Pastor: The Bible is complete! Isn’t it wonderful? We have the whole revelation of God in this book. Let us celebrate the whole counsel of God!

Christian: Great! It says Jesus took my infirmities and bore my sicknesses. It says that if I pray in faith, the Lord will heal me. If the Bible is complete, then this must be God’s final word on the subject. Do you mean I can experience healing by faith like anything else that Jesus did for me?

Pastor: Well…God is sovereign. It might or might not happen.

Christian: What is there to be “sovereign” about, when the book says this already happened? Wasn’t he sovereign when he did it? What if I believe in Jesus like the Bible tells me, and God still sends me to hell?

Pastor: No, that’s different. If you have faith in Jesus, you will surely be saved.

Christian: But…I might not get healed, even though this same Jesus bore my sicknesses, and even though this is based on the same Isaiah 53 that talks about his atonement for sin.

Pastor: Right, because God is sovereign.

Christian: Whew. This is crazy. But I can cast out demons and speak in tongues, right? And I can prophesy like the Bible says? You said we have the complete Bible, so that can’t have changed, right?

Pastor: Oh, no, no, no! Hold it right there. All that ended almost as soon as it started. Don’t let our people hear you talk like that or I would have to kick you out.

Christian: All right, then. I suppose I can still seek first the kingdom of God, and then all these things that the pagans seek will still be added to me like Jesus said.

Pastor: Well, you know…

Christian: OK! What now?! I can’t have this either?

Pastor: Look, I didn’t mean you can believe or experience everything that the book promises. The Bible…well, it’s just…you just need to HAVE it. Just hold it. It’s all that God wants to tell you.

Christian: But only several things that it says still apply. Even the atonement does not apply much of the time because God is sovereign. So he tells me things that he doesn’t want me to believe.

Pastor: Right. You see, if you take the redemptive-historical approach…

Christian: Wait, so I don’t have to seek God’s kingdom? Because God is sovereign?

Pastor: Oh, no. God is not THAT sovereign. You still need to do that.

Christian: So I MUST do the first part, because God said it, but I might not get the second part, even though God said it, because God is sovereign. And if I believe in his atonement for sin, I will be saved, but if I believe in his atonement for healing, I might not be healed. This is just brilliant. I never would have come up with this on my own.

Pastor: If you have been to seminary, you would understand.

Christian: I am sure, reverend, then I would be smart like you.