the people that use this verse to justify doing sinful things in the name of evangelism. The first one that comes to mind is about drinking. Some people will go into the bars to evan...

Tommy Mann

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