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A Perfect Unity under a Pure Final Authority

Biblical unity glorifies the LORD, but a false unity deifies man (Genesis 11:1-9). A common adage of today is, “Let’s all get together and put aside our differences so we can have unity.” Psalm 133:1 says, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” Sincere and honest believers can experience a perfect unity under a pure final authority in the eternal words of God.

Paul admonished believers in Ephesians 4:3, ” Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” This peaceful bond can only be accomplished through the guidance of the Holy Ghost. Pure unity of the faith is the goal of overseers of the church (Ephesians 4:11-13). Since most preachers are trained by professors of colleges and seminaries, unity of the faith may stem from these institutions.

If a majority of the scholars and professors of conservative, Protestant, Christian colleges and seminaries can accept a foundational point of agreement, there can be unity. The following seven statements may be accepted in word by the majority of conservative, evangelical, or fundamental Christian leaders of today:

1. The Bible is the final authority for all matters of faith and practice
2. The Scripture is given by inspiration of God.
3. The Scripture is inerrant (flawless or perfect).
4. Jesus Christ is called the Word of God.
5. The Lord Jesus Christ is sinless and holy today.
6. The Messiah or Saviour of the world is of the nation of Israel.
7. Satan is the first being to cast doubt upon or corrupt the words of God.
   

Liberal or modernist theologians may argue against these statements, but good men of conservative institutions will acknowledge the truth of each statement. The prudent and sincere student of the word will thoroughly examine the statements to obtain soundness or consistency of truth. Titus 2:8 says, “Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.” Do the scholars and professors truly mean what they claim to believe? Will they cause division amongst sincere believers by departing from or denigrating these statements of peaceful unity? Will they endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit after they claim to believe these foundational statements?

The first three statements are combined in the statement of faith of a Christian college that states,

“We believe in THE HOLY SCRIPTURES: accepting fully the writings of the Old and New Testaments as the very Word of God, verbally inspired in all parts and therefore wholly without error as originally given of God, altogether sufficient in themselves as our only infallible rule of faith and practice.”

A prudent student will notice that a subtle phrase of five words nullifies the entire statement.

The Bible is the final authority for all matters of faith and practice. The Lord Jesus Christ spoke with authority and doctrine (Matthew 7:28-29). Authority is the real issue of life because it determines the rules of a game or the laws of life. The chief priests demanded to know the authority of Jesus Christ (Matt. 21:23-27), but the Lord Jesus did not answer because of their hypocrisy. The statement claims the final authority for all matters of faith and practice is the Bible. When a father tells his child to go to the car, he means one specific car. When a father tells his child to get the ball, he means one specific ball. If the child goes to the wrong car or gets the wrong ball, his father will correct the error. To be honest and consistent the Bible means one specific Book. The Bible is signifies present tense; therefore, the statement must mean there is one Book that is available in print today to be the final authority for all matters of faith and practice.

When the first three statements in the statement of faith are combined, they are stating the final authority for all matters of faith and practice is given by inspiration of God; thus, it is without error. This establishes a perfect unity for sincere students of truth, but a problem occurs with a subtle phrase, “as originally given of God.” Has anyone ever examined the scriptures as originally given of God? Is the final authority as originally given of God available today? Has divine inspiration of the final authority as originally given of God been preserved for today? What evidence is available today to support said phrase in question? Can any scholar produce said scriptures as originally given of God for evidence to the claim? The only evidence available is copies of copies of copies of copies of the scriptures as originally given of God. Is not the statement of faith implying the scriptures as originally given of God are unavailable today? Is not the statement of faith implying the copies of the scriptures as originally given of God that are available today are not inspired? An honest revision of the statement of faith should include an additional admission that the scriptures as originally given of God are not available today; therefore, they will proclaim their opinion of what they THINK might be the inspired words of God.

The Scripture is given by inspiration of God. The statement signifies present tense. The Scripture is defined in the context of: 2 Timothy 3:15-17 to be something that Timothy had available to him. Timothy did not have the scriptures as originally given of God. Timothy had copies of copies of copies of copies of the scriptures that were preserved by God through the Levites. When the scholars and professors make this statement, they subtly mean the scripture WAS given by inspiration of God.

The Scripture is inerrant (flawless or perfect). The scholars usually limit the inerrancy of the Scriptures to what was originally given of God. They claim to use the science of textual criticism to ascertain the words of the copies of the scriptures as originally given of God to be inspired or authentic. One would think the scholar painstakingly investigates all of the available manuscripts to confirm the words that were originally inspired by God. Textual criticism is a false science because no one has the originals to examine (1 Timothy 6:20-21).

The only logical conclusion of the statement of faith is the scholars simply teach what they THINK are the Scriptures; therefore, they are really teaching their opinions and preferences. The scholar becomes his own final authority, which was offered to Eve in the original temptation when Satan stated, “ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” When doubt is cast upon what God has spoken or written, the alternative is to decide for oneself what is good or evil based solely upon one’s opinion. Personal opinions do not provide for a solid basis of unity.

The fourth and fifth statements will be examined together. The Lord Jesus is called the Word of God (John 1:1). The Lord Jesus is sinless and holy today. Since the Lord Jesus Christ is holy and sinless today and He is called the Word of God, there must be a written word of God that is holy and sinless today. Since there is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all (Ephesians 4:4-6), there must be one written authority for all matters of faith and practice. The flesh and bones Word of God is the Lord Jesus Christ and the paper and ink word of God is the holy Scriptures.

Since Jesus Christ is counterfeited today, there must also be counterfeit bibles today. There is only one true Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour, but there are many Christs (Matthew 24:24), gods and lords (1 Corinthians 8:5), and there is another Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:4). The logical conclusion is there is only one true written word of God today, but there will be many counterfeits of the word of God.

The Messiah or Saviour of the world is of Israel (John 4:22). The physical lineage of Jesus Christ is recorded in Luke 3. Jesus was called a Jew by the woman at the well in John 4. The Lord Jesus is the King of the Jews and the Saviour of the world; therefore, salvation is of the Jews. Since the Messiah is of the Jews and this Messiah is called the Word of God, the pure manuscripts will stem from the Jews to believers of the Lord Jesus (Romans 3:1-2). The Masoretic Text is the authoritative Hebrew text of the Tanakh (Luke 24:44-45). Jeremiah warned of overseers perverting the word of God (Jeremiah 23:36). Apostate scholars claim the Septuagint is a Greek translation of the Old Testament, but it is a counterfeit of Alexandria.

God made several transitions throughout the Acts of the Apostles. One major transition moved the focus of faith from Jerusalem to Antioch. The first occurrence of Antioch in the Bible is associated with spirit-filled deacons (Acts 6:5). Antioch is the location where the disciples were first called Christians (Acts 11:26). It became the center for prophets, preachers, and teachers (Acts 13:1; 15:35). The manuscripts of Antioch are called Byzantine text or Textus Receptus. There are over 5000 copies of this family of manuscripts. God blessed believers with the Reformation and other great revivals through these manuscripts and faithful translations of them.

Paul warned of many which corrupt the word of God (2 Corinthians 2:17). The words of Scripture were carried to Alexandria of Egypt, but apostate scholars tainted these Scriptures with false doctrines (Matthew 13:33; 16:6-12; Mark 8:15; Gal. 5:9).

These manuscripts are called the Alexandrian manuscripts. The first occurrence of Alexandria in the Bible is opposition against the spirit-filled deacons (Acts 6:9). The two favorite manuscripts of Alexandria are called the Vaticanus and Sinaiticus. The scholars claim these two are the best manuscripts available today because they are the oldest, but an unusual agreement occurs between liberals, conservatives, and the Vatican hierarchy about the favoritism of these Alexandrian manuscripts.

If the six statements are placed together like the ingredients of a recipe, what is the outcome after mixing and baking the dough? Pure bread! If the six statements of truth were directions for travel, what is the logical destination? A logical conclusion of traveling from point A (Areas of agreement) to point B (Biblical authority) is the final authority for all matters of faith and practice, is an unleavened bread of God, the Authorized King James Bible (Luke 4:4). All of the statements of agreement ONLY apply to the King of books. Jesus Christ is the true Saviour and the Authorized King James Bible is the true Scriptures. The LORD Jesus and the Authorized King James Bible provide a perfect unity for all sincere and honest students of truth today.

At this destination the sincere believer can enjoy the bread of life in fellowship with God, but there is a subtle serpent that desires to ruin that fellowship by causing 5 division between the believer and the Bread of life (John 6:35). The Jews murmured about the Bread of life. Many disciples also murmured and left the living Bread. The Lord Jesus asked the twelve if they were leaving too. Will the scholars seek to cause division among the believers about the pure bread of life? (John 6:66) The final statement of the seven will reveal the root source of the divisions about the bread of life.

Satan is the first being to cast doubt upon or corrupt the words of God. The root source of questioning or corrupting the words of God is satanic. Does this mean the scholars who question the words of God are satanic? No, Eve was sinless when she was tempted in the garden. Eve had pure motives when she yielded to the subtle deceptions of the serpent (2 Corinthians 11:3). Eve’s desire in eating the fruit was to be wise (Genesis 3 :6), but she was deceived (1 Timothy 2:14). The scholars who question or corrupt the words of God have yielded to the same deception. Satan deceived a sinless woman in a pure environment and he continues to deceive young men in a Christian environment about the words of God.

The most effective tool of Satan to deceive young men is good men using good words from the good Book (1 Kings 13; Romans 16:17-18). The books of these men will be counterfeits of the pure final authority that do not have all six ingredients for pure bread. The New American Standard Version, the New International Version, the New King James Version, or some other translation of the corrupted Alexandrian manuscripts are the most subtle tools of deception. The scholar may object that he cannot be led of Satan, but the Apostle Peter spoke by the inspiration of God and Satan within minutes (Matthew 16:13-23). The holy bread of God warns of many which corrupt the word of God (2 Corinthians 2:17), but the unholy bread of Satan replaces the word corrupt with peddle or peddling (Ezekiel 22:26; 44:23).

The Bible reveals a satanic translation in Luke 4:10-11. The quotation of Satan is a misquotation of Psalm 91:11-12. During this temptation Satan subtracted a vital phrase, “in all thy ways.” Satan also misconstrued the words of Psalm 91:12. Satan misapplied doctrines of the Second Coming to the First Coming. The Lord obviously overcame the deception by the absolute truth of God. A good counterfeit of truth is subtle or slightly different than absolute truth. The translations of the Alexandrian manuscripts are inspired by Satan in order to mislead or misguide the church of God into deception (2 Corinthians 1 1 : 3-1 5; 1 Timothy 4).

Satan will use several arguments against the words of God to cause dissension. One argument of the professors, scholars, and pastors claims a translation cannot be inspired, yet the same people will gleefully promote the Septuagint as the Scriptures that the Lord Jesus quoted. The Septuagint was supposed to be a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. Why do these people adore the Septuagint, but they degrade and maliciously malign the translation in the Authorized King James Bible? If the Bible is the final authority for all matters of faith and practice, an honest student will search the Bible for examples of translations. Cyrus wrote a letter in the Syrian tongue, but it was recorded in Hebrew (Ezra 7:11-16). Was the translation of the letter in the original autograph inspired? Paul spoke in Hebrew when he gave his testimony, but it was recorded in the Greek language (Acts 22). Any quotation of the Old Testament that is recorded in the New Testament is an inspired translation. These examples from the final authority reveal a translation can be inspired of God.

The definition of inspiration by the scholars is greatly limited. They limit it to the giving of the original autographs, but the Bible defines inspiration also to be the receiving of understanding of the Scriptures. Job 32:8 is the first occurrence of the two occurrences of inspiration. Job 32:8 states, “But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.” In…spir…ation means an infusion of God’s words into the heart of the believer by the Holy Ghost. An honest definition of inspiration places the word in the present tense. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God. (2 Timothy 3:16) Grace is given to the believer today (1 Cor. 3:10; Eph. 4:7). The love of God is given today (Rom. 5:5). The manifestation of the Spirit is given today (1 Cor. 12:7-8). Inspiration is present tense within its usage in the Bible.

The scholars and professors will use special words to display their intellect and scholarship. The wise scholars claim the original autographs are the verbal, plenary, infallible, inerrant Word of God. They limit all of these characteristics to the unseen original writings or original spoken words (2 Peter 1:20-21). Acts 26:14 records that the Lord Jesus verbally spoke to Saul in Hebrew, but the written record of this divine conversation was translated into Greek as originally given of God. Which one is the verbal, plenary, infallible, inerrant Word of God, the spoken words in Hebrew or the written words in Greek? The inspired words have been translated into English in the Authorized King James Bible by the guidance of God. Preservation and inspiration occur in all of them.

Another argument to cause dissension within the body of Christ is the idea that double inspiration is not scriptural. Jeremiah 36 is a forbidden chapter in the schools of higher Christian learning because it displays double and triple inspiration and the preservation of the word. God has not chosen to preserve the original manuscripts, but God has chosen to preserve the pure words of God (Psalm 12:6-7). If inspiration is limited to God breathing upon the original autographs, do not the scholars believe God can breathe more than once? Preservation without inspiration is pointless.

Another argument of the adamant scholar will mockingly proclaim a charge of bibliolatry or the glorification of a Book. The scholar might encourage unity under the name of Jesus, but the Bible reveals there is another Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:4). The name of Jesus is exalted above every name and it is the only name whereby we must be saved (Acts 4:10-12; Philippians 2:9-11). Psalm 138:2 says, “I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.” The Lord God magnified His word above His name! 2 Thessalonians 3:1 says, “Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:”. Magnification and glorification of the words of God are encouraged by the writers of the word of God, the final authority for all matters of faith and practice.

An honest and faithful teacher of the word will promote proper unity of the brethren by glorifying the written authority of God. As the sincere witness glorifies the Saviour to the sinner, so the sincere teacher glorifies the Scriptures to the saint. Both the Saviour and the Scriptures are holy and alive today. The Lord Jesus warned in John 12:48, “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.” The written word exposes the pride of the sinner and the scholar. The Lord Jesus will present the crown of glory to the faithful teacher of the word who glorified the words of God (1 Peter 5:1-4). Proverbs 4:7-9 says, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her. She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.” Exaltation of self and scholarship is a reward unto itself, but exaltation of the words of God will be rewarded when all believers in Christ will finally come unto the unity of the faith at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

(Text from ‘The Common Man’s Reference Bible’)

Notice from The Common Man’s Reference Bible:

Since the word of God is not bound any honest and sincere use of the text in this work is granted. No monetary gain for use is granted. Dishonest use is forbidden and unlawful.