I guess this is where we disagree, I fail to see where Paul said anything about having a bible, nor do I see in the scripture you posted any reference to the scriptures being "that which is perfect". I am familiar with this belief but disbelieve it for couple of reasons, one; theres a lack of scriptural support, two; there is scriptural support to the contrary and three; my own personal and genuine experiences with HolySpirit are to the contrary.
Paul was clearly speaking about miracles and prophecy as being only 'partial'....he then also says that he 'knows' only partially. This cannot mean anything except what he says it means...that what he knew and what he prophecied was only a 'partial knowledge' ....it wasnt complete.
The reason it wasnt complete was because the prophecies were not fulfilled and therefore no one quite knew exactly how they would unfold. Even Jesus said that he didnt know everything that was going to happen Mark 13:32
Its also in harmony with Daniels words at Daniel 12:4 .... true knowledge would become abundant in the 'time of the end'
We are living in the time of the end and its only because we have the complete bible that we can understand many of the prophecies in the bible...God has made understanding available but how would we know what we were understanding if it were not for the written word of God?
Again there's a huge difference between knowing about someone and being in a relationship with someone. If all you have to base your relationship on with someone is a third party's testimony of their relationship with this same someone then you really do not have a genuine relationship, wouldn't you agree?
not when it comes to God, no i wouldnt agree. God reaches out to us when we reach out to him. How will we reach out to him without some knowledge and if it wasnt for the bible, where would we get that knowledge from? I wouldnt get that knowledge from listening to a 3rd party...i would get it from Gods spirit inspired word. We must use our powers of reason rather then emotion when it comes to getting to know God. We need to be rational and logical and thats what the holy spirit and the word of God helps us to do.
there will always be people who believe in God...its built into our consciousness because we are made in Gods image.What of all those in places like China that for many years had no bibles? Yet it was estimated that China had the largest group of believers in the world.
Don't get me wrong Pegg I appreciate the scriptures and read and study them almost everyday, but they do not take the place of HolySpirit, the text is not the Teacher, agreeing with the scriptures does not equal spiritual experience and believing in one's testimony of another does not equal relationship.
but the bible is breathed by Gods holy spirit...reading it is like reading the holy spirit. And while I agree that the holy spirit is what guides ones thinking, it will only do this this if your thinking is founded on Gods word in the first place. They really go hand in hand. Im sure you know yourself just how many varying christian beliefs are out there and they cannot logically ALL be based on the scriptures.
But where does it all begin? Should our experience of God not begin with accurate knowledge? If we dont need that knowledge, why did the apostles bother with the preaching work? Why do churchs bother to keep their doors open?We must have our own genuine experience with God in order to have a relationship with Him. If we base our faith on the scriptures rather than our true and genuine experiences with God than we do not have a real relationship with Him but rather just a religious fantasy and virtual reality so to speak
Why did God bother to make the bible available to us at all???
While the scriptures are inspired and in many cases the written account of where God spoke to others, they are not the voice of God nor have they taken the place of the voice of God. God still speaks and it is of vital importance that we hear Him speak for ourselves, which is why the scriptures encourage us to to hear and listen to Him.
Joshua was told to read the law day and night Joshua 1:8
The reason told to him was so that he could be successful in carrying out his God-given responsibilities. Such regular reading of God’s Word can help you us in the same way. The more we know the more we can apply in our lives...the more we can live up to what God expects and if we do that that the holy spirit has more opportunity to work in us.
Actually, i think it works the opposite way. Its when people DONT read the bible that they come up with their own crazy ideas that are not based on the scriptures at all and then we end up with only part truths and outright lies. Not sticking to Gods word is what has caused the many thousands of divisions amongst christians. Its the very reason why there are so many different denominations today...its what caused the early church to split in the first place.Limiting spiritual direction and growth by the scriptures alone is one of the causes and culprits of the many different translations of scriptures and the many different belief systems and micro kingdoms within the Christian religion. The only defense against such separatism is submitting to HolySpirits leading. He is the one who communicates to us and teaches us all that Christ is saying.