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God's Sufficient Word - Jason
Moore
The Bible is like no other book. It reveals the mind of God to man so
that when we have the Bible, we can say with Paul, "We have the mind of
Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16). God’s mind, unlike man’s, is "made up." There is
no new information that awaits discovery which will change God’s mind or
alter His decisions. IF God failed to think through His will for man or
made some accidental oversight, He would not be God. His plan is
perfect, complete. It requires no alterations. Who would propose a
better organization, or worship, or program of work for the Lord’s
people than that which the Lord Himself designed? For, "who has known
the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him (1 Cor. 2:16). God’s
program needs no upgrading. It is sufficient.
God has not only perfectly planned, but perfectly
revealed His will to man through the Holy Spirit. The things spoken and
written by the apostles and prophets were not said "in words taught by
human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit" (1 Cor. 2:13). That
means that, not just the thoughts, but the very words spoken by inspired
men are "spiritual" (1 Cor. 2:13). In other words, their source is the
Holy Spirit. The mind of God has been articulated by the Spirit so that
the written word perfectly expresses what was perfectly planned in the
mind of God. Who would propose to add methods or missions or ministries
to the Lord’s church which the Lord Himself did not assign? For, "who
has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him?" (1 Cor.
2:16). God’s word needs no revision. It is sufficient.
God’s will has been perfectly planned and perfectly
revealed by the Spirit that man might be perfectly informed, "thoroughly
equipped for every good work" (2 Tim. 3:17). Man permits himself to be
informed and persuaded by God’s speech with the same interpretive skills
he uses in understanding his teachers, his parents, or his neighbor. We
raised three hogs in back of the Moore household and it was my job of a
morning to slop them. Dad told me that it was my job. You could say that
he commanded me. "Son, you’re to feed the hogs before you go to school."
That was as plain to me as "Thou shalt feed the hogs." Dad showed me
with a Mason jar how much feed to put in the bucket and how to reckon
the measurement in accord with the growth of our pigs. He gave me an
example to follow as a standard for every future feeding of our pigs.
Dad didn’t have to tell me every day, "Feed the hogs before you go to
school." He told me once. But I understood that, when he said, "before
you go to school," he meant "every morning." That was a logical
conclusion. He implied "every morning" and I inferred that by his
speech.
A ten year-old intuitively understands the commands,
the examples, the implications of his parent. That’s simply the way men
communicate with men. It’s also the way God communicates with men. God
in perfectly expressing His perfect will to man: commands or issues
clear statements of approved behavior (Mk 16:16), supplies approved
examples that serve as a standard (Acts 20:7), makes necessary
implications by which men infer logical conclusions (Heb. 7:12). Who
then would propose for the Lord’s people to act or to organize in ways
or by means which the Lord Himself did not specify with command,
approved example, or necessary inference? For, "who has known the mind
of the Lord, that he should instruct Him?" (1 Cor. 2:16). God’s speech
needs no supplement. It is sufficient.
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