THE BATTLE FOR THE BIBLE

From the very beginning of creation, Satan has attempted to convince mankind that God's word cannot be trusted. He told Eve that God lied when He told Adam that he would die if he ate of the forbidden fruit, and suggested that God did not want him to be equal to Him (Gen. 3:4-5). Perhaps he told her that because his efforts to be equal to God were thwarted (Isa. 14:12-17). In any case, throughout the entire Bible, Satan is trying to get man to worship him instead of God. The temptation of Jesus is the best example, but there are many others, including Judas being possessed (Matt. 4:1-11; Jn. 13:27). When he takes possession of the Antichrist in Revelation, and demands that he be worshiped, he has neared the end of his reign as the god of, and deceiver of, the whole world (Rev. 13:1-8; 2 Cor. 4:4; Rev. 12:9). He was, and is, the father of lies (Jn. 8:44).

Satan has used many men throughout history to challenge God's Word. The Roman Emperor, Diocletian, decreed in A.D. 303 that every Bible should be destroyed. Thinking he had accomplished his evil goal, he raised a monument saying: "Extincto nomene Christianorum (the name of Christ be extinguished). Just nine years later, Constantine replaced his pagan symbols with the cross. The French atheist Voltaire (1694-1778) boasted, "One hundred years from my day there will not be a Bible in the earth except one that is looked upon by an antiquarian curiosity seeker." Twenty years after his death, the Geneva Bible Society purchased his house to serve as a print shop for producing Bibles.

Today, what passes for science challenges Creation, thereby denying the Creator. The Big Bang Theory, evolution, and an obvious campaign to eliminate God from our society, has weakened the church's influence. With all the infighting between denominations, and with the many cults that have taken root, many in the world do not believe God's Word is truth, nor even that there is a God.

The greatest problem with people denying that the Bible is true, is that it prevents man from coming to Christ. The Word of God is one hundred percent about God's plan to redeem a lost world through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, His Son. Jesus told the two disciples on the road to Emmaus that the entire Bible was about Him (Lk. 24:27; 24:44)! He had told His critics that they should "Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me" (Jn. 5:39). Philip told Nathanael "We have found Him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets did write..." (Jn. 1:45).

In spite of Satan's efforts, it is clear that the Word of God is eternal (Isa. 40:8; 55:11; 59:21; Matt. 5:18; 24:35; Lk. 16:17; etc.). And just as His written Word will stand forever, so shall the Word that became flesh and dwelt among men (Jn. 1:1-14). "He that hath received His testimony hath set to His seal that God is true" (Jn. 3:33). In fact, God has declared that His Word is greater than even His name (Ps. 138:2)! Who are you going to believe: science and false religions, or the Word of God? The choice is yours.