Pictured to the left is a copy of the REVISED STANDARD VERSION ( RSV ) of the Holy Bible. The following quotation is taken from this version of the Holy Bible:
"The Revised Standard Version of the Bible is an authorized revision of the American Standard Version, published in 1901, which was a revision of the King James Version, published in 1611. . . . The Revised Standard Version of the Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, was published on September 30, 1952, and has met with wide acceptance." [ See THE BIBLE, REVISED STANDARD VERSION, AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York, Old Testament Section, Copyright 1952, New Testament Section, First Edition, Copyright 1946, New Testament Section, Second Edition, Copyright 1971, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, pp. iii, vi. ]
1 John 5:10 reads as follows: "He who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. He who does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne to his Son." The phrase, "has made him a liar," in the preceding passage from the Holy Bible might, at the first, be a source of difficulty for the reader. We know that God "never lies" ( see Titus 1:2, for example ). The comparison between the above-referenced phrase in 1 John 5:10, and what is taught in Titus 1:2, for example, would seem to be a contradiction.
However, since we know that God never lies, we must clarify who the word "liar," in 1 John 5:10, refers to. The answer to this question becomes clear when we give additional consideration to the phrase, "has made him a liar," in 1 John 5:10. Specifically, the words "has made," in this phrase, must refer to the intellectual dishonesty of the one who does not believe God.
Clearly, then, the one who does not believe God is the liar, because this person "has not believed in the testimony that God has borne to his Son" ( recall 1 John 5:10 ). Thus, there is no contradiction in 1 John 5:10. Please study the Holy Bible ( see 2 Timothy 2:15, for example ).
If you have any questions about the Holy Bible, you can contact me by e-mail at:
<rewillis1_1@juno.com>
<Russell E. Willis>
NOTE: In the bibliography of the copy of the REVISED STANDARD VERSION ( RSV ) of the Holy Bible ( pictured above ), a national council of Churches of Christ is referenced. It is important to understand that the New Testament church ( the church of Christ - see Matthew 16:18 and Romans 16:16, for example ) is not a member of any such national council of churches. Such a structure is not authorized in the Holy Bible. Rather, each local congregation ( see Galatians 1:2, for example ) of the universal church of Christ ( see Ephesians 1:22, 23, for example ) is to be autonomous; having elders and deacons in those local congregations where men are qualified to serve as elders and deacons ( see Acts 14:23; 20:28, 1 Timothy 3:1-13, Titus 1:5-9, and 1 Peter 5:1-4, for example ).
