Tracing Our Roots - History of Bible-Believing Christianity I

Bible Study at Gospel Light Christian Church, Singapore
by Pastor Dr Paul Choo
Mid-Week Teaching Service

Introduction: The history of bible-believing Christianity is the grandest drama of all time. We are all "actors" in this continuing drama - which began shortly after Adam's fall in the Garden of Eden and will continue till the end of time. Because "history repeats itself" we can learn many useful lessons by studying the history our spiritual forefathers.

This series will focus on bible-believers rather than Christendom as a whole (which includes many nominal "Christians"). It will not be an academic nor scholarly historical study but an overview of key events and personalities with an emphasis on practical applications. Because of the nature of this study, broad generalizations have to be made. Therefore, students must realize that many exceptions to the principles taught have been deliberately left out to avoid "cluttering" the main trends of our history.

Who are the bible-believers?: When Gospeliters are asked what type of church GLCC is. The correct answer is that it is a bible-believing church. The next question that is often asked is: "What denomination does it belong to?" This question actually contains several questions, namely, what organization does it belong to, who started it and who is its "boss"?

Bible-believism is a principle - not started by men but by God. This principle is not written in a book of rules by men but on the heart by God. It is the most vital of all life principles because "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge" (PRO 1:7).

The sources of bible-believism: Bible-believism has two sources - the Bible and the Holy Spirit. Possessing the Bible alone is insufficient because we need the Holy Spirit to assure us that it is God's Word and to help us to understand it (1CO 2:10-16).

The effect of bible-believism: A bible-believing Christian believes that what the Bible says is so. He does not allow his feelings, desires, popular opinions, "science" nor traditions to overrule what the Bible says. He is therefore a man of principle.

The honoring of this principle will quietly but surely transform our lives, and subsequently change the societies in which we live. It will help us to attain our highest possible development, namely, to be what God intended us to be - like Him (GEN 1:26 "God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness").

Bible-believism will make an individual Christlike (eg. honest, loving, kind, bold, humble, wise). God guides us with life-principles taught in the Bible and allows us to make choices within the bounds of these principles. In other words, He does not control our lives with rigid rules (eg. style of dress, order of the worship service, posture in prayer) but rather guides us with principles. He also gives us the Holy Spirit to help us to apply these principles in our daily lives. In other words, God gives us liberty to make personal choices as we are guided and restrained by the Holy Spirit.
In society, bible-believism produces two characteristics that are vital for true democracy to flourish, namely, liberty and order. The successful democracies of the "Western" world (eg. USA, Canada, Britain, Switzerland, Germany, Holland, the Scandinavian countries, Australia, New Zealand) bear testimony of this truth. Almost all countries that have a genuinely democratic form of government have or had a significant number of bible-believing citizens. Therefore, the democratic form of government hardly existed until after the Protestant Reformation of the 16th Century.

The records of history prove that countries without significant numbers of bible-believers are unable to enjoy genuine democracy. In such countries, anarchy and confusion usually follow liberty. When the anarchy is unbearable, a tyrant arises to control the situation. Cycles of tyranny and anarchy (ie, peaceful conditions under strong kings, followed by rebellion and chaos when a king becomes overly tyrannical) are the norm in the history of most nations.

Singapore inherited its democratic laws from the British (who were bible-believers). However, since the vast majority of Singaporeans are not bible-believers nor have they grown up in bible-believing homes, true democracy (like that of the West) cannot flourish. Our government is very wise to recognize this, and has developed a form of "guided" democracy that has given us the highest levels of liberty and order that are possible in our situation.

Satan's attempts to destroy the Bible: During the thousand years of the Dark Ages (AD 500 to 1500), the Roman church hid the Bible from the masses by forbidding it to be translated into the languages of the people. The Bible of the Roman church was Latin - which had become a "dead" language following the collapse of the Roman Empire. Later when brave men translated the Bible into the languages of the people (eg. English, Italian, German), the Roman Church forbade men to read the Bible. Those who did so were burned at the stake and had all their properties confiscated by the Church.

Today the use of force is unacceptable in most countries, so Rome attempts to hide the Bible through its teaching that only the Church can understand and interpret the Bible and that it is dangerous for laymen to try to do so. Therefore, though Romanists are now allowed to read the Bible, they have little motivation to read a book they are told they cannot understand!
This Romanist teaching has infiltrated into many Christian churches and many Christians believe that the Bible is extremely difficult to understand. Therefore, many Christians prefer little easy-to-read devotionals (eg. Daily Bread) which consists mostly of human-interest stories with a sprinkling of bible verses. They are content to leave the reading of the Bible to their leaders.
Modernism (ie, denial of the miracles of the Bible) infiltrated the bible colleges about 100 years ago. Modernists (or Liberals) questioned the Bible's account of Creation in GEN 1. By putting doubts into the minds of future pastors about the authenticity of the truths of the Bible, they destroyed the faith of subsequent generations of Christians. Someone said "If you doubt the first few words of the Bible, how can you believe the rest of it?"

The multiplicity of modern bible translations - many with significantly differing readings - has confused believers into wondering if their Bible is the "true" one. They reason that if they do not possess the "truth" then why bother to study it?

God's preservation of the Bible: God has promised to preserve His Word (PSA 12:6,7) and He has used human instruments to do so. In the past, when Satan used His agents to confiscate the Bible from His people, God raised faithful fearless men who risked their lives to hide it, make hand-written copies of it and distribute it.

Today we still need men who will stand against and expose Satan's attacks against the Bible. Will you proclaim that the Bible can be understood by all believers? Will you tell the world that "the theory of evolution" is not science but a false religion (that demands an incredible unthinking faith in chance)? Will you reject the suggestion that we are still in need of good translators to produce a readable and understandable Bible?