There is only one. The Bible is not up for grabs. God is absolutely intolerant of anyone misusing His Word, of twisting it, of adding things in or leaving things out. That is what Satan, His most evil enemy, does.

Selah.

The Bible is uncompromising. It is the written Word of God, the Living Word:

 

John 1:1-4
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.

 

The Bible is Jesus!

And: when anyone ever disagrees with the Son of God, the Father, or the Holy Spirit (Deity, Godhead, Trinity: one God in Three Persons) he or she is wrong.

God warns us never to add to His written Word or take anything away from it:

 

Revelation 22:18-19
I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.

 

We have been warned.

CASE IN POINT:
Recently my husband corrected a very dangerous statement. A person had seemingly endorsed the Scripture 2 Chronicles 7:14, which is:

 

2 Chronicles 7:14
if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

 

This person did not endorse 2 Chronicles 7:14…

My husband’s very valid and crucial objection came from this person’s false recounting of 2 Chronicles 7:14. What makes a false scripture? Again: taking something out of it or adding something into it.

Please notice this: the ‘if’ is not capitalized. Important? Everything God says is! When you provide Scripture, provide exactly as it is.

And what subjects are contained in this single, powerful Scripture? One truth is that we are God’s people. His saints are those who believe and worship Him. We, Israel and the Church, need to be and stay humble. After all, who is the Creator and who is the created? You know. We need to know God is God and we are man, His creation; His property. Therefore, we need to know where our help comes from. It comes from the LORD of lords and the King of kings. We need to embrace the truth that we can’t even breathe without Him.

Selah.

Daily, we also need to communicate with our Father in Heaven; that is what prayer is. Beloved, Apostle Paul tells us to pray without ceasing. And we want to. We need to seek His face. God is radiant! We who love the true and living God want to thank Him, adore Him, worship Him, and yes, fear Him. For those who willingly do this, our fear is not that of the world. Far be it! Our fear is the reverential awe of Him, thanking Him for each and everything He has done and for everything He would never do (such as consigning babies to Hell!)

The last thing proclaimed in 2 Chronicles 7:14? We must turn from wicked ways. The child of God is forgiven and his or her sins are even forgotten by our Father. We are told to examine ourselves and see if there is anything we need to change. We need to walk in holiness. We need to submit. And, sad to say, sometimes we need to repent. We must crucify our flesh.

HERE IS THE KEY TO DUANE’S REBUKE:
This person did not document the Scripture. He did not even paraphrase it! Dangerously (whatever his intent – and – he should have known better) rather he chose what he would relay. Without any doubt, this false rendition of 2 Chronicles 7:14 is in contrast to the sacred Word of God.

Absolutely we are saved by grace through faith. But what do we have to do to receive God’s grace, faith and forgiveness? Our faith must be on display. How? Through our own speech and behavior. Our Apostle James expounds on this:

 

James 2:14-26
 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?  Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food.  If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?  As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

 

Beloved, it is easy for anyone to say: “Jesus loves you!”  It is also immensely pleasurable because you know it’s true and you have great hope for those who are outside God’s will. It may make you feel like you are truly contributing to God’s Kingdom: and you are!

Selah.

It is also easy to say: “You’re wrong!” if you care about people’s relationship with God, Israel, the Church, and with enemies of the cross. With the love of God and confirming His Word to them, telling them this is also a great edification.

The conclusion is this:

 

2 Timothy 4:2-4
 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

 

 

SCRIPTURES FOR THIS JOY STORY

 

 

2 Chronicles 7:14
if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

 

Psalm 103:8-12
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

 

Hebrews 12:4-6
In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”

 

Isaiah 5:4-6
At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”

 

John 8:42-46
Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me.  Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say.  You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.  Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! ⁴⁶ Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me?

 

Matthew 18:15-17
“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.  But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

 

2 Corinthians 13:5-10
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?  And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test. Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong—not so that people will see that we have stood the test but so that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed.  For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth.  We are glad whenever we are weak but you are strong; and our prayer is that you may be fully restored.  This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority—the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.

2 Timothy 4:2-4
 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.