God Breathed

by Stan Cox In II Timothy 3, the apostle Paul penned a wonderful sentence that establishes both the precious nature of the words contained in our Bibles and their efficacy in ordering our lives as His servants. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for…

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The Form of the New Testament

by Bob West The Milpitas Messenger, February 1996 “Why isn’t the New Testament written in legal form; i.e., broken down into encyclopedic categories and lists? Instead, it contains much historical, biographical and personal material. Yet we are asked to believe that this is God’s law for us today. How can this be?” The above paragraph…

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Becoming Better Readers

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/2010Fall1BecomingBetterReaders.mp3 by Skip Sebree Communication Between God and Man

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Becoming Careful Readers

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/2010Fall2BecomingCarefulReaders.mp3 by Skip Sebree Communication Between God and Man

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The Bible Alone Is the Standard

by David J. Riggs from Catholic Teaching Examined The apostle Paul said, “…How that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), which in other ages was not made known to the sons of…

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Communication Between God and Man

by Skip Sebree, Fall Gospel Meeting, 2010 God Speaking to Us Becoming Better Readers Becoming Careful Readers The Learning Triangle Understanding the Word Our Speaking to God Improving Our Prayers Studying Prayers

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What does the Bible have to do with God?

Question: What does the Bible have to do with God? I’ve been reading questions and answers on your site, and I really like how you stick with the Bible without adding any opinions that aren’t in there. You see, I have a problem, and I was hoping you would be able to help me. I’ve…

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Why I Believe the Bible Is God’s Only Revelation

by Terry W. Benton There is something unique about the Bible that sets it apart from all other books that claim some kind of divine authority associated with them. Human Wisdom Alone Can Account For All Others When we examine each book there are features that lend credibility to the claim of inspiration in one…

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God’s Word in My Heart

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/GodsWordInMyHeart.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Psalms 119:11-16   I.         God’s Word is important to the Christian             A.        It tells us how to live – II Timothy 3:16-17             B.        It has everything we need to know about life and godliness – II Peter 1:3             C.        But it is frustrating for a lot of us when there is a passage…

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Thank you for the article on the development of the New Testament Text

Question: A quick note to thank you for The Development of the New Testament Text. What a great page for showing a fairly sophisticated flow in an easy to understand way. Quite educational. I got it from my sister in Africa who’s husband is a missionary. I’ve no idea where La Vista is but they…

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What are the first five books of the Bible called?

Question: What are the first five books of the Bible called? Answer: “Then He said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me”” (Luke…

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Confirmed

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Confirmed.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: II Peter 1:12-21   I.         How important is the proof of what we know? – Hebrews 2:1-4             A.        God put a lot of effort into not just saying but proving.             B.        Jesus Christ is the foundation – I Corinthians 3:11             C.        It becomes a solid foundation – II Timothy 2:19             D.        So many people…

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Why does the Bible contain impolite phrases?

Question: I was always taught from a small child by my Christian parents, not to say bad words; yet, I noticed in I Samuel 25:22,34; I Kings 14:10; 16:11; 21:21; and II Kings 9:8 that the writer used these types of words.  Could you tell me what this means? Answer: Terms that are concerned polite…

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How can I believe the Bible when science has proven it wrong?

Question: That was an interesting article about the possible age of the earth.  I am a Christian but still need some answers so I can feel comfortable about where I stand. So if I understand it correctly, there is scientifically proven, beyond a shadow of a doubt, undeniable truth that the earth is much, much older…

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Who wrote II Kings?

Question: Who wrote II Kings? Answer: I Samuel, II Samuel, I Kings, and II Kings are actually one long book that became divided into four parts. Scrolls can only hold so much before they become unwieldy. The books are thought to be the work of a series of prophets. Such makes the most sense since…

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Constantine created the King James Bible

Question: Left unedited. I read “The Origin of the King James Version” and find it very interesting but you never say anything about the actual origin of the King James Bible. In short, this version was created by Emperor Constantine in the year 325AD. At this time, he was losing his hold on his empire…

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How do you define “church” and “scripture?”

Question: How do you respond to I Timothy 3:15 where Paul refers to the “church of the living God” as “the pillar and bulwark of faith?” As a follow up how do we define “church?” There seem to be literally thousands of different churches, with almost all claiming to be Bible-based, full gospel or something…

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Why are translations in Greek instead of Hebrew, the language Jesus spoke in?

Question: Why are all of your translations in Greek instead of Hebrew, which would be the language Jesus spoke in? Answer: The following is specific toward Matthew, which is usually the one book people like to claim was originally written in Hebrew: Was Matthew originally written in Hebrew or Aramaic? The simple fact is that it…

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Who are you to decide which books belong in the Bible?

Question: I read your article on the internet and I think you need to re-read genisis concerning the giants and the fallen angels, sir. Angels were able to trnasform themselves into human beings just read the story  of the two men( who were angels of God) who spoke to Lot and stayed in his home and…

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The Historical Accuracy of the Bible

by Jim Sasser To be divinely inspired, a book must be historically accurate.  For if its credibility cannot be established on the basis of known events, it certainly cannot be relied upon as an adequate guide in matters beyond our ability to check.  On the other hand, if we can demonstrate that such a book…

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Respect

by Carey Scott “In that day a man will look to his Maker, and his eyes will have respect for the Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 17:7). A quality that is lacking in our society is respect. I think everyone would acknowledge such, but few think about it. Many wish it would return to our society,…

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How do I convince my brother that the Bible is complete?

Question: I was discussing baptism with my brother. He knows he needs to be baptized, but he doesn’t have confidence in the Bible. He says he watches these shows that tell how corrupt men took books out of the Bible that really might be important. One example was that Mary Magdalene was supposedly one of…

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Roman Catholic Quotes Regarding the Bible

The Bible Alone was Used in the Early Church There was far more extensive and continuous use of Scriptures in the public service of the early Church than there is among us. [Addis and Arnold, Catholic Dictionary, The Catholic Publication Society, 1887, page 509] Our present convenient compendiums — the Missal, Breviary, and so on were…

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The Sufficiency of the Bible

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/SufficiencyOfTheBible.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 3:1-12   I.         Do we need anything beyond the Bible to know God’s will for us?             A.        If the Bible is all sufficient, then we would not need any church, priest, or religious leader.             B.        If the Bible is sufficient then we would be responsible to find the truth for ourselves…

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How did the correct books get added to the Bible?

Question: Hi, I was wondering if you could help me with this question I have. I know that in II Timothy 3:16 it says that all scripture is “God breathed and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in righteousness”. This is a wonderful thing, but I have a question about the Bible…

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What does it mean that God’s word is a two-edged sword?

Question: What does the Scripture mean in Hebrews 4:12 relating to a two-edged sword? Answer: “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the…

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How many major and minor prophets are there in the Bible?

Question: How many major and minor prophets are there in the Bible? Answer: The division of major and minor prophets come from the Old Testament. There are 17 books of prophecy in the Old Testament and they are divided into two groups: the long books (the major prophets) and the short books (the minor prophets).…

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Remember

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/Remember.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ecclesiastes 12:1   I.         At times I get teased about my memory.             A.        A researcher at Johns Hopkins noted the things people most often forget.                         1.         Names – 83%                         2.         Where something is – 60%                         3.         Telephone numbers – 57%                         4.         Words – 53%                         5.         What was said – 49%                         6.         Faces – 42%                         7.         Whether you’ve just…

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What is the best study Bible?

Question: What Bible is the best to study? Several publishers now teach that baptism is not required, such as the Life Application Bible, and several teach the 1000 year war. How can I know which publishing house and what Bible are the best for me? Answer: First, pick a Bible because you are interested in…

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Psalms 119

Psalm119-1Psalm119-2Psalm119-3Psalm119-4Psalm119-5Psalm119-6 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Proverb 4:10-17   I.         How do you learn? What do you need to learn?             A.        The evil decay, but a child of God must learn – II Timothy 3:13-17             B.        It is important for all aspects of life – II Peter 1:3             C.        Your parents have invested a lot in you, so has…

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Why have some books been left out of the Bible?

Question: If the books in the Bible were written by apostles, was Moses considered an apostle? What of Isaiah and Samuel? Were they considered apostles? Is it not said in the book of Matthew that nothing was to be taken from the Old Testament? I’m just curious because if this is true, those books in…

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The Bible’s Witnesses

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/The-Bibles-Witnesses.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Isaiah 43:8-13   I.         The strength of any testimony depends on the quality of the witnesses giving the testimony             A.        In a court of law the witnesses are grilled as heavily as the defendants.                         1.         An inconsistent witness is not a believable witness                         2.         Thus the integrity of the witness matters             B.        God made…

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Sola Scriptura or Sola Papa?

by Chuck Durham via Biblical Insights, Vol. 7, No. 9, Sept. 2007. Pope Benedict XVI released a Vatican document on July 10, 2007, that reasserted the primacy of the Roman Catholic Church as providing the only true path to salvation. The document claims that the Roman Catholic Church is the only true church on earth having…

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