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>>Eric Flickinger: Welcome to "Sabbath School," brought to you by It Is Written. Today, we're excited to study a brand new subject, and we're going to look at the role of the Bible in growing in our relationship with God, a fascinating subject, and we're glad that you're with us. Let's begin with prayer.
Father, we thank You for blessing us once again with an opportunity to learn more about You and the way that You want to interact with us and help us to grow. We ask that You'll bless our time together here today, and that, as a result of it, we will grow in You and be able to share Your love with others as well. We thank You, in Jesus' name, amen.
So we're glad that you are here to join us for lesson number 4 of 13, looking at "The Role of the Bible" in our growth with Christ. We're also excited to have not just you, but the author of this quarter's "Sabbath School" lesson with us as well, Nina Atcheson, Nina, welcome back.
>>Nina Atcheson: Thank you.
>>Eric: So today, "The Role of the Bible." In fact, we're gonna be looking at the Bible, not just this lesson, but next week's lesson as well. So it's a significant subject, as we would expect it would be. But with respect to the role of the Bible, we know it's important, but is it important to us personally, or why should it be important to us personally if we are wanting to grow in our relationship with God?
>>Nina: Good question. Let me answer that, but before I do, I'd love to share a short story, a personal story. When I was just maybe six or seven years old, it was Christmastime, and my grandmother, she was actually Russian, she gave me a gift, and I remember her-- she didn't speak a lot of English, a little English-- but I remember her kneeling down and holding on to my little six-year-old hands, and she said to me [speaking in Russian]. And I said, "'Babi, Babushka,' I don't know what you're saying." And she said to me, "This is the most special gift you'll ever receive," and I opened it up, and I saw this beautiful red picture Bible. It was actually my very first Bible, and in the front-- I've still got it at home-- she said to me, "May this book stay with you and the messages of this book change your life," or something like that. But I remember her telling me, after I opened it, she said to me, "Always read your Bible. "Don't take it for granted because it's God's Word speaking to you."
And as a young child, I remember, I mean, it just had pictures, it had a few words in this book, but I remember looking at it thinking, "God's Word to me? That's amazing." And that afternoon I remember playing outside with my cousins, and I had the Bible just kind of placed under a tree, and I'd look back every now and then to see, is it still there, or has God taken His Word back? And sure enough, it has been with me ever since, and I've got, I don't know, maybe 10 or 15 Bibles in my home office. I feel like many of our viewers would have a copy of their own Bible. But I wonder if we've really thought about how much this book-- how very precious it is, the fact that people over the years have copied it in secret. They've smuggled it to share it with others. There are places even today where it is forbidden to read and have a copy of the Bible. It's the most published book in any language around the world. It's also one of the oldest books, and people have died to share the Bible with others.
But I wonder for our viewers, where is this book positioned in your life? Where is it placed in your life? Is it sitting beside your bed? Have you opened it much recently? Do we realize that God's inviting us to open it, to-- that He wants to speak to us, to encourage us? It's a really powerful, powerful book that we hold in our possession. And I wonder if we take it for granted. So is it important to us personally? Absolutely. Do we see it that way? It's a challenging question I think we need to consider.
>>Eric: And I think today, at least in the Western world, they've become so prevalent that I think the special nature of them, to some extent, at least in many minds, has become diminished. I mean, you can pick up a Bible at the Dollar Store today. They're everywhere, and many people have many of them at home, but they rarely bring them off the shelf or crack them open. You know, "I've got 15, 20, 25 Bibles. "I've got a coffee table Bible. I've got, you know--" but how often do they get used? How often do they get read? How--more than how often do they get read, how often do they get studied? Because it's important to not just breeze through it, but to slow down and pick things apart and let God speak to you in those things. So, very, very powerful book, it is powerful. It is important, and there's someone who doesn't want us to spend time in it. He doesn't mind so much if it's around, but how much time are we actually spending in it? Talk to us a little bit about why Satan doesn't want us in the Bible, doesn't want us studying it, learning it, making it a part of our lives.
>>Nina: Well, Satan knows the power of the Word. He knows what it says, he knows the prophecies, he knows that it is living, that it will--it is so life-changing for us, and I do believe that Satan's-- one of his greatest strategies is for him to keep our Bibles closed, so that we don't open the power and bring it into our lives. And I know that in "The Great Controversy," Ellen White has this very profound quote; she says, "Satan employs every possible device "to prevent [people] from obtaining "a knowledge of the Bible; for its plain utterances reveal his deceptions."
So when I think about every possible device, what kind of devices does he use to keep our Bibles closed? I think maybe it's busyness. We might be doing a lot of good things for others, even for God, but we might not have time. We might feel tired, we might have apathy, we might feel like we've heard all the stories before, and is there really anything new in here for me? Whatever it might be, but maybe it's even guilt; we feel like we're not good enough to open it; we're living a life of sin-- whatever these things, I think we need to remember that God invites us to come regardless of those things. He doesn't want anything to keep us away from opening His Word because when we open our Bibles, it's almost like a physical declaration to the enemy: I'm choosing God today, I'm spending time with Him, so this is my choice. It's almost as though Satan becomes powerless when we start to claim these words. And really it is incredibly profound that we hold the Word of the living God, the living Word of the living God, in our hands, and when we think about the Word of God, when God spoke, God spoke-- the world came into existence. When Jesus spoke, Lazarus came forth from the tomb. We know that at the end when He calls forth the dead at the Second Coming, they will rise, so there's so much power in the Word of God, and we have the Word at our fingertips. So I think maybe we don't appreciate it as much as we should.
>>Eric: I think, unfortunately, it's so common that we think of it as common. Not that I'm suggesting we should get rid of Bibles, but if it were less common, maybe we would pay more careful attention to it. There's a passage of Scripture in 2 Timothy 3, verses 15 to 17 that I think is powerful here. It says, "And that from childhood "you have known the Holy Scriptures, "which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith "which is in Christ Jesus. "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, "and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, "for correction, for instruction "in righteousness, that the man of God "may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." Open that up to me just a little bit.
>>Nina: It really captures so much, doesn't it, this one verse, that the Word of God, it corrects us. Of course, it's the Holy Spirit; when we ask for the Holy Spirit to abide with us, as we spoke about in a previous week, to lead us to all truth. When we read the Word of God, it speaks to us about the condition of our own relationship with God, the condition of our hearts, God refines us as well as correcting us. It's--it actually also equips us to be able to teach others about the truths that we read and about how they can have a relationship with God. And as we look at the Bible, the function of the Bible, I think we also need to be careful that we don't expect the Bible to serve our own purposes. We spoke about humility last week. To come to the Bible with a humble, teachable spirit is so important. And we need to remember that God has His own will and purpose that He wants to communicate to us through His living Word. And so we should never try to allow the-- for us to control the Word. You know, I hear some people, they say, "Okay, let me just open my Bible and whatever I point to, that's what I'll do." But this is an example, I think, of this "close my eyes and point to the text" method which really is not a rigorous kind of method. Of course, God can speak to us however He wishes, but we should remember that God is not a puppet on a string that we should try to manipulate and control-- not at all. His will and thoughts are so much higher and greater and better than ours, and we should also remember not to choose just small parts of the Bible to study. Of course, I think we all probably have a favorite chapter or verse or book, even, but instead of just reading these familiar passages or the easy passages, it's important to also study the challenging stories, perhaps the stories that we don't even understand, and to ask God to speak to us through these passages. You know, Eric, even in some of the genealogies, sometimes I'll be reading all the difficult books. I know people often say Leviticus is such a difficult book. I read Leviticus a few years ago, and I was so blessed. And next week we'll be looking at some methods of Bible study, how can we draw out personal messages, challenging messengers, these appeals that God makes to us. But all I would say is we should take the Bible as a whole and remember that we should not try to control what we want to take from it, but let God's Spirit lead us to the truth that He wants to speak.
>>Eric: So the attitude that we approach our Bibles with is really, really important.
>>Nina: Absolutely.
>>Eric: If we have the wrong attitude, we're not going to get what God wants us to get out of it.
>>Nina: Yes. Yes, yes.
>>Eric: Very, very powerful. So we're looking at the role of the Bible. Next week, as you said, we're going to look at how to study the Bible in an effective manner. In addition to this quarter's study guide, the Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide, we also have a companion book that goes along with it. Share with us a little bit more about that companion book and why someone might want to pick that up.
>>Nina: The companion book is on the same topic, "Growing in a Relationship with God." For any of our viewers and readers who would like to secure a copy, you'll find that the 13 chapters in the book align exactly with the 13 chapters in the adult quarterly that I've written. This book is written by Heather Quintana. It's a very good book, and I know that you'll be blessed. It will enhance your study of the quarterly, and yeah, I invite you to find yourself a copy.
>>Eric: And finding yourself a copy is not very difficult to do because I'm about to tell you where you can find yourself a copy. Just go to itiswritten.shop. Again, itiswritten.shop. You'll find the companion book to this quarter's "Sabbath School" lesson right there, and you can pick it up. And if you happen to be watching this video right now on YouTube, it's even easier than that. Just go to the description box right below this video and you will find a link that will take you directly to where you can purchase that copy. So, if you don't already have the study guide itself, make sure that you get that. And if you don't have the companion book, you want to get that, too, because it will only enhance and deepen your studies of this subject of how you can grow in a relationship with God. We're going to continue looking at "The Role of the Bible" when we come back in just a minute or two here on "Sabbath School," brought to you by It Is Written.
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>>male announcer: Sermon illustrations, or the lack thereof, can make or break a message. While preaching is the ministry of God's Word, effective illustrations lock important points in the mind of the hearer. Jesus frequently illustrated His messages in this way. Matthew 13:34 says, "Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these when speaking to the crowds." Two thousand years later we call to mind stories of a shepherd who lost his sheep, a son who wandered far from home, and young women who discovered they were without sufficient oil for their lamps. These stories call to mind the powerful lessons in Christ's teachings. Visit itiswritten.shop to purchase "104 Useful Sermon Illustrations," volumes 1 and 2, or call us at 888-664-5573. That's itiswritten.shop or 888-664-5573.
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>>Eric: Welcome back to "Sabbath School," brought to you by It Is Written. We're looking at how we can grow in our relationship with God, and especially this week we're looking at the role of the Bible in that. Nina, before we went to break, we were talking a little bit about a person's-- the importance of a person's perspective or the way that they come to the Bible, they approach the Bible. It's important to let God-- to let the Bible speak to us, but there's some other-- I don't know if I want to call them nuances-- or significant things that we need to keep in mind when we let the Bible speak to us. Lead us into that a little bit.
>>Nina: Yeah, I think it is so important not to come to the Bible with a critical spirit, thinking, "I'm above this, I know it all, "I've heard it all before, I know this," you know, this air of confidence, thinking we've heard it all before. At the same time, I do believe that God doesn't expect us-- He doesn't expect us to bypass our thinking and our human reason. He made us to be able to think deeply. In fact, in Isaiah 1, verse 18, He talks about inviting us to reason together with Him. And so the author of Scripture doesn't want us to ignore the mind, and it's-- I think we've both experienced, Eric, studying our Bibles deeply, and coming to these-- the knowledge that we gain, whether it's in prophecy or other deep, deep theological areas. So, it's an intellectual exercise; it's an exercise of the heart and the mind. But I think when we work out our salvation and other important topics, it's, yeah, we need to remember that God doesn't expect us to just lay aside reason at all. We--it's important to grapple, to think deeply. I also think that this verse in 1 Corinthians 2, verse 14 kind of speaks to this when it says "But the natural man "does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, "for they are foolishness to him; "nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." And so for the person who doesn't come in humility, who doesn't seek with a soft, open heart for the Spirit to speak truth through the Word of God, they are--the Bible seems foolishness, like foolishness. And so our attitude is essential how we approach Scripture. And the same time, we don't lay aside reason, but we come with humility, and we allow the Spirit to lead us into all truth.
>>Eric: I think when we come with that humility and the right spirit, a teachable spirit, if we want to use that phrase, we can experience those "aha" moments, those epiphanies, those eye-openings where we're like, "I get it. I get it." And then we just have to be humble enough to allow God to place it in our hearts and let it sit there. "Let it sit there" doesn't sound even quite like how it is-- let it work there. Maybe that's a better way of saying it. So, we're coming to the Bible-- we're studying it; we're letting it speak to us. Walk me through the role that faith has to play in some of this. How does that sort of fit into all of this?
>>Nina: It's very connected with what we were just saying about our attitude, the-- our approach to Scripture. When we come to our Bibles, we pray for the Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth. I think it's good to also pray that the Holy Spirit will guide us, to show us, to open up the layers here, the messages, and we need to have faith that the Holy Spirit will indeed do that. I think it helps us to look, to dig for those messages, not to rush over them, and so it's-- when we believe that the Bible is going to speak to us, that God has a message, even in perhaps the most obscure story, we will find it when we linger long enough to look for it. And so I think a lot does depend on our faith and the hope that we approach the Bible with. Even if our faith is as small as a mustard seed, God will still, I believe, honor that and still teach us. So, one of the great purposes of the Bible is to speak the truth about our walk, our relationship with God, and that's the topic that we're exploring this quarter. So I think we will-- when we come in humility to the Word of God, seeking for God to speak to us, to shape us, to challenge us, to convict us of sin-- all of these roles that the Holy Spirit does-- I believe that we will always leave changed. God will always speak to us. We may not immediately recognize it, sometimes it does take time, and we'll talk about this more next week, but the Holy Spirit wants to prune us, as we read in John 15, and I think we can consider, am I coming in humility? Am I bringing my opinions, or am I allowing the Holy Spirit to speak?
>>Eric: So you mentioned that God wants to bring the truth to us, and we know that the Bible is our source of truth. In the world today, truth has developed a different definition than perhaps when-- I know when I was growing up-- and perhaps you as well-- today we have, "I have my truth, "and you have your truth, and they have their truths, "and our truths may not be the same, but they're our truths." What role does the Bible have to play in understanding truth, and why is that significant in the world that we live in today?
>>Nina: I think the Bible is so precious to me as a parent, guiding my teenagers through this world, as a wife, as a daughter of God, as a church member, because it's the one unchanging thing that I can depend on. I believe the Bible is 100% true. I believe it's inspired, I believe it's trustworthy, unchanging, timeless. And as you say, in our society, truth is shifting constantly, and people, I think, are hungry. They wanna know, where can I find something that is dependable, that I can trust? And so this is the foundation; this is essentially almost, like, the measuring stick I suppose, by which we can stand on with-- it's like the rock, and we know in Psalm 119, it's the light unto our path before us. But Jesus also says in John 14, verse 6, "I am...the truth." And so, the Bible is truth, but Jesus is truth, and when we open the Word, we come to see Jesus as a person, we come to know Him, and this builds our relationship with God and strengthens it. So let's read a couple of powerful verses about truth. Would you be willing to read John 17:17?
>>Eric: "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth."
>>Nina: Beautiful, the Word of God is true, and it can sanctify us. It can make us holy and purify our hearts when we accept it. In Proverbs 30, verses 5 and 6, it says, "Every word of God "is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him. Do not add to His words." I mean, that's just-- it's just beautiful. In a world where there's a lot of immorality, when people don't know where to put their trust and their faith, we can come knowing that the Bible is that strong foundation. And Psalm 12, verse 6, what does that say?
>>Eric: "The words of the Lord "are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times."
>>Nina: Yeah, it really is lovely, and I think when we feel dirty, when we feel sinful, when we feel inadequate, God invites us to open His Word regardless of how we feel. And I know when I feel like that, I can come, I can read and claim His promises, and the pure words of Scripture, they have such a beautiful impact on our characters, and they really do purify us, I believe, they speak to us; they challenge us. So this Bible truth doesn't change. As we read today, people of old read the Scriptures. We can depend on this as God's living, true, timeless, timeless Word. Ellen White also speaks in "Counsels to Writers and Editors" on page 33, she says, "Truth is an advancing truth." And she also says that "There are mines of truth yet to be discovered by the earnest seeker." So when we search for truth and additional light in the Bible, we can always remember that the Bible never contradicts past truths, and instead we build on them; we grow deeper knowledge of what we read and study.
>>Eric: You touched on something here. I wonder if we've got time to kind of unpack it a little bit more. The Bible's been around for a long, long time. But society changes, people change, ideals change. You know, we don't read anywhere in the Bible about space travel. We don't read anything about the internet. We don't--someone might say, "Well, this is kinda-- "it's a bit of an antiquated perspective on things, "and wasn't it written in a patriarchal society, "and today it's different, and it was a theocracy back then, and today we don't live"-- so how can it apply to our lives? What would you tell someone who offered that as a reason why maybe the Bible isn't so applicable today?
>>Nina: I think if you come with an attitude of humility, you'll see that the Bible messages never contradict; they are woven together like this beautiful tapestry. There is so much relevance in the Bible for us today that we can draw and apply to every part of our lives. God wants to direct our lives, and He does that through the Word, the living Word. I also think of the many instances in Bible times over past millennia where different groups and individuals have taken Scripture and read it. For example, Josiah found the book of the law and a great reform happened. The law of Moses was read after exile, and the people wept, confessed, and revival happened. We read about the Ethiopian, which was many years later, and Philip, of course, baptized him, and they unpacked Isaiah 53. And then in Acts 2, we read about how Scripture was used in worship, and Peter preached this sermon that converted thousands in a day. So all throughout this, these time-- that's just a few examples-- when people come to the Word of God, something happens when we come in a spirit of humility. So, I think that God's Word speaks of His heart, His intentions for us, and all of those relevant issues that we face in our day-to-day lives, He wants to speak to us. The words of God are spirit, they are true, and in fact, John 6:63 says this, "The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." So it's a beautiful message.
>>Eric: And in Hebrews, chapter 4, verse 12, it goes along with this very same thought: "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 heart." So the Word of God is living, has been since the beginning, and continues to be today. Nina, thank you for leading us through this week's lesson. We're not done with the Bible, though, because next week we kind of have part two of this lesson. We've looked at the role of the Bible today, but next lesson we're going to look at how to actually study the Bible. Maybe you've never tried to study the Bible. Maybe you've been studying it the same way for many years, and it's kind of gotten a little bit dry. Maybe you're looking for something new to add a little life to your Bible study. This coming week, we're going to be looking at exactly that, and it will be a blessing. We want to invite you to join us once again as we continue on this journey, "How to Grow in a Relationship With God," here on "Sabbath School," brought to you by It Is Written.
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