8:38 PM What Is the Relationship Between God and the Bible? – Bible Questions |
Question 3:
Did we not enter faith through the Bible? Do we not practice faith according to the Bible? We’ve not seen the Lord, so what do we base our faith on? Do we not base our faith on the Bible? The Bible’s the foundation of our faith in the Lord. These two thousand years, all the believers have based their faith on the Bible. So I believe the Bible stands for the Lord. Belief in one means believing in the other. No matter what, we can’t stray from the Bible. How we suppose to practice faith without the Bible? Is that even faith?
Answer:
Many believe that the Bible represents the Lord and God, and that belief in one means believing in the other. People place the same status to the Bible as they do to God. There’s even those who acknowledge the Bible but not God. They regard the Bible as supreme and even use it to replace God. There are even religious leaders who acknowledge the Bible and not Christ, and claim that those who preach the second coming of the Lord are heretics. What’s the issue here? The religious world has sunk to the point where they only acknowledge the Bible and not the Lord’s return, and so they’re doomed. It’s clear that the religious world has become a group of antichrists who take God as their enemy. It is undeniable, many religious leaders are just like hypocritical Pharisees. Especially those claiming that “those who preach the Lord’s return are heretics,” they are all antichrists and unbelievers. It seems many people do not know what exactly faith in the Lord truly is. They all call their belief in this vague God “orthodox faith,” yet they replace God with the Bible. They even condemn Christ incarnate of the last days as they ignore and neglect any truth which Christ expresses. What’s the problem here? It’s quite a deep question. It’s worth reflecting. Way back in the days when Lord Jesus did His work, did the Jews not act in just the same way? Before Christ appeared to perform His work, man all based their faith in God completely on the Bible. None could tell whose faith was real and whose was false, and surely none could tell who was truly obeying God and who was opposing Him. Why was it that when the Lord Jesus Christ became flesh and performed His work, each kind of man was revealed? This is where God’s wisdom lies. When Almighty God, Christ of the last days, appears and performs His work, the wise virgins hear God’s voice and see His footprints; thus, quite naturally, they become those brought before God’s throne. As for those foolish virgins, because they fail to see Almighty God, Christ of the last days, is indeed God, they’re revealed and cast off. Although for now they continue to hold firm and cling to their so-called faith, yet when the disasters do come, they will end up with wailing and gnashing of teeth. From this it’s clear those that cling to the Bible and fail to accept the truth; those that believe in God in heaven but don’t accept Christ incarnate are all unbelievers and will be eliminated by God. This is the truth! Let’s see what Almighty God says. Almighty God says, “From the time when there was the Bible, people’s belief in the Lord has been the belief in the Bible. Instead of saying people believe in the Lord, it is better to say they believe in the Bible; rather than saying they have begun reading the Bible, it is better to say they have begun believing in the Bible; and rather than saying they have returned before the Lord, it would be better to say they have returned before the Bible. In this way, people worship the Bible as if it were God, as if it were their lifeblood and losing it would be the same as losing their life. People see the Bible as being as high as God, and there are even those who see it as higher than God. If people are without the work of the Holy Spirit, if they cannot feel God, they can carry on living—but as soon as they lose the Bible, or lose the famous chapters and sayings from the Bible, then it is as if they have lost their life.” “They believe in My existence only within the scope of the Bible. For them, I am the same as the Bible; without the Bible there is no Me, and without Me there is no Bible. They pay no heed to My existence or actions, but instead devote extreme and special attention to each and every word of Scripture, and many of them even believe that I should not do anything I wish to do unless it is foretold by Scripture. They attach too much importance to Scripture. It can be said that they see words and expressions as too important, to the extent that they use verses from the Bible to measure every word I say, and to condemn Me. What they seek is not the way of compatibility with Me, or the way of compatibility with the truth, but the way of compatibility with the words of the Bible, and they believe that anything that does not conform to the Bible is, without exception, not My work. Are such people not the dutiful descendants of the Pharisees? The Jewish Pharisees used the law of Moses to condemn Jesus. They did not seek compatibility with the Jesus of that time, but diligently followed the law to the letter, to the extent that they ultimately nailed the innocent Jesus to the cross, having charged Him with not following the law of the Old Testament and not being the Messiah. What was their essence? Was it not that they didn’t seek the way of compatibility with the truth? They obsessed over each and every word of the Scripture, while paying no heed to My will and the steps and methods of My work. They were not people who sought the truth, but people who rigidly followed the words of Scripture; they were not people who believed in God, but people who believed in the Bible. Essentially, they were watchdogs of the Bible. In order to safeguard the interests of the Bible, and uphold the dignity of the Bible, and protect the reputation of the Bible, they went so far as to nail the merciful Jesus onto the cross. This they did merely for the sake of defending the Bible, and for the sake of maintaining the status of each and every word of the Bible in people’s hearts. So they preferred to forsake their future and the sin offering to condemn Jesus, who did not conform to the doctrine of Scripture, to death. Were they not lackeys to each and every word of Scripture?
And what of people today? Christ has come to release the truth, yet they would rather expel Him from among man in order to gain entry into heaven and receive grace. They would rather completely deny the coming of the truth in order to safeguard the interests of the Bible, and would rather nail the Christ returning to flesh to the cross again in order to ensure the everlasting existence of the Bible. How can man receive My salvation, when his heart is so malicious, and his nature so antagonistic toward Me?”
Having read Almighty God’s words, let us ponder together: What is belief in the Lord? What does it mean to believe in the Bible? How does the Lord relate to the Bible? Which came first, the Bible or the Lord? Then who is it that does the work of salvation? Can the Bible do the work of the Lord? Can the Bible represent the Lord? If people place blind faith in the Bible, does this mean they worship God? Is holding to the Bible tantamount to practicing the word of God? Does holding to the Bible necessarily mean that one is following the Lord’s way? So if people deem the Bible supreme, does this mean they magnify the Lord that they are reverent of and obedient to the Lord? No one sees the truth of these issues. For thousands of years now, people have been worshiping the Bible as if it were the Lord. Some even substitute it for the Lord and His work, but none truly knows the Lord and is obedient to Him. The Pharisees held onto the Bible, yet nailed the Lord Jesus to the cross. What was the issue? Does understanding the Bible mean knowing God? Does holding onto the Bible mean following the Lord’s way? The Pharisees were experts of biblical exegesis, but didn’t know God. They nailed Lord Jesus, who did redemptive work and expressed truth, to the cross. Have people actually forgotten this? Exactly what does it mean to really know God? Does just being able to interpret the Bible and understanding the Bible knowledge qualify as knowing God? If that’s the case, then why would the Pharisees condemn and oppose the Lord Jesus even as they interpreted the Bible? The key of whether one is able to truly know and obey God is whether or not he knows and obeys the incarnate Christ. God incarnate reveals all of mankind, this is what most people fail to realize. The Lord Jesus’ curse on the Pharisees is testament to the fact that God treats everyone with righteousness. As is clear, if one does not obey and worship the Lord but only blindly believes in and worships the Bible, he will not receive God’s approval. If man’s faith consists solely in abiding by the Bible and their heart has no place for the Lord; if they cannot worship the Lord as great and practice His words; if they are incapable of accepting and obeying God’s work and guidance, then is such a man not a hypocritical Pharisee? Is such a man not an antichrist, a man who has made God his enemy? Thus, if man only clings to the Bible, this certainly does not mean that he has gained truth and life. It is wrong to worship and blindly follow the Bible, by doing so one certainly will not receive the Lord’s approval. God has become flesh and expressed the truth to purify and save man and to rescue him from Satan’s influence, so that man may worship, obey, and be gained by God. This is the purpose and meaning of God incarnate doing His work. The key to man’s faith is seeking and practicing the truth and the Lord’s word. This way we’ll gain the Holy Spirit’s work and know God. Then we’ll be able to revere and magnify God. We will have true obedience and faith. That’s the true meaning of faith. In this way, we’ll receive the Lord’s approval. So from this, we know belief in the Bible is not the same as belief in the Lord. What is their relationship then? In this regard, the Lord Jesus spoke very clearly. Take a look at the Gospel of John Chapter five verses 39-40. “Search the scriptures; for in them you think you have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And you will not come to me, that you might have life.” The words of the Lord Jesus are very clear. We see the Bible is only a testimony, a record of God’s work in the past. It does not represent God, because it only contains a limited amount of God’s word and work. How can this limited amount of record represent God? God is the Creator. He is the Master of all things. God’s life is unlimited and inexhaustible. We can never fathom God’s greatness and abundance. And this limited record of God’s words and work in the Bible is just a drop in the vast sea of God’s life. How could the Bible represent God? How could the Bible even be on par with God? God can save man. But can the Bible do the same? God can express the truth. Can the Bible do that? God can enlighten and guide mankind at any time. Can the Bible do that? Of course not. So the Bible cannot represent God. Man places the Bible on par with God, thinking it can represent God. Is this not belittlement and blasphemy? Using the Bible in place of God’s work is denial and betrayal of God. God is God, and the Bible is the Bible. The Bible can’t represent God, nor can it replace His work. The Bible is merely a record of His work. God’s words in the Bible are truth. They are a manifestation of His life and show His will. And each stage of work can only represent His will during that age for mankind. But they do not represent the words and work of God in other ages.
When it comes to knowing the inside story of the Bible, we should read the words of Almighty God.
 Almighty God says, “No one knows the reality of the Bible: that it is nothing more than a historical record of God’s work, and a testament to the previous two stages of God’s work, and offers you no understanding of the aims of God’s work. Everyone who has read the Bible knows that it documents the two stages of God’s work during the Age of Law and the Age of Grace. The Old Testament chronicles the history of Israel and Jehovah’s work from the time of creation until the end of the Age of Law. The New Testament records Jesus’ work on earth, which is in the Four Gospels, as well as the work of Paul; are they not historical records?”
“What they recorded, it can be said, was according to their level of education and caliber. What they recorded was the experiences of men, and each had their own means of recording and knowing, and each record was different. Thus, if you worship the Bible as God you are extremely ignorant and stupid! Why do you not seek the work of the God of today? Only the work of God can save man. The Bible cannot save man, it has not changed at all for several thousands of years, and if you worship the Bible you will never gain the work of the Holy Spirit.”
“People’s approach to the Bible is one of obsession and faith, and no one can be completely clear about the inside story or substance of the Bible. Thus, the result is that today, people still have an indescribable sense of magicalness when it comes to the Bible; even more than that, they are obsessed with it, and have faith in it. … With such blind belief in the Bible, with such trust in the Bible, they have no desire to seek the work of the Holy Spirit. In people’s conceptions, they think that only the Bible can bring the work of the Holy Spirit; only in the Bible can they find the footsteps of God; only in the Bible are hidden the mysteries of God’s work; only the Bible—not other books or people—can clarify everything of God and the entirety of His work; the Bible can bring the work of heaven to earth; and the Bible can both begin and conclude the ages. With these conceptions, people have no inclination to search for the work of the Holy Spirit. So, regardless of how much of a help the Bible was to people in the past, it has become an obstacle to God’s latest work. Without the Bible, people can search for the footsteps of God elsewhere, yet today, His footsteps have been ‘contained’ by the Bible, and extending His latest work has become double difficult, and an uphill struggle. This is all because of the famous chapters and sayings from the Bible, as well as the various prophecies of the Bible. The Bible has become an idol in people’s minds, it has become a puzzle in their brains, and they are simply incapable of believing that God can work exclusive of the Bible, they are incapable of believing that people can find God outside of the Bible, much less are they able to believe that God could depart from the Bible during the final work and start anew. This is unthinkable to people; they can’t believe it, and neither can they imagine it. The Bible has become a great obstacle to people’s acceptance of God’s new work, and has made it difficult to broaden this new work.”
“After all, which is greater: God or the Bible? Why must God’s work be according to the Bible? Could it be that God has no right to exceed the Bible? Can God not depart from the Bible and do other work? Why did Jesus and His disciples not keep the Sabbath? If He were to keep the Sabbath and practice according to the commandments of the Old Testament, why did Jesus not keep the Sabbath after He came, but instead washed feet, covered head, broke bread, and drank wine? Isn’t this all absent from the commandments of the Old Testament? If Jesus honored the Old Testament, why did He defy these doctrines? You should know which came first, God or the Bible! Being the Lord of the Sabbath, could He not also be the Lord of the Bible?”
Seeking the truth when it comes to this, whether the Bible can represent God and the relationship between them is of the utmost importance. And first, we must come to know God is really what kind of God. God is the Creator of all things. He is omnipotent and wise! He is wondrous, the one and only! He is all encompassing, and the ruler of all ——the Almighty, who is and was and is to come. God alone can save and guide mankind. Only He can determine the fate of mankind. This is widely acknowledged. Now let’s ask ourselves: How was the Bible written? After God finished His work, the men used by Him wrote their testimonies and experiences, then these were compiled to make the Bible. So then we know for certain the Bible is merely a record of God’s work in the past, and is just a testimony to God’s work. The Bible can’t represent God or stand in the place of God to work and save man. If man’s faith is focused only on reading the Bible instead of on God’s work, he won’t gain Holy Spirit’s work and be saved. So how do we know this? Because God’s work of salvation is an ongoing process. So, we can’t just fixate on one or two stages of God’s work. Because man should follow the footsteps of God’s work until God completes His work of saving man. In this way, man can truly receive God’s full salvation. God’s management plan of salvation has three stages of work: the work of the Age of Law, the Age of Grace, and the Age of Kingdom. Everyone knows the Age of Law was the time when God used laws to guide mankind. In the Age of Grace, God did His work of redemption. The Lord Jesus was nailed to the cross to redeem man from Satan’s domain, to pardon all their sins, and to qualify them to come before God and to pray to Him. As for the judgment in the Age of Kingdom, this is the work that will cleanse, perfect, and save mankind. If mankind only passes through the Age of Law and through the Age of Grace, but fails to accept God’s judgment of the last days, they will not be thoroughly saved and gained by God. Why is this the case? We all see that in the Age of Grace, the purpose was for Lord Jesus to redeem mankind. In that age, belief in the Lord allowed man to be forgiven of sins, and to be qualified to pray and receive grace. But man wasn’t cleansed in this age. Why is that? Because man’s nature is sinful, and we often rebel against God and oppose Him. The Lord Jesus promised He would come again and express all the truth that would save mankind in the last days to purify those who hear God’s voice and are brought before God’s throne. Just as the Lord Jesus foretold, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come” (John 16:12-13). Almighty God’s words and work are a fulfillment of this verse from John: “when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth.” So Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus. Almighty God is performing judgment, purifying, and perfecting all those who have come before His throne, all of those wise virgins who have returned to Him after hearing His voice into overcomers, to bring them to the kingdom of God. God doing His work in three stages allows us to see that God has always been working to lead and save man. Each stage of God’s work is more profound than the last. As for the Bible, it’s no more than an important book for God’s followers. But the Bible cannot do the work of God like save mankind or guide them.
The Bible is just a record. When God completed work, it was documented in the Bible by His followers. Though of course the Bible’s indispensable, man needs the work of the Holy Spirit to understand it, to understand truth. That’s just a fact. So, we should follow the footsteps of the Lamb and accept and obey God’s judgment work. This way, we can receive the work of the Holy Spirit and God’s salvation and perfection. If man only reads the Bible but fails to accept the words and work of God in the last days, he cannot be purified and saved. Actually, even if every word God said was in the Bible, without the Holy Spirit’s work, mankind would never be able to understand it. To understand the truth, man must practice the word of God, receive enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. And only thus can he understand God’s word, enter reality of truth, and be perfected. Knowing this, we need to understand something. What is the key to our salvation as believers? The key is the Holy Spirit’s work and His perfection. Who is the Holy Spirit? Is the Holy Spirit not just God Himself? The Bible is just a record of God’s work in the past. So how could it possibly stand in for Him? So God alone can save man. The Bible cannot save man. If man only follows the Bible in his faith, and he doesn’t accept the work of God in the last days or follow the steps of God’s work, then he will be abandoned. Many in the Age of Law failed to accept the work of Lord Jesus and thus were eliminated. Those who believe in Lord Jesus but fail to accept the work of Almighty God will also be abandoned and eliminated. We can see these people are blind and don’t know God. They’ll bear the brunt of the disasters, left to suffer.
The judgment done by Almighty God through expressing the truth, that is the core of God’s management plan to save mankind. It’s also the last stage of God’s work to purify, to save and perfect mankind. So if believers only keep to the first two stages in the Bible, but fail to accept the work of purification done by Christ in the last days, then they can never enter the kingdom of God. Doesn’t matter how long they’ve believed in the Lord, all that will be for naught. Because all those who reject the end-time salvation of Almighty God are opponents of God. They are all hypocritical Pharisees. No question about it. Even though the Pharisees on the basis of the Bible rejected the Lord Jesus, and the pastors and elders in the last days reject the work of Almighty God using the Bible, this just doesn’t make any sense. They have based their arguments on biblical letters instead of on God’s word. In the eyes of God, no matter what your reasons are, anyone who rejects the work of Almighty God in the last days is a betrayer. In God’s eyes, they are all evil doers. God will never acknowledge them. These nonbelievers and antichrists that are exposed in the last days, they’ll have to bear the punishment and suffer through the disasters. God will have them all cast off and eliminated, and they will never again have the opportunity to see God. We do know this much is true: The Bible cannot represent God, and it cannot stand in for God’s work. God is God. The Bible is the Bible. So since we believe, we must experience God’s work, must follow the pace of God’s work; we must eat and drink God’s word in the last days; and we must follow and accept God’s truth. This is the real meaning of faith. Every time God becomes flesh to work, He must cast off those who only follow the Bible and fail to obey God. So we can say with confidence that “Faith in God must be in line with the Bible, abiding by the Bible is true faith in God, the Bible represents God,” these ideas are fallacy. Anyone who speaks like this so blindly does not know God. When one puts the Bible above all else, even in place of God, is he not walking the path of the Pharisees? The Pharisees adhered to the Bible, opposed God, and so they were cursed. Is this not a fact?
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