Transcript Slide 1
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” John 10:10 NASB “The Sword of the Spirit” Ephesians 6:10-20 “10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” – Ephesians 6:10-20 NIV “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” – Ephesians 6:13 NKJV The Roman Armor / The Believers Armor: v. 14 “Gird your loins with truth” v. 14 “Put on the breast plate of Righteousness” v. 16 “The shield of faith” v.17 “The helmet of salvation” v. 17 “ The sword of the spirit” “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” – Ephesians 6:12 NKJV “…..the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God.” –Ephesians 6:17 Two Foundational Principles of Scripture: I. The Reliability of the Bible. Canon – “A rule or a stick. A boundary. A standard of faith and practice.” Three Attributes by which the New Testament Canon was Compiled: A. Every book in the New Testament has to be written by an eyewitness or it had to be recorded testimony from an eyewitness. B. Every book in the New Testament had to possess intrinsic worth and value. C. Every book in the New Testament has to be used by the church universal, not just by one local congregation. Compelling Evidence for New Testament Reliability: A. We have over 5,000 Greek New Testament Manuscripts. B. We have copies that are 99.2% accurate to the originals. C. We have approximately 20,000 copies of the New Testament in other languages. (Syriac, Latin, Coptic, and Aramaic). New Testament Reliability Chart Author Date Written Earliest Copy Approx. Time Span between original & Copy Plato 427-347 B.C. 900 A.D. 1200 years Caesar 100-44 B.C. 900 A.D. 1000 years 10 __ Aristotle 384-322 B.C. 1100 A.D. 1400 years 49 __ Homer 900 B.C. 400 B.C. 500 years 643 95% Less than 100 years 5600 99.5% New Testament 1st Century A.D. (50100 A.D. 2nd Century A.D. (c. 130 A.D.f.) Number Accuracy of of Copies Copies 7 __ A. We have manuscript evidence B. We have archaeological evidence C. We have evidence from Messianic prophecies Foundational Principles of Scripture: II. The Spirituality of the Bible. 1.The Word of God is divine in origin. “16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” - 2 Timothy 3:16-17 NASB “For no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” - 2 Peter 1:21 NASB 2. The Word of God is Indestructible. “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” - Matthew 24:35 “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” - Isaiah 40:8