This morning a couple of Jehovah’s Witnesses came to my door. They introduced themselves to me, and were nice enough guys, and when I told them which church I preached at, they said “We’re the same.” I was polite about it, but I kindly declared that we are not. Our Bibles are not the same, our beliefs are not the same, and I let them know that, if one was to compare the original Greek and Hebrew texts, you’d find things changed or removed. One of them then said “Well, Jeopardy says ours is the most accurate translation!” To which I politely, yet firmly, dismissed the conversation by saying I wasn’t interested in talking any more, and told them to have a nice day. I’m going to make my position clear: I love people, even when they believe different than me. However, I believe in the inerrancy of Scripture, and I do not believe in adding to, or taking away from it. I think there are a lot of sincere people who are easily led astray, but it is in Christ and Christ alone that we can be saved. I also believe that we can’t site game shows as the source for us being right. The world is not the place which we seek approval, we can’t seek a panel of judges, or survey our family for the right answers. We must go to the source, and Jesus says, exclusively “I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father, but through Me.” He sites the Scriptures as speaking of Him, that Abraham, Moses and the prophets looked forward to His Day, and He declared that He existed before Abraham.
So, no thank you, I’m not going to site Jeopardy. I’m going back to the source. It is through Scripture that we discover Christ. It is through the Holy Spirit that we can find right interpretation, it is by Christ’s blood that we can be renewed and glorify the Father in Heaven. If you want to be right with God, look to the Word, not the world.
2 Timothy 3
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.
You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
Revelation 22:18-19
I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
