Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, I write to you not as an adversary, but as a fellow laborer deeply committed to the truth of God’s Word. I recognize your fervent desire to honor Scripture, your reverence for the sacred text, and your passion to uphold its authority. Many of you champion the Textus Receptus and the King James Version with sincere conviction, driven by a desire to preserve the purity of God’s revelation. For this, I commend your zeal. Yet today, I appeal to you in the spirit of love and humility, urging reflection on whether our pursuit of textual perfection might unintentionally fracture the very body Christ died to unite.
Our Lord Jesus prayed with anguish, “That they all may be one… that the world may believe” (John 17:21). His heart aches when His children divide over secondary matters. The apostle Paul implores us to “keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3), reminding us that love, not doctrinal precision alone, is the mark of discipleship (John 13:35). Let us ask ourselves: Does our insistence on one translation foster this unity, or does it breed pride, suspicion, and strife? Even the apostle Peter, writing of Paul’s divinely inspired letters, acknowledged that some truths are “hard to understand” (2 Peter 3:16)—yet he called for grace, not division.
Dear friends, let us tremble at the warning of Isaiah 29:13: “Their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men.” When we elevate a translation—however venerable—above the living Word Himself, we risk replacing reverence for God with loyalty to human tradition. The Pharisees clung fiercely to their interpretations, yet missed the Messiah in their midst. Could we, in our zeal for textual purity, similarly obscure the gospel’s simplicity? The KJV is a priceless gift to the church, but it is not an idol. Let us worship the God of the Word, not the words alone.
Throughout history, God has used diverse translations to spread His truth. The Septuagint carried the Old Testament to Greek-speaking Jews. Luther’s Bible ignited the Reformation. Tyndale’s work laid the foundation for the KJV itself. Even the Textus Receptus you cherish was compiled by Erasmus—a man who prayed over his manuscripts despite their imperfections. If God could use these “flawed” tools to transform nations, might He not also work through modern translations to reach hearts today? Let us trust the Spirit’s power to transcend human limitations (2 Corinthians 3:6).
To leaders who’ve sown discord: I urge you, in grace and mercy, to repent. When we condemn fellow believers over translations, we grieve the Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). When we label others “unfaithful” for reading the ESV, NIV, or NASB, we forget that “the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). Let us lay down the sword of judgment and take up the towel of service (John 13:14). Does not James warn that “the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and open to reason” (James 3:17)? Let our debates be seasoned with Christlike humility.
Beloved, the fear of the Lord is not merely about perfect manuscripts—it is about hearts transformed by grace. Let us major on the majors: the gospel of Christ crucified, the call to holiness, and the command to love. May we stand shoulder to shoulder with those who confess Christ as Lord, whether they read the KJV, CSB, or Swahili Bible. Let our legacy be one of unity, not division; of love, not suspicion. As the KJV itself declares: “Above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness” (Colossians 3:14).
With hope in our Unifier,
Reverend So and So
A Fellow Servant in Christ
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