Should Anything Be Added To The Bible?

Should Anything Be Added To The Bible? September 26, 2016

Should there be anything added to the Bible today? What about those who do?

Another Testament of Jesus Christ?

There are serious warnings for anyone who adds to or takes away from the Word of God, the Bible. In the Book of Revelation, which is Jesus’ revelation and not the Apostle John’s, it is written: “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book” (Rev 22:18-19). What are the results? Just review the plagues in the Book of Revelation, and you can see what anyone who adds to or takes away from the Bible will face, but even worse, they will not inherit eternal life (Rev 22:19), which is where it refers to “the tree of life.” Some churches, like the Mormons, have done just that as they claim to have had “Another Testament of Jesus Christ.” This book was originally called “The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi,” written by Joseph Smith in 1830, and in this book, there are some outrageous claims that are made that do not fit what the Word of God says, and God’s Word is the final and ultimate authority, not Joseph Smith. That’s why it’s been corrected and revised so many times.

Warnings from God

Warnings from God about adding too or taking away from God’s Word are not unique to the New Testament. In the Book of Deuteronomy, it says “You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you” (4:2), and the wisdom of Solomon adds the command to “not add to his words, lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar” (Prov 30:6). Who is a liar? Anyone that adds too or takes away from the Word of God…and that includes any other religion that claims to have had another, additional testimony from Jesus Christ, Who Himself is the Word of God (John 1:1, 14). The Lord God warned Israel by saying “Everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it” (Duet 12:32), and this warning surely applies to anyone who adds too, or in some cases, takes away from the Word of God. Many cults have done this, but these same many will not inherit the kingdom of God. It is not okay to take away from the Word of God in the New Testament any more than it is from the Old Testament. The fact is, if anyone adds to the Word of God, they are placing their own, human words or opinions as being equal to the Word of God and this cannot be so. Scripture is God-breathed, and not man-breathed (2nd Tim 3:16).

I-warn-everyone-who

The Faith “Once” Delivered

The Book of Jude is a book about apostasy, which simply means “a falling away,” as in falling away from the truth, and it is those who have fallen away that never really fell forward in the first place. The Apostle John said “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us” (1st John 2:19). Some say they are backsliders but the truth is, they never “slid forward” in the first place. The point is we have had the Word of God as it is, and there is now need to take away or add to it. Isn’t the Word of God enough? Yes! That’s why Jude “found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Judge 1:3). The faith has been “once” delivered “for all saints,” means God is no longer delivering His Word to us. It is not an ongoing process; it’s been done…once, and for all. The structure of this Greek sentence indicates that it’s a finished work. Today we can already see that “certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (Jude 1:4).

Warnings against Deceivers

I can’t count the number of people who have said that they had a vision or dream sent from God, but please take this with a grain of salt, because whoever is “relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones” (Jude 1:8). God may speak to us in dreams, but it always matches what the written Word of God says. The Apostle John says in 2nd John 1:7 that “many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.” Notice that it’s “many” and not a few. In fact, the Apostle Paul warned that even “from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:30). It happened in the first century, and it’s still happening today.

Conclusion

Not long ago, we had a man come into our church and proclaimed he was a “prophet” and told me, “God told me to tell you are not a pastor, but a prophet,” I thought, “That’s strange. Why would God use you to tell me something when He can go directly to me?” He said, “God spoke to me.” I told him, “Yes, God spoke to me too…and it started in Genesis 1:1 and ended in Revelation 22:21. The Word of God does speak to me, so why should I need to have a man claim that God spoke to him about me? If I had a friend, I wouldn’t call another person to have him call my friend for me and give him a message. No, I would speak to him myself. I wouldn’t’ use someone else. If you look closely, those who claim to be a prophet might actually be doing it for a “profit.” Please don’t believe anything from man outside of the Word of God. The Bible is inspired; human words are not, therefor take warning that you do not add too or take away from the Word of God or God’s going to have you share in the plagues in the Book of Revelation, and take your share from the tree of life. The fate of those who do such things will face things that I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.


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