Refusing to Tamper with God's Word

[Christsfreeservant]

2 Corinthians 4:1-2 ESV

“Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God.”​

Oh, how I wish this would be the truth coming from the mouths of all pastors, preachers, and teachers of the Word of God today. So many of them are practicing disgraceful and underhanded ways, and they are using cunning and craftiness in the tampering of God’s Word to make it more acceptable and appealing to human flesh and to the people of the world. And some of them are being taught to be deceptive and manipulative, too.

So many of them have gone the way of the world and they are following marketing books in place of the Scriptures and in place of the Holy Spirit to teach them how to conduct their worship services, and how to present the Word of God, and in how to draw in large crowds of people from the world into their “church” gatherings. And thus they are altering the gospel message, too, to make it more acceptable to human flesh.

Many of them are no longer teaching that we must repent and that we must obey our Lord and that we must submit to him as Lord (Owner-Master) of our lives, even though this is what the Scriptures teach. They are skipping over those passages of Scripture or else they are twisting them to say what they do not say. And so there is no longer the fear of the Lord being taught, but people are making professions of faith in Jesus without repentance.

They are telling the people that they can “believe” (not defined) in Jesus Christ, have their sins forgiven, escape hell, and have heaven guaranteed them when they die with no requirements for repentance, obedience, and submission to Christ as Lord. Thus, they are being given carte blanche to continue in deliberate and habitual sin without guilt, with no warnings of the consequences for unrepentant and habitual sin against God.

Therefore, they are leading many people to hell on the promise of heaven because they are lying to them. They are telling them what their itching ears want to hear but not what they need to hear. And the masses are flocking to this cheap grace gospel because it makes no requirements of them to have to change how they are living. For they are convincing them that their sins no longer matter to God and that God can’t even see when they sin.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 ESV

“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”​

The truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ is definitely being veiled (hidden, concealed) today. But it is not just being covered up with the lies but it is being attacked and falsely accused of being “works-based salvation.” The truth of the gospel is being demonized while the lies are being raised up as being righteous. Now light is being seen as darkness, and darkness is now being taught as light. And many people are flocking to the lies.

In truth, the god of this world, Satan, has indeed blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. They are not only not being taught the truth of the gospel, but they are not being taught the truth about Jesus Christ, about God, and about the whole counsel of God. They are being given a false image of God, of Christ, and they are accepting that.

So, “unbelievers” are not just those who refuse to believe in Jesus. Many of them are making professions of faith in Jesus Christ, but based in lies, not in truth, and so they are false professions of faith. But God has always defined unbelief as disobedience and obedience as belief (faith). And obedience is not just keeping a set of rules. Obedience is full surrender to Christ as Lord, making him Lord of our lives, and us following him wherever he leads us.

2 Corinthians 4:5-6 ESV

“For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”​

If we are true servants of the Lord and of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we are not in the business of promoting ourselves. Now, this does not mean that we won’t share personal testimony from time to time, as did Paul, but that we are not promoting ourselves and our thinking and our own philosophies, but what we are promoting is Christ in his fulness, and the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, so that many will reject the lies and believe the truth.

For only in the truth is there true salvation from sin and the hope of eternal life with God. And the truth is that our faith comes from God, it is gifted to us by God, and we are persuaded by God as to his holiness and righteousness and of our sinfulness, and of our need to repent of our sins and to turn to our Lord to now follow him in obedience to his will and to his ways.

So when we believe in Jesus Christ, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin, and we are raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Our old self is crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we will no longer be enslaved to sin, but so we will now be slaves to God and to his righteousness, for the glory of God, in his power and strength.

Therefore, sin is to no longer reign in our mortal bodies, to make us obey its passions. Sin is to no longer have dominion (rule, authority) over our lives. For, if we obey sin, it ends in death, but if we obey the Lord, it leads to righteousness and to sanctification, and it ends in eternal life with God. For we will all reap what we sow. If we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction. But if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life. Please take this to heart.

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Tit 2:11-14; Jas 1:21-25; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; Php 2:12-13; Col 1:21-23; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Heb 10:26-27; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Matt 7:21-23; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8, 27; Rev 22:14-15]

Because He Lives

By Gloria Gaither / William J. Gaither

God sent His son, they called Him Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive;
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives!

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow
Because He lives, all fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth a living just because He lives

And then one day, I'll cross that river
I'll fight life's final war with pain
And then as death gives way to victory
I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know He reigns

Caution: This link may contain ads

 

[Josheb]

I relate abundantly to the frustrations reading/hearing Christian teachers add to scripture. Have gotten into the habit of reading extra-biblical sources with Bible in hand an open to verify whether or not what they say what the Bible says is what the Bible actually states. It's really quite alarming how some many so frequently add so much and all under the auspices of either reading scripture "literally," or exegetically.

 

[Christsfreeservant]

Waaaay to lengthy an opening post.


That being said, I relate abundantly to the frustrations reading/hearing Christian teachers add to scripture. Have gotten into the habit of reading extra-biblical sources with Bible in hand an open to verify whether or not what they say what the Bible says is what the Bible actually states. It's really quite alarming how some many so frequently add so much and all under the auspices of either reading scripture "literally," or exegetically.

1. This is not an opening post. This is a devotional. It is a Bible study, so it is not going to be short. You are welcome to comment, but this is not in the debate section.

2. Saying, "Waaaay too lgenthy and opening post" is rude and unkind. Who says this devotional is too lengthy? Are there rules on here that determine the length of a post? Do you read the Bible? Some of those chapters are very lengthy. And if you are reading extra-biblical sources with the Bible then you are doing a lot of reading there. It is not up to you to determine if what God gives me to write is too lengthy or not. And if CF determines that the posts are too lengthy, they will certainly let me know. Also, if something is too long for you to read, go read something that is shorter.

 

[Josheb]

1. This is not an opening post. This is a devotional. It is a Bible study, so it is not going to be short. You are welcome to comment, but this is not in the debate section.

I know. I understood that when I posted it and nothing I said should be construed to say otherwise.

Consider my post devotionally.

 

[Josheb]

2. Saying, "Waaaay too lgenthy and opening post" is rude and unkind. Who says this devotional is too lengthy? Are there rules on here that determine the length of a post? Do you read the Bible? Some of those chapters are very lengthy. And if you are reading extra-biblical sources with the Bible then you are doing a lot of reading there. It is not up to you to determine if what God gives me to write is too lengthy or not. And if CF determines that the posts are too lengthy, they will certainly let me know. Also, if something is too long for you to read, go read something that is shorter.

I said it was too lengthy and if this is not a debate then don't debate it. The statement is just a personal observation and if you want to take it as rude and offensive then that is on you.

Is that what you'd really like to be doing in this devotional? If not, then don't. You can chose your post. You cannot choose what others bring to bear upon it. You can choose to respond to anything anyone writes any way you choose as long as it does not violate the tou. One of those choices is the choice not to respond. So, if you do not like what I bring to bear on the opening post of this devotional Bible study then ignore it but I will be likely be posting more. No malevolence on my part should be assumed.

It is a long post AND the matter of adding to God's word is quite common AND that is something to be contemplated devotionally as we study the Bible.

You are welcome to comment, but this is not in the debate section.

You're not being very welcoming . I wonder about that "welcome to comment," because I doubt you're going to enjoy another observation of mine: The opening post of this devotional Bible study ends with extra-biblical content that adds to God's word. That's ironic. Somewhat self-incriminating but I understand that was not the purpose of the devotional .

It is a Bible study, so it is not going to be short.

Refusing to tamper with God's word is a challenge. Proper exegesis and sound interpretation is not the same as tempering and we can observe the latter occurring under the guise of the former just about any day we hear/read from others. Shouldn't be any debate about that. Should be 100% agreement between you, me and anyone else joining the devotional . To show good will I will delete the line about length.



So how about you and I start over and you read my post as if it was kindly posted with good intent and not like something Wanda Sykes or Samantha Bee would post?

It is a Bible study, so it is not going to be short.

And I cannot wait to study the Bible with you on this topic.

Waiting on you.

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

All we have to do is to watch the preaching of Kenneth Copeland, Joyce Meyer, Bill Johnson and Benny Hinn. When they quote a verse of Scripture, look at the verse in context, and you will see that they make the verse say something different to what it actually says in context. Bill Johnson will blatantly change the meaning of a verse, and then give a series of "Johnsonisms" statements that give the impression that he is quoting Scripture but what he is saying is not Scripture at all. All he is doing is making stuff up in his head to illustrate his point and presenting it as equal to Scripture. This is what is called "handling the Word of God deceitfully".

 

[Christsfreeservant]

All we have to do is to watch the preaching of Kenneth Copeland, Joyce Meyer, Bill Johnson and Benny Hinn. When they quote a verse of Scripture, look at the verse in context, and you will see that they make the verse say something different to what it actually says in context. Bill Johnson will blatantly change the meaning of a verse, and then give a series of "Johnsonisms" statements that give the impression that he is quoting Scripture but what he is saying is not Scripture at all. All he is doing is making stuff up in his head to illustrate his point and presenting it as equal to Scripture. This is what is called "handling the Word of God deceitfully".

True that many preachers practice deceit and the twisting of Scripture, but this is definitely not limited to just one certain group of them. They are in pretty much all denominations and church sects, from what I have observed personally, in person, and from what I have seen on the internet and TV. This is widespread. For so many church denominations have chosen the way of the world and they are marketing their churches to the world, and so they are trying to attract the world to their gatherings, and so they have altered the gatherings of the church and the gospel to make them more acceptable to the world and to human flesh. And this is a sad situation, indeed.

 

[Christsfreeservant]

I said it was too lengthy and if this is not a debate then don't debate it. The statement is just a personal observation and if you want to take it as rude and offensive then that is on you.

Is that what you'd really like to be doing in this devotional? If not, then don't. You can chose your post. You cannot choose what others bring to bear upon it. You can choose to respond to anything anyone writes any way you choose as long as it does not violate the tou. One of those choices is the choice not to respond. So, if you do not like what I bring to bear on the opening post of this devotional Bible study then ignore it but I will be likely be posting more. No malevolence on my part should be assumed.

It is a long post AND the matter of adding to God's word is quite common AND that is something to be contemplated devotionally as we study the Bible.

You're not being very welcoming . I wonder about that "welcome to comment," because I doubt you're going to enjoy another observation of mine: The opening post of this devotional Bible study ends with extra-biblical content that adds to God's word. That's ironic. Somewhat self-incriminating but I understand that was not the purpose of the devotional .
Refusing to tamper with God's word is a challenge. Proper exegesis and sound interpretation is not the same as tempering and we can observe the latter occurring under the guise of the former just about any day we hear/read from others. Shouldn't be any debate about that. Should be 100% agreement between you, me and anyone else joining the devotional . To show good will I will delete the line about length.



So how about you and I start over and you read my post as if it was kindly posted with good intent and not like something Wanda Sykes or Samantha Bee would post?

And I cannot wait to study the Bible with you on this topic.

Waiting on you.

This is a quote from the "Statement of Purpose" of this section called "Daily Devotionals":

"This is an awesome forum to increase your study in the word of God with and through others. Share your devotions here, and what God has shown you during your quiet time. Feel free to reference scriptures and books of reference from your study time, and allow God's Holy Spirit to shine His light through your words."

This is where I share my daily quiet times with the Lord, where I share what he is teaching me through his word each day, and he is the one who determines the length, not me, and the content. The intention is not to begin a group Bible study, per se, but to share what the Lord is teaching me and what I am getting out of the passage of Scripture as he speaks to me what he wants me to get from it and then to share with others for their encouragement.

So, if you are encouraged by it in some way, please feel free to share, or if you have questions about anything I got from the passage, please feel free to ask, or if you want to share what you got out of the passage of Scripture, please feel free to share, or if you disagree with what I got out of it, feel free to respectfully voice your disagreement. But as far as studying with you, that is different. I am not beginning a group Bible study. I am sharing my quiet times with God.

And if I was inclined to begin a group Bible study, it would not include men, as I don't instruct men since I am a woman, a 72 year old wife, mother, and grandmother. But if a man responds to one of my devotionals with an interest in learning from the passage, I will respond to his comments if I believe he is sincere in wanting to discuss the passage of Scripture to learn from it what it is teaching. Then he listens to me by choice. I hope this has increased your understanding of what I am here for and what this section on CF is all about.

 

[Josheb]

So, if you are encouraged by it in some way, please feel free to share, or if you have questions about anything I got from the passage, please feel free to ask, or if you want to share what you got out of the passage of Scripture, please feel free to share, or if you disagree with what I got out of it, feel free to respectfully voice your disagreement.

I did.