WHAT DO WE BELIEVE ABOUT THE BIBLE?  

-(TIMOTHY 3: 14-17) 

 One of the most frequent questions I get asked after I became the pastor at St. Luke’s church is, “what can you do for this church to make it better as the new pastor?”  To explain it in detail, the question specifically asks what I, as the new pastor of a church—one that has a twenty-four year history, at the important juncture of the start of the new millennium—can do for this church.  Every time I pray in the morning, I ask this same question to God, and find myself struggling for an answer.  Among all those pastors out there, I ask, why did You decide to put me at this church?  In the midst of all this, I am certain of one thing—I did not come here because I wanted to, but that I was placed here to serve a specific plan and intent of God.
 

 Like I have stressed many times before, this church must follow the goal of becoming a mature house of God, one that is befitting of its 24-year old history.  Just as a 24 year-old that acts like a child or a teenager can never be treated as an adult, churches need mature workers as their history lengthen.  Then how do we become mature Christians, worthy of leading a responsible church?  To fulfill this task, what can I, as the fourth pastor of this church, do?  To tell you the truth, as I contemplate these questions, I serve the St. Luke’s church every day.
 

 The pastors, who came before me, did tremendous things—through blood, sweat, and tears—in establishing a comfortable place where we all can worship.  The main sanctuary and the Wesley Life Center compare to buildings and facilities owned by any Korean-American churches in the United States.   All this was made possible by the tearful prayers and efforts by all of you, the pastors who served before me, and the many who came and went before us.  
 

 We can believe that since the infrastructure is in place, now is the time to grow people—to educate and produce Disciples of Christ.   I believe that growing a mature Christian is dependent on education regarding Christianity, and that all Christian education must center on the Bible. 

 One of the projects that I am very proud of is the Friday Bible College.  I majored in Systematic Theology, or Philosophical Theology in college.  I can boast that I have read many materials concerning philosophical aspects of Christianity, but I have not had the opportunity to truly, and deeply, research the Bible.  I cannot express my gratitude in being given this opportunity to do the one thing that I have always wanted to do—to study the Bible.  I feel a great wave of emotion when I read the Bible to teach every Friday.  I often come to reaffirm the omnipotence and everlastingness of God word and the truth it beholds.  In the process, I receive great grace and blessing.  I get a sense of purpose that one thing I may do for this church—although it may be small—as the new pastor is dutifully teaching God’s word.  The one wish that I have is for more people to share in my vision and my true intent, and walk down the same path with me.  The opportunity to learn just doesn’t come by everyday.  It is important to kindle the initial flame, the desire to learn, and with steadfast commitment and effort, finish what we have started. 

 As I prepare for Friday Bible College, I receive great grace and discover the truths, through spiritual eyes, that I have not noticed before.  Every time I discover some new truth in the Bible, I come to reaffirm to myself that the Bible is indeed the one true bestseller in this world, worthy of life-long reading and research.  According to the Gallup Poll conducted in 1990, about 75% of Americans said they read the Bible.  In year 2000, however, this percentage dropped down to 59%.  In 1990, about 43% of Americans said they read few pages of the Bible every week; in 2000, this statistic declined to 37%.  The modern-day reality is that ever-evolving culture—with likes of the Internet and other entertainment media—are keeping people from reading the Bible.
 

 The reason why all of us are here—sharing this communal ark called St. Luke’s church and offering worship service together—stems from two facts.  First, it is based on the confession of faith that Jesus Christ is our Savior, and second, it is based on the authority of the Bible as the word of God.  Therefore, our church is a community that centers on Christ and believes in the Bible as the word of God.  If the Bible is the bind that holds us together, we cannot become mature Christians and disciples of Jesus without reading and researching the Bible. 

 One of the most popular columns in US newspapers is “Dear Abby,” a consultative column.  There is an interesting story, which showed up in this column that shows us the importance of reading the Bible. 

 “Dear Abby,

  A young man from a wealthy family was about to graduate from high school.  It was customary in the affluent neighborhood for the parents to give the graduate an automobile.  Bill and his father had spent months looking at cars, and the week before graduation they found the perfect one.  On the eve of his graduation, Bill’s father handed him a gift-wrapped Bible.  Bill was so angry that he threw the Bible down and stormed out of the house.  He and his father never saw each other again.  It was the news of his father’s death that finally brought Bill home.  As he sat, one night, going through his father’s possessions that he was to inherit, Bill came across the Bible that his father had given him.  He brushed away the dust and opened it, only to find a cashier’s check, dated the day of his graduation, in the exact amount of the car they had chosen together.” 

  Anyone can hit such a jackpot in reading the Bible. 

 The Second Book of Timothy is a second pastoral letter from Paul to Timothy.  Timothy, from a very young age, inherited Christian faith from his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois (2 Timothy 1: 5) and was especially versed in the study of the Bible.  During the time when Paul sent this letter to Timothy, there were many false pastors and witnesses who, for the sake of their own wealth and benefits, misinterpreted and abused the Bible for their personal gain.  Paul, in his letter, is pleading to Timothy to truly understand the Bible and teach its meaning in its purest form, against the false preachers who exploited the Bible for their own personal gain.
 

 In verse 15, Paul reminds Timothy of the knowledge embedded in the Bible that will lead to salvation.  In verse 16, Paul states, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God.”  Bible is “God-breathed,” meaning it was written from the breath of God.  This means that God was inside the hearts and minds of those who wrote the Bible, to ensure that His true intent was correctly scribed into the Bible.  The origin, the author, and the source of the Bible rest within God.  No matter how intellectual and wise the men who wrote the Bible were, they could not have conceived of the Bible without God.
 

 Paul explains through today’s scripture the five benefits of the Bible.  First, the Bible is good for teaching, or education.  The Bible teaches us three things: Who God is, who we are, and how we can attain salvation.  Second, the Bible is useful in rebuking, or rejecting, false ideals.  In combating false teachings, immoral theology, and wrongful education, there is no better standard of comparison to criticize and denounce from than the Bible.  Third, the Bible is good for correction.  Although the Bible criticizes immoral theology and religions, it also leads us down the right path from the wrong ones.  When we walk stray onto a curvy road, the one that can lead us astray, only thing that can straighten our path is the Bible.  Fourth, the Bible is necessary in “training us in righteousness.”  Righteousness here means correct relationship with God.  We can become righteous by believing in the fact that Jesus died at the cross for our sins and confessing our faith; when read the Bible, we can not only repair our relationship with those around us, but also with God.  Lastly, in verse 17, the Bible has the power to make “man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good move.”  When we read the bible, research it, and study it in our minds, God’s words will grasp us, make us complete with God’s love, and give us the ability to completely finish all good tasks given to us. 

 If the Bible is so good, we must read it, research it, and apply it to our every day lives.  All the florid and eloquent words or sermons have no meaning if those exact words cannot be applied to our everyday lives.  The Bible has tremendous capabilities for those who believe and accept it as God’s words.  In India, a man named Ramad, a member of a notorious gang, went on a larceny binge; on the table of one of the houses they broke into, Ramad saw the Bible.  Ramad thought the pages of the Bible would be good for rolling his cigarettes.  Without much thinking, he took couple pages from the Bible and used it to roll and smoke his cigarettes.  One day, Ramad realized that the Bible was written in his language, and began reading the pages before he rolled his cigarettes.  A few weeks passed.  One day, Ramad was greatly graced by one page that he had ripped out to roll his next cigarette.  He fell to his knees, and asked Jesus to come into his heart to forgive his sins.  Ramad truly repented his sins, and turned himself in to the police.  Within the prison walls, he became a great missionary, able to convert the multitudes of inmates and guards to the embrace of Christ. 

 Bible has such amazing capabilities.  As long as you believe and accept that fact that the Bible is the God’s word, designed for the salvation of the people, God will come into each and every one of our hearts and allow us to experience His love.  Won’t you research this wonderful book?  The opportunity is there every mornings, Wednesday nights, and Friday Bible College to deeply research God’s words.  Won’t you join this precious group of few?