WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:00.760 All right, good morning. 00:00:02.760 --> 00:00:07.480 Our children are dismissed to their classes. 00:00:07.480 --> 00:00:18.240 ! Let's open our Bibles to Deuteronomy chapter 18. 00:00:18.240 --> 00:00:24.420 ! Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy chapter 18, verse 9. 00:00:24.420 --> 00:00:31.300 I'm thankful for the opportunity to preach this week and next week. 00:00:31.400 --> 00:00:38.400 We're going to do a little two-week miniseries on the doctrine of Scripture, on its truth and authority. 00:00:39.439 --> 00:00:42.880 This week, Deuteronomy 18. Next week, 1 Kings 13. 00:00:42.880 --> 00:00:50.799 That'll be a strange story about a false prophet and a donkey and a lion and some crazy stuff that goes on. 00:00:50.920 --> 00:00:53.160 So make sure you're back next week for that. 00:00:54.719 --> 00:00:57.200 Let's open in prayer and ask for the Lord's help. 00:00:59.460 --> 00:01:04.299 Father, as we open the book of Deuteronomy, we are aware that this is your holy word. 00:01:06.099 --> 00:01:08.540 And we need your help to understand it. 00:01:09.659 --> 00:01:15.099 And we pray that your Spirit would press upon us its truth, its relevance. 00:01:16.379 --> 00:01:19.180 I pray that you would help me to be clear and for all of us to be attentive. 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:21.939 And we ask these things in your name. Amen. 00:01:21.939 --> 00:01:22.060 Amen. 00:01:24.980 --> 00:01:32.780 Everyone, Christian, non-Christian, past, present, future, wants to know things. 00:01:34.079 --> 00:01:35.379 We want to know. 00:01:35.560 --> 00:01:39.439 We want to know about the world around us. 00:01:39.640 --> 00:01:42.159 And that's because knowledge is a kind of power. 00:01:42.159 --> 00:01:45.200 It helps us make decisions. 00:01:45.619 --> 00:01:46.899 It gives us perspective. 00:01:48.619 --> 00:01:53.500 It can sometimes give us influence over other people and over outcomes. 00:01:53.879 --> 00:01:55.840 It creates opportunities for us. 00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:00.920 And we want our knowledge to be reliable and true. 00:02:01.180 --> 00:02:03.760 And so we look to sources of knowledge that are accurate. 00:02:03.760 --> 00:02:11.780 I grew up watching Dan Rather, the anchor of the CBS Evening News. 00:02:11.860 --> 00:02:13.780 I know some of you are too young to know him. 00:02:15.060 --> 00:02:16.840 Dan Rather spoke with authority. 00:02:17.620 --> 00:02:18.680 He had gravitas. 00:02:18.960 --> 00:02:22.659 He was one of the anchors of the big three networks. 00:02:22.860 --> 00:02:24.340 And when he spoke, people listened. 00:02:24.340 --> 00:02:32.860 But then, on September 8, 2004, in the midst of the U.S. presidential election, 00:02:35.180 --> 00:02:43.580 Dan Rather reported on documents that had been discovered that called into question one of the candidates in the U.S. presidential election, 00:02:43.680 --> 00:02:47.500 George W. Bush, that called into question his National Guard service. 00:02:47.500 --> 00:02:54.620 And these documents said that he had disobeyed orders and that his record had been embellished. 00:02:56.000 --> 00:03:05.479 But almost immediately after the broadcast was over, the authenticity of those documents was questioned. 00:03:06.699 --> 00:03:14.000 The font and the spacing in the documents were not those of a typewriter of the 1970s. 00:03:14.000 --> 00:03:21.419 And the source of the documents admitted that he had lied on how those documents had come into his possession. 00:03:21.740 --> 00:03:31.259 And a few weeks later, after everything had been sorted out, Dan Rather came on the air and he apologized and stated that he should not have run the story. 00:03:32.539 --> 00:03:33.699 But it was too late. 00:03:34.920 --> 00:03:37.580 His reputation was ruined at that point. 00:03:37.580 --> 00:03:45.120 He could not recover from this serious and significant blow to his credibility. 00:03:45.400 --> 00:03:49.720 And a few months later, he stepped down as anchor of the CBS Evening News. 00:03:49.939 --> 00:03:52.439 And the next year after that, he was fired altogether. 00:03:53.820 --> 00:03:58.980 He had been an anchor, a serious anchor at CBS for 24 years. 00:03:59.920 --> 00:04:01.400 So let's do some math. 00:04:01.400 --> 00:04:07.620 There are 260 weekdays in a year times 24 years. 00:04:08.379 --> 00:04:15.219 That means, and we'll be conservative here on our estimate, that means that Rather anchored the news about 6,000 times. 00:04:15.920 --> 00:04:25.639 And if in a given newscast he anchored about 10 stories, that means that over the course of his career he had anchored 60,000 stories. 00:04:25.639 --> 00:04:32.599 And yet, when he got one wrong, it destroyed his credibility. 00:04:34.379 --> 00:04:35.719 Now, it was a big one. 00:04:36.279 --> 00:04:42.979 It was a big one because it was tied up with the presidential election and questions about media bias and things like that. 00:04:43.079 --> 00:04:51.919 But one faulty story out of 60,000, and people would not take him seriously any longer as a source of knowledge. 00:04:51.920 --> 00:05:01.980 If we have high expectations for a 30-minute newscast on CBS, how much more do we require a reliable word from the Lord? 00:05:02.240 --> 00:05:06.160 A word that teaches us about how and why God made us. 00:05:07.220 --> 00:05:17.500 A word that teaches us what God values and what he hates and how we're supposed to treat each other and what we're supposed to prioritize in our lives. 00:05:17.500 --> 00:05:31.939 A word that warns that we are actually born into a hostile relationship with God and what he has done in the gospel to solve that problem and what we must do to have that solution applied to us. 00:05:32.040 --> 00:05:34.079 It's huge. 00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:35.399 The stakes are high. 00:05:35.519 --> 00:05:36.240 It is critical. 00:05:36.639 --> 00:05:39.399 We have to be able to depend on the word of God. 00:05:39.399 --> 00:05:48.099 In the Bible, God acknowledges that a word that is authoritative also must be reliable. 00:05:48.419 --> 00:05:54.039 And he addresses this issue through Moses in our passage today, Deuteronomy 18. 00:05:54.439 --> 00:05:59.039 If you, again, have your Bible, why don't you follow along with me. 00:05:59.579 --> 00:06:07.239 In the context here, Moses is giving a series of instructions to the people of Israel as they're right on the edge of going into the promised land. 00:06:07.240 --> 00:06:13.740 And Moses calls for obedience and he warns against the consequences of disobedience. 00:06:14.079 --> 00:06:23.460 And he reminds them of the resources that God has given to them to remain faithful, God's presence and his power and his word. 00:06:24.800 --> 00:06:27.160 And Moses has been an incredible prophet. 00:06:27.160 --> 00:06:35.100 He has been God's spokesman who led Israel out of slavery in Egypt. 00:06:35.340 --> 00:06:40.500 And he's the one that led Israel in the wilderness and performed incredible miracles. 00:06:40.740 --> 00:06:44.200 He was the first one to function as a prophet of the Lord. 00:06:44.720 --> 00:06:50.440 He received the word of the Lord and then turned and taught it to the people. 00:06:50.820 --> 00:06:52.100 That's what a prophet does. 00:06:52.100 --> 00:07:03.700 And he was, in fact, unique among all the prophets of the Old Testament because Exodus 33 tells us that God spoke to Moses face to face as a man speaks with his friend. 00:07:05.720 --> 00:07:10.040 But then that raises a question for the Israelites. 00:07:10.420 --> 00:07:12.740 What are we going to do when Moses is gone? 00:07:12.740 --> 00:07:18.240 And here in Deuteronomy 18, Moses answers that question. 00:07:18.480 --> 00:07:28.079 And as he looks forward to Israel's entrance into the promised land, he contrasts two fundamentally different sources of knowledge. 00:07:28.300 --> 00:07:33.500 Two potentially fundamentally different sources of special knowledge. 00:07:33.639 --> 00:07:38.720 Verses 9 through 14 describe the practice of the pagan nations around them. 00:07:38.720 --> 00:07:44.660 And then verses 15 to 22 describe God's way of revealing knowledge to his people. 00:07:44.760 --> 00:07:47.520 So let's look at each of these halves in turn. 00:07:49.240 --> 00:07:54.640 How does this passage inform the way that we think about the truth of the Bible? 00:07:56.020 --> 00:07:59.700 Is the Bible reliable and trustworthy in whatever it claims? 00:07:59.880 --> 00:08:02.500 We call this the doctrine of inerrancy. 00:08:03.540 --> 00:08:04.960 The doctrine of inerrancy. 00:08:04.959 --> 00:08:10.299 The inerrancy means that whatever the Bible claims is true. 00:08:10.899 --> 00:08:13.279 Whatever the Bible claims is without error. 00:08:14.079 --> 00:08:18.379 So let's look at the first section in Deuteronomy 18, 9 to 14. 00:08:19.740 --> 00:08:27.479 When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. 00:08:28.139 --> 00:08:28.639 Verse 10. 00:08:28.639 --> 00:08:33.879 There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, 00:08:34.799 --> 00:08:39.559 anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, 00:08:40.000 --> 00:08:47.699 or a sorcerer, or a charmer, or a medium, or a necromancer, or one who inquires of the dead. 00:08:48.080 --> 00:08:51.360 For whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord. 00:08:52.159 --> 00:08:56.639 And because of these abominations, the Lord your God is driving them out before you. 00:08:56.639 --> 00:09:00.220 You shall be blameless before the Lord your God. 00:09:00.319 --> 00:09:06.319 For these nations, which you are about to dispossess, listen to fortune tellers and to diviners. 00:09:06.620 --> 00:09:10.460 But as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do this. 00:09:12.539 --> 00:09:21.279 Moses begins by anticipating that the way the nations gain divine knowledge is different from that of Israel. 00:09:21.279 --> 00:09:28.959 But notice in verse 9 that these aren't just alternate ways of gaining knowledge. 00:09:29.120 --> 00:09:31.759 They are abominable practices. 00:09:32.120 --> 00:09:37.019 They are incompatible with God's character, and they're deeply offensive to him. 00:09:38.459 --> 00:09:47.059 These rituals provide opportunities for the gods to speak to the people through nature or through physical objects. 00:09:47.059 --> 00:09:56.259 One example of this is that the priests of the nations would take a goat, or a lamb, or something like that, 00:09:56.319 --> 00:10:00.879 and they would pray over it, and they would perform some kind of a special ritual over it. 00:10:01.219 --> 00:10:06.599 And then they would slaughter it, and they would cut it open, and then they would look at its organs. 00:10:06.739 --> 00:10:10.019 They would look at the liver, and they would look at the kidneys and the lungs, 00:10:10.019 --> 00:10:12.220 and they would say, oh, what do we see here? 00:10:12.340 --> 00:10:14.799 Are these normal, or is there any discoloration? 00:10:15.679 --> 00:10:18.519 Anything abnormally enlarged or misshapen? 00:10:19.019 --> 00:10:23.139 Because the expectation was that by looking at the organs of this animal, 00:10:23.279 --> 00:10:25.399 this was the opportunity for the God to speak. 00:10:26.079 --> 00:10:29.500 The God could communicate to them through these means. 00:10:29.500 --> 00:10:39.700 He mentions in verse 10 and 11, divination, fortune-telling, omens, sorcery, mediums, necromancy. 00:10:40.000 --> 00:10:43.820 And notice that Moses does not say here that these things don't work. 00:10:46.340 --> 00:10:52.419 In 1 Samuel chapter 28, King Saul asked a medium to bring up Samuel from the dead, and then he came. 00:10:52.419 --> 00:10:59.939 I mean, I don't know what to think about this. 00:11:00.019 --> 00:11:05.379 My grandfather in Ohio was a farmer, and when he needed to find sources of water in the field, 00:11:05.459 --> 00:11:10.860 he would take a stick, and he would walk around the field, and then the stick would all of a sudden dip. 00:11:11.079 --> 00:11:13.620 And he'd say, oh, I'll dig here for water, and there was water there. 00:11:14.779 --> 00:11:20.319 When my dad was a child, the cousins would gather around the farm table, and they would chant. 00:11:20.320 --> 00:11:23.120 True story, absolutely true story. 00:11:23.200 --> 00:11:28.320 They would chant, and the table, the heavy oak kitchen farm table would levitate. 00:11:29.100 --> 00:11:31.780 One half of it weighs about an inch or two off the ground. 00:11:32.240 --> 00:11:35.000 And then the kids would ask the table questions, and it would tap. 00:11:37.280 --> 00:11:38.240 These things work. 00:11:38.980 --> 00:11:39.860 They really do. 00:11:42.640 --> 00:11:49.260 But what they all have in common is that they are attempts to extract information from the divine world. 00:11:50.320 --> 00:11:52.720 They are at the initiative of the people. 00:11:52.800 --> 00:11:56.740 The people decide what they want to know and when they want to know it. 00:11:57.640 --> 00:12:00.560 They are in the driver's seat of this knowledge. 00:12:01.420 --> 00:12:06.900 And they all assume many different sources of gods and voices. 00:12:07.160 --> 00:12:09.340 There is no overarching authority here. 00:12:09.420 --> 00:12:13.440 Instead, there's all this conflicting information that needs to be sorted out. 00:12:13.440 --> 00:12:17.900 Because one person learns one thing in this ritual, and one person learns this thing, 00:12:18.000 --> 00:12:22.340 and maybe they're coming from different gods, and it's all under human control. 00:12:23.000 --> 00:12:31.280 And it's usually used to support human agendas and to strengthen those people who are already in power. 00:12:32.040 --> 00:12:37.820 To strengthen the position of the king, or to strengthen the position of the priesthood, or something like that. 00:12:37.820 --> 00:12:43.640 And these sources of knowledge are alive and well in other parts of the world. 00:12:43.720 --> 00:12:46.680 In Africa, in Asia, South America. 00:12:46.900 --> 00:12:50.900 When I teach at the seminary in Liberia, and we talk about these kinds of issues, 00:12:51.000 --> 00:12:52.120 the people are like, well, yeah. 00:12:53.280 --> 00:12:54.980 People do this kind of thing all the time. 00:12:56.180 --> 00:12:58.060 This is the nature of religion. 00:12:58.400 --> 00:13:00.560 Of religious practices, right? 00:13:00.559 --> 00:13:11.079 We construct religion to control the situation, to try and figure out meaning for our lives, 00:13:11.159 --> 00:13:13.059 to try and gain knowledge for ourselves. 00:13:13.679 --> 00:13:15.719 And we want a divine word. 00:13:16.099 --> 00:13:20.019 The temptation is to have a divine word that is under our control. 00:13:20.959 --> 00:13:23.519 That doesn't demand too much of us, 00:13:24.519 --> 00:13:27.359 but that hopefully we can use to benefit ourselves. 00:13:27.360 --> 00:13:32.800 And God says in the first part of this chapter, 00:13:33.259 --> 00:13:39.720 the people of Israel are not allowed to go to these sources of truth and knowledge. 00:13:39.960 --> 00:13:41.060 Look at verse 14. 00:13:41.180 --> 00:13:41.720 Moses says, 00:13:41.860 --> 00:13:46.720 But as for you, the Lord has not allowed you to do this. 00:13:46.779 --> 00:13:50.060 The people of God belong to the Lord. 00:13:50.240 --> 00:13:54.100 His word is the only legitimate authority, 00:13:54.100 --> 00:13:56.399 and he will speak when he wants, 00:13:57.100 --> 00:13:58.440 for his own purposes, 00:13:59.100 --> 00:14:01.360 and then he expects his people to obey. 00:14:04.460 --> 00:14:06.259 Because he wants good for them. 00:14:08.920 --> 00:14:10.740 But how is God going to speak? 00:14:11.200 --> 00:14:16.460 Well, let's look at the second half of our passage in verses 15 to 22. 00:14:16.460 --> 00:14:18.800 Verse 15. 00:14:18.800 --> 00:14:23.139 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, 00:14:23.360 --> 00:14:24.639 from your brothers. 00:14:24.879 --> 00:14:26.480 It is to him you shall listen. 00:14:27.400 --> 00:14:31.379 Just as you desired of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, 00:14:31.820 --> 00:14:32.820 when you said, 00:14:33.519 --> 00:14:36.120 Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, 00:14:36.160 --> 00:14:38.960 or see this great fire anymore, lest I die. 00:14:39.300 --> 00:14:40.379 And the Lord said to me, 00:14:40.420 --> 00:14:42.000 They are right in what they have spoken. 00:14:42.000 --> 00:14:46.299 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers, 00:14:46.580 --> 00:14:48.779 and I will put my words in his mouth, 00:14:48.980 --> 00:14:51.860 and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 00:14:52.139 --> 00:14:55.720 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, 00:14:56.019 --> 00:14:58.580 I myself will require it of him. 00:14:58.639 --> 00:14:59.200 Verse 20. 00:15:00.179 --> 00:15:03.259 But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name 00:15:03.259 --> 00:15:05.159 that I have not commanded him to speak, 00:15:05.519 --> 00:15:07.519 or who speaks in the name of other gods, 00:15:07.639 --> 00:15:09.360 that same prophet shall die. 00:15:10.519 --> 00:15:11.179 Verse 21. 00:15:11.179 --> 00:15:12.899 And if you say in your heart, 00:15:13.239 --> 00:15:16.879 How may we know the word that the Lord has not spoken? 00:15:17.299 --> 00:15:19.519 When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, 00:15:19.979 --> 00:15:22.799 if the word does not come to pass or come true, 00:15:22.959 --> 00:15:25.379 that is a word that the Lord has not spoken. 00:15:25.859 --> 00:15:28.099 The prophet has spoken it presumptuously. 00:15:28.620 --> 00:15:30.179 You need not be afraid of him. 00:15:31.939 --> 00:15:33.959 In contrast to the nations, 00:15:34.639 --> 00:15:37.439 with their various and frantic attempts 00:15:37.439 --> 00:15:40.379 to extract knowledge from the divine word, 00:15:41.179 --> 00:15:44.399 the Lord has a gracious gift for his people. 00:15:45.599 --> 00:15:47.659 The institution of prophecy. 00:15:49.019 --> 00:15:50.519 Moses says in verse 15, 00:15:50.639 --> 00:15:54.559 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me. 00:15:54.919 --> 00:15:58.000 Moses had access to the presence of God. 00:15:58.120 --> 00:16:01.579 He had received God's word and delivered it to the people. 00:16:01.759 --> 00:16:04.439 He mediated between God and his people, 00:16:04.440 --> 00:16:06.460 and so he will serve as a pattern. 00:16:06.600 --> 00:16:07.660 And the singular here, 00:16:08.260 --> 00:16:10.720 God will raise up for you a prophet like me. 00:16:10.780 --> 00:16:11.920 It's a generic singular. 00:16:12.140 --> 00:16:14.200 It means many prophets, right? 00:16:15.240 --> 00:16:16.440 Prophets like me. 00:16:16.440 --> 00:16:20.040 God is going to use prophets like Moses 00:16:20.040 --> 00:16:22.260 to reveal himself to the people. 00:16:22.360 --> 00:16:23.460 He's not going to use magic. 00:16:23.940 --> 00:16:25.300 He's not going to use divination. 00:16:26.400 --> 00:16:29.120 And the word order at the end of verse 15 00:16:29.120 --> 00:16:30.700 signals an important contrast. 00:16:30.780 --> 00:16:32.220 Look what it says at the end of verse 15. 00:16:32.580 --> 00:16:34.580 It is to him you shall listen. 00:16:34.580 --> 00:16:39.540 Not to the magicians and diviners. 00:16:40.620 --> 00:16:43.920 You will listen to the true source of God's revelation, 00:16:44.180 --> 00:16:44.800 the prophet, 00:16:45.259 --> 00:16:46.820 and the word that God has spoken. 00:16:47.020 --> 00:16:49.940 God has provided only this one source 00:16:49.940 --> 00:16:51.560 of divine knowledge. 00:16:53.340 --> 00:16:54.600 In verse 16, 00:16:54.820 --> 00:16:57.440 Moses refers back to Horeb, 00:16:57.580 --> 00:16:59.480 which we also read in our Bibles 00:16:59.480 --> 00:17:00.640 is called Mount Sinai. 00:17:01.200 --> 00:17:02.640 He goes back to Mount Horeb, 00:17:02.639 --> 00:17:05.400 the original gathering of God's people. 00:17:05.579 --> 00:17:05.900 It says, 00:17:06.460 --> 00:17:07.319 when you said, 00:17:07.420 --> 00:17:07.980 verse 16, 00:17:08.339 --> 00:17:09.980 let me not hear again 00:17:09.980 --> 00:17:11.420 the voice of the Lord my God 00:17:11.420 --> 00:17:13.779 or see this great fire lest I die. 00:17:13.980 --> 00:17:14.839 See, at first, 00:17:15.859 --> 00:17:17.319 it sounds like the people 00:17:17.319 --> 00:17:18.400 don't want to hear from God. 00:17:20.379 --> 00:17:21.180 But actually, 00:17:21.339 --> 00:17:22.440 they did want to hear, 00:17:22.579 --> 00:17:23.440 but they knew 00:17:23.440 --> 00:17:25.359 that because he was holy 00:17:25.359 --> 00:17:26.819 and they were sinful, 00:17:26.940 --> 00:17:28.460 they could not speak with him directly. 00:17:28.740 --> 00:17:29.099 They're like, 00:17:29.160 --> 00:17:30.319 I don't want to hear the voice of the Lord 00:17:30.319 --> 00:17:31.240 because I'll be killed. 00:17:32.640 --> 00:17:34.259 He's holy. 00:17:34.400 --> 00:17:35.060 They're sinful. 00:17:35.200 --> 00:17:36.180 It's too dangerous 00:17:36.180 --> 00:17:37.520 to be close to God. 00:17:37.900 --> 00:17:39.120 And in verse 17, 00:17:39.420 --> 00:17:40.380 God agrees with them. 00:17:41.780 --> 00:17:43.140 He says in verse 17, 00:17:43.259 --> 00:17:44.840 they are right in what they have spoken. 00:17:45.060 --> 00:17:46.100 In God's holiness, 00:17:46.340 --> 00:17:47.680 he cannot just have 00:17:47.680 --> 00:17:49.500 a direct conversation 00:17:49.500 --> 00:17:50.220 with the people. 00:17:50.580 --> 00:17:51.980 He needs representatives. 00:17:52.380 --> 00:17:53.880 He needs spokesmen. 00:17:55.480 --> 00:17:55.920 So, 00:17:56.160 --> 00:17:57.800 God says he will raise up 00:17:57.800 --> 00:17:58.920 a prophet like Moses. 00:17:59.060 --> 00:18:00.380 Look at the second half 00:18:00.380 --> 00:18:01.240 of verse 18. 00:18:02.640 --> 00:18:03.940 I will put my words 00:18:03.940 --> 00:18:04.980 in his mouth 00:18:04.980 --> 00:18:06.620 and he shall speak to them 00:18:06.620 --> 00:18:08.400 all that I command him. 00:18:08.460 --> 00:18:09.880 This is like a job description 00:18:09.880 --> 00:18:11.400 for the Old Testament prophet. 00:18:12.820 --> 00:18:13.800 Unlike the nations, 00:18:14.060 --> 00:18:15.260 it is God 00:18:15.260 --> 00:18:17.040 who will take the initiative. 00:18:17.460 --> 00:18:18.300 He will decide 00:18:18.300 --> 00:18:19.060 when to speak. 00:18:19.140 --> 00:18:20.320 It's on his terms. 00:18:22.440 --> 00:18:23.560 Unlike the nations 00:18:23.560 --> 00:18:25.060 who control the rituals 00:18:25.060 --> 00:18:26.280 and perform the rituals 00:18:26.280 --> 00:18:27.180 in order to try and 00:18:27.180 --> 00:18:28.640 get the God to do 00:18:28.640 --> 00:18:30.080 what they want him to do, 00:18:30.280 --> 00:18:32.080 the prophet obeys. 00:18:32.660 --> 00:18:33.980 The prophet obeys 00:18:33.980 --> 00:18:35.420 and serves God. 00:18:35.800 --> 00:18:36.840 And unlike the nations 00:18:36.840 --> 00:18:37.640 who have this 00:18:37.640 --> 00:18:39.920 plurality of deities 00:18:39.920 --> 00:18:41.560 all speaking different things, 00:18:41.620 --> 00:18:42.700 there's the God of thunder 00:18:42.700 --> 00:18:44.540 and there's the God of fertility 00:18:44.540 --> 00:18:46.259 and there's the God of the sea. 00:18:47.100 --> 00:18:47.820 No, no. 00:18:47.900 --> 00:18:48.280 Instead, 00:18:48.440 --> 00:18:49.480 there is one God. 00:18:50.200 --> 00:18:51.280 There is one God 00:18:51.280 --> 00:18:52.080 and his word 00:18:52.080 --> 00:18:52.980 is unified 00:18:52.980 --> 00:18:53.940 and coherent. 00:18:54.100 --> 00:18:54.500 He says, 00:18:54.900 --> 00:18:55.700 these are going to be 00:18:55.700 --> 00:18:56.660 my words. 00:18:56.660 --> 00:19:00.019 And because 00:19:00.019 --> 00:19:01.500 they are the actual 00:19:01.500 --> 00:19:03.340 spoken words 00:19:03.340 --> 00:19:05.100 by the one true God, 00:19:05.320 --> 00:19:06.800 they are authoritative 00:19:06.800 --> 00:19:07.840 and binding 00:19:07.840 --> 00:19:08.740 on the people. 00:19:08.920 --> 00:19:09.800 They must 00:19:09.800 --> 00:19:11.259 be obeyed. 00:19:13.500 --> 00:19:14.600 God will hold 00:19:14.600 --> 00:19:15.220 his people 00:19:15.220 --> 00:19:16.700 accountable to that word 00:19:16.700 --> 00:19:18.080 because it comes from him. 00:19:18.259 --> 00:19:18.800 Look what he says 00:19:18.800 --> 00:19:19.620 in verse 19. 00:19:20.019 --> 00:19:21.000 Whoever will not 00:19:21.000 --> 00:19:22.400 listen to my words 00:19:22.400 --> 00:19:23.600 that he shall speak 00:19:23.600 --> 00:19:24.279 in my name, 00:19:24.580 --> 00:19:25.240 I myself 00:19:25.240 --> 00:19:26.400 will require it of him. 00:19:26.400 --> 00:19:26.740 So, 00:19:27.740 --> 00:19:29.519 the stakes are high. 00:19:31.120 --> 00:19:32.340 If it is a word 00:19:32.340 --> 00:19:32.960 from the Lord, 00:19:33.080 --> 00:19:34.519 it must be 00:19:34.519 --> 00:19:35.200 believed 00:19:35.200 --> 00:19:36.100 and obeyed 00:19:36.100 --> 00:19:37.019 no matter what. 00:19:39.080 --> 00:19:40.120 But because 00:19:40.120 --> 00:19:41.320 the stakes are high, 00:19:42.759 --> 00:19:44.840 because the word 00:19:44.840 --> 00:19:45.400 from God 00:19:45.400 --> 00:19:46.460 is absolutely 00:19:46.460 --> 00:19:47.460 authoritative 00:19:47.460 --> 00:19:48.400 and absolutely 00:19:48.400 --> 00:19:48.960 binding, 00:19:49.480 --> 00:19:49.940 the people 00:19:49.940 --> 00:19:50.960 have to know 00:19:50.960 --> 00:19:52.140 that it actually 00:19:52.140 --> 00:19:53.259 came from God, 00:19:53.320 --> 00:19:53.560 right? 00:19:54.379 --> 00:19:55.019 They can't 00:19:55.019 --> 00:19:58.539 get something 00:19:58.539 --> 00:19:59.259 false 00:19:59.259 --> 00:20:01.019 and then 00:20:01.019 --> 00:20:02.139 find themselves 00:20:02.139 --> 00:20:03.319 bound to that. 00:20:03.440 --> 00:20:04.539 It has to be 00:20:04.539 --> 00:20:05.019 known 00:20:05.019 --> 00:20:05.700 that 00:20:05.700 --> 00:20:06.779 this comes 00:20:06.779 --> 00:20:07.319 from God 00:20:07.319 --> 00:20:08.039 because it's 00:20:08.039 --> 00:20:08.879 the source 00:20:08.879 --> 00:20:09.700 of the word 00:20:09.700 --> 00:20:10.359 that gives it 00:20:10.359 --> 00:20:11.079 its authority. 00:20:13.279 --> 00:20:14.799 And in verse 20, 00:20:15.339 --> 00:20:16.359 Moses acknowledges 00:20:16.359 --> 00:20:17.500 a potential problem. 00:20:17.659 --> 00:20:18.220 There is going 00:20:18.220 --> 00:20:19.279 to be a temptation 00:20:19.279 --> 00:20:20.059 among people 00:20:20.059 --> 00:20:20.779 in the community 00:20:20.779 --> 00:20:22.559 to fabricate 00:20:22.559 --> 00:20:23.779 the prophetic word 00:20:23.779 --> 00:20:27.059 because if the word 00:20:27.059 --> 00:20:27.740 has that much 00:20:27.740 --> 00:20:28.220 authority 00:20:28.220 --> 00:20:28.980 in its binding, 00:20:29.200 --> 00:20:29.339 well, 00:20:30.779 --> 00:20:31.539 let me make 00:20:31.539 --> 00:20:32.179 something up 00:20:32.179 --> 00:20:32.799 and then everyone's 00:20:32.799 --> 00:20:33.119 going to do 00:20:33.119 --> 00:20:33.720 what I say. 00:20:33.720 --> 00:20:36.339 there's going 00:20:36.339 --> 00:20:36.960 to be a temptation 00:20:36.960 --> 00:20:37.799 in the community 00:20:37.799 --> 00:20:38.920 to invent it 00:20:38.920 --> 00:20:40.799 or to make it up 00:20:40.799 --> 00:20:41.460 and then attribute 00:20:41.460 --> 00:20:42.039 it to God 00:20:42.039 --> 00:20:42.360 and say, 00:20:42.440 --> 00:20:42.519 hey, 00:20:42.579 --> 00:20:43.120 you'll never guess 00:20:43.120 --> 00:20:44.220 what God told me. 00:20:46.079 --> 00:20:47.039 And Moses says 00:20:47.039 --> 00:20:47.700 in verse 20, 00:20:47.779 --> 00:20:48.500 but the prophet 00:20:48.500 --> 00:20:49.640 who presumes 00:20:49.640 --> 00:20:50.660 to speak a word 00:20:50.660 --> 00:20:51.500 in my name 00:20:51.500 --> 00:20:52.839 that I have not 00:20:52.839 --> 00:20:53.660 commanded him 00:20:53.660 --> 00:20:54.600 to speak, 00:20:58.039 --> 00:20:58.299 why, 00:20:58.380 --> 00:20:58.620 why, 00:20:58.620 --> 00:21:00.380 why is that 00:21:00.380 --> 00:21:00.900 a temptation? 00:21:00.900 --> 00:21:02.620 Why is that 00:21:02.620 --> 00:21:03.180 a temptation 00:21:03.180 --> 00:21:04.640 to fabricate 00:21:04.640 --> 00:21:05.259 or invent 00:21:05.259 --> 00:21:06.040 a divine word? 00:21:06.160 --> 00:21:06.300 Well, 00:21:06.500 --> 00:21:06.900 I mean, 00:21:06.980 --> 00:21:08.220 from a purely 00:21:08.220 --> 00:21:09.560 theological standpoint, 00:21:10.519 --> 00:21:11.780 you might want 00:21:11.780 --> 00:21:12.980 to make the God 00:21:12.980 --> 00:21:14.320 say what you prefer. 00:21:16.519 --> 00:21:17.660 You want a God 00:21:17.660 --> 00:21:18.759 who acts like you 00:21:18.759 --> 00:21:19.860 and thinks like you. 00:21:19.940 --> 00:21:20.580 You want a God 00:21:20.580 --> 00:21:21.780 who agrees with you. 00:21:22.759 --> 00:21:23.720 You don't want a God 00:21:23.720 --> 00:21:24.900 that has any rough edges 00:21:24.900 --> 00:21:26.140 or says anything 00:21:26.140 --> 00:21:27.320 that you find offensive 00:21:27.320 --> 00:21:28.360 or demands 00:21:28.360 --> 00:21:29.180 too much of you 00:21:29.180 --> 00:21:29.800 in your life. 00:21:30.900 --> 00:21:33.759 or you might invent 00:21:33.759 --> 00:21:35.000 a word of the Lord 00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:35.940 for influence 00:21:35.940 --> 00:21:36.560 and power. 00:21:36.700 --> 00:21:37.820 If you control it, 00:21:37.940 --> 00:21:39.500 if you create 00:21:39.500 --> 00:21:40.320 the divine word, 00:21:40.420 --> 00:21:41.140 then you can shape 00:21:41.140 --> 00:21:42.160 people's values 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:43.519 and control their actions. 00:21:43.840 --> 00:21:44.780 They have to listen 00:21:44.780 --> 00:21:45.440 to you, right, 00:21:45.500 --> 00:21:45.800 because 00:21:45.800 --> 00:21:48.019 the authoritative 00:21:48.019 --> 00:21:48.740 word of God. 00:21:50.740 --> 00:21:52.040 Or you might make up 00:21:52.040 --> 00:21:52.880 a divine word 00:21:52.880 --> 00:21:54.220 to excuse yourself 00:21:54.220 --> 00:21:55.180 from wrongdoing, 00:21:55.420 --> 00:21:56.680 to redefine 00:21:56.680 --> 00:21:57.560 right and wrong. 00:21:58.640 --> 00:21:58.860 To say, 00:21:58.940 --> 00:21:58.980 well, 00:21:58.980 --> 00:21:59.500 I know everyone 00:21:59.500 --> 00:22:00.600 thought that was wrong, 00:22:00.599 --> 00:22:01.699 but let me tell you, 00:22:01.740 --> 00:22:02.799 God told me it's okay. 00:22:05.959 --> 00:22:07.019 This is the question 00:22:07.019 --> 00:22:08.059 in the Garden of Eden 00:22:08.059 --> 00:22:11.139 in Genesis chapter 3 00:22:11.139 --> 00:22:12.319 when the serpent says, 00:22:12.459 --> 00:22:14.199 did God actually say 00:22:14.199 --> 00:22:16.579 you shall not eat 00:22:16.579 --> 00:22:17.179 of any tree? 00:22:20.079 --> 00:22:21.599 There's always a temptation 00:22:21.599 --> 00:22:24.000 to invent a word 00:22:24.000 --> 00:22:24.559 from the Lord 00:22:24.559 --> 00:22:25.339 that supports 00:22:25.339 --> 00:22:26.459 our own behavior 00:22:26.459 --> 00:22:27.379 and beliefs. 00:22:27.380 --> 00:22:28.940 the stakes 00:22:28.940 --> 00:22:29.780 are high. 00:22:30.980 --> 00:22:31.720 And so God says, 00:22:31.840 --> 00:22:32.840 if anyone does this, 00:22:32.900 --> 00:22:34.080 if anyone invents 00:22:34.080 --> 00:22:35.060 a word from the Lord 00:22:35.060 --> 00:22:36.060 or fabricates 00:22:36.060 --> 00:22:36.760 a word from the Lord 00:22:36.760 --> 00:22:37.400 that I did not 00:22:37.400 --> 00:22:38.480 actually speak, 00:22:38.800 --> 00:22:39.700 that same prophet 00:22:39.700 --> 00:22:40.540 shall die. 00:22:43.280 --> 00:22:44.160 The prophet 00:22:44.160 --> 00:22:45.320 who invents a word 00:22:45.320 --> 00:22:46.420 and attributes it 00:22:46.420 --> 00:22:47.100 to me 00:22:47.100 --> 00:22:48.040 when I didn't 00:22:48.040 --> 00:22:48.900 really speak it, 00:22:49.020 --> 00:22:49.740 that prophet 00:22:49.740 --> 00:22:50.760 shall die. 00:22:50.880 --> 00:22:51.980 It cannot happen. 00:22:51.980 --> 00:22:55.160 You cannot allow 00:22:55.160 --> 00:22:57.259 people in the community 00:22:57.259 --> 00:22:58.660 to invent something. 00:22:58.759 --> 00:22:59.279 The people 00:22:59.279 --> 00:23:01.200 in the community 00:23:01.200 --> 00:23:01.759 of Israel 00:23:01.759 --> 00:23:03.319 cannot be expected 00:23:03.319 --> 00:23:04.880 to obey a word 00:23:04.880 --> 00:23:06.339 that was just invented. 00:23:08.519 --> 00:23:09.599 The source 00:23:09.599 --> 00:23:10.599 of the divine word 00:23:10.599 --> 00:23:11.819 is what gives it 00:23:11.819 --> 00:23:12.559 its authority. 00:23:13.839 --> 00:23:14.779 So the people 00:23:14.779 --> 00:23:16.400 have to have confidence 00:23:16.400 --> 00:23:18.319 that it really came 00:23:18.319 --> 00:23:18.900 from the Lord. 00:23:18.900 --> 00:23:22.519 But that 00:23:22.519 --> 00:23:23.740 raises a question. 00:23:26.100 --> 00:23:26.920 How do we know? 00:23:28.600 --> 00:23:29.480 Someone can just 00:23:29.480 --> 00:23:30.660 claim to be a prophet. 00:23:30.800 --> 00:23:31.160 They can say, 00:23:31.280 --> 00:23:31.620 guess what? 00:23:31.660 --> 00:23:32.759 I received a word 00:23:32.759 --> 00:23:33.320 from the Lord 00:23:33.320 --> 00:23:33.940 and here's what 00:23:33.940 --> 00:23:34.700 you all have to do. 00:23:34.880 --> 00:23:35.920 It's that easy 00:23:35.920 --> 00:23:36.540 to fake it. 00:23:36.640 --> 00:23:37.560 It's super easy. 00:23:39.420 --> 00:23:40.680 So how are the people 00:23:40.680 --> 00:23:41.100 of Israel 00:23:41.100 --> 00:23:41.940 supposed to know 00:23:41.940 --> 00:23:43.040 if it's a genuine 00:23:43.040 --> 00:23:44.220 word of the Lord 00:23:44.220 --> 00:23:44.880 or not? 00:23:46.120 --> 00:23:46.320 Well, 00:23:46.340 --> 00:23:47.060 Moses answers 00:23:47.060 --> 00:23:47.820 that question 00:23:47.819 --> 00:23:49.200 in verse 22. 00:23:50.639 --> 00:23:51.259 When a prophet 00:23:51.259 --> 00:23:52.319 speaks in the name 00:23:52.319 --> 00:23:52.879 of the Lord, 00:23:52.980 --> 00:23:53.799 if the word 00:23:53.799 --> 00:23:54.619 does not come 00:23:54.619 --> 00:23:55.279 to pass 00:23:55.279 --> 00:23:55.960 or come true, 00:23:56.139 --> 00:23:57.059 that is a word 00:23:57.059 --> 00:23:57.939 that the Lord 00:23:57.939 --> 00:23:58.799 has not spoken. 00:24:01.119 --> 00:24:02.019 If the prophet 00:24:02.019 --> 00:24:02.819 speaks in the name 00:24:02.819 --> 00:24:03.299 of God 00:24:03.299 --> 00:24:04.119 on his behalf 00:24:04.119 --> 00:24:05.000 and claims 00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:05.839 that the divine word 00:24:05.839 --> 00:24:06.700 came from God 00:24:06.700 --> 00:24:07.659 and if that word 00:24:07.659 --> 00:24:08.899 does not come true, 00:24:09.240 --> 00:24:09.679 then God 00:24:09.679 --> 00:24:10.480 did not speak it. 00:24:12.299 --> 00:24:13.339 If it does not 00:24:13.339 --> 00:24:14.119 come true, 00:24:15.200 --> 00:24:16.639 it cannot be 00:24:16.639 --> 00:24:17.200 from the Lord. 00:24:17.200 --> 00:24:18.680 It must be 00:24:18.680 --> 00:24:19.460 fabricated 00:24:19.460 --> 00:24:20.059 and invented. 00:24:21.720 --> 00:24:22.660 This is based 00:24:22.660 --> 00:24:23.420 on an assumption, 00:24:24.059 --> 00:24:24.240 right? 00:24:24.460 --> 00:24:25.279 It's a pretty good 00:24:25.279 --> 00:24:26.400 assumption that God 00:24:26.400 --> 00:24:28.059 never gets things 00:24:28.059 --> 00:24:28.420 wrong. 00:24:29.799 --> 00:24:30.900 Humans get things 00:24:30.900 --> 00:24:31.259 wrong. 00:24:32.460 --> 00:24:33.819 Humans who invent 00:24:33.819 --> 00:24:34.900 or fabricate 00:24:34.900 --> 00:24:35.539 a supposedly 00:24:35.539 --> 00:24:36.640 divine word 00:24:36.640 --> 00:24:37.640 get things wrong 00:24:37.640 --> 00:24:38.440 but not the Lord. 00:24:38.580 --> 00:24:39.180 He bats 00:24:39.180 --> 00:24:39.799 a thousand. 00:24:41.860 --> 00:24:43.220 He has a perfect 00:24:43.220 --> 00:24:43.640 record. 00:24:43.640 --> 00:24:45.320 And notice here 00:24:45.320 --> 00:24:46.000 that it does not 00:24:46.000 --> 00:24:47.220 specify the nature 00:24:47.220 --> 00:24:48.340 or the seriousness 00:24:48.340 --> 00:24:49.280 of the error. 00:24:49.700 --> 00:24:50.380 It does not say, 00:24:50.540 --> 00:24:50.680 well, 00:24:50.860 --> 00:24:51.700 if it's a really 00:24:51.700 --> 00:24:52.840 important prophet 00:24:52.840 --> 00:24:53.740 who spoke it. 00:24:54.160 --> 00:24:55.180 Or if it's 00:24:55.180 --> 00:24:57.220 a prophetic word 00:24:57.220 --> 00:24:58.080 that concerns 00:24:58.080 --> 00:24:59.280 a key doctrinal 00:24:59.280 --> 00:24:59.740 issue, 00:24:59.840 --> 00:25:00.460 then it matters. 00:25:00.600 --> 00:25:01.360 It doesn't say that. 00:25:01.420 --> 00:25:01.800 It says, 00:25:02.180 --> 00:25:03.080 any time 00:25:03.080 --> 00:25:04.160 the prophetic word 00:25:04.160 --> 00:25:05.100 does not come true, 00:25:05.480 --> 00:25:06.380 God didn't say that. 00:25:08.820 --> 00:25:09.900 It doesn't rank 00:25:09.900 --> 00:25:10.640 the prophetic word 00:25:10.640 --> 00:25:11.500 into categories. 00:25:11.720 --> 00:25:11.880 Well, 00:25:11.940 --> 00:25:12.460 these are more 00:25:12.460 --> 00:25:13.800 important aspects 00:25:13.800 --> 00:25:14.620 of God's word. 00:25:14.780 --> 00:25:15.340 These are less 00:25:15.340 --> 00:25:16.180 important aspects 00:25:16.180 --> 00:25:16.960 of God's word. 00:25:19.220 --> 00:25:20.160 It's a test 00:25:20.160 --> 00:25:21.540 that only falsifies. 00:25:22.140 --> 00:25:23.120 It only falsifies. 00:25:23.300 --> 00:25:23.660 It doesn't, 00:25:24.120 --> 00:25:24.360 now, 00:25:24.480 --> 00:25:24.920 unfortunately, 00:25:25.160 --> 00:25:25.300 right, 00:25:25.340 --> 00:25:26.400 if it comes true, 00:25:27.040 --> 00:25:27.720 you don't know. 00:25:28.580 --> 00:25:29.660 If it comes true, 00:25:29.780 --> 00:25:30.800 it could be a coincidence. 00:25:31.100 --> 00:25:31.640 It could be, 00:25:32.740 --> 00:25:33.720 even a false prophet 00:25:33.720 --> 00:25:34.460 can guess 00:25:34.460 --> 00:25:35.240 and get things right 00:25:35.240 --> 00:25:35.740 sometimes. 00:25:35.860 --> 00:25:36.860 But if it ever 00:25:36.860 --> 00:25:38.660 is shown to be false, 00:25:38.660 --> 00:25:42.100 you know it's false 00:25:42.100 --> 00:25:43.300 because God never 00:25:43.300 --> 00:25:44.519 gets things wrong. 00:25:44.720 --> 00:25:45.660 And if you discover 00:25:45.660 --> 00:25:46.680 that the word 00:25:46.680 --> 00:25:47.720 is not accurate 00:25:47.720 --> 00:25:48.800 and therefore 00:25:48.800 --> 00:25:49.660 it did not come 00:25:49.660 --> 00:25:50.320 from God, 00:25:50.420 --> 00:25:51.200 then it is not 00:25:51.200 --> 00:25:51.960 authoritative. 00:25:52.120 --> 00:25:52.440 He says, 00:25:52.519 --> 00:25:53.400 just disregard it. 00:25:53.420 --> 00:25:54.259 Don't worry about that. 00:25:56.120 --> 00:25:57.040 He says at the end 00:25:57.040 --> 00:25:57.680 of verse 22, 00:25:57.800 --> 00:25:58.759 the prophet has spoken 00:25:58.759 --> 00:25:59.560 it presumptuously. 00:25:59.680 --> 00:26:00.019 You don't need 00:26:00.019 --> 00:26:00.820 to be afraid of that. 00:26:03.300 --> 00:26:03.740 So, 00:26:03.860 --> 00:26:04.620 Moses has just 00:26:04.620 --> 00:26:05.360 described for us 00:26:05.360 --> 00:26:06.779 two potential sources 00:26:06.779 --> 00:26:08.620 of a divine word here. 00:26:08.660 --> 00:26:11.180 two sources 00:26:11.180 --> 00:26:12.000 for a word 00:26:12.000 --> 00:26:12.600 that comes 00:26:12.600 --> 00:26:13.620 from the divine realm, 00:26:13.720 --> 00:26:14.200 that comes from 00:26:14.200 --> 00:26:15.000 outside of our 00:26:15.000 --> 00:26:16.680 natural world 00:26:16.680 --> 00:26:17.400 and outside of our 00:26:17.400 --> 00:26:17.860 experience. 00:26:18.080 --> 00:26:18.720 The first 00:26:18.720 --> 00:26:20.420 is utterly human. 00:26:21.759 --> 00:26:22.860 It might be obtained 00:26:22.860 --> 00:26:23.840 by the practices 00:26:23.840 --> 00:26:25.140 of the pagan nations. 00:26:25.680 --> 00:26:26.720 It's characterized 00:26:26.720 --> 00:26:29.220 by human initiative 00:26:29.220 --> 00:26:30.240 and control 00:26:30.240 --> 00:26:30.980 and manipulation. 00:26:31.580 --> 00:26:31.820 Or, 00:26:32.440 --> 00:26:33.200 it might be 00:26:33.200 --> 00:26:34.460 attributed to the Lord, 00:26:35.460 --> 00:26:37.060 but it is not authentic. 00:26:37.059 --> 00:26:38.159 It is invented 00:26:38.159 --> 00:26:39.419 or fabricated 00:26:39.419 --> 00:26:40.200 to serve 00:26:40.200 --> 00:26:41.200 the interests 00:26:41.200 --> 00:26:42.259 of the false prophet. 00:26:43.799 --> 00:26:44.899 That's one source, 00:26:45.000 --> 00:26:46.679 the human source. 00:26:48.119 --> 00:26:49.359 The second source 00:26:49.359 --> 00:26:50.279 is actually 00:26:50.279 --> 00:26:51.019 the Lord, 00:26:51.740 --> 00:26:52.839 the God of Israel. 00:26:52.839 --> 00:26:53.960 He speaks 00:26:53.960 --> 00:26:55.279 at his own initiative 00:26:55.279 --> 00:26:57.000 and on his own terms 00:26:57.000 --> 00:26:58.119 to a prophet 00:26:58.119 --> 00:26:59.480 of his own choosing. 00:27:00.440 --> 00:27:01.159 And that prophet 00:27:01.159 --> 00:27:02.679 serves as a spokesman 00:27:02.679 --> 00:27:04.039 repeating the word 00:27:04.039 --> 00:27:05.039 of the Lord faithfully. 00:27:05.039 --> 00:27:05.940 And these are the only 00:27:05.940 --> 00:27:06.779 two options. 00:27:08.139 --> 00:27:08.819 These are the only 00:27:08.819 --> 00:27:10.240 two possible sources. 00:27:11.599 --> 00:27:12.859 And not only are these 00:27:12.859 --> 00:27:14.079 the only two possible 00:27:14.079 --> 00:27:15.720 sources of the prophetic word, 00:27:15.839 --> 00:27:16.619 but these are the only 00:27:16.619 --> 00:27:17.980 two possible sources 00:27:17.980 --> 00:27:19.220 of Holy Scripture 00:27:19.220 --> 00:27:21.240 that we have 00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:21.819 in our Bible. 00:27:23.220 --> 00:27:24.599 The prophetic word 00:27:24.599 --> 00:27:25.720 that is here 00:27:25.720 --> 00:27:26.559 described for us 00:27:26.559 --> 00:27:27.659 in Deuteronomy 18, 00:27:28.200 --> 00:27:29.000 the prophetic word 00:27:29.000 --> 00:27:29.619 of Moses 00:27:29.619 --> 00:27:31.059 and David 00:27:31.059 --> 00:27:32.579 and Jeremiah 00:27:32.579 --> 00:27:33.859 and Amos 00:27:33.859 --> 00:27:35.439 and Isaiah 00:27:35.439 --> 00:27:36.319 and Daniel 00:27:36.319 --> 00:27:37.099 and Luke 00:27:37.099 --> 00:27:37.839 and Paul 00:27:37.839 --> 00:27:38.619 and John 00:27:38.619 --> 00:27:39.899 were written down 00:27:39.899 --> 00:27:40.479 over time. 00:27:40.559 --> 00:27:41.439 That prophetic word 00:27:41.439 --> 00:27:42.459 was given by God 00:27:42.459 --> 00:27:43.279 and written down 00:27:43.279 --> 00:27:44.039 over time 00:27:44.039 --> 00:27:45.199 and published 00:27:45.199 --> 00:27:46.139 in the books 00:27:46.139 --> 00:27:46.779 of our Bible. 00:27:48.259 --> 00:27:49.219 And either 00:27:49.219 --> 00:27:50.439 the words 00:27:50.439 --> 00:27:50.939 that we have 00:27:50.939 --> 00:27:51.599 in our Bible 00:27:51.599 --> 00:27:53.439 are of a human origin 00:27:53.439 --> 00:27:54.500 and the men 00:27:54.500 --> 00:27:55.399 who wrote those words 00:27:55.399 --> 00:27:56.139 are just simply 00:27:56.139 --> 00:27:57.099 doing their best, 00:27:57.099 --> 00:27:59.359 they're just trying 00:27:59.359 --> 00:28:00.139 to write something 00:28:00.139 --> 00:28:01.139 kind of inspiring 00:28:01.139 --> 00:28:01.939 for us 00:28:01.939 --> 00:28:02.599 and they're just 00:28:02.599 --> 00:28:04.119 trying to articulate 00:28:04.119 --> 00:28:05.519 a convincing faith 00:28:05.519 --> 00:28:06.439 but they're writing 00:28:06.439 --> 00:28:07.000 out of a very 00:28:07.000 --> 00:28:08.240 limited perspective, 00:28:08.539 --> 00:28:10.039 a very limited 00:28:10.039 --> 00:28:11.319 historical context 00:28:11.319 --> 00:28:11.980 and they're just 00:28:11.980 --> 00:28:12.439 kind of doing 00:28:12.439 --> 00:28:12.939 their best 00:28:12.939 --> 00:28:13.419 to come up 00:28:13.419 --> 00:28:14.500 with a plausible 00:28:14.500 --> 00:28:15.119 religion 00:28:15.119 --> 00:28:16.899 or 00:28:16.899 --> 00:28:20.799 this is the word 00:28:20.799 --> 00:28:21.219 of God 00:28:21.219 --> 00:28:24.039 and it has 00:28:24.039 --> 00:28:24.799 its source 00:28:24.799 --> 00:28:26.179 and its origin 00:28:26.179 --> 00:28:26.819 in God 00:28:26.819 --> 00:28:27.579 and if it's 00:28:27.579 --> 00:28:28.659 a human source 00:28:28.659 --> 00:28:30.000 then those people 00:28:30.000 --> 00:28:30.559 in history 00:28:30.559 --> 00:28:31.379 that wrote the Bible 00:28:31.379 --> 00:28:31.899 are going to get 00:28:31.899 --> 00:28:32.859 some things right 00:28:32.859 --> 00:28:34.139 and some things wrong 00:28:34.139 --> 00:28:35.460 and in some cases 00:28:35.460 --> 00:28:35.960 they're going to have 00:28:35.960 --> 00:28:36.539 a perspective 00:28:36.539 --> 00:28:37.980 that doesn't really 00:28:37.980 --> 00:28:38.799 hold up very well 00:28:38.799 --> 00:28:39.519 over time 00:28:39.519 --> 00:28:40.500 but if it's 00:28:40.500 --> 00:28:41.740 from a divine word 00:28:41.740 --> 00:28:42.500 then it has 00:28:42.500 --> 00:28:43.039 its source 00:28:43.039 --> 00:28:43.779 and its origin 00:28:43.779 --> 00:28:44.399 in God 00:28:44.399 --> 00:28:44.939 and it's rooted 00:28:44.939 --> 00:28:45.799 in his character. 00:28:46.839 --> 00:28:47.700 Listen to what it says 00:28:47.700 --> 00:28:49.000 in 2 Peter 1 00:28:49.000 --> 00:28:50.099 in the New Testament. 00:28:50.659 --> 00:28:51.619 No prophecy 00:28:51.619 --> 00:28:52.500 of scripture 00:28:52.500 --> 00:28:53.939 no prophecy 00:28:53.939 --> 00:28:54.740 of scripture 00:28:54.740 --> 00:28:55.680 comes 00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:56.880 from someone's 00:28:56.880 --> 00:28:58.019 own interpretation 00:28:58.019 --> 00:29:00.460 for no prophecy 00:29:00.460 --> 00:29:01.640 was ever produced 00:29:01.640 --> 00:29:02.700 by the will of man 00:29:02.700 --> 00:29:03.859 but men spoke 00:29:03.859 --> 00:29:04.640 from God 00:29:04.640 --> 00:29:05.740 as they were carried 00:29:05.740 --> 00:29:06.180 along 00:29:06.180 --> 00:29:07.359 by the Holy Spirit. 00:29:08.079 --> 00:29:08.500 So whatever 00:29:08.500 --> 00:29:09.759 Moses is teaching us 00:29:09.759 --> 00:29:10.779 here in Deuteronomy 18 00:29:10.779 --> 00:29:11.539 applies 00:29:11.539 --> 00:29:12.839 to how we think 00:29:12.839 --> 00:29:13.599 about our Bibles 00:29:13.599 --> 00:29:15.220 and how we think 00:29:15.220 --> 00:29:16.120 about scripture today. 00:29:17.500 --> 00:29:18.500 Deuteronomy 18 00:29:18.500 --> 00:29:19.140 gives us 00:29:19.140 --> 00:29:19.920 three links 00:29:19.920 --> 00:29:20.720 in a chain. 00:29:21.960 --> 00:29:23.000 Three links. 00:29:23.000 --> 00:29:24.240 the accuracy 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:25.279 of the word 00:29:25.279 --> 00:29:27.119 indicates 00:29:27.119 --> 00:29:28.799 its divine source 00:29:28.799 --> 00:29:31.359 and the divine source 00:29:31.359 --> 00:29:32.599 is what establishes 00:29:32.599 --> 00:29:33.319 its authority. 00:29:35.279 --> 00:29:37.339 Or let's flip it around 00:29:37.339 --> 00:29:38.099 and make it negative 00:29:38.099 --> 00:29:38.539 right? 00:29:38.619 --> 00:29:39.000 The way that 00:29:39.000 --> 00:29:39.839 Deuteronomy 18 00:29:39.839 --> 00:29:40.359 puts it. 00:29:41.400 --> 00:29:42.039 The text 00:29:42.039 --> 00:29:43.500 is invalidated 00:29:43.500 --> 00:29:44.480 when it errs. 00:29:47.119 --> 00:29:48.279 And an errant word 00:29:48.279 --> 00:29:49.099 must have 00:29:49.099 --> 00:29:50.759 a merely human source 00:29:50.759 --> 00:29:53.480 and a merely human source 00:29:53.480 --> 00:29:54.539 has no authority 00:29:54.539 --> 00:29:55.759 and must be disregarded. 00:29:57.839 --> 00:29:59.839 Its accuracy 00:29:59.839 --> 00:30:01.920 indicates its source 00:30:01.920 --> 00:30:02.539 and its source 00:30:02.539 --> 00:30:03.599 indicates its authority 00:30:03.599 --> 00:30:04.759 or if we work backwards 00:30:04.759 --> 00:30:07.200 if it errs 00:30:07.200 --> 00:30:09.279 then it must be human 00:30:09.279 --> 00:30:09.980 and if it's human 00:30:09.980 --> 00:30:11.000 it has no authority. 00:30:11.359 --> 00:30:11.740 Why should we 00:30:11.740 --> 00:30:12.859 pay attention 00:30:12.859 --> 00:30:13.859 to something like that? 00:30:13.859 --> 00:30:17.619 Dan Rather 00:30:17.619 --> 00:30:18.179 anchored 00:30:18.179 --> 00:30:19.699 60,000 00:30:19.699 --> 00:30:20.559 stories 00:30:20.559 --> 00:30:23.099 but when we 00:30:23.099 --> 00:30:23.559 learned that 00:30:23.559 --> 00:30:24.240 one of them 00:30:24.240 --> 00:30:25.119 was fabricated 00:30:25.119 --> 00:30:25.559 we're like 00:30:25.559 --> 00:30:25.919 okay 00:30:25.919 --> 00:30:26.359 we're done 00:30:26.359 --> 00:30:26.759 with you. 00:30:29.299 --> 00:30:30.059 So what is 00:30:30.059 --> 00:30:30.599 the main point 00:30:30.599 --> 00:30:31.479 of Deuteronomy 18? 00:30:31.639 --> 00:30:32.059 If we were just 00:30:32.059 --> 00:30:32.439 going to say 00:30:32.439 --> 00:30:33.059 let's just summarize 00:30:33.059 --> 00:30:34.279 this in one main point 00:30:34.279 --> 00:30:35.919 I think it's this 00:30:35.919 --> 00:30:36.979 God's word 00:30:36.979 --> 00:30:39.279 is authoritative 00:30:39.279 --> 00:30:40.159 because it was 00:30:40.159 --> 00:30:41.179 spoken by him 00:30:41.180 --> 00:30:43.039 and we know 00:30:43.039 --> 00:30:43.700 it was spoken 00:30:43.700 --> 00:30:44.279 by him 00:30:44.279 --> 00:30:44.980 because it does 00:30:44.980 --> 00:30:45.460 not err. 00:30:47.200 --> 00:30:48.100 It does not 00:30:48.100 --> 00:30:48.779 make mistakes. 00:30:48.940 --> 00:30:49.539 This is what 00:30:49.539 --> 00:30:50.240 we mean 00:30:50.240 --> 00:30:51.460 by the doctrines 00:30:51.460 --> 00:30:52.740 of inspiration 00:30:52.740 --> 00:30:53.960 and inerrancy. 00:30:55.380 --> 00:30:56.259 God's word 00:30:56.259 --> 00:30:57.860 is authoritative 00:30:57.860 --> 00:30:58.740 because it is 00:30:58.740 --> 00:30:59.759 spoken by him 00:30:59.759 --> 00:31:00.640 and we know 00:31:00.640 --> 00:31:01.259 it was spoken 00:31:01.259 --> 00:31:01.980 by him 00:31:01.980 --> 00:31:02.920 because it does 00:31:02.920 --> 00:31:03.380 not err. 00:31:05.700 --> 00:31:06.180 Now 00:31:06.180 --> 00:31:06.880 does this mean 00:31:06.880 --> 00:31:07.360 that the Bible 00:31:07.360 --> 00:31:08.299 says everything 00:31:08.299 --> 00:31:09.360 that it could say 00:31:09.360 --> 00:31:10.200 on a given topic? 00:31:10.440 --> 00:31:10.720 No. 00:31:11.180 --> 00:31:13.400 But it means 00:31:13.400 --> 00:31:13.840 that whatever 00:31:13.840 --> 00:31:14.299 the Bible 00:31:14.299 --> 00:31:15.360 does claim 00:31:15.360 --> 00:31:17.500 is always 00:31:17.500 --> 00:31:18.080 accurate. 00:31:18.799 --> 00:31:19.420 It never 00:31:19.420 --> 00:31:20.060 gets things 00:31:20.060 --> 00:31:20.400 wrong. 00:31:21.759 --> 00:31:22.460 Now let's 00:31:22.460 --> 00:31:22.940 take a couple 00:31:22.940 --> 00:31:23.380 of minutes 00:31:23.380 --> 00:31:24.060 then and 00:31:24.060 --> 00:31:25.120 reflect on 00:31:25.120 --> 00:31:25.600 what we 00:31:25.600 --> 00:31:26.279 lose 00:31:26.279 --> 00:31:27.460 if we 00:31:27.460 --> 00:31:28.019 compromise 00:31:28.019 --> 00:31:28.779 this view 00:31:28.779 --> 00:31:29.259 of Scripture. 00:31:31.019 --> 00:31:31.660 What if 00:31:31.660 --> 00:31:32.580 we were to 00:31:32.580 --> 00:31:33.019 say well 00:31:33.019 --> 00:31:33.440 I think 00:31:33.440 --> 00:31:33.820 the Bible 00:31:33.820 --> 00:31:34.519 does sometimes 00:31:34.519 --> 00:31:35.340 make mistakes. 00:31:35.920 --> 00:31:36.560 I don't think 00:31:36.560 --> 00:31:37.060 it always 00:31:37.060 --> 00:31:37.580 gets things 00:31:37.580 --> 00:31:37.900 right. 00:31:38.000 --> 00:31:38.279 I'm not 00:31:38.279 --> 00:31:38.580 sure 00:31:38.580 --> 00:31:39.420 it is 00:31:39.420 --> 00:31:40.039 entirely 00:31:40.039 --> 00:31:40.960 from God. 00:31:41.180 --> 00:31:42.960 What do 00:31:42.960 --> 00:31:43.560 we lose? 00:31:44.460 --> 00:31:45.039 Well the 00:31:45.039 --> 00:31:45.820 easy answer 00:31:45.820 --> 00:31:46.220 if we 00:31:46.220 --> 00:31:46.960 just get it 00:31:46.960 --> 00:31:47.640 directly from 00:31:47.640 --> 00:31:48.400 Deuteronomy 18 00:31:48.400 --> 00:31:49.200 is we 00:31:49.200 --> 00:31:49.680 lose the 00:31:49.680 --> 00:31:50.360 authority of 00:31:50.360 --> 00:31:50.660 Scripture. 00:31:52.000 --> 00:31:52.620 If the 00:31:52.620 --> 00:31:53.320 Bible is not 00:31:53.320 --> 00:31:53.820 accurate 00:31:53.820 --> 00:31:54.580 then it 00:31:54.580 --> 00:31:55.180 doesn't come 00:31:55.180 --> 00:31:55.799 from God 00:31:55.799 --> 00:31:56.380 and if it 00:31:56.380 --> 00:31:56.900 doesn't come 00:31:56.900 --> 00:31:57.380 from God 00:31:57.380 --> 00:31:57.680 then it 00:31:57.680 --> 00:31:58.140 doesn't really 00:31:58.140 --> 00:31:58.500 have any 00:31:58.500 --> 00:31:59.160 authority over 00:31:59.160 --> 00:31:59.400 us. 00:32:00.920 --> 00:32:01.759 But I think 00:32:01.759 --> 00:32:02.180 we can break 00:32:02.180 --> 00:32:02.620 that down a 00:32:02.620 --> 00:32:03.060 little bit 00:32:03.060 --> 00:32:03.519 and so let's 00:32:03.519 --> 00:32:03.920 talk about 00:32:03.920 --> 00:32:04.799 three 00:32:04.799 --> 00:32:05.200 might as well 00:32:05.200 --> 00:32:05.640 do three 00:32:05.640 --> 00:32:06.640 let's 00:32:06.640 --> 00:32:07.040 just talk 00:32:07.040 --> 00:32:07.540 about three 00:32:07.540 --> 00:32:08.480 quick things 00:32:08.480 --> 00:32:09.200 that we 00:32:09.200 --> 00:32:10.360 lose if 00:32:10.360 --> 00:32:11.000 we compromise 00:32:11.000 --> 00:32:11.680 our doctrine 00:32:11.680 --> 00:32:12.180 of Scripture. 00:32:13.180 --> 00:32:13.980 Number one 00:32:13.980 --> 00:32:14.380 without 00:32:14.380 --> 00:32:15.300 inerrancy 00:32:15.300 --> 00:32:18.259 and the 00:32:18.259 --> 00:32:18.820 authority of 00:32:18.820 --> 00:32:19.320 the text 00:32:19.320 --> 00:32:20.040 we lose 00:32:20.040 --> 00:32:20.740 authentic 00:32:20.740 --> 00:32:21.420 revelation. 00:32:23.980 --> 00:32:24.620 Sometimes 00:32:24.620 --> 00:32:25.380 people say 00:32:25.380 --> 00:32:25.720 that the 00:32:25.720 --> 00:32:26.220 historical 00:32:26.220 --> 00:32:26.940 details of 00:32:26.940 --> 00:32:27.340 the Bible 00:32:27.340 --> 00:32:28.220 are just 00:32:28.220 --> 00:32:28.800 trivia. 00:32:29.300 --> 00:32:29.740 It doesn't 00:32:29.740 --> 00:32:30.660 really matter 00:32:30.660 --> 00:32:31.440 if the 00:32:31.440 --> 00:32:31.780 Nile 00:32:31.780 --> 00:32:32.420 actually 00:32:32.420 --> 00:32:32.980 turned to 00:32:32.980 --> 00:32:33.420 blood 00:32:33.420 --> 00:32:34.140 in the 00:32:34.140 --> 00:32:34.420 book of 00:32:34.420 --> 00:32:34.779 Exodus. 00:32:35.400 --> 00:32:35.840 It doesn't 00:32:35.840 --> 00:32:36.920 really matter 00:32:36.920 --> 00:32:37.840 if food 00:32:37.840 --> 00:32:38.360 fell from 00:32:38.360 --> 00:32:38.860 the sky 00:32:38.860 --> 00:32:39.140 in the 00:32:39.140 --> 00:32:39.519 form of 00:32:39.519 --> 00:32:39.960 manna. 00:32:41.440 --> 00:32:41.840 It doesn't 00:32:41.840 --> 00:32:43.060 really matter 00:32:43.060 --> 00:32:43.400 if the 00:32:43.400 --> 00:32:43.840 Israelites 00:32:43.840 --> 00:32:44.360 conquered 00:32:44.360 --> 00:32:44.560 the 00:32:44.560 --> 00:32:44.940 promised 00:32:44.940 --> 00:32:45.480 land. 00:32:46.340 --> 00:32:46.860 That's 00:32:46.860 --> 00:32:47.259 history. 00:32:47.560 --> 00:32:48.180 The important 00:32:48.180 --> 00:32:49.200 thing is 00:32:49.200 --> 00:32:49.480 that the 00:32:49.480 --> 00:32:50.120 Bible gets 00:32:50.120 --> 00:32:50.660 theology 00:32:50.660 --> 00:32:51.060 right. 00:32:51.140 --> 00:32:51.360 That we 00:32:51.360 --> 00:32:51.779 learn the 00:32:51.779 --> 00:32:52.320 truth about 00:32:52.320 --> 00:32:52.900 ourselves 00:32:52.900 --> 00:32:53.680 and the 00:32:53.680 --> 00:32:54.259 truth about 00:32:54.259 --> 00:32:54.840 the gospel. 00:32:55.000 --> 00:32:55.300 That's what 00:32:55.300 --> 00:32:55.900 really counts. 00:32:55.980 --> 00:32:56.440 In fact I 00:32:56.440 --> 00:32:56.880 had a 00:32:56.880 --> 00:32:57.440 professor in 00:32:57.440 --> 00:32:57.980 grad school 00:32:57.980 --> 00:32:58.400 that said 00:32:58.400 --> 00:32:58.700 that. 00:32:59.019 --> 00:32:59.320 He said 00:32:59.320 --> 00:32:59.800 the Bible 00:32:59.800 --> 00:33:00.580 isn't 00:33:00.580 --> 00:33:01.800 factual 00:33:01.800 --> 00:33:03.340 but it's 00:33:03.339 --> 00:33:03.740 true. 00:33:04.619 --> 00:33:05.480 Maybe the 00:33:05.480 --> 00:33:05.859 way that 00:33:05.859 --> 00:33:07.059 literature is 00:33:07.059 --> 00:33:07.419 true. 00:33:07.539 --> 00:33:07.919 It speaks 00:33:07.919 --> 00:33:08.480 something true 00:33:08.480 --> 00:33:08.839 about my 00:33:08.839 --> 00:33:09.359 heart but it 00:33:09.359 --> 00:33:10.079 gets a lot 00:33:10.079 --> 00:33:10.339 of things 00:33:10.339 --> 00:33:10.679 wrong. 00:33:12.259 --> 00:33:12.819 But the 00:33:12.819 --> 00:33:13.299 problem with 00:33:13.299 --> 00:33:13.959 that view 00:33:13.959 --> 00:33:14.699 is that the 00:33:14.699 --> 00:33:16.679 Bible unlike 00:33:16.679 --> 00:33:18.179 other ancient 00:33:18.179 --> 00:33:18.879 and contemporary 00:33:18.879 --> 00:33:19.919 religious texts 00:33:19.919 --> 00:33:21.159 anchors what 00:33:21.159 --> 00:33:22.519 it claims in 00:33:22.519 --> 00:33:23.099 history. 00:33:24.759 --> 00:33:25.579 If the 00:33:25.579 --> 00:33:26.019 Bible's 00:33:26.019 --> 00:33:26.500 historical 00:33:26.500 --> 00:33:27.139 claims are 00:33:27.139 --> 00:33:28.379 wrong then 00:33:28.379 --> 00:33:29.199 it means that 00:33:29.199 --> 00:33:30.259 human authors 00:33:30.259 --> 00:33:31.199 are just kind 00:33:31.199 --> 00:33:31.659 of doing their 00:33:31.659 --> 00:33:32.079 best. 00:33:32.079 --> 00:33:33.079 They get 00:33:33.079 --> 00:33:33.419 some things 00:33:33.419 --> 00:33:33.939 wrong here 00:33:33.939 --> 00:33:34.339 and there. 00:33:35.879 --> 00:33:36.119 And if 00:33:36.119 --> 00:33:36.779 human authors 00:33:36.779 --> 00:33:37.279 are making 00:33:37.279 --> 00:33:38.099 theological 00:33:38.099 --> 00:33:39.039 claims about 00:33:39.039 --> 00:33:39.539 God and 00:33:39.539 --> 00:33:39.980 what he's 00:33:39.980 --> 00:33:40.539 like it 00:33:40.539 --> 00:33:41.319 also means 00:33:41.319 --> 00:33:41.679 that they're 00:33:41.679 --> 00:33:41.980 just sort 00:33:41.980 --> 00:33:42.299 of doing 00:33:42.299 --> 00:33:42.879 their best. 00:33:42.939 --> 00:33:43.179 They're kind 00:33:43.179 --> 00:33:43.579 of guessing. 00:33:43.720 --> 00:33:43.879 I wonder 00:33:43.879 --> 00:33:44.299 what God 00:33:44.299 --> 00:33:44.799 is like. 00:33:44.919 --> 00:33:45.279 This is what 00:33:45.279 --> 00:33:45.639 I think. 00:33:47.720 --> 00:33:48.539 The stories 00:33:48.539 --> 00:33:49.000 of the Bible 00:33:49.000 --> 00:33:49.799 tell us that 00:33:49.799 --> 00:33:50.480 God is 00:33:50.480 --> 00:33:51.839 powerful because 00:33:51.839 --> 00:33:52.839 he actually 00:33:52.839 --> 00:33:53.659 allowed the 00:33:53.659 --> 00:33:54.319 Israelites to 00:33:54.319 --> 00:33:54.779 cross the 00:33:54.779 --> 00:33:55.259 Jordan on 00:33:55.259 --> 00:33:55.919 dry ground. 00:33:58.480 --> 00:33:59.220 It tells 00:33:59.220 --> 00:33:59.720 us that he's 00:33:59.720 --> 00:34:00.419 holy because 00:34:00.420 --> 00:34:01.320 he actually 00:34:01.320 --> 00:34:02.320 killed a 00:34:02.320 --> 00:34:02.860 man named 00:34:02.860 --> 00:34:03.920 Uzzah for 00:34:03.920 --> 00:34:04.940 touching the 00:34:04.940 --> 00:34:05.460 Ark of the 00:34:05.460 --> 00:34:06.039 Covenant when 00:34:06.039 --> 00:34:06.560 it started to 00:34:06.560 --> 00:34:07.420 fall onto the 00:34:07.420 --> 00:34:07.740 ground. 00:34:09.240 --> 00:34:10.180 It tells us 00:34:10.180 --> 00:34:10.720 that God is 00:34:10.720 --> 00:34:11.639 gracious because 00:34:11.639 --> 00:34:12.500 he actually 00:34:12.500 --> 00:34:13.400 showed mercy 00:34:13.400 --> 00:34:14.539 to the people 00:34:14.539 --> 00:34:15.240 of Nineveh 00:34:15.240 --> 00:34:16.059 when Jonah 00:34:16.059 --> 00:34:16.559 preached to 00:34:16.559 --> 00:34:16.780 them. 00:34:19.599 --> 00:34:20.360 So the 00:34:20.360 --> 00:34:21.320 history is 00:34:21.320 --> 00:34:22.180 the anchor 00:34:22.180 --> 00:34:23.159 and the 00:34:23.159 --> 00:34:24.220 foundation for 00:34:24.220 --> 00:34:24.880 the theological 00:34:24.880 --> 00:34:25.539 claims. 00:34:25.760 --> 00:34:26.920 And another 00:34:26.920 --> 00:34:27.639 reason that the 00:34:27.639 --> 00:34:28.420 Bible's historical 00:34:28.420 --> 00:34:29.000 claims are 00:34:29.000 --> 00:34:30.579 important is 00:34:30.579 --> 00:34:31.720 that predictive 00:34:31.720 --> 00:34:33.099 prophecy in the 00:34:33.099 --> 00:34:33.659 Old Testament 00:34:33.659 --> 00:34:34.420 that has been 00:34:34.420 --> 00:34:35.519 fulfilled in the 00:34:35.519 --> 00:34:37.200 short term gives 00:34:37.200 --> 00:34:37.940 us confidence 00:34:37.940 --> 00:34:39.440 about long-range 00:34:39.440 --> 00:34:40.280 prophecies. 00:34:41.539 --> 00:34:42.139 In other 00:34:42.139 --> 00:34:43.119 words, when 00:34:43.119 --> 00:34:44.579 Isaiah gets a 00:34:44.579 --> 00:34:45.720 prophecy right in 00:34:45.720 --> 00:34:46.480 his own time 00:34:46.480 --> 00:34:47.500 period or maybe 00:34:47.500 --> 00:34:48.220 a hundred years 00:34:48.220 --> 00:34:48.800 in the future, 00:34:50.300 --> 00:34:50.880 then it builds 00:34:50.880 --> 00:34:51.639 our confidence 00:34:51.639 --> 00:34:52.260 that when he 00:34:52.260 --> 00:34:52.900 talks about the 00:34:52.900 --> 00:34:53.860 new heavens and 00:34:53.860 --> 00:34:54.579 the new earth 00:34:54.579 --> 00:34:55.180 and God's 00:34:55.180 --> 00:34:56.079 ultimate justice 00:34:56.079 --> 00:34:57.159 and the kinds 00:34:57.159 --> 00:34:57.700 of things that 00:34:57.699 --> 00:34:58.379 Pastor Mike was 00:34:58.379 --> 00:34:59.239 praying about in 00:34:59.239 --> 00:34:59.799 that prayer of 00:34:59.799 --> 00:35:00.579 lament, it 00:35:00.579 --> 00:35:01.219 means that God 00:35:01.219 --> 00:35:02.039 can actually do 00:35:02.039 --> 00:35:02.559 that, that he 00:35:02.559 --> 00:35:03.419 actually will do 00:35:03.419 --> 00:35:05.079 that because we've 00:35:05.079 --> 00:35:05.799 already seen him 00:35:05.799 --> 00:35:06.579 fulfill prophecy 00:35:06.579 --> 00:35:07.319 in the past. 00:35:10.799 --> 00:35:12.859 Second, without 00:35:12.859 --> 00:35:13.679 inerrancy we 00:35:13.679 --> 00:35:14.859 lose our objective 00:35:14.859 --> 00:35:15.599 standard of 00:35:15.599 --> 00:35:18.059 morality that is 00:35:18.059 --> 00:35:18.980 anchored in God's 00:35:18.980 --> 00:35:19.419 character. 00:35:20.379 --> 00:35:22.099 Morality refers 00:35:22.099 --> 00:35:23.639 to objective, 00:35:24.419 --> 00:35:25.779 absolute standards 00:35:25.779 --> 00:35:26.519 of right and 00:35:26.519 --> 00:35:28.340 wrong that 00:35:28.340 --> 00:35:29.360 never change. 00:35:31.380 --> 00:35:31.960 And how do we 00:35:31.960 --> 00:35:34.079 know the nature 00:35:34.079 --> 00:35:34.960 and the contents 00:35:34.960 --> 00:35:35.960 of God's 00:35:35.960 --> 00:35:36.679 unchanging 00:35:36.679 --> 00:35:37.239 character? 00:35:37.380 --> 00:35:38.920 Well, we read 00:35:38.920 --> 00:35:39.519 about it in our 00:35:39.519 --> 00:35:39.860 Bibles. 00:35:40.079 --> 00:35:41.239 Our Bibles tell 00:35:41.239 --> 00:35:41.699 us about all 00:35:41.699 --> 00:35:43.199 kinds of things. 00:35:43.460 --> 00:35:44.380 The right 00:35:44.380 --> 00:35:45.139 treatment of 00:35:45.139 --> 00:35:47.559 women, the 00:35:47.559 --> 00:35:48.219 death penalty, 00:35:49.539 --> 00:35:50.320 the right 00:35:50.320 --> 00:35:51.539 attitude toward 00:35:51.539 --> 00:35:52.019 government 00:35:52.019 --> 00:35:52.679 authorities, 00:35:53.079 --> 00:35:54.059 right behaviors 00:35:54.059 --> 00:35:55.119 of sexuality, 00:35:55.340 --> 00:35:55.719 the right 00:35:55.719 --> 00:35:56.380 treatment of 00:35:56.380 --> 00:35:57.500 people who are 00:35:57.500 --> 00:35:58.039 different than 00:35:58.039 --> 00:35:58.639 you are, the 00:35:58.639 --> 00:35:59.320 right attitude 00:35:59.320 --> 00:35:59.900 toward the 00:35:59.900 --> 00:36:01.619 poor, and 00:36:01.619 --> 00:36:02.659 toward money, and 00:36:02.659 --> 00:36:03.559 children, and 00:36:03.559 --> 00:36:04.460 toward your spouse, 00:36:04.619 --> 00:36:05.259 and toward issues 00:36:05.259 --> 00:36:06.059 of justice. 00:36:06.219 --> 00:36:06.940 The Bible talks 00:36:06.940 --> 00:36:07.400 about all of 00:36:07.400 --> 00:36:07.840 these things. 00:36:10.039 --> 00:36:10.920 And in our 00:36:10.920 --> 00:36:12.039 society there is 00:36:12.039 --> 00:36:13.460 such a huge 00:36:13.460 --> 00:36:14.239 variety of 00:36:14.239 --> 00:36:15.000 perspectives on 00:36:15.000 --> 00:36:15.699 all these matters, 00:36:15.799 --> 00:36:15.980 right? 00:36:16.000 --> 00:36:16.420 And some of 00:36:16.420 --> 00:36:17.159 them are highly 00:36:17.159 --> 00:36:17.900 contentious. 00:36:17.900 --> 00:36:20.880 And unfortunately 00:36:20.880 --> 00:36:21.880 some of these 00:36:21.880 --> 00:36:23.420 values and 00:36:23.420 --> 00:36:24.139 issues become 00:36:24.139 --> 00:36:25.840 associated with 00:36:25.840 --> 00:36:26.920 national political 00:36:26.920 --> 00:36:28.099 parties, and 00:36:28.099 --> 00:36:29.079 then we engage in 00:36:29.079 --> 00:36:30.039 a kind of trench 00:36:30.039 --> 00:36:31.920 warfare, wrangling 00:36:31.920 --> 00:36:32.780 over them in a 00:36:32.780 --> 00:36:33.400 power play. 00:36:34.880 --> 00:36:35.440 And so these 00:36:35.440 --> 00:36:36.400 values and 00:36:36.400 --> 00:36:37.940 morality become 00:36:37.940 --> 00:36:42.160 weapons that we 00:36:42.160 --> 00:36:42.820 use to kind of 00:36:42.820 --> 00:36:43.579 defeat the other 00:36:43.579 --> 00:36:44.079 side. 00:36:45.539 --> 00:36:46.139 Here's a 00:36:46.139 --> 00:36:47.139 ridiculous example. 00:36:47.139 --> 00:36:48.239 A number of 00:36:48.239 --> 00:36:48.799 months ago, do 00:36:48.799 --> 00:36:49.299 you remember 00:36:49.299 --> 00:36:51.179 when we saw 00:36:51.179 --> 00:36:51.559 this little 00:36:51.559 --> 00:36:52.539 miniature culture 00:36:52.539 --> 00:36:53.960 war arise over 00:36:53.960 --> 00:36:55.159 Sidney Sweeney's 00:36:55.159 --> 00:36:55.639 genes? 00:36:56.460 --> 00:36:56.779 Do you remember 00:36:56.779 --> 00:36:57.099 this? 00:36:57.679 --> 00:36:58.460 Sidney Sweeney, 00:36:58.559 --> 00:36:59.379 the actress, did 00:36:59.379 --> 00:37:00.719 a marketing 00:37:00.719 --> 00:37:01.440 campaign for 00:37:01.440 --> 00:37:02.139 American Eagle 00:37:02.139 --> 00:37:02.639 genes. 00:37:04.599 --> 00:37:05.659 People on the 00:37:05.659 --> 00:37:06.480 political left 00:37:06.480 --> 00:37:08.039 complained that 00:37:08.039 --> 00:37:08.960 American Eagle 00:37:08.960 --> 00:37:09.859 was advancing 00:37:09.859 --> 00:37:10.819 white supremacy 00:37:10.819 --> 00:37:11.679 and eugenics 00:37:11.679 --> 00:37:12.259 because they 00:37:12.259 --> 00:37:13.119 said she had 00:37:13.119 --> 00:37:14.179 good genes. 00:37:15.619 --> 00:37:16.619 But then, 00:37:17.139 --> 00:37:17.679 people on the 00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:18.599 right saw an 00:37:18.599 --> 00:37:20.219 opportunity to 00:37:20.219 --> 00:37:20.920 do battle with 00:37:20.920 --> 00:37:21.559 the left, and 00:37:21.559 --> 00:37:22.519 so they defended 00:37:22.519 --> 00:37:23.179 the ads. 00:37:24.219 --> 00:37:25.039 And they said to 00:37:25.039 --> 00:37:25.500 people on the 00:37:25.500 --> 00:37:25.980 left, you're being 00:37:25.980 --> 00:37:26.519 ridiculous. 00:37:26.779 --> 00:37:27.219 And then people 00:37:27.219 --> 00:37:27.980 on the left were 00:37:27.980 --> 00:37:29.920 offended because of 00:37:29.920 --> 00:37:30.559 the way that the 00:37:30.559 --> 00:37:32.039 ads objectified. 00:37:32.219 --> 00:37:33.219 And then, because 00:37:33.219 --> 00:37:33.819 they had to do 00:37:33.819 --> 00:37:34.440 battle with the 00:37:34.440 --> 00:37:35.400 left, the people 00:37:35.400 --> 00:37:35.879 on the right 00:37:35.879 --> 00:37:37.019 praised the ads 00:37:37.019 --> 00:37:37.839 for returning to 00:37:37.839 --> 00:37:40.339 traditional standards 00:37:40.339 --> 00:37:40.879 of beauty. 00:37:41.779 --> 00:37:42.500 And they went 00:37:42.500 --> 00:37:43.379 back and forth. 00:37:43.380 --> 00:37:44.720 It was a ridiculous 00:37:44.720 --> 00:37:45.420 situation. 00:37:45.579 --> 00:37:46.180 It was not our 00:37:46.180 --> 00:37:47.000 society's best 00:37:47.000 --> 00:37:47.360 moment. 00:37:49.119 --> 00:37:49.760 And here's what 00:37:49.760 --> 00:37:50.160 happened. 00:37:50.240 --> 00:37:51.380 What happened is 00:37:51.380 --> 00:37:52.200 that because of 00:37:52.200 --> 00:37:55.140 the demand to 00:37:55.140 --> 00:37:56.059 just do battle 00:37:56.059 --> 00:37:56.599 with the other 00:37:56.599 --> 00:37:57.960 side, conservative 00:37:57.960 --> 00:37:59.500 Christians, because 00:37:59.500 --> 00:38:00.059 they were doing 00:38:00.059 --> 00:38:00.880 battle with the 00:38:00.880 --> 00:38:02.400 left, and they 00:38:02.400 --> 00:38:03.240 were joining the 00:38:03.240 --> 00:38:04.039 right, ended up 00:38:04.039 --> 00:38:05.380 defending ads 00:38:05.380 --> 00:38:08.140 that were sensual 00:38:08.140 --> 00:38:09.940 and fairly 00:38:09.940 --> 00:38:10.500 inappropriate. 00:38:10.500 --> 00:38:12.800 They gave up 00:38:12.800 --> 00:38:13.639 their traditional 00:38:13.639 --> 00:38:14.739 values of sexual 00:38:14.739 --> 00:38:15.500 morality in order 00:38:15.500 --> 00:38:16.059 to win an 00:38:16.059 --> 00:38:16.420 argument. 00:38:18.539 --> 00:38:19.559 When we do this 00:38:19.559 --> 00:38:20.179 kind of thing in 00:38:20.179 --> 00:38:20.880 our culture, we 00:38:20.880 --> 00:38:21.639 are just drifting. 00:38:23.059 --> 00:38:23.840 We are just 00:38:23.840 --> 00:38:24.780 reacting and 00:38:24.780 --> 00:38:25.380 drifting and 00:38:25.380 --> 00:38:26.059 engaging in a 00:38:26.059 --> 00:38:26.659 kind of trench 00:38:26.659 --> 00:38:27.059 warfare. 00:38:27.260 --> 00:38:27.800 There is no 00:38:27.800 --> 00:38:28.960 objective sense of 00:38:28.960 --> 00:38:29.760 right or wrong. 00:38:29.880 --> 00:38:30.440 There is just 00:38:30.440 --> 00:38:30.820 winning. 00:38:31.900 --> 00:38:32.699 There is just 00:38:32.699 --> 00:38:33.199 power. 00:38:35.159 --> 00:38:36.019 We stake out our 00:38:36.019 --> 00:38:36.820 little claim and 00:38:36.820 --> 00:38:37.260 we're going to 00:38:37.260 --> 00:38:38.559 defend that spot, 00:38:38.639 --> 00:38:39.579 even if it's 00:38:39.579 --> 00:38:40.440 drifted from 00:38:40.440 --> 00:38:40.920 what the Bible 00:38:40.920 --> 00:38:41.639 teaches us. 00:38:43.079 --> 00:38:43.659 And the 00:38:43.659 --> 00:38:44.300 problem is that 00:38:44.300 --> 00:38:45.139 ideas of right 00:38:45.139 --> 00:38:46.260 and wrong shift 00:38:46.260 --> 00:38:47.420 with cultures 00:38:47.420 --> 00:38:48.200 over time. 00:38:48.300 --> 00:38:48.740 There was a 00:38:48.740 --> 00:38:49.679 time in 00:38:49.679 --> 00:38:50.559 American history 00:38:50.559 --> 00:38:51.940 when slavery 00:38:51.940 --> 00:38:53.380 was accepted 00:38:53.380 --> 00:38:54.300 and defended 00:38:54.300 --> 00:38:55.099 by the majority 00:38:55.099 --> 00:38:55.880 of the country. 00:38:57.159 --> 00:38:58.320 And now it is 00:38:58.320 --> 00:38:59.300 rightly condemned. 00:38:59.440 --> 00:39:00.240 But now the 00:39:00.240 --> 00:39:00.980 majority of our 00:39:00.980 --> 00:39:01.940 country accepts 00:39:01.940 --> 00:39:03.320 homosexual marriage, 00:39:03.880 --> 00:39:04.780 a position that 00:39:04.780 --> 00:39:06.720 was rejected by 00:39:06.720 --> 00:39:07.519 both political 00:39:07.519 --> 00:39:08.440 parties only about 00:39:08.440 --> 00:39:09.280 30 years ago. 00:39:10.440 --> 00:39:12.039 consensus, 00:39:13.039 --> 00:39:14.039 social consensus 00:39:14.039 --> 00:39:15.000 is not a 00:39:15.000 --> 00:39:15.639 basis for 00:39:15.639 --> 00:39:16.119 morality. 00:39:17.800 --> 00:39:19.159 What we need 00:39:19.159 --> 00:39:19.579 is an 00:39:19.579 --> 00:39:20.460 authoritative 00:39:20.460 --> 00:39:21.400 scripture that 00:39:21.400 --> 00:39:22.119 does not 00:39:22.119 --> 00:39:23.679 change teaching 00:39:23.679 --> 00:39:24.820 God's enduring 00:39:24.820 --> 00:39:26.539 will and values 00:39:26.539 --> 00:39:28.599 that are in 00:39:28.599 --> 00:39:29.480 effect no matter 00:39:29.480 --> 00:39:29.920 what. 00:39:31.880 --> 00:39:32.760 Scripture tells 00:39:32.760 --> 00:39:33.280 us what is 00:39:33.280 --> 00:39:34.840 right and wrong 00:39:34.840 --> 00:39:35.780 in every 00:39:35.780 --> 00:39:36.480 society, 00:39:36.700 --> 00:39:37.780 in every time 00:39:37.780 --> 00:39:38.220 period, 00:39:38.219 --> 00:39:38.980 no matter 00:39:38.980 --> 00:39:39.819 the circumstances. 00:39:42.219 --> 00:39:43.039 But if we 00:39:43.039 --> 00:39:43.839 do not hold 00:39:43.839 --> 00:39:44.379 to the 00:39:44.379 --> 00:39:44.980 doctrine of 00:39:44.980 --> 00:39:45.739 inerrancy and 00:39:45.739 --> 00:39:46.299 we say that 00:39:46.299 --> 00:39:47.059 scripture just 00:39:47.059 --> 00:39:47.579 kind of came 00:39:47.579 --> 00:39:48.379 from people 00:39:48.379 --> 00:39:49.919 who took 00:39:49.919 --> 00:39:50.379 their best 00:39:50.379 --> 00:39:50.879 guess, 00:39:51.879 --> 00:39:52.739 then the 00:39:52.739 --> 00:39:53.319 authors of 00:39:53.319 --> 00:39:53.939 scripture are 00:39:53.939 --> 00:39:54.699 merely adding 00:39:54.699 --> 00:39:55.239 one more 00:39:55.239 --> 00:39:56.239 perspective to 00:39:56.239 --> 00:39:57.839 the chaos of 00:39:57.839 --> 00:39:58.719 political battle. 00:39:59.159 --> 00:39:59.679 I know what 00:39:59.679 --> 00:40:00.159 this person 00:40:00.159 --> 00:40:00.599 thinks, 00:40:00.879 --> 00:40:01.159 and I know 00:40:01.159 --> 00:40:01.480 what this 00:40:01.480 --> 00:40:02.079 person thinks, 00:40:02.179 --> 00:40:02.579 and here the 00:40:02.579 --> 00:40:03.399 people in the 00:40:03.399 --> 00:40:03.779 Bible, they 00:40:03.779 --> 00:40:04.480 also have some 00:40:04.480 --> 00:40:05.059 ideas too. 00:40:05.059 --> 00:40:06.360 We'll see 00:40:06.360 --> 00:40:07.299 what we like 00:40:07.299 --> 00:40:07.719 the best. 00:40:09.159 --> 00:40:09.400 No. 00:40:10.159 --> 00:40:10.579 No, the 00:40:10.579 --> 00:40:11.119 people in the 00:40:11.119 --> 00:40:12.139 Bible have 00:40:12.139 --> 00:40:13.679 written based 00:40:13.679 --> 00:40:14.320 on God's 00:40:14.320 --> 00:40:15.159 word, and 00:40:15.159 --> 00:40:16.179 those values 00:40:16.179 --> 00:40:17.139 are rooted in 00:40:17.139 --> 00:40:17.840 the unchanging 00:40:17.840 --> 00:40:18.619 character of 00:40:18.619 --> 00:40:18.880 God. 00:40:20.679 --> 00:40:21.480 Finally, number 00:40:21.480 --> 00:40:22.299 three, without 00:40:22.299 --> 00:40:23.199 inerrancy, we 00:40:23.199 --> 00:40:24.299 lose our impulse 00:40:24.299 --> 00:40:25.360 and basis for 00:40:25.360 --> 00:40:26.279 evangelism and 00:40:26.279 --> 00:40:26.579 missions. 00:40:28.820 --> 00:40:29.559 There are 00:40:29.559 --> 00:40:30.699 passages in the 00:40:30.699 --> 00:40:31.179 Old and New 00:40:31.179 --> 00:40:31.900 Testaments that 00:40:31.900 --> 00:40:33.159 teach us that 00:40:33.159 --> 00:40:33.960 we have a sin 00:40:33.960 --> 00:40:34.659 nature that 00:40:34.659 --> 00:40:35.519 separates us 00:40:35.519 --> 00:40:36.879 from God and 00:40:36.879 --> 00:40:37.879 prevents us from 00:40:37.879 --> 00:40:38.960 being in a 00:40:38.960 --> 00:40:39.679 relationship with 00:40:39.679 --> 00:40:39.879 him. 00:40:40.819 --> 00:40:41.879 Are those texts 00:40:41.879 --> 00:40:42.440 reliable? 00:40:44.199 --> 00:40:45.000 Or are they 00:40:45.000 --> 00:40:45.960 only the opinions 00:40:45.960 --> 00:40:47.079 of Isaiah and 00:40:47.079 --> 00:40:48.039 Jeremiah and 00:40:48.039 --> 00:40:49.019 Ezekiel and 00:40:49.019 --> 00:40:49.359 Paul? 00:40:52.259 --> 00:40:53.359 Jesus says in 00:40:53.359 --> 00:40:53.819 John chapter 00:40:53.819 --> 00:40:54.879 14, verse 6, 00:40:55.099 --> 00:40:56.420 I am the way 00:40:56.420 --> 00:40:57.639 and the truth 00:40:57.639 --> 00:40:58.699 and the life. 00:40:59.179 --> 00:41:00.139 No one comes 00:41:00.139 --> 00:41:00.819 to the Father 00:41:00.819 --> 00:41:01.559 except through 00:41:01.559 --> 00:41:01.839 me. 00:41:03.480 --> 00:41:04.039 Did Jesus 00:41:04.039 --> 00:41:04.800 really say 00:41:04.800 --> 00:41:05.159 that? 00:41:07.759 --> 00:41:08.480 In Acts 00:41:08.480 --> 00:41:09.059 chapter 4, 00:41:09.119 --> 00:41:09.579 verse 12, 00:41:09.719 --> 00:41:10.380 Peter teaches 00:41:10.380 --> 00:41:11.019 that there is 00:41:11.019 --> 00:41:11.880 salvation in 00:41:11.880 --> 00:41:12.960 no one else, 00:41:13.440 --> 00:41:13.900 for there is 00:41:13.900 --> 00:41:15.000 no other name 00:41:15.000 --> 00:41:15.619 under heaven 00:41:15.619 --> 00:41:16.219 given among 00:41:16.219 --> 00:41:17.400 men by which 00:41:17.400 --> 00:41:18.019 we must be 00:41:18.019 --> 00:41:18.360 saved. 00:41:18.420 --> 00:41:18.820 Is that 00:41:18.820 --> 00:41:19.179 true? 00:41:20.900 --> 00:41:21.820 Is it true 00:41:21.820 --> 00:41:22.279 that Jesus 00:41:22.279 --> 00:41:23.219 is the only 00:41:23.219 --> 00:41:24.279 way to solve 00:41:24.279 --> 00:41:24.980 our problem 00:41:24.980 --> 00:41:25.559 with sin? 00:41:26.179 --> 00:41:26.880 If so, 00:41:27.179 --> 00:41:27.920 then that will 00:41:27.920 --> 00:41:29.320 radically affect 00:41:29.320 --> 00:41:30.019 our relationship 00:41:30.019 --> 00:41:30.500 to other 00:41:30.500 --> 00:41:30.880 religions. 00:41:30.880 --> 00:41:31.079 sins. 00:41:32.760 --> 00:41:33.559 And it is 00:41:33.559 --> 00:41:34.220 a powerful 00:41:34.220 --> 00:41:35.180 motivation for 00:41:35.180 --> 00:41:36.180 evangelism and 00:41:36.180 --> 00:41:36.760 missions for 00:41:36.760 --> 00:41:37.420 people who need 00:41:37.420 --> 00:41:38.000 to know that 00:41:38.000 --> 00:41:38.519 because there 00:41:38.519 --> 00:41:39.539 is no other 00:41:39.539 --> 00:41:40.900 way of salvation. 00:41:42.820 --> 00:41:43.760 Jesus really 00:41:43.760 --> 00:41:45.019 did command us 00:41:45.019 --> 00:41:45.960 in Matthew 00:41:45.960 --> 00:41:47.059 chapter 28 to 00:41:47.059 --> 00:41:47.800 go and make 00:41:47.800 --> 00:41:48.460 disciples of 00:41:48.460 --> 00:41:49.059 all nations. 00:41:50.059 --> 00:41:50.820 And in these 00:41:50.820 --> 00:41:51.500 statements, the 00:41:51.500 --> 00:41:52.059 authors of 00:41:52.059 --> 00:41:52.599 Scripture are 00:41:52.599 --> 00:41:53.460 not mistaken. 00:41:55.140 --> 00:41:55.720 And therefore, 00:41:56.119 --> 00:41:57.059 evangelism and 00:41:57.059 --> 00:41:57.900 missions are not 00:41:57.900 --> 00:41:58.800 only legitimate 00:41:58.800 --> 00:41:59.660 things for the 00:41:59.659 --> 00:42:00.239 church to do, 00:42:00.299 --> 00:42:00.659 they are 00:42:00.659 --> 00:42:01.259 absolutely 00:42:01.259 --> 00:42:01.839 critical. 00:42:04.099 --> 00:42:05.519 Because our 00:42:05.519 --> 00:42:06.579 practice depends 00:42:06.579 --> 00:42:07.079 on the 00:42:07.079 --> 00:42:08.079 instructions and 00:42:08.079 --> 00:42:08.739 we have to 00:42:08.739 --> 00:42:09.779 know that the 00:42:09.779 --> 00:42:10.940 instructions actually 00:42:10.940 --> 00:42:11.899 came from God 00:42:11.899 --> 00:42:12.839 and that they're 00:42:12.839 --> 00:42:13.679 authoritative and 00:42:13.679 --> 00:42:13.879 true. 00:42:15.799 --> 00:42:16.839 So if we 00:42:16.839 --> 00:42:18.179 compromise our 00:42:18.179 --> 00:42:19.219 doctrine of 00:42:19.219 --> 00:42:21.579 Scripture, if we 00:42:21.579 --> 00:42:22.480 compromise on the 00:42:22.480 --> 00:42:23.279 inerrancy of 00:42:23.279 --> 00:42:23.920 Scripture, then we 00:42:23.920 --> 00:42:24.719 not only lose 00:42:24.719 --> 00:42:25.839 historical trivia, 00:42:26.179 --> 00:42:27.460 you know, little 00:42:27.460 --> 00:42:28.779 historical details or 00:42:28.780 --> 00:42:29.760 geography or 00:42:29.760 --> 00:42:31.220 science that may 00:42:31.220 --> 00:42:31.840 or may not be 00:42:31.840 --> 00:42:34.019 true, we lose 00:42:34.019 --> 00:42:35.180 the divine source 00:42:35.180 --> 00:42:35.840 of Scripture. 00:42:37.019 --> 00:42:38.120 That would be a 00:42:38.120 --> 00:42:38.640 word that the 00:42:38.640 --> 00:42:39.260 Lord had not 00:42:39.260 --> 00:42:39.640 spoken. 00:42:40.680 --> 00:42:41.440 And then we 00:42:41.440 --> 00:42:41.880 lose the 00:42:41.880 --> 00:42:42.519 authority of 00:42:42.519 --> 00:42:43.120 Scripture too. 00:42:43.360 --> 00:42:44.120 We lose it all. 00:42:46.640 --> 00:42:47.560 And we would be 00:42:47.560 --> 00:42:48.340 left to sort 00:42:48.340 --> 00:42:48.840 through the 00:42:48.840 --> 00:42:49.560 statements from 00:42:49.560 --> 00:42:51.900 news anchors and 00:42:51.900 --> 00:42:52.860 political parties 00:42:52.860 --> 00:42:54.420 and to drift with 00:42:54.420 --> 00:42:55.580 the social consensus. 00:42:55.579 --> 00:42:55.840 us. 00:42:56.840 --> 00:42:57.779 And that is not 00:42:57.779 --> 00:42:58.500 what God has 00:42:58.500 --> 00:42:59.400 desired for his 00:42:59.400 --> 00:42:59.779 church. 00:43:01.059 --> 00:43:02.079 He has given us 00:43:02.079 --> 00:43:03.000 his holy word as a 00:43:03.000 --> 00:43:03.860 great gift to be 00:43:03.860 --> 00:43:05.340 believed and obeyed 00:43:05.340 --> 00:43:06.400 in all that it 00:43:06.400 --> 00:43:07.360 teaches because it's 00:43:07.360 --> 00:43:08.119 true and it comes 00:43:08.119 --> 00:43:08.500 from him. 00:43:10.699 --> 00:43:11.319 Let's pray. 00:43:14.920 --> 00:43:16.000 Father, we pray as 00:43:16.000 --> 00:43:16.940 we reflect on this 00:43:16.940 --> 00:43:18.239 passage which is so 00:43:18.239 --> 00:43:20.539 clear about the 00:43:20.539 --> 00:43:21.799 source of your word, 00:43:21.800 --> 00:43:24.180 about its accuracy, 00:43:24.980 --> 00:43:26.180 we pray that this 00:43:26.180 --> 00:43:26.880 would settle down 00:43:26.880 --> 00:43:27.820 into our hearts and 00:43:27.820 --> 00:43:29.300 give us an unshakable 00:43:29.300 --> 00:43:32.700 confidence in the 00:43:32.700 --> 00:43:34.560 authority and the 00:43:34.560 --> 00:43:35.260 relevance of your 00:43:35.260 --> 00:43:36.180 word for our lives. 00:43:36.340 --> 00:43:37.580 It is so tempting 00:43:37.580 --> 00:43:39.660 to focus on certain 00:43:39.660 --> 00:43:40.280 parts of Scripture 00:43:40.280 --> 00:43:41.019 that we like the 00:43:41.019 --> 00:43:43.360 best, to ignore 00:43:43.360 --> 00:43:44.060 parts of Scripture 00:43:44.060 --> 00:43:44.980 that we aren't as 00:43:44.980 --> 00:43:47.760 crazy about, to 00:43:47.760 --> 00:43:48.620 reject parts of 00:43:48.620 --> 00:43:50.180 Scripture that seem 00:43:50.179 --> 00:43:50.639 offensive. 00:43:52.739 --> 00:43:53.980 We need a settled 00:43:53.980 --> 00:43:56.339 confidence that this 00:43:56.339 --> 00:43:57.460 is our rock and our 00:43:57.460 --> 00:43:58.399 anchor in all that we 00:43:58.399 --> 00:43:59.299 do in our lives and 00:43:59.299 --> 00:43:59.940 that your word is 00:43:59.940 --> 00:44:00.219 true. 00:44:01.379 --> 00:44:02.460 And we thank you for 00:44:02.460 --> 00:44:03.519 telling us this this 00:44:03.519 --> 00:44:03.759 morning. 00:44:03.919 --> 00:44:04.679 In your name we pray. 00:44:05.259 --> 00:44:05.539 Amen.