Preservation of the Scripture #
Matt 5:17-19
Introduction
There are really two main lines of thought on the Bible.
- Those who say, God preserved His Words in the original, and we cannot know where they are at. They are still trying to put God’s Words together. They are not complete. They are coming out with new Bibles all the time. Since the early 1900’s. I remember in the 1980’s when the NIV was the newest greatest Bible!
- Those who say we have the perfectly Preserved Words of God today!
I. Promise of Preservation (18) #
A. God Promised #
i. The smallest part “not one jot or tittle” #
• Jot – the point of the letter I, or j.
• tittle – a minute part – Hebrew letters are made of little dashes
• The fact that many Bibles are missing entire verses, so many of them have words that have been added… is completely contrary to what God said!
◦ The absolute smallest part of a word will be preserved!
• The King James Bible came from the Received Text, which the early church used.
◦ It is a family of texts, which there are many of them.
• The modern Bibles are based off a family of texts which were made popular in 1881, and have been modified since them.
KJB - 1 Pet 2:2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby; - 15 words
ESV – 1 Pet 2:2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— 18 words
• King James Bible: 783,137 words
• English Standard Bible: 757,439 words 25,698 words less than KJB
• 1984NIV: 727,969 – 55,168 words less than KJB
◦ God said every jot and tittle would be preserved… you cannot have thoursands of words missing, and say they are the preserved Words of God!
◦ Even between the ESV and NIV there are some 29,000 different words from the same family of texts!
◦ NIV2011 – 729,575 – 3,000 words count difference in the same Bible… NIV.
◦ Clearly there is something wrong there!
ii. God cannot lie #
Titus 1:2 - “2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;”
iii. Repeated in other places #
1 Peter 1:23 - “23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”
Matthew 24:35 - “35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” Isaiah 40:8 - “8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.”
B. Jesus Fulfillment #
i. Jesus didn’t come to destroy the Word #
◦ Some may say, well Jesus came, and he is the Word, so that is the preservation…
◦ Every jot and tittle ….
ii. The prophecies point to Jesus! #
KJB - Isaiah 53:5 - “5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”
ESV - Isa 53:5 - But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquitiy upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 1
• His Birth, death, resurrection were prophesied…
iii. The Law foreshadows Jesus! #
• The need for a sacrifice for sin – a picture of Jesus
• The Passover Lamb in Egypt … a picture of Jesus!
• The shedding of blood… a picture of Jesus
Hebrews 9:22 - “22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.”
• The fact that Jesus was sinless… we need the entirety of the law!
C. Our Need for the Perfect, Preserved Word of God! #
i. We need every word -
Matthew 4:4 - “4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”
• God gave man his Word, we need every Word of it!
• John 6:63 - “63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”
ii. We are commanded to teach every word! #
Matthew 28:20 - “20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
iii. All Scripture … #
2 Timothy 3:16–17 - “16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.”
• Each of these passages emphasize the fact that we need the perfectly preserved Word of God! We have that in our King James Bible.