"If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true. There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true. You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved. He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light. But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish--the very works that I do--bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.
"I do not receive honor from men. But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you. I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God? Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you--Moses, in whom you trust. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?" John 5:31-47 NKJV
Reading the scriptures will not save you! You may think this is an unusual statement for someone who claims the scriptures are the very words of God spoken to men. But several well-known atheists and agnostics had read the scriptures, and even studied them, with little effect. Our seminaries turn out students every year who have rejected the truth of the very words they have spent years studying.
Salvation comes through the gift of God’s grace initiated by faith. We receive grace when we believe the words of scripture. We are saved when we hear God’s voice spoken in the words we read and believe those words and resolve to live them out. Reading the words alone do not necessarily result in faith. It is hard to believe that someone could come to faith apart from the scriptures though I do not doubt that it has occurred many times throughout history. Paul tells us (in the scripture, of course) that God’s invisible qualities are clearly seen in the world that was made by Him and men are without excuse (
Romans 1:19-20). Although faith can come apart from scripture, scripture is certainly a boon to belief. Yet, it is not a guarantee.
Chuck Livermore's knowledge of the word is the result of a lifetime of study and reading. He is part of Galilee South Community Church, a multi-ethnic congregation in South Denver. He attended Wayland Baptist University and has participated in world evangelism through research of unreached peoples.
'In the Word' Copyright 2006-2024 © Chuck Livermore 'In the Word' articles may be reproduced in whole under the following provisions: 1) A proper credit must be given to the author at the end of each story, along with their complete bio and a link to https://www.liveasif.org/subscription-lists/in-the-word.html 2) 'In the Word' content may not be arranged or "mirrored" as a competitive online service.