It Doesn't Really Matter

There are many reasons that I have no doubts that the Bible is the Word of God. There are fulfilled prophecies, as well as the many scientific and medical facts in the Bible, written thousands of years before man discovered them. But they aren't the main reason I believe that the Bible is the revelation of the Creator's will. I was converted to Christianity in the early hours of the morning of April 25th, way back in 1972. I was dumbfounded at what happened to me that night. However, the amazement didn't stop then. Over the following days the Bible actually told me of my experience. It was like an instruction book that told me what would happen to an appliance after the power was switched on. I felt as though I was a completely new person. It wasn't simply a change of mind, or a change of lifestyle. The transformation was deep within my heart. I was astounded that I had radically new desires. In my 22 years of life I hadn't given the ways of God a serious moment for five seconds. Suddenly, it was all I thought about. Then I picked up a Bible and read 2 Corinthians 5:17 "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away, all things are become new." It seemed as if I had been "born again." Then I read in scripture about the new birth. I read that God would write His Law upon the heart and "cause" me to walk in His statutes. I would normally listen to music in my car, but instead I found myself turning the radio off because I had a peace I couldn't understand and an inexpressible joy. Then I read in Scripture of a peace that passes all understanding, and joy unspeakable.

However, my salvation wasn't dependent upon my belief in the Bible, but on the fact that I had come to trust in the Savior a few days earlier. To understand this more clearly, let's go back to the year 40 A.D. You have heard the message of salvation. It was preached to you. You didn't read about it in the New Testament because there's no New Testament to read. It isn't yet compiled. Besides, there is no printing press. Like almost everybody around you, you can't read. You simply heard through the foolishness of preaching that you had broken God's Law, that Jesus died to save you from coming wrath, and that you must repent and trust in Him. So you then called upon the Name of Jesus Christ.

You suddenly feel as though you are a new person. It's as though you have been born again. You have a peace that you don't understand and an inexpressible joy in your heart. You are not going to have my experience of reading about what happened to you because there's no New Testament, and besides, you can't read.

So, are you any less saved than a twenty-first century Christian who has been born in the printing age, has access to a New Testament, and can read? No. Your salvation isn't dependent on your believing the New Testament, but on your relationship with the Savior. It is important to understand this, because it will save you from feeling as though you have to become an expert in Biblical apologetics before you can talk to someone about Christ.

What Really Matters

I not only believe the Bible because it told me of my experience in Christ, I believe it because it is the only book that addresses my problem of my sinful heart. It gives the origin of sin, guilt, the necessity of atonement, the provision for my forgiveness, and absolute assurance of everlasting life.

Let's say that you are sitting on a plane. I convince you that you have to jump at any moment. You see your great danger and put on a parachute. At that point you are saved from the jump. That problem is totally dealt with. You have the parachute on, and that's all you need. I then hand you the emergency card from the seat pocket so that you can become further informed about the plane. You look closely at it. It shows you the exits. It reveals the locations of the oxygen masks. It shows the location of the parachute, and how to put it on. It even points out a red whistle and the locality of the bright green ripcord.

Everything on the card matches your experience, right down to the red whistle. That convinces you that the card you are holding is the right card for this plane and that it was put there by the plane owners.

Let's say you see something on the card that doesn't make sense. It shows that the carpet is red, when it's actually blue. Are you going to rip the parachute off? Of course not! That would be a stupid thing to do. The fact that you don't understand everything on that card has nothing to do with the fact that you're going to have to jump out of the airplane. You are wearing the parachute, and that's all that really matters.

Now think of someone on the plane who is not wearing a parachute. He studies the emergency card and sees that carpet is a different color than the one on his plane, so he concludes that the card isn't valid. Because of this seeming discrepancy he makes a decision to reject the offer of a parachute. Think of his plight. He is in great danger. If you decide to pick up the card and try to convince him that the color of the carpet doesn't matter, you are wasting precious time – and you have a better way to persuade him. You simply show him the 25,000-foot jump. You talk about the law of gravity and what it will do to his frail body if he hits the ground at 120 mph. You make him sweat. When he looks at you with fear in his eyes, you tell him about the parachute. Once he has it on, you can discuss the color of the carpet to your heart's content. And any other information on the card that doesn't immediately make sense to him will be no big deal. All that really matters in that he is wearing the parachute. That's what's important.

Many people spend years of their lives fretting about the "color of the carpet." They hear about some supposed contradiction in the Bible, and they let it keep them from the saving power of the cross of Christ. There are even some Christians that spend a lot of time worrying over things like this, but I have no concerns at all when I see something I don't understand. It's no big deal. Think of the disciples when they heard that Jesus said that they should eat His flesh and drink His blood. Such a thought is repulsive, as it was to seventy of His followers. They were offended and left. Jesus then turned to those who remained and asked if they would leave Him also. Peter summed it up for all of us. He said, "Where will we go? You alone have the words of everlasting life."

So, the next time you find something in the Bible that confuses you, don't even think of taking the parachute off just because you don't understand something on the card in the seat pocket. What matters is that you have put on the Lord Jesus Christ. He is your salvation. He is your life: "And this is the record, that God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that has the Son has life; and he that has not the Son of God has not life" (1 John 5:11-12).

If you don't understand something in the Bible, that doesn't matter. Trust Jesus anyway. Cling tighter to Him. Make sure of your own salvation, and then take a long look around you at the millions who are unsaved. You have a job to do.