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I have been called a “rabble rouser” by preachers who were afraid to stand up for the truth. I have been called a “fanatic” by preachers whose only motive was keeping their jobs. I have been called a “troublemaker” by men whose sole purpose in life was to please the members of their church. And, yes, I have been called an “extremist” by church leaders who cared nothing at all about defending the Holy Scriptures!

My stand on the Bible has always been exactly the same. I have always said that the entire Bible, from the beginning to the end, is the Word of God, each word in the Hebrew and Greek given “by inspiration of God” (II Timothy 3:16). Southern Baptist leaders told me I would be “blackballed,” and would never be able to get a church, if I kept on saying that! Then I became a fundamental Baptist – and so-called fundamentalists started attacking me for saying the same thing that the liberal Southern Baptists reacted against!

Ruckmanism is the belief that the words of the King James Bible are given by inspiration and are inerrant in English. Some even go so far as to say that the English words in the KJV correct the Greek and Hebrew. These strange and Satanic ideas were never believed by anyone before 1950, but were popularized by Dr. Peter S. Ruckman (1921-). Ruckmanism has caused many divisions and splits, especially among independent fundamental Baptists. I have written a book about it called “Ruckmanism Exposed,” which is available by writing an e-mail to me at rlhymersjr@sbcglobal.net. Translations of the Bible are made directly from the KJV English, rather than the Hebrew and Greek, in Spanish, Korean, Russian and other languages, thus promoting the false and demonic doctrines of Ruckmanism throughout the world. An angry old Ruckmanite got me cancelled from a speaking engagement at Baptist Bible College, Springfield, for saying that! An angry preacher in New York City got me cancelled there for saying that. The son of a close friend of my wife’s father went to this man’s church. He backbit me and chewed on me so hard the confused boy left the church in bewilderment and is not saved to this day. I have suffered the slings and arrows of both liberals and conservatives, from all sides, for taking the historic stand that the Greek and Hebrew words of the Bible are given by plenary verbal inspiration, and are translated into the King James Version! I took the KJV with me to class in two liberal seminaries, when every other student had the Revised Standard Version, a liberal translation. To this day I take the KJV with me into the pulpit and preach from it in every service.

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones said that the idea that we must have new translations “...is nothing but sheer nonsense!” He said that people have not stopped reading the Bible “because they cannot understand its language, but because they do not believe in it. They do not believe in its God...Their problem is not that of language and terminology; it is the state of the heart” (Martyn Lloyd-Jones, M.D., Knowing the Times, The Banner of Truth Trust, 1989, pp. 112, 114).

I have always taught that the Bible in Hebrew and Greek is given by plenary, verbal inspiration. That is exactly what the Apostle Paul said in our text,

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (II Timothy 3:16, 17).

I have preached that for nearly sixty years, and I have no intention of ever changing! Take it or leave it! That is what the Bible says about itself!

I. First, I believe that the Bible is “given by inspiration of God.”

The Greek word translated “inspiration” is “theopneustos.” It means “God-breathed.” The Holy Scriptures were “breathed out by God.” The Apostle Peter tells us that the authors of Scripture “spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” (II Peter 1:21). The Greek word translated “moved” is from “phero” and means “carry.” From II Timothy 3:16 and II Peter 1:21 we see that the Holy Spirit carried the minds of the authors along as they wrote down the God-breathed words of the Bible. For instance, in Jeremiah 1:9, we read,

“The Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth” (Jeremiah 1:9).

Jesus Himself foretold the inspiration of the New Testament when He said,

“Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away” (Mark 13:31).

It is not the ideas in the Bible that are given by God. It is not the thoughts in the Bible that are given by God. It is the words that God breathed out! It is the words that the Holy Spirit moved the authors to write! And it is rebellion against the words of the Bible that brings judgment, “because they rebelled against the words of God” (Psalm 107:11).

The evil King Jehoiakim asked Baruch where he got the Book of Jeremiah. Baruch answered that the prophet “pronounced all these words unto me...and I wrote them with ink in the book” (Jeremiah 36:18). Don’t believe anybody who tells you the words are not inspired! Every word in the Hebrew Old Testament, and every word in the Greek New Testament – every single word in the entire Bible – is a “God-breathed” word! “All scripture is given by inspiration of God” (II Timothy 3:16). And that takes us to the next point.

II. Second, I believe that all of the Bible is given by inspiration of God.

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God...” (II Timothy 3:16).

That means all of the Hebrew and Greek words of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, are God-inspired, God-breathed words. Scholars call this the “plenary, verbal inspiration of the Bible.” “Verbal” means that the words are inspired. “Plenary” means “entire.” The entire Bible is inspired, given by inspiration.

Dr. W. A. Criswell, the great pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, said,

“It is plenary in the sense that all of it, all scripture is theopneustos, all of it is God-breathed. And it is verbal in the sense that every jot and tittle of it is inspired...” (W. A. Criswell, Ph.D., The Bible for Today’s World, Zondervan Publishing House, 1967 edition, p. 49).

Jesus said,

“Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law” (Matthew 5:18).

A “jot” refers to the smallest Hebrew letter, which is like a comma, a tiny mark. A “tittle” is a tiny point on a Hebrew letter. Even these small accents on the Hebrew words of Scripture are there by the supernatural inspiration of Almighty God!

When I hold this Bible in my hand, I am holding a great treasure. It is a word-for-word translation of the God-breathed words of the Lord our God! I hold in my hand a word-for-word translation of the Word of God! If I want to know what God thinks about a subject, I do not look to what a philosopher thinks, or what a secular scholar thinks. When I want to know what God thinks about a subject, I open my Bible and read the verbally inspired words that God has given. And I must not “twist” the words. I must take them at their plain meaning. When God speaks of a tree, He means a tree. When He speaks of an altar, He means an altar.

That’s what upsets me about Dr. MacArthur. He has a lot of good things to say. But then he says, “Blood is used as a substitute word for death” (The MacArthur Study Bible; note on Hebrews 9:14). He says that about the words “How much more shall the blood of Christ...purge your conscience from dead works.” But since I believe in the verbal inspiration of the Bible, I know he cannot be right. He says that the “blood” of Christ is “a substitute for death.” Oh, how wrong! The death of Christ does not purge our conscience. Oh, no! Only the blood of Christ can do that! His error shows how very important it is to know that the very words of the Bible are there by inspiration – sent from God, every jot and every tittle! The Greek word in Hebrews 9:14 is “haima.” It means “blood.” We get our English word “hemorrhage” (a large discharge of blood) from this Greek word. “Hematology,” in medicine, refers to the study of blood. Both of these English words come from the Greek word “haima.” This clearly shows that Dr. MacArthur is wrong when he says, “Blood is used as a substitute word for death.” No – the Greek word haima means blood! It cannot mean “death.” The Greek word for death is “thanatos.” This Greek word comes over into English in “euthanasia.” The “thana” part of the English word is from “thanatos” and means “death.” “Eu” means “good” in Greek. So “euthanasia” literally means “good death.” That’s the way liberals speak of assisted suicide. The point is this – “haima” means blood. “Thanatos” means death. MacArthur is wrong to say, “Blood is used as a substitute word for death.” The Apostle Paul meant “blood.” If he had meant “death” he would have used the Greek word “thanatos.” The Reformation Study Bible says, “No...fanciful method that ignores the original writer’s expressed meaning can be appropriate” (note on p. 844, “Understanding God’s Word”). I think Dr. MacArthur learned to change the word “blood” into “death” from Colonel R. B. Thieme. I was there in the fall of 1961, and was an eye-witness. I saw young John MacArthur write these exact words on a note pad as Thieme said them, “Blood is used as a substitute word for death.” Of course, many scholars know that Colonel Thieme was wrong on this point. Colonel Thieme seemed to have an aversion, a dislike, for the Blood of Christ. And his error comes down to us through Dr. MacArthur. We must never twist one Greek word to mean another, thus ignoring “the original writer’s expressed meaning” (Reformation Study Bible, ibid.).

I have used the Thieme/MacArthur problem to illustrate the importance of the verbal inspiration of the Bible, the teaching that God breathed out the very words of the Bible in Hebrew and Greek.

Dr. Harold Lindsell was a great scholar, and a great defender of the inerrancy of the Bible. His book, The Battle for the Bible, is undoubtedly one of the most important books of our time. Dr. Lindsell said, “Inspiration extends to all parts of the written Word of God and it includes the guiding hand of the Holy Spirit even in the selection of the words of Scripture” (Harold Lindsell, Ph.D., The Battle for the Bible, Zondervan Publishing House, 1978 edition, p. 31; emphasis mine). Of course Dr. Lindsell referred to the Hebrew and Greek words, when he said that the Holy Spirit guided the authors of the Bible “even in the selection of the words of Scripture.” Dr. Henry M. Morris said that Paul made “an exceedingly strong affirmation of the verbal inspiration” of the words of Scripture in Galatians 3:16. He said Paul based his argument there, “not just on one word, but one letter, ‘seed’ instead of ‘seeds’” (Henry M. Morris, Ph.D., The Defender’s Study Bible, World Publishing, 1995 edition, p. 1296; note on Galatians 3:16; emphasis mine).

I completely agree with Dr. Lindsell and Dr. Morris. I knew them both, and they were right. That is why I am so concerned over Dr. MacArthur’s statement that “Blood is used as a substitute word for death.” We must never do that if we truly believe in the verbal inspiration of Scripture. God means what He says in the Bible. And you can believe fully what the Bible says in the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures. Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4; quotation by Christ from Deuteronomy 8:3; emphasis mine).

When you read the Bible you can be sure that you are reading the very Word of God. When you read the words, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved,” you can trust what God says there in Acts 16:31. When you yourself “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ” you will be saved from your sin by the Son of God. When you read the words of Jesus, “him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” you can be sure that Jesus will not cast you out when you come to Him (John 6:37). When you read the words of Jesus, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” you can be certain that when you come to Jesus He will give you rest (Matthew 11:28). When you read the words of Jesus, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life,” you can be assured that you will not perish, but have everlasting life when you believe in Him (John 3:16). When you read the words, “The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin,” you can be sure that the very “blood of Jesus” can cleanse you “from all sin” (I John 1:7).

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (II Timothy 3:16, 17).

If you believe those words in the Bible are true, then why not trust Jesus and be saved from your sin by Him? If you believe what God says, then come and trust His Son, who loves you and died on the Cross to save you from sin, death and Hell! Say, in the words of that great old hymn,

I am coming, Lord!
   Coming now to Thee!
Wash me, cleanse me in the blood
   That flowed on Calvary.
(“I Am Coming, Lord” by Lewis Hartsough, 1828-1919).

Amen. Dr. Chan, please lead us in prayer.

(END OF SERMON)
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Scripture Read Before the Sermon by Mr. Abel Prudhomme: II Timothy 3:12-17.
Solo Sung Before the Sermon by Mr. Benjamin Kincaid Griffith:
“I Know the Bible is True” (by Dr. B. B. McKinney, 1886-1952).