Compiled by: Herman Abrahams (Pastor), Cornerstone Faith Ministries, P.O. Box 740, Westridge 7802, Rep. of South Africa.
E-Mail: Mentorship2003@yahoo.co.uk
Note to the reader:
If you have been blessed with this sermon compilation, I would be honoured to receive an e-mail from you merely telling me where in the world you are based- I do not need any other information. This is merely so that I can have the pleasure of giving thanks to Almighty God that all over the globe the ministry which he has entrusted to me, is blessing the body of Christ and helping to extend the Kingdom of God.
Thank you.
Herman Abrahams,
Cape Town, South Africa.
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CORNERSTONE FAITH MINISTRIES - FOUNDATION SERIES
LECTURE - THE BIBLE: THE WORD OF GOD
1. MEANING OF THE WORD “BIBLE”
The word “Bible” is derived from the Greek word “Biblios”, meaning a collection of books. The Bible is therefore not one book but a library of books.
2. SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE BIBLE
a. The Bible consists of two main sections, viz. The Old Testament and the New Testament.
Other words for “testament” are covenant, agreement or will.
b. There are a total of 66 books in the Bible - 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New
Testament.
c. There are 1179 Chapters in the Bible - 919 in the Old Testament and 260 in the New
Testament.
d. The longest chapter is Psalm 119, the shortest chapter is Psalm 117, which is also the
middle of the Bible.
e. The longest verse in the Bible is Esther 8 vs 9:
“At once the royal secretaries were summoned - on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. They wrote out all Mordecai’s orders to the Jews, and to the satraps, governers and nobles of the 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush. These orders were written in the script of each province and the language of each people and also to the Jews in their own script and language.”
f. The shortest verse is John 11 vs 35:
“Jesus wept.”
g. The Old Testament is approximately three-and-a-half times the size of the New Testament.
3. THE BIBLE AS THE WORD OF GOD
a. The Bible is the written Word of God. God is the author of the Bible, and Holy men of God were used to actually express His thoughts in writing. (2 Peter 1:21).
b. The “Word of God” means that God has spoken or expressed himself. Just as we exchange ideas by speaking words, God talks to us by using words, (or THE Word), (Jn 1:1; Heb 1:1-2).
c. The Bible is the Word of God because the writers were inspired of God to write His thoughts. (2 Tim 3:16; 1 Thess 2:13).
d. “By inspiration of God” means that God breathed His thoughts into the minds and hearts of men, so that these men expressed exactly the very thoughts of God (2 Pet 1:21 [as already quoted in ‘a’ above]; 1 Cor 2:13)
e. (See also Jn 20:31; 17:17; Rev 22: 18-19; 1 Peter 1:23-25;)
4. THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL
a. The two great doctrines of the Bible are the Law and the Gospel. (Jn 1:17). The law was the judgements, statutes, ordinances and the ten commandments given by God to Moses to instruct the people of Israel, to motivate them to obey God, and to make them conscious of sin. (Psalms 19: 7-8; Romans 2:18; Romans 3:20; Galations 3:24).
b. “Gospel” means Good News. The Gospel is that great doctrine in which God tells us the Good News of our salvation in Jesus Christ. (John 3:16; 1 John 4:9; Romans 1:16).
c. The law emphasizes what we are to do and not do, the Gospel emphasizes what God has done and still does for our salvation. The law primarily shows us our sin and the wrath of God; the Gospel, shows us our Saviour and the grace of God.
5. THE BOOKS OF THE BIBLE
Both the Old and the New Testament have five major sections each:
Old Testament - 39 Books
The Law (5 Books) Genesis to Deuteronomy
History (12 Books) Joshua to Esther
Poetry (5 Books) Job to Song of Solomon
Major Prophets (5 Books) Isaiah to Daniel
Minor Prophets (12 Books) Hosea to Malachi
New Testament - 27 Books
The Gospels (4 Books) Matthew to John
History (1 Book) Acts of the Apostles
Paul’s Letters (13 Books) Romans to Philemon
General letters (8 Books) Hebrews to Jude
Prophecy (1 Books) Revelation
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SELF-STUDY EXERCISE - THE BIBLE: THE WORD OF GOD
Please turn to the index of your Bible and complete the following:
(a) The books of the Bible are divided into two distinct parts - these parts are called
................. .........................………… and ................ ...........................………............... .
(b) There are ...................... books in the Old .................................. and .....................……....... .
books in the New ……………………………..…….. .
(c) The first book in the Bible is called ................................(which means “The Beginning”).
THE BOOKS OF THE BIBLE MAY BE CLASSIFIED AS FOLLOWS:
(Please fill in the missing words).
(1) The PENTATEUCH {In Greek meaning “The five scrolls”). (LAW BOOKS)
These are the first five books of the Bible. They tell us about the LAW (and history) of God’s chosen people, the Jews. The names of these books are: 1............................…..
2 ........................ 3 ................................ 4 .................................. 5 ....................................
(2) HISTORY
These books give more detail about the History of God’s chosen people and how He revealed himself to His people through His actions. These are the next twelve books starting with Joshua, ............................... ....................... ……………………… ……………………
……………………. ……………………. ………………….. …………………………... ........................................... …………………………………. and Esther.
(3) POETRY AND WISDOM
These books, the next five books after Esther contain DRAMA, POETRY and PROVERBS
(“Wise Sayings”). These are: ..................... ................................ ..…….........................
.......................................................... and ............................................................ .
(4) THE PROPHETS (MAJOR AND MINOR)
From Isaiah to Malachi we have a record of PROPHECY , POETRY and HISTORY. The Prophets often spoke messages from God about some future happening, but more often they spoke messages from the Lord in connection with present happenings. The Books of prophecy are: ………………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. and …………………….…….
(5) THE GOSPELS (The first 4 Books of the New testament).
The Gospels give an account of the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. Most significant to us is His birth, death and resurrection. The Gospel books are: ......................... ........................... ...................... and .......................
(6) THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
This book tells of the things the Apostles did in spreading the Word of God. It tells how they carried out THE GREAT COMMISSION (refer Matthew 28 vs 19-20. To ascertain who wrote the Book of Acts, make a comparison between Luke 1 vs 3 and Acts 1 vs 1. From this we can therefore deduce that the Book of Acts was written by ............................ .
(7) THE LETTERS
The letters are records of actual letters written to different individuals or churches in different places, at different times. The letters give us teaching on the Christian faith and instruction for daily living. Most of the letters were written by the apostle PAUL. There are 21 letters in total, namely:
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. ……………………………….
……………………………. ………………………………. and …………………….…….
The letter to the Romans was written to the church at Rome.
Corinthians was written to the church at Corinth. Use your Bible to complete the following:
............……………....... was written to the church at Galatia.
................……………... was written to the church at Ephesus.
.…………….................. was written to the church at Phillipi.
...............……………... was written to the church at Colossae.
..……………................ was written to the church at Thessalonica.
The above were letters that PAUL wrote to various church groups. Some of Paul’s letters, which are now a part of the Bible, were however written to individual persons. These are (use your Bible to find the answers):
Paul’s letter to ……………………………..
Paul’s letter to ……………………………..
Paul’s letter to ……………………………..
The Letter to the Hebrews was to a group of Christians, who, faced with increasing opposition, were in danger of abandoning the Christian faith. The letters of James, Peter, John and Jude were to Christians from some of the early followers of Christ.
(8) THE REVELATION
This book is mainly written in picture language. It describes visions about things that were to happen soon. It was written by a man named ...........……....... (see Revelation 1 vs 1).
GENERAL
The books of the Bible were all written at different times and in different places over a period of thousands of years. They were slowly gathered together until we have them all in one book. The Bible has been translated into more than a thousand different languages and more are added each year. Generations of men have searched its pages and tried to understand it. Thousands of books have been written about it. It is a MIRACULOUS WORK OF GOD that His WORD (The Bible) has been preserved so that that we may have it all in one book. PRAISE GOD! *
CORNERSTONE FAITH MINISTRIES - FOUNDATION SERIES
LECTURE 2 REVISION- THE BIBLE: THE WORD OF GOD
MEMORY WORK: 2 Timothy 3:16-17
INTRODUCTION
The Bible is God’s own Word, His great gift to all men everywhere, to help them out of their sin and misery and darkness. The Bible is not an ordinary book, but the men who wrote it were inspired and moved by God’s Holy Spirit to write exactly the truth as God gave it to them. Every word is true. We should read our Bible as if it was God Himself speaking to us directly and personally. It will impart to us Light, Understanding, Spiritual Food and Physical Health. It will cleanse us, sanctify us, build us up, make us partakers of God’s own nature. It will give us power and wisdom to overcome the devil.
N.B. When doing this study, remember that the following words: law, commands, statutes, teaching and message are synonyms for God’s “Word”.
1. What does David tell us about God’s Word? (Ps 119:89)
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2. How were the Scriptures originally give to us? (By what means or through whom?).
a) 2 Tim 3:16 _____________________________________________________________
b) 2 Pet 1:20-21 __________________________________________________________
3. Through what does a person become born again and receive eternal life? (1 Peter 1:23)
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4. Write down 4 things for which the scriptures are profitable to a Christian (2 Tim 3:16)
a) ______________________________ b) ___________________________________
c) ______________________________ d) ___________________________________
5. What is the final result in a Christian who studies and obeys God’s Word? (2 Tim 3:17)
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6. What is the spiritual food which God has provided for His children? (Matt 4:4)
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7. When Jeremiah fed on God’s Word, what did it become to Him? (Jer 15:16)
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8. How can a young person lead a clean life? (Ps 119:9)
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9. Why should a Christian hide (store up) God’s Word in His heart? (Ps 119:11)
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10. How did Jesus answer the devil each time He was tempted i.e. which weapon did He use? (Matt 4 vs 4,7,10).
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11. What is the sword which God has given to Christians as part of their spiritual armour? (Eph 6:17)
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12. In what 2 ways does God’s Word show Christians how to walk in this world? (Ps 119:105)
a) ______________________________________________________________________
b) ______________________________________________________________________
13. Name two things that God’s Word gives to the mind of a Christian? (Ps 119:130)
a) _________________________________ b) __________________________________
14. When God’s people were sick and in need, what did God send to Heal and deliver them?
(Psalms 107:20) _________________________________________________________________________
15. Write down 4 things, mentioned in the following verses, which God’s Word does for His people.
a) Jn 15:3; Eph 5:26 ________________________________________________________
b) John 17:17 _____________________________________________________________
c) Acts 20:32 _____________________________________________________________
d) Acts 20:32 _____________________________________________________________
16. How does a Christian prove His love for Christ? (John 14:21)
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17. Whom did Jesus call His mother and His brothers? (Luke 8:21)
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18. How is God’s love made perfect in a Christian? (1 John 2:5)
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MEMORY WORK: 2 Tim 3:16,17
Write out these verses from memory:
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(END OF DOCUMENT)
CORNERSTONE FAITH MINISTRIES - FOUNDATION SERIES
TEST - THE BIBLE: THE WORD OF GOD
Student’s Name ………………....................... Date: .............................. Result:................
(A) PLEASE ENCIRCLE THE CORRECT ANSWER (T - True / F - False)
1) T F God’s Word is eternal, it stands firm in the heavens. (His Word is a sure
and unchanging Word which can be trusted).
2) T F Holy Scripture has come to us through man’s own interpretation.
3) T F The Christian has been born again through the living and enduring Word of
God.
4) T F The Christian hides (memorizes) God’s Word in his heart so that the unbeliever can notice his knowledge of the Word of God.
5) T F The Bible is too outdated and cannot give us any direction in this modern
world.
6) T F A young man can stay pure by living according to God’s Word.
(B) ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
1. What is the spiritual food which God has provided for the growth, health and life of His
children? (Matt 4:4)
.............................................................................…………....................................................
2. Why should a Christian hide (store up) God’s Word in his heart?
..........................................................................................………….......................................
........................................................................................................………….........................
3. What method (or weapon) did Jesus use to oppose the devil during his temptation in the
wilderness? ( Matt 4:4, 7,10)
......................................................................................................................…………...........
4. What is the sword which God has given to Christians as part of their spiritual armour for
warfare? (Eph. 6:17)
..............................................................................................................................…………...
5. God’s Word is a .......................... unto our feet and a ...................... unto our path. (Ps 119:105)
6. When God’s people were sick and in need, what did God send to heal and deliver them? (Ps 107:20)
.................................................................................................................................………....
(C) WRITE OUT 2 TIMOTHY 3: 16-17 FROM MEMORY
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Examiners remarks ...................................................................................…………...................
................................................................................................................................... (17 Marks)
