Well, I Am Now a False Teacher and Heretic

I had a rather strange encounter this morning. I had received a phone call from someone who was having a major life crisis and they asked if I could meet them. We agreed to meet in a restaurant close to her home and were having coffee and talking about her situation. This woman is not a professing Christian, but does have some background in church. I was trying to give her some sound advice to her situation but was stressing to her that her real need was Jesus. She had many questions and I was trying to answer them for her and was giving her scripture to back up what I was saying. She told me that she had a difficult time understanding the Bible. I had my iPad with me and began to read her some of the same scripture passages from the Contemporary English Translation. She really liked that and said she could comprehend it much better. I helped her to download that Bible version on her phone that she would have it and we talked for awhile longer and I prayed with her before she left.  As I was getting ready to leave, an elderly man stopped me and asked if I could spare a few minutes. I could tell by his tone that he was, lets just say, "less than happy." I agreed, got myself another cup of coffee and sat down with him and his wife praying under my breath that God would help me because I could just sense this was not going to be pleasant. I was right. 

The man started in with, "I know you were trying to help that young lady, but you were damning her soul with that newfangled Bible you were reading. That's demonic and you are deceived!"  I just let him go on for a little bit as he gave me a lecture for several minutes how that the King James Version of the Bible is the only true Bible and everything is is demonic. I have had these "discussions" many times down through the years, but some of the stuff this guy was saying took the cake.  For one thing, he told me that the KJV was the "Authorized" version. (Stressing "AUTHORIZED") I said, "Yeah; so?" He said, "That's blasphemy!"  I asked, "What is?" He went into a rage that I was mocking what God had authorized.  I said to him "Sir, you do realize that it was not God who authorized the KJV, but it was King James who authorized the translation. Right?"  I thought he was gonna climb out of his skin right there in Hardees! I showed him in his own Bible what I was talking about and he accused me of being "a pawn of Satan out to deceive the true church." I should have left right there... but I didn't. I asked him if he thought that the King James Version was the only true Bible and he said "absolutely, I do!"  So I pointed across the room to some people who were Hispanic and I asked him what they were to read? He told me they needed to learn English like God intended. I was blown away. So I asked him about people in Russia. He said they needed to learn English. So I asked him if what He was saying to me was that God only spoke Sixteen hundreds English, and he said that was a fact. So I asked him if that was what God spoke, then why didn't Jesus speak it?  He screamed, "He did! Can't you read the Bible?" 

At this point I was in uncharted waters. I've never had anyone in 30 years of ministry try to argue that one with me before. I could not let it go. I just had to ask. I asked him if he was telling me that all the people in Biblical times spoke English and he said, "Sonny, it's in the Bible! If you'd stop listening to these newfangled teachers and put your nose in the Bible, you might know a thing or two!"  I knew this was a hopeless cause at this point, so I told him that I appreciated his concern, but I was just fine believing what I believed and wished them both a fine day. As I walked away he said, "You are going to burn in Hell for your Bible twisting ways young man! Repent!"

I truly just don't even know what to say.