Graham preaches and is an elder for the Old Moulton Road church in Decatur, AL. He is married to Karen (Hodge) Graham and has three children: Richard, Mary Katherine Winland (Darren), and Laura Paschall (Jeremy). bobbylgraham@pclnet.net.

Question: My friends often complain that the Bible is obsolete. How can I show someone that the Bible is relevant?

Answer: If you are spiritually strong enough to withstand these assaults on the inspired writings of the Bible, you might be able to point these friends in the right direction. On the other hand, “evil companionships corrupt good morals.” These words of warning from Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:33 appeared first in the context of doctrinal error – namely, the denial of the resurrection of the body – to caution the brethren against being led away into this error. I pray that you will be strong and courageous to try to help them, if your own faith is not about to falter at any time in your efforts to help them.

The answer to your question is a bit involved, but I shall try to use the brevity demanded in this column. The relevance of the Bible is concerned with whether it has any important bearing on life today. While many admit its historical and religious significance, they deny its relevance by charging that it is an outdated book with little or no value in our modern world. Does the Bible retain any application to life today? Does it meet either individual or societal needs or possess any other value for people? I believe the following points demonstrate the continuing value of the Scriptures.

1. God has not changed (Mal. 3:8; Heb. 13:8). The passing of time and the fluctuations of history in no way reflect variation in God (Jas. 1:17). From the beginning of the Bible to its end, God and His eternal purpose remained the same; in fact, such was God’s purpose before the world began (Eph. 1:4; 3:11). While man the creature is subject to time, God the creator exists and operates primarily outside the realm of time and is therefore timeless. There has never been any reduction or increase in His love, wisdom, mercy, or tolerance for sin.

2. The Bible has not changed (Psa. 119:89). Being firmly fixed in the heavens, it does not vary as men’s creeds, doctrines, or dictates do. Divine standards of right and wrong never change, because God does not change. Murder, adultery, cursing, and idolatry have always been wrong. Religious practices have sometimes changed because God has educated humanity, developing them for a higher level of understanding and service. The lessons taught under some earlier arrangement has always pointed to some future spiritual relativity (allowance of divorce, idolatry while developing spiritual maturity in Israel, Passover-Christ, Levitical priesthood-all saints, etc.). Although some think that society’s shift on morals/ethics reflect God’s changing on such matters (unmarrieds living together, homosexuality, no-fault divorces, lewd dress), but God’s ways and thoughts never depend on man’s (Isa. 55:8-9). Such presumption, warned about by the psalmist in 19:13, endangers the souls of people.

3. Society’s needs have not changed. If anything ever changes in gigantic fashion over the centuries, it is society. The changes evident in society in no way reflect the genuine needs that society has, but rather the passing whims of fickle people. The major change seen in the last century is society’s departure from God, but it still has the same fundamental need for God. In fact, all of the problems of society come from the people who comprise it, but it is their failure to utilize the God-given solutions for their needs and problems which contribute to society’s problems. Crime and its punishment, the need for honest government, the abuse of welfare, racial prejudice, teen pregnancy, drug and alcohol abuse, homosexuality, same-sex marriage, spousal abuse, child abuse, terrorism, and other such problems have not disappeared but increased, if any change has happened. The Bible addresses all of these needs; in fact, not one of them involves a principle not found in the Bible. The application of Bible principles to such problems would remove them as problems.

4. Human needs have not changed. The earlier enumeration of societal problem/needs reminds us that they all begin with human needs and problems not being addressed at a lower level, before they mushroom to affect society. Man has always needed an understanding of who he is, where he came from, why he is here, and where he is going. Such philosophical questions are addressed in Acts 17:24, 27, 31 and other passages. Man’s spiritual needs, resulting from his failure to deal with the more basic questions just covered, include such matters as guilt, depression, despair, hopelessness, and fear. Bookstores, television programs, and other media have dealt with all of them many times, but never to the extent and in the basic way in which the Bible does. You see, the God who made man also wrote the Bible and understands what man needs. On a more fundamental level, the Bible deals with the basic problem of sin as it severs man’s right relationship with God and then shows how God in Christ provided for the restoration of that relationship (Rom. 3:23; 6:23). Its treatment of salvation is fundamental to all the other problems.

The Bible is not a relic of antiquity which many claim for it, but an always fresh, always needed, always relevant message from his Creator for man’s earthly and eternal good. Its practical relevance depends on its being practiced. Those who have believed it and taken it to heart have spoken most about its value for the present day, while those protesting it as irrelevant and outdated have never sincerely tried it themselves. It answers man’s most basic questions, solves his most pressing problems, and produces a satisfied person along the way. It is no surprise that God refers to it as the living word, which lives and abides forever (1 Pet. 1:23).

When the schools had the Bible, they had fewer and smaller problems. When society accepted the Bible, its problems also were smaller and fewer. When more individuals embraced the Bible, they had fewer and smaller problems. The Bible was the answer then, and it remains the answer for today, for you and for me.