We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired, and is a perfect treasure of heavenly instruction; that it has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth without any mixture of error for its matter; that it reveals the principles by which God will judge us; and therefore is, and shall remain, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions shall be tried.

Introduction

As I am coming to this church as your new pastor I know there are many curiosities you might have. Every pastor is different; they have certain strengths and weaknesses that others do not. I must admit the weaknesses are there. I will certainly not be perfect. But my prayer is that in the coming months and years of my ministry you find my service and leadership to be a blessing and encouragement to you. And the most important area of my job as pastor is in the preaching of God’s Word.

      So at the start of my ministry, I want to establish where my faith stands and where yours should. We are going to be studying the New Hampshire Confession of Faith of 1833. This is the confession of faith that we as a church have adopted. It is a clear and concise statement of what we believe, as a church.

     The first article we will study deals with the scriptures. There is no better place to start in our study than here in God’s Word. If we are going to start talking about our beliefs, we had better begin with where we find them. We do not find out about our God from visions or dreams. None of this study is going to come from my philosophy or wisdom. No, God has given us all we need to learn about Him, and to grow in Him from His Word. All of the statements of faith that we will study are based upon scripture alone. So as we go through each of these articles of faith, I encourage you to have the spirit of the Bereans and, “Search the scriptures daily to consider whether these things are so.”

I. The Provider of the Scriptures     

  God is the author of the Bible. These are not the ideas of Moses, the prophets, or the apostles. Yes, we see God using these men with their different styles and ministries, communicating his message through them. But we do not trust the words of men, we trust in God alone. This is very important because men are failing creatures. King David wrote so many powerful and rich Psalms, and yet to trust him would be trust in a man who committed adultery and murder. Moses, who penned the books of the law, was a man also guilty of murder. Dare we trust even the greatest of men? Who is really perfect so we may confidently place our trust in them? But we can have confidence in God. We can rest our soul in absolute faith upon the foundation of His Words. That is what we have in the Bible.

      God's Word is verbally inspired (II Peter 1:20-21). Verbal inspiration means that God did not just give the Apostle Paul some ideas and Paul in turn put it down in his own words. No, this means the very words he used were inspired by God. But was he a robot? No, God used his burden for the churches, and yet they were not just his words that he wrote they were God’s words. Having never been inspired in this way, I cannot tell you what it was like to write the holy scriptures. But I think there are some parallels to what the believer experiences in salvation. When God saved you, did you feel like a robot being forced to repent of sin? No, if you have been truly saved you will respond “I have repented whole heartedly from sin! I wanted to be saved from it!” Yet we see in scripture that this was not of your reasoning but because of God’s grace. He purposed to save you before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4). He sent his Son to die on the cross for your sins (Ephesians 2:4-8). Then finally he sent the Holy Spirit into your heart to regenerate you and bring you from death unto life (Titus 3:5). Personally, you made a decision from your heart to turn from sin and believe in Christ. But behind that was the power of God working in you. So it is with the scriptures. As these men wrote, they wrote from the heart, but it was truly God moving them to write the exact words he purposed to give us.

   God's Word is completely inspired. When I say completely I mean everything from Genesis to Revelation. Not one area of scripture is man’s idea or man’s wisdom. God gave the law, the history, the Psalms, the prophets, the gospels, the epistles, and the book of Revelation. I take confidence in all 66 books coming from God. I take this on the authority of scripture itself (II Timothy 3:16-17). But also consider, how else could books written thousands of years apart by men in vastly different cultures blend perfectly to present the message of the gospel? Every portion of the Bible sings a harmonious part in one beautiful song.

      God's complexity necessitates inspiration (I Corinthians 2:11-13). Study this book for just a little while and you will agree that God is far beyond our understanding. He is eternal, omnipresent, immutable, triune, and these are but a few of his amazing attributes. And then consider the plan of salvation. In every other religion we see eternal life or worldly blessing given as a transaction for man’s accomplishments. In the gospel we see eternal life and peace with God given as a free gift through the blood of the Son, shed upon the cross. What man could ever conceived such an awesome message? Salvation can only be known through God’s revelation of himself and his purpose to us through his Word.

II. The Purity of the Scriptures

To say something is pure means there is no mixture of any foreign substance in it. If something is pure that means that it is honest, I can trust it is what it claims to be. When my son, David, first started eating baby food we wanted to know that the carrots we gave him were 100% carrots. I didn’t want to put any food into my son that was going to be bad for him. How much more important is the purity of the Bible? It is essential that what I believe and what I preach is free from any error, failure, or inadequacy.

I know the scripture is pure because it says it is (Psalm 19:7). This is enough to silence all the arguments. You either believe it or you do not. But if you do not believe in the purity of the Bible, then go ahead and throw out the whole book. Why believe any of it if you don’t know what is true and what is not. Once you take away one brick of the foundation, the entire structure of truth falls apart. But I rejoice the foundation that my faith rests on is completely whole, there is not a crack of error in it. When God’s Word says it is perfect, I believe it.

I know the scripture is pure because God is its author. I John 1:5 tells me “God is light and in him is no darkness at all.” There is no weakness or failure with God. Titus 1:2 tells me God cannot lie. When he says something, it is true. When he promises something, it will come to pass. I can take confidence in this because, as God is completely sovereign, nothing can affect his purpose and, as God is immutable, that purpose will never change. This is why verbal inspiration from God is so vital to our faith.

I know the scripture is pure because of its completeness. There have been recent arguments that the Bible is missing something or is inadequate. Perhaps there are books that were left out of this message that should have been included. But I ask you, what part of the gospel message are we missing? I see in God’s Word the complete plan of salvation. In the scriptures are all the essential doctrines I need to bring me to repentance of sin and faith in Christ and then to guide my life as a believer. And as I study the completed book, I see how perfectly it all fits together. To add any visions or revelations to it would truly corrupt something that is complete and pure in itself (Revelation 22:18).

I know the scripture is pure because of its sufficiency (II Timothy 3:15-17). I see the perfection of scripture in the effect it has in my life. When the Lord saved me it was not a vision or dream or audible speaking that made me wise unto salvation but His written word. His word was the two edged sword that pierced my heart, convicted me of sin and revealed to me the joy of Christ’s undying love. His Word has been sufficient to foster my growth as a believer by teaching me God's way and reproving me as I go astray. Truly it is sufficient for all my needs.

III. The Purpose of the Scriptures

      Thus far we have determined in our study that the scriptures are the inspired words of God. As they have come from God we can know assuredly that they are true, complete, unchanging and unfailing. They are the one foundation that we can truly rest our faith upon. Now consider with me the purpose of God in giving us his Word.

The scriptures are given to teach us the reality of sin (Hebrews 4:12). In the Bible we have God's law, a clear declaration of truth, that reveals to me what is sin. Paul says in Romans 7:7, "I had not known sin but by the law: for I had not known lust except the law had said, 'Thou shalt not covet'." Left to our wisdom we would excuse our sin or seek to cover it up with a cloak of self-righteousness. It is easy to feel better about my sin when I compare myself to someone who is far worse. But God’s law reveals my sin in light of God’s righteousness and in that light it cannot be ignored. My sins are breaking God’s commands out of pure rebellion against him (Romans 3:10-18).

The scriptures do not just teach what sin is, they teach what sin does. Sin condemns us before God (Romans 3:19-20). It makes us unworthy to approach him or find any fellowship with him (Revelation 21:27). It cannot be overcome or excused by any good works that I can do (James 2:10, Romans 3:19). And the penalty for sin is eternal judgment (Revelation 20:12-15). In plain terms sin corrupts and destroys the lives of men.

The Bible also teaches who sin condemns. Romans 3 tells us clearly "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Regardless of your church attendance, your popularity among men, your good deeds, or even the sincerity of your heart, you have sinned against God. It breaks my heart when I go to tell someone about the gospel and they respond with a list of their religious accomplishments. What difference does it make if you pray every night and attend a church every Sunday if you reject the gospel? Truly those who have been given such a great light and yet still die in their sins, foolishly trusting their own works, will receive the greater damnation.

Yet God has not given us his law to destroy our hope but to bring us hope. Yes, this Word reveals sin for all of its hideousness and brings the sinner to his knees in helplessness. But it also causes him to look beyond his own strength for salvation. This hopelessness must be felt before any sinner will ever come to know deliverance from the power of sin.

The scriptures are given to teach of the Savior (John 5:39, John 17:3). The Bible reveals what sin is, it gives much wisdom and guidance for our lives and it tells many wonderful stories of God working in the lives of men, but the true subject of the Bible is Jesus Christ. The history the law, the prophecies, they all pointed ahead to the coming Savior. The four gospels then gave a beautiful account of Christ's birth, life, and death upon the cross for sinners. The book of Acts revealed the affect that Christ had upon men. And then the epistles expounded on the gospel to make us understand it in even a better light.

The central message of the Bible is that though I have failed the law and am condemned in my sins, there is hope for me in Jesus Christ. Jesus, the divine Son of God, became a man and in his humanity he fulfilled the demands of the law (Hebrews 4:15). In his perfection as the spotless Lamb of God he alone was worthy to die for my sins (John 10:27-30, Acts 4:10-12). In his divinity he had the power to take upon himself all my sins and endure an infinite amount of suffering for them upon the cross. And as he has risen again and ascended to be with the Father I know those sins are paid for (Romans 8:34, I Corinthians 15:12-22). Search every other religious writing and you will see man hoping in his own strength and wisdom. But search the scriptures and you will find a glorious Savior and a plan of salvation that gives true hope.

Finally, the scriptures are given to show us God's way. As the Psalmist says "It is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." As a believer I do not look upon this book as a bunch of rules I have to fulfill in order to escape the flames of hell or reserve my mansion in Heaven. I see it as a light that reveals how I can obey and glorify my God with joy. It shows me how I am to faithfully serve in the church, the home, and even in the workplace (Romans 12, Ephesians 5-6). It guides me not just in the duties I am to accomplish but in my attitude of service (I Peter 1:3-8, I John 5:3). It encourages me by reminding me that I serve with God’s strength, not my own (II Corinthians 12:9, I Corinthians 1:27-31).

The scriptures also encourage me as a believer by revealing God's loving promises (Romans 8:28-39, Revelation 21:3-4). I have always been the type of person to look at the end of the book before I start to read the first chapter. If the plot gets stressful I want to know whether or not my favorite character is going to die. What a comfort that God has given us the end of the story in his Word and it is a very happy ending for believers. I do not know all the details of my life. God may take away everything I have in this world and leave me suffering for the rest of my days. But I know that nothing will take me away from my God and in the end of it all I will be with him. What a comfort to me that God has made these promises to me in the Bible!

In our study of these articles of faith we are going to touch on many topics. Some will be easier to understand than others. But from the start, I want you to know the source. These are not my ideas, they are God's truths revealed in his Word. The Bible is my foundation and I encourage you to study it and judge my words by it. The Word of God is a greater treasure than anything else in this world; may we treat is as such. May we study it, learn from it, and be encouraged by it.

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