Why the KJV Bible?

“WHY the KJV (King James Version) Bible”
II Timothy 3:15-17

Introduction

  • First of all, may I say that this message is not to criticize, but rather point out the facts of the bibles that are written in the world today.
  • There are more than 1000 different Bibles printed in the world today. In my opinion, all but one (The KJV) are inspired by Satan.
  • The reason why I say that is because we Christians are in a war with Satan, and have been since Adam and Eve. Our sin nature which comes from Satan is constantly battling our spiritual nature which comes from God.
  • In a war (military or spiritual), the enemy will do whatever it takes to find the strengths and weaknesses of its adversary and come up with a plan of attack to weaken its strengths, and attack it’s weaknesses.
  • Satan has had many wars against God’s people. He is a professional like no other. Satan is a General in command of the demons in his army.
  • Every army has its own weapons of destruction to use against its enemy. They are trained specifically on how to use those weapons. Failure to know how to use those weapons correctly can cause the death of the soldier in that army.
  • For the Christian in the Lord’s Army, his strongest weapon is the Word of God called the Bible.
  • Knowing all of this brings some questions to mind…
  1. If you were Satan (the enemy), what would be the number one weapon that you would try remove or weaken in God’s Army? Answer: The Bible.
  2. How would you weaken the weapon (Bible) of God’s Army? Answer: Subtly remove verses that have God’s name or Jesus name in them, change its words to confuse the readers, and make many versions of the weapon (Bible) that will be different from one another creating confusion in God’s Army to make them easy to defeat.
  3. If you were Satan, how would you go about weakening God’s Army? Answer: Get these new weapons (Other versions of the Bible) into the hands of God’s men (Preachers, pastors) and have them teach their new converts from a weak, Godless, watered down (weak) version of the Bible.
  • Looking at our text of II Timothy 3:15…And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
  • We can see Paul reminding his associate (Timothy) that he knows what the Word of God is and how the understanding of the bible has improved his wisdom of God and his faith in the Messiah promised in order for him to be saved from hell.
  • Paul further reminds Timothy in verse 16) All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
  • The words “all scripture” means Old Testament and New Testament. Every single word was “inspired.” Inspired meaning that God was with each man who wet a pen to write His infallible (No mistakes) Word exactly as the events happened, the exact words of God in instruction, rebuke, correction, reproof, and doctrines. In other words, God breathed. When scripture is read or recited, God is speaking, not the writers, but God Himself.
  • Paul further reminds Timothy of the reason for God’s inspiration of the scriptures in verse 17) That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
  1. “That the man of God may be perfect” – “the man of God” refers to the pastor, or preacher called of God to preach His Word. “perfect” meaning to make the preacher capable of doing what God has called him to do.
  2. “thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” – Meaning, well equipped with what it takes to do the ministry he has called to do. (Examples of equipment; sign language to teach deaf, Spanish to teach the Spanish, personal experiences to help those members that need to be instructed on the issues at hand, knowledge of the Bible, etc.)
  • Let us get into the facts about the KJV Bible…

I. Important Facts of the King James Version

  A) Based on the American popularity

  • These facts are based on a research done in 2013 carried out by the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture at Indiana University:
  1. When Americans reach for their Bibles, more than half of them pick up a King James Version (KJV).
  2. The 55 percent who read the KJV easily outnumber the 19 percent who read the New International Version (NIV).
  3. The percentages drop into the single digits for competitors such as the New Revised Standard Version, New America Bible, and the Living Bible.
  4. The KJV also received almost 45 percent of the Bible translation-related searches on Google, compared with almost 24 percent for the NIV, according to Bible Gateway’s Stephen Smith.
  5. Previous research which found that 52% used either the KJV or the NKJV (split 38% KJV and 14% NKJV).
  • These facts above show us the popularity of the KJV of the Bible and the small acceptance of the NIV.
  • I among many other pastors have always considered the NIV to be the Non Inspired Version of the Bible.

B) Why is the KJV so popular?

  1. Tradition:Many Christians were brought up with the KJV and taught by their parents, pastors and church leaders from the KJV.
  2. Division:Many churches have been divided by the new bibles entering the church after being taught for many years the KJV.  Many pastors feel that they have lost the younger generation because they have stood beside the KJV and not introduced the new versions of the bible to their people.
  3. Superstition:I believe that some people are “superstitious” about changing the KJV bibles in their church to a new modern version. The word “superstition” means… whatever attitude or belief that you have is based on a fear or ignorance of the laws of science or whatever is true and rational. In other words, To be superstitious is for a person to believe that if they don’t use the KJV Bible then God would bring down judgment upon them for changing to a different translation.
  4. Accuracy: Some of the popular versions, like the NIV, deliberately moved away from a literal “word-for-word translation” of Scripture to a more “dynamic” or “readable” translation. However when the new translations do that, they often read more like an interpretation than a translation. Even though the KJV is harder to understand, a large number of Christians still prefer the reading of its old verbiage.
  5. Red Letters: Many KJV churches have investigated moving to the NKJV in order to reduce the whiplash of change. However, it is almost impossible to get NKJVs without Christ’s words being in red.
  6. Vision: Many churches lack a vision in their church to teach the KJV. They lack the desire to study to show themselves approved unto God. Their vision is impaired when they try to appease the young generation. You must study and know the truths of God’s word by using a dictionary, know the Greek and Hebrew meanings of the words used in our KJV Bible. Proverbs 29:18… Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is
  7. Conviction: As far as I know, there is no credible modern translation that (a) holds to the received text and (b) to a literal translation of Scripture. The NIV meets neither. The ESV meets the latter requirement but not the former. The NKJV meets (b) and almost meets (a). Although it uses the Received Text for the New Testament, it also incorporates readings from the Majority Text and the “Critical Text” (or NU) in the margins/footnotes (see below). These are not just preferences or traditions, but biblical convictions about the preservation of Scripture and the nature of Scripture.
  1. Confusion: Perhaps the single biggest reason behind the refusal of so many to adopt a modern version of Scripture is the footnotes that litter the pages of modern New Testaments, casting doubt on many parts of God’s Word. I know many Christians who detest this and resist changing translations because of the psychological effect of these footnotes. Many ministers also hate having to explain these alleged textual variants in sermons.
  • These are the most popular reason by most people for staying with the KJV Bible. However, none of these are the reason why I stay with the KJV.

II.  The KJV Is God’s Preserved Word

  A) The KJV has outlasted all others

  • There have been many other Bibles printed over the years, and none of them have stayed in circulation as long as the KJV, nor have they become as popular and sought after.
  • Bible book stores are trying for some reason to minimize the selling of the KJV and offer the newer versions. When you go into a bible book store, take notice at the size of the KJV section and then look at the size of all the other versions of the bible section. KJV will be smaller. Not because it is not the most popular version on the market today because we know that it is. It is because people are trying to reach the young generation who want “change” from the “old path.”
  • I personally believe that God has preserved this version of the Bible because it is the closest version of the original Greek and Hebrew text that we have available to us today in America.
  • The King James Bible is so called the KJV because it was commissioned by King James of England (born 1566 A.D., died 1625), was published in 1611 A.D. It is also known as the Authorized or Common version. Forty-seven scholars from the Church of England worked on it.
  • My main point of this message to our church is… since God wrote it, why change it? All the other versions of the bible have changed the meanings of God’s Word by changing the words and replacing them with words that they felt necessary to use to explain what they believed to be correct.
  • Many versions have removed verses completely out of the Bible. WHY?

III. Our Bible (KJV) is a Sword

  A) A weapon

  • Ephesians 6:17…And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
  • Christ told the church at Pergamum in Revelation 2:16 (KJV)…Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth (His word, or rather the judgments that are explained in His word).
  • We need to know how to handle our weapon unlike Peter in John 18:10 (KJV) Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it, and smote the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus.
  • Peter was not a swordsman but rather a fisherman. He took the sword and wielded it unskillfully and sliced of the servant’s ear. Many people are hurt by the sword from people who know not its power.
  • If you are going to buy a weapon to defeat your enemy, you better buy a good one that is made by a Master craftsman.

IV. Examine the Other Versions

  A) The Only Begotten Son

  • John 3:16 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)…“For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.
  • “For God loved the world” What happened to the 2 letter word “so?” The word “so” is a descriptive word describing “HOW MUCH” he loved the world. You want to lessen the intensity of love that God has for the world?
  • I looked up the word “so” in the dictionary because most all translations (like the above Holman) of the bible have change this verse to say “…in this way.”
  • Webster’s Dictionary described the word “so” as… 1) in the way or manner shown, expressed, indicated, understood, etc. 2) to the degree expressed or understood, to an unspecified but limited degree, amount, numbered, etc. 3) More or less; approximately that number, amount, etc.
  • As for me, “in this way” is confusing. WHY? Because, also in the Bible is the term “in the way.” Which is a term used as to describe a path or direction.
  • My biggest issue is with the deity of Christ being tainted, and our adoption being negated by these new versions.
  • In John 3:16 of the King James Version we see “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,” This part of the verse tells me that God loved the world in such a great amount that he gave His especially created Son (God in the flesh, born of a virgin).
  • To be “begotten” means to father a child, be the seed planter in the woman. No man ever had sex with Mary until Joseph was given permission after the birth of Christ. She was a virgin. No woman or child will be able to share that likeness in pregnancy or birth.
  • Some may say I am splitting hairs here. THANK YOU! I am not about to give the devil one little hair of my KJV Bible.
  • The newer versions such as NIV, Holman, New Living Translation, and others have replaced “…his only begotten Son” with “his one and only Son.” If Jesus Christ is the “one and only Son” there goes our adoption into the Kingdom of heaven.
  • If Jesus is the “one and only son” then you and I are not considered to be the sons of God as my Bible (God’s Word) tells me in I John 3:1 (KJV)…Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. (other verses to see are Heb. 2:10, Heb. 12:7, 8, Gal. 4:5, 6, John 1:12)

  B) The word “Quickly”

  • Every single solitary place in the KJV Bible the word “quickly” is used (38 times) it means very fast, as to describe the rate of speed. It is a descriptive word of “how” something or someone is coming or going.
  • 7 times (The number of perfection and completion) in the book of Revelation you will see the word “quickly” used to describe the Coming of Jesus Christ in judgment. This word “quickly” means that Jesus is coming very fast as “in the twinkling of an eye.” (I Cor. 15:52)
  • The NLT (New Living Translation) and NIV (Non Inspired Version) tells us …Revelation 22:20…He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!”
  • “…coming soon?” This is a botched up translation that tells us “when” Jesus is coming, not “how” He is coming. The word “soon” gives us a time element in the coming of Christ.
  • God tells us that no one knows the coming of the Lord, not even the Lord Himself.
  • If Jesus is coming soon (Which He isn’t), then why has God waited over 2000 years? Is 2000 years “soon?” I hardly think so.

  C) Other changes made

  • Other translations have removed 218 words or sentences from KJV.
  • Other translations have removed “Jesus” or “God” over 67
  • Other translations have changed over 81 words and the meanings
  • Other translations have added 5 words that were not necessary to add.
  • If I am going to fight Satan (and I do daily), I want a Sword that will carry God’s endorsement and not some “garden tool” as Dr. Al Lacy called them.
  • I would further say that I would want to use a sword (or Bible) where the creator’s (or manufacturer) name was not removed from it.
  • And no offense to China, but a simple fact is that Chinese alloy is not as strong as ours in the United States. When they make tools using their alloy, it does not hold up under pressure.
  • Saying that, I do not want a Bible that is made by people inspired with the wrong spirit (weak alloy) and cause me to lose my battle with my enemies.

 

 

BUY A KING JAMES VERSION, BUY A SWORD !

 

 

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