Introduction
At the core of every argument to establish the Bible as the sole Word of God (and thus our authority), is the desire to not err from the truth, and to state with accuracy the will and mind of God. Yet, it is believed that the truth, as it is in the mind of God cannot be known. This is because, after years of searching the scriptures, a person continues to say that they are still searching for truth. Obviously, the Bible is not God’s way to direct the heart in truth. What’s the missing key?
We’ll get into that in a minute, but first I want to show you how the language of your faith was constructed and how that language became a trusted tradition. There has to be some kind of compensation made for having searched the scriptures for truth and not having found it. How is that reconciled? Instead of talking about the one truth of Jesus Christ, believers have learned to talk about “truth(s)” in the plural. They are describing their own experience. Their truth is ever changing.
To further compensate for this abnormality, a person will say that while he is fallible, the Holy Spirit is not (while at the same time claiming the Holy Spirit as his teacher). This is supposed to stake a claim for truth, while at the same time giving permission to err. The language one learns to speak is made up of these attempts to fill in gaps. This language is not born of the Spirit, but rather from one’s experience, searching for truth.
Let’s first establish WHO is the Word of God and then establish WHO God uses to teach truth to his church.
From God’s perspective, Jesus is the Word of God because God is pointing to the person as his Word, rather than ink and paper. Let’s see how God laid this out for our understanding:
What God does is clear up a basic misunderstanding of what comes first, the Bible or Jesus. Jesus came first to establish himself as our new covenant, then Jesus gave his apostles his truth to give to the people. Then the apostles wrote the epistles.
God gave us this pattern to observe how he gifted truth (the doctrine of Christ) to the church through Jesus’ apostles and how he preserves truth through his sanctified apostles. When God said that we are to study to show ourselves approved as servants of righteousness and heirs of eternal life, he meant that we are to study the apostles’ doctrine, for it is the knowledge the Holy Spirit uses to confirm Jesus Christ as the Son of God and to also effect change within your heart.
“Jesus, the Word of God” is a 3 part series of mini lessons brought to you by Apostle Eric vonAnderseck to help you make distinction for Christ.
Does the Bible Replace Jesus?
Does it make sense to say that the Bible replaces Jesus? Of course not. Jesus rose from the dead and is ever living and present to oversee and empower his church. Jesus is still the pattern for our faith and Jesus still uses living apostles as living stewards to break open his knowledge, thus bringing all believers into one covenant house of faith.
God never asked us to change the pattern by which he gives truth. Apostle Paul pointed to himself and his calling as the power tool God uses to make Jesus known.
Romans 16:25
“Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began.”
Why are Apostles Part of God’s Plan?
Most of the time, when believers ask about the role an apostle plays in God’s plan to equip them with truth, they’ve already worked out the math in their head: I have the written word of God (Bible) and I have the revealed word of God (by the Spirit), and this means that I have everything God wants me to have. The Holy Spirit will guide me as I use the Bible as my authority.
In other words, I can read the Bible on my own with the help of the Holy Spirit. I don’t trust any man to teach me. If this is true, then you also should not trust yourself. And here’s thing, you don’t trust yourself, and this is the reason for the different checks and balances you’ve put into place to make sure that you have a way of proving that you’ve done your best to take yourself out of the equation.
You will find that the average Christian has learned to speak this language of checks and balances, as he must ensure that he keeps himself accountable. In essence, this says that you don’t trust God’s way to give truth to the Body of Christ. You’ve got to put your finger in the pie to make sure you are involved in the integrity process (but not involved). The wisdom of man will always produce these kinds of paradoxical puzzles.
God’s equation is different from ours. God added his called and sanctified apostles as knowledge stewards. They are the key of knowledge to open the door of salvation because it is by knowledge that we see Jesus. Jesus’ apostles must be involved in the process of learning truth.
What do I do With Revelation?
Behind every believer’s hesitancy to trust God to use Jesus’ called and sanctified apostles to teach truth, is their own experience with the grace of God. Everyone got a dose of the grace of God, and therefore heard God’s voice for themselves. Everyone means you, me, and every person who claims that God spoke to them, whether they are converted or not. God’s grace is given to all.
What happens when you take ownership of the grace of God and make the revelation to be about yourself, rather than about Jesus? A leap of logic takes place, whereas you begin to believe that since God revealed your need for Jesus, then he will also reveal truth to you when you read the scriptures.
One’s math (the spoken word + the written word = God’s will) is based on one’s own limited experience with grace for salvation (to begin a covenant relationship with God) and not grace for growth (to build the house of God), nor grace for calling (to govern the house of God).
Jesus’ sanctified apostles are the master builders of faith, ensuring that you are equipped with the foundation of truth to build faith according to the pattern God set in Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 3:10
“According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.”
If we skip over the apostles, and say that we can build faith in Jesus Christ by using the written word and the revealed word, then a tragic event takes place, we end up using the wrong building material for our foundation. The flesh, directing scripture, changes our foundation, and thus the starting point for faith.
Is the Bible Our New Foundation?
The blueprint of truth is the pattern of life in Christ, and each element of the gospel contributes to the pattern (Christ in you) so that our foundation becomes a way of life to know him and express him.
It used to be thought that the Bible was our new foundation and that we were to think in line with scripture. So, we have to talk about that to learn why this practice is wrong. It doesn’t seem wrong, but it is. The reasoning goes like this: If you want to know what God says about anything, you simply need to go to the Bible, and find the verse that speaks about that, and then apply the scripture to change your mind, to get your mind to line up with God’s mind.
I want to show you the long standing problem with this approach. If we ask God to change our way of thinking and then use the Bible to try to get our mind to work in line with what God says, we will approach the Bible asking the same kind of questions. Are these questions about you, or are they about Jesus? Let’s see how the question is still about self and not about Jesus:
Check the questions that you ask most often, or ask your own question. What does God say about ___________.
Look at the normal, everyday questions that are asked, seeking to know what God says about a particular problem or need, frustrating bad habit, or weakness. We’ve inserted the personal pronoun (my) to signify that these questions are indeed about self. In each sample question above: lust, suspicion, need, gifts, insecurity, abuse, desire, fear, or situation – know that these are starting points for your mind to work (labor).
Right away we can see that the starting point (the foundation) never changed, even though this person is trying to get God’s mind about it to try to break out of these cycles, thought patterns, and conditions, to try to think in line with God’s purpose. He ended up using the Bible to sift through his own feelings.
Scripture Does not Lie
You’ll often hear Christians say, “The scriptures cannot lie.” It’s true that scripture does not lie, but what a person does not see is how the human condition and the 5 features of his flesh (his own record) is his starting point to reason with the scriptures. He has not been able to see the lie that is in the record of man.
2 Peter 1:20,
“Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.”
Apostle Peter knew from experience that when discipleship does not take place, the flesh will always get mixed into scripture. Again, it’s not that scripture is in error, for the scriptures are divinely inspired, but the flesh, directing scripture, changes our starting point, or foundation.
God clarifies the role of the apostle: As God’s wise masterbuilder, apostles use the 12 elements of the gospel, the terms and tools of Jesus’ new covenant as building material. In addition, apostles separate the fleshly kingdom from God’s kingdom, so you’re not caught in the middle of this tug-of-war.
Are You Searching the Scriptures?
To mix the flesh into scripture adulterates the scriptures and changes the starting point of faith. Jesus explained the same thing to the religious leaders who boasted that they had a knowledge of the scriptures and claimed to test everything against the scriptures, when in fact they were selecting a scripture to represent their desires and missing the point, that all scripture testifies of and confirms the record of Jesus Christ. Let’s see how Jesus pointed out their error to turn their thinking around. Jesus said,
John 5:39
“Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”
Most only read the first part of this verse – search the scriptures – but do not read the rest of the verse to know that all scripture confirms the record of Jesus Christ as our salvation. That means that scripture testifies to the terms of the new covenant and the tools of the new covenant and our contact with Jesus by the priesthood of the new covenant, to thus testify of the power of Jesus to transform our souls.
Most, when they say they are searching the scriptures, are not reading the scriptures from a covenant perspective to testify of Jesus, but are reading the scriptures from a perspective of sin and, therefore, testify of sin. Their faith is stuck in John 16:9, whereas the Holy Spirit convicts the sinner that his resistance to grace is a transgression against God.
In John 5:39 Jesus is speaking of the habit of man to search the scriptures for a mirror image of his own convictions to ease his troubled conscience. Jesus knew that this is what the religious leaders of his time were doing.
When they brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery and set her before Jesus, they used scripture as her judge, trying to extract a confession of sin from her, desiring Jesus to chastise her as a sign that he supported the law.
In truth, they were using the scriptures to transfer their guilt onto the woman to ease the state of their own conscience (John 8:3-11). When judging her they felt vindicated of their own wrong doing, and Jesus knew that, so he did not respond to them. He would have no part in the washing of their hands by the scriptures.
The thought pattern that Jesus was challenging then is the same that he is challenging today. Believers read the scriptures thinking that in them – in the scriptures – they have the mind of God, but the believer is coming from a predisposed thought pattern, to establish his guilt to ease the troubled state of his own conscience.
His thought patterns about self, sin, Jesus, righteousness, holiness, faith, and grace are lined up to the kingdom of the flesh, and he is trying to build a relationship with God based on this blueprint, trying to see what God says about how to be a good spouse, how to excel at work, how to be fair and honest, genuine and true to ease the troubled state of his conscience.
It is clear that God did not intend for us to use the law of sin and death as the blueprint for faith. So we can, of course, see the problem here. We cannot search the scriptures to condemn sin and testify of Jesus at the same time. Sin and righteousness are two different masters. They are two different kingdoms. Jesus came in the flesh to replace Adam’s frailty with faith that the soul would not be governed by the law, which is perishable, but governed by the Spirit, which is eternal.
Jesus is now the judge of the soul, and he uses his new law of grace to correct our thinking to get it in line with this new foundation. Jesus is thus the filter of the soul because the conscience is being purified by his powers. The soul labors with that which it contains, and that’s what the conscience speaks to testify of him.
This is why the apostles began their epistles identifying the name of the One they served – Jesus Christ. Paul does not say he is an apostle of Moses. Paul does not say that, because the tethering of his faith is not of the flesh. So he says, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ.” It is Jesus that reclaimed us for the inheritance, not Moses, not the Bible.
What you’re learning is that, yes, you should read the scriptures, but the Bible cannot be used to confirm your convictions of sin, nor to ease your troubled conscience. The Bible cannot remove the curse of sin nor cleanse the defiled conscience. The TEXT is not the token of our atonement. Jesus is our 2nd Adam, given to remove the curse upon the 1st Adam. Jesus is our atonement.
2 Corinthians 3:6
“Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.”
God and His Word are One
We often hear Christians say that, “God and his Word are one.” In other words, God empowers scripture so that when you quote it, you release his power. But this is not how God works.
Jesus is the Word of God. God and Jesus are one and the same God. God came in the form of the flesh to provide himself as the token for our redemption. God expresses his divine will through Jesus’ new covenant and empowers our faith with his own witness. The record (Jesus’ new foundation knowledge) and the witness (the Holy Spirit that confirms all things of Jesus) are one.
In a strange way, some are led to believe that the Bible is God. But the Bible is not God. Think about it, the Bible points to the baptism of the Holy Spirit as necessary for faith, but the Bible does not baptize you with the Holy Spirit, God does. And we, on our part, cooperate with this first tool of our sanctification by praying in tongues from a covenant mindset.
The Bible also points to Jesus as the mediator of the new covenant, but it does not mediate the covenant. A mediator stands in the breach. Jesus is the filler of the breach, and he does this as we cooperate by using his tools. The Bible points to the divine transformation of the soul, but does not effect change – God does – as we cooperate by bringing ourselves into submission to his law of grace and truth.
DID YOU KNOW
The Bible does not point to itself as the answer to our problems, but rather it points to Jesus Christ as the author, source, and power of our salvation. We are not reading scripture to learn what God says about our circumstances or weaknesses to resolve them, nor reading scripture to smite a defiled conscience to find closure. The foundation is IN the Author – Jesus Christ. That’s why you will need to learn the 12 elements of the gospel. These are your new foundation stones that are IN him.
If we ignore the covenant terms, tools, stewardship, altar, and priesthood then we neglect our salvation (Heb. 2:3). The defiled conscience, reflecting the empty soul, cries out in shame every time God calls the conscience forth for accountability to answer to him according to Jesus Christ.
Here again we see the role that God assigned to apostles: Apostles equip you with the knowledge and tools, whereby Jesus is the author of your faith.
How do You Read the Bible?
A covenant believer does not read the Bible in the same way as a sinner. When a sinner reads the Bible he is thinking about the transgression, and he is choosing the law of sin as his starting point. He’s trying to get his life right. He’s trying to learn what God says about his problems.
After entering into a covenant relationship with God a believer is no longer a sinner (no longer a part of the kingdom of darkness), and because he is receiving instruction in the doctrine of Christ, he is approaching God on the basis of the law of grace and truth with the tokens of Christ. He is now part of the larger picture of God’s plan and, therefore, experiencing the divine transformation in each growth cycle as God addresses the fruits of iniquity for removal as he brings healing to his soul.
So what’s at the core of this difference? The law of sin is the glaring difference between a sinner and a believer. Each kingdom is governed by its own laws. If we do not know the terms of the new covenant, then the law of sin is our starting point to serve God and to know him. The law of sin is the expression of the veil of ignorance, and because of this veil, a sinner confesses his transgression. The starting point and foundation of all his reason is in the transgression.
The problem there is that we cannot know God by the law of sin and death. We can only know God by the knowledge and tokens of Jesus Christ.
When a believer is not properly discipled after making a decision for Jesus, he will revert back to his transgression for his cleansing. His mind is like a yo-yo, in that it always goes back to the law of sin as its source to measure righteousness by what he feels. He’s thinking: I ought to live right. I ought to do the right thing. But he is not thinking about how God planned for him to live according to the new covenant.
His thinking stays in line with the way he first received grace and how that had to do with pointing out his need for Jesus and separation from the kingdom of darkness. His bottom line is that God wants him to act differently, to live a separate life, but he has not yet selected the things of Christ for his sanctification.
He is confident that God forgave him of his sins when he responded to grace, and he confessed that Jesus is the Son of God, the Saviour of the world. But because his faith did not progress with the seal and the knowledge of the new covenant, he’s stuck repeating the same steps – going back to sin to establish a connection with God, thus turning the grace of God into lasciviousness (Jude 1:4).
It’s natural for the pig to return to the mud because that’s its nature, and it’s as natural for us to return to the transgression because of our first history. Apostle Peter brought out this reality.
Our Motivation Needs Disambiguation
When a believer is not properly discipled, he will go to the law to confirm his transgression. He is not going to God for cleansing and healing. He is simply unburdening himself. His defiled conscience is reflective of his empty soul and, therefore, cries out in shame as God calls the conscience forth for accountability each day. He feels the weight of sin – that he is without Christ.
However, sin is not really the problem, but rather the lack of the regeneration of the soul. That statement is so shockingly true, I’ll say it again – Sin is not really the problem, but rather the lack of the regeneration of the soul.
When a believer is not properly discipled after making a decision for Jesus he will be tempted to seek out the scriptures to establish his innocence and use the law as his teacher, but what he’s really doing is trying to hide his nakedness (empty soul) by establishing his guilt. His thinking is, if I admit my guilt, I can be forgiven again. In this way the law seems to extend a hand of fellowship by offering an olive branch.
When this happens he trades the anointing for psychology (the scriptures are used to address how he feels), and he trades the rest of Christ for closure (the scriptures are used to make him feel better about his situation). In this we see the law of sin at work (to establish guilt) rather than the righteousness of Christ (to establish the fruits of the Spirit in the soul).
As he reads the Bible he sets order to the events of the Bible: Noah built an ark, Samson overcame the Philistines, the temple was constructed for worship, king David was selected by God. He believes that as he sets order to the scriptures that God is setting order to his soul because he is able to relate in some way to the challenges Noah, Samson, and David faced. But his logic is a trick of the mind, whereas the pleasure he finds in the perfection of the God-Code (to set order) is mistaken for the equity of grace. He’s thinking: I can read the Bible, set order to these events, relate to them, and thus know and trust God.
Yet he is lacking the foundation of truth and the terms of the new covenant that would allow him to touch Jesus and work with the Spirit to allow the divine transformation of his soul. The peace of the world is the pursuit of order for rest. The peace of God is different. The grace of God possesses perfect equity, and when faith reflects that, the soul finds rest in the expression of Christ.
Here again we see the role God gave to his called and sanctified apostles, as his stewards of grace: Apostles teach believers how to rightly divide the word of God so that your faith does not get stuck between God’s two great covenants (the old/Moses and the new/Jesus). Apostles establish your faith in the new law of grace and truth.
Are the Scriptures Your Refuge?
Many times a believer will panic when he find himself trapped by his feelings. He wants to skip over the due process of regeneration and find a scripture that describes what he feels he should be in the eyes of God.
Every time he goes to the scriptures for refuge, he is not going to Christ, and so he gets trapped further as he sees the conflict magnified in his heart. He went to the scriptures to free himself from guilt and shame, but the scriptures seem to do the opposite, to magnify his guilt and shame. Paul explains why this happens, that we might have the mind of Christ on the matter.
Romans 7:10
“And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.”
Here’s the thing: The commandment that Moses received was only in confirmation of the transgression and thus magnifies the transgression. That was the job God assigned to the law, which the law does very well. The commandment did not cleanse the conscience, it did not purge the conscience, it merely magnified the transgression – the very thing troubling the conscience.
That’s like throwing gasoline on a fire to put it out. Of course, the opposite happens – the fire spreads. A troubled conscience goes to the scripture to sort out the flesh to find equity, only to experience the raging wildfires the devil fans, which are now out of control. That’s the reverse of salvation.
We see another reason for God having called and equipped his apostles as his authority: The grace of God is our true refuge.
