https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/The-Bible-Is-Understandable.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n\tby Jeffrey W. Hamilton<\/p>\n\t
Text: Psalm 119:97-112<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I. When it comes to religion, people seem to prefer having a mystery<\/p>\n A. Those in leadership of many denominations prefer it because people depend on\nthem for answers.\n B. Those in the ranks of denominations are satisfied having others tell them what\nthey need to know.\n
C. The problem is that it leaves people wide open for false doctrine. <\/p>\n
D. It led to the downfall of Israel – Hosea 4:6-9<\/p>\n
II. The Bible was written to be understood<\/p>\n
A. Ephesians 3:3-5 – The reason Paul wrote was for understanding<\/p>\n
B. A simplicity to be understood – II Corinthians 1:12-13<\/p>\n
C. Peter wrote to bring remembrance – II Peter 1:12-15<\/p>\n
D. John wrote with a purpose, to share what he had witnessed – I John 1:1-4<\/p>\n
E. John blessed those who read and listen to the words – Revelation 1:3<\/p>\n
F. In fact, understanding is commanded by God – Ephesians 5:17<\/p>\n
III. It can’t be understood if you don’t expect to understand it<\/p>\n
A. Psalm 119:97-104 – Contrast David’s attitude to denominations today<\/p>\n
B. Roman Catholic<\/p>\n 1. The very nature of the Bible ought to prove to any thinking man the\nimpossibility of its being the one safe method to find out what the Saviour\ntaught. [Question Box, 1913 edition, page 67]\n 2. The Bible was not intended to be a textbook of the Christian religion.\n[John Francis Knoll, Catholic Facts, Our Sunday Visitor Press,\nHuntington, Indiana, 1927, page 50]\n 3. Second, … a competent religious guide must be clear and intelligible to all,\nso that everyone may fully understand the true meaning of the instructions\nit contains. Is the Bible a book intelligible to all? Far from it; it is full of\nobscurities and difficulties not only for the illiterate, but even for the\nlearned. [The Faith of Our Fathers, James Cardinal Gibbons, 1917, page\n70]\n 4. More than this, parts of the Bible are evidently unsuited to the very young\nor to the ignorant, and hence Clement XI condemned the proposition that\nthe reading of the Scriptures is for all. These principles are fixed and\ninvariable but the discipline of the Church with regard to the reading of the\nBible in the vulgar tongue has varied with varying circumstances. In early\ntimes the Bible was read freely by the lay people … New dangers came in\nduring the Middle Ages … To meet these evils, the Council of Toulouse\n(1229 ) and Terragona (1234) forbade the laity to read the vernacular\ntranslations of the Bible. Pius IV required bishops to refuse lay persons\nleave to read even Catholic versions of Scriptures unless their confessors\nor parish priests judged that such reading was likely to prove beneficial.\n[Catholic Dictionary, Addis and Arnold, 1887, page 82]\n
C. Orthodox<\/p>\n 1. ”The idea that the Scriptures are self-interpreting is patently absurd. It\nassumes a degree of absolute objectivity that would make the most ardent\npositivist cringe with embarrassment. … this is exactly what the doctrine of\nsola Scriptura assumes: a bare text that somehow imposes its meaning on\nthe reader.” [THE WAY: What Every Protestant Should Know About the\nOrthodox Church<\/i>, Clark Carlton, 1997, p 100]\n
D. Jehovah’s Witnesses<\/p>\n 1. People can only fully and accurately understand the Bible and God’s\npurposes through their association with the religion. [The Watchtower<\/i>,\nSep. 1, 1954, p. 529; Oct. 1, 1967, p. 587; Dec. 1, 1981, p.27; Feb 15,\n1981, p.19]\n 2. Witnesses are encouraged to attain to “oneness” and thus not to “harbor\nprivate ideas when it comes to Bible understanding,” or be suspicious of\ntheir teachings, but rather to have confidence in what they print. [The\nWatchtower<\/i>, Aug 1, 2001 p. 13; Qualified<\/i>, 1955, p. 156]\n
E. Presbyterian<\/p>\n 1. ”Nevertheless, we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of\nGod to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are\nrevealed in the Word” [Westminster Confession of faith, 6:6\n 2. ”They who strive to build up firm faith in Scripture through disputation are\ndoing things backwards…. [because] even if anyone clears God’s Sacred\nWord from man’s evil speaking, he will not at once imprint upon their\nhearts that certainty which piety requires. Since for unbelieving men\nreligion seems to stand by opinion alone, they, in order not to believe\nanything foolishly or lightly, both wish and demand rational proof that\nMoses and the prophets spoke divinely. But I reply: the testimony of the\nSpirit is more excellent than all reason. For as God alone is a fit witness of\nhimself in his Word, so also the Word will not find acceptance in men’s\nhearts before it is sealed by the inward testimony of the Spirit. The same\nSpirit, therefore, who has spoken through the mouths of the prophets must\npenetrate into our hearts to persuade us that they faithfully proclaimed\nwhat had been divinely commanded.” [John Calvin, Institutes of the\nChristian Religion<\/i>, I. vii. 4]\n
F. Christian Scientist<\/p>\n 1. Doesn’t the Bible alone show us the way to eternal life? Yes, it does. But\nhumanity had the Bible for close to two millenniums without fully\nunderstanding how to use its truths in a scientifically provable way to heal\nand regenerate people like Christ Jesus did. To arrive at that kind of\nunderstanding, humanity needed to comprehend the Bible on a deeper\nlevel. They needed to “unlock” the Bible, so to speak. It was the specific\nmission of Science and Health to give the world this “key” to the\nScriptures-to open up their treasures and enable everyone to use them.\n[Mary Metzner Trammell, “A Pastor for the World,” The Christian\nScience Journal<\/i>, May 1994]\n
IV. What a contrast<\/p>\n
A. Timothy understood from childhood – II Timothy 3:14-17<\/p>\n
B. The Bereans are praised for searching the Scriptures for proof – Acts 17:11<\/p>\n
C. Lack of understand comes from lack of seeing – Matthew 13:15<\/p>\n
D. We come to God by being taught – John 6:44-45<\/p>\n
V. Are we the good soil? – Matthew 13:23<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Psalm 119:97-112 I. When it comes to religion, people seem to prefer having a mystery A. Those in leadership of many denominations prefer it because people depend on them for answers. B. Those in the ranks of denominations are satisfied having others tell them what they need to know. C. The problem is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[219,1255,300,355,447,1131,1599,964],"class_list":["post-53016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-bible","tag-christian-scientists","tag-denominations","tag-jehovahs-witnesses","tag-orthodox-church","tag-presbyterian-church","tag-roman-catholic-church","tag-understanding-the-bible"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":55224,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/three-reasons-i-dont-like-denominations\/","url_meta":{"origin":53016,"position":0},"title":"Three Reasons I Don\u2019t Like Denominations","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 18, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Wes McAdams Radically Christian Mahatma Gandhi is quoted as saying, \"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.\" If you ask me, I'd say, \"I love Christ (and I love you), but I do not like your denominations. Your denominations\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/division-225x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":30327,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/origins-of-denominations\/","url_meta":{"origin":53016,"position":1},"title":"Origins of Denominations","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 12, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Over the years, I've done lessons that look at various issues that caused the rise of the various denominations that we see today. Rather than leaving them scattered, I'm gathering them up on a single page so that they will be more easily found. Where Did\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14844,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-wrong-with-the-baptists-methodists-etc\/","url_meta":{"origin":53016,"position":2},"title":"What is wrong with the Baptists, Methodists, etc.?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 28, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I think my main concern is: \"Is the Church of Christ the only way?\" What is wrong with the Baptists, Methodists, etc...? Am I going in the right direction to get to Heaven? I know I have a lot of doubts and questions. Answer: The question, \"Is the Church\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12755,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-there-warnings-about-believing-you-are-the-only-denomination-going-to-heaven\/","url_meta":{"origin":53016,"position":3},"title":"Are there warnings about believing you are the only denomination going to heaven?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 19, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Some church denominations say, \"We are right and all other churches are wrong\" (concerning Bible interpretations). Or they say, \"We are going to Heaven. All other denominations are not.\" Do the Scriptures give any warnings or guidelines about this \"attitude\" held by certain groups? Thank you! Answer: Behind this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":87294,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-all-denominations-false\/","url_meta":{"origin":53016,"position":4},"title":"Are all denominations false?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 28, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Are all denominations false? Did Jesus ever command anyone to create denominations? To me, it seems that denominations are man-made religions, not something the Lord initiated. I don't believe God leads people to follow a particular denomination or to find their identity in one. Many people proudly call themselves\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":38990,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-is-the-church-of-christs-view-of-baptism-different-from-the-denominations\/","url_meta":{"origin":53016,"position":5},"title":"How is the church of Christ’s view of baptism different from the denominations?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 23, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, I recently came across a YouTube comment about baptism that puzzled me a bit: \"It's also important to know the church of Christ view of baptismal salvation is different from every other view; that of the Lutherans, Anglicans, Catholics or Orthodox.\" Is this a correct assessment? 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