My Answer: Scripture never goes out of style
Q: Does God ever tell us to do something, or to believe something, that contradicts the Bible? A friend of mine says the Bible is out of date and we need to let the Spirit guide us in new directions, but I’m not so sure about that.
— S.Y.
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A: You’re right to be skeptical of your friend’s views — because God never tells us to do anything that He has clearly forbidden in His Word, the Bible. God does not change, and neither does His Word.
After all, one reason God has given us His Word is so we can know what is true and right — and also what isn’t true and right. If it was wrong to murder or steal or commit adultery when God gave the Ten Commandments to His people more than 3,000 years ago — then it’s still wrong. If it was wrong to reject Christ and nail Him to a cross 2,000 years ago — then it’s still wrong. As the Psalmist wrote, “The law of the Lord is perfect.... The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy” (Psalm 19:7).
Pray for your friend that he will realize the moral and spiritual dangers he faces by rejecting God’s Word and giving in to the world’s relativism. Perhaps he’s struggling with a particular sin in his life, and is seeking to excuse it by claiming God doesn’t care. Or he may be anxious to win the approval of others and not appear “narrow-minded.”
Whatever his reason, ask God to help you be a witness for Christ to your friend — not condemning him, but being an example to him of Christ’s love and truth. The Bible says, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Colossians 4:6).
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Q: Why did Jesus’ enemies need to find someone to betray Jesus? Couldn’t they have just gone ahead and arrested Him? After all, from what I can tell, He wasn’t exactly trying to hide during those last days.
— L.L.
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A: You’re right; during His final days of public ministry, Jesus didn’t hide from those who opposed Him — not at all. In fact, every day, He preached to the crowds that had gathered to celebrate Passover, teaching them about the Kingdom of God and urging them to repent of their sins.
His enemies couldn’t seize Him while the crowds were present because the people were impressed with Jesus’ teaching, and the authorities were afraid they might cause a riot by arresting Him. The Bible says, “They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.... (so) they plotted to arrest Jesus in some sly way” (Matthew 21:46; 26:4).
At night, Jesus left the crowds behind, however, and quietly went with His disciples to a private place outside the city. Remember: In those days, there were no streetlights, nor was there an easy way for people to communicate from one village to the next. If Jesus’ enemies were to arrest Him, they first had to find Him — and in order to do this, they needed someone to tell them where He was staying. They were delighted, therefore, when Judas agreed to betray Jesus by leading them to Him.
No life has ever been sadder or more tragic than that of Judas. He had witnessed Jesus’ miracles and heard His teaching, yet he still betrayed Him for 30 silver coins. Don’t let greed, or anything else, keep you from committing your life to Jesus, for He alone is our Savior.
Send your queries to “My Answer,” c/o Billy Graham, Billy Graham Evangelistic Assn., 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C., 28201; call 1-(877) 2-GRAHAM, or visit the website for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Assn.: https://www.billygraham.org.