ARTHUR W. PINK
CHAPTER SEVEN: THE WONDERFUL UNITY OF THE
BIBLE ATTESTS ITS DIVINE AUTHORSHIP
The manner in which the Bible has been
produced argues against its unity. The Bible
was penned on two continents, written in
three languages, and its composition and
compilation extended through the slow
progress of sixteen centuries. The various
parts of the Bible were written at different
times and under the most varying
circumstances. Parts of it were written in
tents, deserts, cities, palaces and
dungeons; in times of imminent danger and in
seasons of ecstatic joy. Among its writers
were judges, kings, priests, prophets,
patriarchs, prime ministers, herdsmen,
scribes, soldiers, physicians and fishermen.
Yet despite these varying circumstances,
conditions and workmen, the Bible is one
Book, behind its many parts there is an
unmistakable organic unity. It contains one
system of doctrine, one code of ethics, one
plan of salvation and one rule of faith.
Now if forty different men were selected
today from such varying stations and
callings of life as to include clerks,
rulers, politicians, judges, clergy,
doctors, farm laborers and fishermen, and
each was asked to contribute a chapter for
some book on theology or church government,
when their several contributions were
collected and bound together, would there be
any unity about them, could that book truly
be said to be one book; or would not their
different productions vary so much in
literary value, diction and matter as to be
merely a heterogeneous mass, a miscellaneous
collection? Yet we do not find this to be
the case in connection with God’s Book.
Although the Bible is a volume of sixty-six
Books, written by forty different men,
treating of such a large variety of themes
as to cover nearly the whole range of human
inquiry, we find it is one Book, the Book
(not the books), the Bible.
Further; if we were to select specimens of
literature from the third, fifth, tenth,
fifteenth and twentieth centuries of the
Christian era and were to bind them
together, what unity and harmony should we
find in such a collection? Human writers
reflect the spirit of their own day and
generation and the compositions of men
living amid widely differing influences and
separated by centuries of time have little
or nothing in common with each other. Yet
although the earliest portions of the Sacred
Canon date back to at least the fifteenth
century, B. C., while the writings of John
were not completed till the close of the
first century, A. D., nevertheless, we find
a perfect harmony throughout the Scriptures
from the first verse in Genesis to the last
verse in Revelation. The great ethical and
spiritual lessons presented in the Bible, by
whoever taught, agree.
The more one really studies the Bible the
more one is convinced that behind the many
human mouths there is One overruling,
controlling Mind. Imagine forty persons of
different nationalities, possessing various
degrees of musical culture visiting the
organ of some cathedral and at long
intervals of time, and without any collusion
whatever, striking sixty-six different
notes, which when combined yielded the theme
of the grandest oratorio ever heard: would
it not show that behind these forty
different men there was one presiding mind,
one great Tone master? As we listen to some
great orchestra, with an immense variety of
instruments playing their different parts,
but producing melody and harmony, we realize
that at the back of these many musicians
there is the personality and genius of the
composer. And when we enter the halls of the
Divine Academy and listen to the heavenly
choirs singing the Song of Redemption, all
in perfect accord and unison, we know that
it is God Himself who has written the music
and put this song into their mouths.
We now submit two illustrations which
demonstrate the unity of the Holy
Scriptures. Certain grand conceptions run
through the entire Bible like a cord on
which are strung so many precious pearls.
First and foremost among them is the Divine
Plan of Redemption. Just as the scarlet
thread runs through all the cordage of the
British Navy, so a crimson aura surrounds
every page of God’s Word.
In the Scriptures the Plan of Redemption is
central and fundamental. In Genesis we have
recorded the Creation and Fall of man to
show that he has the capacity for and is in
need of redemption. Next we find the Promise
of the Redeemer, for man requires to have
before him the hope and expectation of a
Saviour. Then follows an elaborate system of
sacrifices and offerings and these represent
pictorially the nature of redemption and the
condition under which salvation is realized.
At the commencement of the New Testament we
have the four Gospels and they set forth the
Basis of Redemption, namely, the
Incarnation, Life, Death, Resurrection and
Ascension of the Redeemer. Next comes the
Book of the Acts which illustrates again and
again the Power of Redemption, showing that
it is adequate to work its great results in
the salvation of both Jew and Gentile.
Finally, in the Revelation, we are shown the
ultimate triumphs of redemption, the Goal of
Salvation - the redeemed dwelling with God
in perfect union and communion. Thus we see
that though a large number of human media
were employed in the writing of the Bible,
yet their productions are not independent of
each other, but are complementary and
supplementary parts of one great whole; that
one sublime truth is common to them all,
namely, man’s need of redemption and God’s
provision of a Redeemer. And the only
explanation of this fact is, that “All
Scripture is given by inspiration of God.”
Secondly; among all the many personalities
presented in the Bible, we find that one
stands out above all others, not merely
prominent but preeminent. Just as in the
scene unveiled in the fifth chapter of the
Revelation we find the Lamb in the center of
the heavenly throngs, so we find that in the
Scriptures also, the Lord Jesus Christ is
accorded the place which alone befits His
unique Person. Considered from one
standpoint the Scriptures are really the
biography of the Son of God.
In the Old Testament we have the Promise of
our Lord’s Incarnation and Mediatorial work.
In the Gospels we have the Proclamation of
His Mission and the Proofs of His Messianic
claims and authority. In the Acts we have a
demonstration of His saving Power and the
execution of His missionary Program. In the
Epistles we find an exposition and
amplification of His Precepts for the
education of His People. While in the
Apocalypse we behold the unveiling or
Presentation of His Person and the
Preparation of the earth for His Presence.
The Bible is therefore seen to be peculiarly
the Book of Jesus Christ. Christ not only
testified to the Scriptures but each section
of the Scriptures testify of Him. Every page
of the Holy Book has stamped upon it His
photograph and every chapter bears His
autograph. He is its one great theme, and
the only explanation of this fact is that,
the Holy Spirit superintended the work of
each and every writer of the Scriptures.
The unity of the Scriptures is further to be
seen on the fact that they are entirely free
from any real contradictions. Though
different writers often described the same
incidents - as for example the four
evangelists recording the facts relating to
our Lord’s ministry and redemptive work -
and though there is considerable variety in
the narrations of these, yet there are no
real discrepancies. The harmony existing
between them does not appear on the surface,
but, often, is only discovered by protracted
study, though it is there nevertheless.
Moreover, there is perfect agreement of
doctrine between all the writers in the
Bible. The teaching of the prophets and the
teaching of the Apostles on the great truths
of God’s righteousness, the demands of His
holiness, the utter ruin of man, the
exceeding sinfulness of sin, and the way of
salvation, is entirely harmonious. This
might appear a thing easily effected. But
those who are acquainted with human nature,
and have read widely the writings of men,
will acknowledge that nothing but the
inspiration of the writers can explain this
fact. Nowhere can we find two uninspired
writers, however similar they may have been
in their religious sentiments, who agree in
all points of doctrine. Nay, entire
consistency of sentiment is not to be found
even in the writings of the same author at
different periods. In his later years
Spurgeon’s statement of some doctrines was
much more modified than the utterances of
his earlier days. Increasing knowledge
causes men to change their views upon many
subjects. But among the writers of Scripture
there is the most perfect harmony, because
they obtained their knowledge of truth and
duty not by the efforts of study, but from
inspiration by the Holy Spirit of God.
When therefore we find that in the
productions of forty different men there is
perfect accord and concord, unison and
unity, harmony in all their teachings, and
the same conceptions pervading all their
writings, the conclusion is irresistible
that behind their minds, and guiding their
hands, there was the master-mind of God
Himself. Does not the unity of the Bible
illustrate the Divine Inspiration of the
Bible and demonstrate the truth of its own
assertion that “God (who) at sundry times
and in divers manners spake in time past
unto the fathers by the prophets” (Heb.
1:1)?
CHAPTER EIGHT: THE MARVELOUS INFLUENCE OF
THE BIBLE DECLARES ITS SUPER-HUMAN CHARACTER
The influence of the Bible is world-wide.
Its mighty power has affected every
department of human activity. The contents
of the Scriptures have supplied themes for
the greatest poets, artists and musicians
which the world has yet produced, and have
been the mightiest factor of all in shaping
the moral progress of the race. Let us
consider a few examples of the Bible’s
influence as displayed in the various realms
of human enterprise.
Take away such sublime oratorios as “Elijah”
and “The Messiah,” and you have taken out of
the realm of music something which can never
be duplicated; destroy the countless hymns
which have drawn their inspiration from the
Scriptures and you have left us little else
worth singing. Eliminate from the
compositions of Tennyson, Wordsworth and
Carlisle every reference to the moral and
spiritual truths taught in God’s Word and
you have stripped them of their beauty and
robbed them of their fragrance. Take down
from off the walls of our best Art Galleries
those pictures which portray scenes and
incidents in the history of Israel and the
life of our Lord and you have removed the
richest gems from the crown of human genius.
Remove from our statute books every law
which is founded upon the ethical
conceptions of the Bible and you have
annihilated the greatest factor in modern
civilization. Rob our libraries of every
book which is devoted to the work of
elaborating and disseminating the precepts
and concepts of Holy Writ and you have taken
from us that which cannot be valued in
dollars and cents.
The Bible has done more for the emancipation
and civilization of the heathen than all the
forces which the human arm can wield, put
together. Someone has said, “Draw a line
around the nations which have the Bible and
you will then have divided between barbarism
and civilization, between thrift and
poverty, between selfishness and charity,
between oppression and freedom, between life
and the shadow of death.” Even Darwin had to
concede the miraculous element in the
triumphs of the missionaries of the cross.
Here are two or three men who land on a
savage island. Its inhabitants posses no
literature and have no written language.
They regard the white man as their enemy and
have no desire to be shown “the error of
their ways.” They are cannibals by instinct
and little better than the brute beasts in
their habits of life. The missionaries who
have entered their midst have no money with
which to buy their friendship, no army to
compel their obedience and no merchandise to
stir their avarice. Their only weapon is
“the Sword of the Spirit,” their only
capital “the unsearchable riches of Christ,”
their only offer the invitation of the
Gospel. Yet somehow they succeed, and
without the shedding of any blood gain the
victory. In a few short years naked savagery
is changed to the garb of civilization, lust
is transformed into purity, cruelty is now
kindness, avarice has become unselfishness,
and where before vindictiveness existed
there is now to be seen meekness and the
spirit of loving self-sacrifice. And this
has been accomplished by the Bible! This
miracle is still being repeated in every
part of the earth! What other book, or
library of books, could work such a result?
Is it not evident to all that the Book which
does exert such a unique and unrivaled
influence must be vitalized by the life of
God Himself?
This wonderful characteristic, namely the
unique influence of the Bible, is rendered
the more remarkable when we take into
account the antiquity of the Scriptures! The
last Books which were added to the Sacred
Canon are now more than eighteen hundred
years old, yet the workings of the Bible are
as mighty in their effects today as they
were in the first century of the Christian
era.
The power of man’s books soon wane and
disappear. With but few exceptions the
productions of the human intellect enjoy a
brief existence. As a general rule the
writings of man within fifty years of their
first public appearance lie untouched on the
top shelves of our libraries. Man’s writings
are like himself - dying creatures. Man
comes onto the age of this world, plays his
part in the drama of life, influences the
audience while he is acting, but is
forgotten as soon as the curtain falls upon
his brief career; so it is with his
writings. While they are fresh and new they
amuse, interest or instruct as the wise may
be, and then die a natural death. Even the
few exceptions to this rule only exert a
very limited influence, their power is
circumscribed; they are unread by the great
majority, yea, are unknown to the biggest
portion of our race. But how different with
God’s Book! The written Word, like the
Living Word, is “The same yesterday, and
today, and for ever,” and unlike any other
book it has made its way into all countries
and speaks with equal clearness, directness
and force to all men in their mother tongue.
The Bible never becomes antiquated, its
vitality never diminishes and its influence
is more irresistible and universal today
than it was two thousands years ago. Such
facts as these declare with no uncertain
voice that the Bible is endued with the same
Divine life and energy as its Author, for in
no other way can we account for its
marvelous influence through the centuries
and its mighty power upon the world.
CHAPTER NINE: THE MIRACULOUS POWER OF THE
BIBLE SHOWS FORTH THAT ITS INSPIRER IS THE
ALMIGHTY
I. The Power of God’s Word to Convict Men of
Sin.
In Hebrews 4:12 we have a Scripture which
draws attention to this peculiar
characteristic of the Bible - “For the Word
of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper
than any two edged sword, piercing even to
the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and
of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner
of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
The writings of men may sometimes stir the
emotions, search the conscience, and
influence the human will, but in a manner
and degree possessed by no other book the
Bible convicts men of their guilt and lost
estate. The Word of God is the Divine
mirror, for in it man reads the secrets of
his own guilty soul and sees the vileness of
his own evil nature. In a way absolutely
peculiar to themselves, the Scriptures
discern the thoughts and intents of the
heart and reveal to men the fact that they
are lost sinners and in the presence of a
Holy God.
Some thirty years ago there resided in one
of the Temples of Thibet a Buddhist priest
who had conversed with no Christian
missionary, had heard nothing about the
cross of Christ, and had never seen a copy
of the Word of God. One day while searching
for something in the temple, he came across
a transcription of Matthew’s Gospel, which
years before had been left there by a native
who had received it from some traveling
missionary. His curiosity aroused, the
Buddhist priest commenced to read it, but
when he reached the eighth verse in the
fifth chapter he paused and pondered over
it: “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they
shall see God.” Although he knew nothing
about the righteousness of his Maker,
although he was quite ignorant concerning
the demands of God’s holiness, yet he was
there and then convicted of his sins, and a
work of Divine grace commenced in his soul.
Month after month went by and each day he
said to himself, “I shall never see God, for
I am impure in heart.” Slowly but surely the
work of the Holy Spirit deepened within him
until he saw himself as a lost sinner; vile,
guilty, and undone.
After continuing for more than a year in
this miserable condition the priest one day
heard that a “foreign devil” was visiting a
town nearby and selling books which spoke
about God. The same night the Buddhist
priest fled from the temple and journeyed to
the town where the missionary was residing.
On reaching his destination he sought out
the missionary and at once said to him, “Is
it true that only those who are pure in
heart will see God?” “Yes,” replied the
missionary, “but the same Book which tells
you that, also tells you how you may obtain
a pure heart,” and then he talked to him
about our Lord’s atoning work and how that
“the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth
us from all sin.” Quickly the light of God
flooded the soul of the Buddhist priest and
he found the peace which “passeth all
understanding.” Now what other book in the
world outside of the Bible, contains a
sentence or even a chapter which, without
the aid of any human commentator, is capable
of convincing and convicting a heathen that
he is a lost sinner? Does not the fact of
the miraculous power of the Bible, which has
been illustrated by thousands of fully
authenticated cases similar to the above,
declare that the Scriptures are the inspired
Word of God, vested with the same might as
their Omnipotent Author?
II. The Power of God’s Word to Deliver Men
From Sin.
A single incident which was brought before
the notice of the writer must suffice to
illustrate the above mentioned truth.
Some forty years ago a Christian gentleman
stood upon the quay of the Liverpool docks
distributing tracts to the sailors. In the
course of his work he handed one to a man
who was just embarking on a voyage to China,
and with an oath the sailor took it,
crumpled it up and thrust it into his
pocket. Some three weeks after, this sailor
was down in his cabin and needing a “spell”
with which to light his pipe felt in his
pocket for the necessary paper and drew out
the little tract which he had received in
Liverpool. On recognizing it he uttered a
terrible oath and tore the paper in pieces.
One small fragment adhered to his tarry hand
and glancing at it he saw these words,
“Prepare to meet thy God.” When relating the
incident to the writer he said, “It was at
that moment as though a sword had pierced my
heart.” “Prepare to meet thy God” rang again
and again in his ears, and with a strickened
conscience he was tormented about his lost
condition. Presently he retired for the
night, but sleep he could not. In
desperation he got up and dressed and went
above and paced the deck. Hour after hour he
walked up and down, but try as he might he
could not dismiss from his mind the words,
“Prepare to meet thy God.” For years this
man had been a helpless slave in the grip of
strong drink and knowing his weakness he
said: “How can I prepare to meet God, when I
am so powerless to overcome my besetting
sin?” Finally, he got down upon his knees
and cried: “O God, have mercy on me, save me
from my sins, deliver me from the power of
drink and help me prepare for the meeting
with Thee.” More than thirty-five years
after, this converted sailor told the writer
that from the night he had read that
quotation from God’s Word, had prayed that
prayer, and had accepted Christ as his
Saviour from sin, he had never tasted a
single drop of intoxicating liquor and had
never once had a desire to craving for
strong drink. How marvelous is the power of
God’s Word to deliver men from sin! Truly,
as Dr. Torrey has well said, “A Book which
will lift men up to God must have come down
from God.”
III. The Power of God’s Word Over the Human
Affections.
In thousands of instances men and women have
been stretched upon the “rack,” torn limb
from limb, thrown to the wild beasts, and
have been burned at the stake rather than
abandon the Bible and promise never again to
read its sacred pages. For what other book
would men and women suffer and die?
More than two hundred years ago when a copy
of the Bible was much more expensive than it
is in these days, a peasant who lived in the
County of Cork, Ireland, heard that a
gentleman in his neighborhood had a copy of
the New testament in the Irish language.
Accordingly he visited this man and asked to
be allowed to see it, and after looking at
it with great interest begged to be allowed
to copy it. Knowing how poor the peasant was
the gentleman asked him where he would get
his paper and ink from? “I will buy them,”
was the reply. “And where will you find a
place to write?” “If your honor will allow
me the use of your hall, I’ll come after my
day’s work is over and copy a little at a
time in the evenings.” The gentleman was so
moved at this man’s intense love the the
Bible that he gave him the use of his hall
and light and provided him with paper and
ink as well. True to his purpose and
promise, the peasant labored night after
night until he had written out a complete
copy of the New Testament. Afterwards a
printed copy was given to him, and the
written Testament is preserved by the
British and Foreign Bible Society. Again, we
ask, what other book in the world could
obtain such a hold upon the affections and
win such love and reverence, and produce
such self-sacrificing toil?
CHAPTER TEN: THE COMPLETENESS OF THE BIBLE
DEMONSTRATES ITS DIVINE PERFECTION
The antiquity of the Scriptures argues
against their completeness. The compilation
of the Bible was completed more than
eighteen centuries ago, while the greater
part of the world was yet uncivilized. Since
John added the capstone to the Temple of
God’s Truth there have been many wonderful
discoveries and inventions, yet there have
been no additions whatever to the moral and
spiritual truths contained in the Bible.
Today, we know no more about the origin of
life, the nature of the soul, the problem of
suffering or the future destiny of man than
did those who had the Bible eighteen hundred
years ago. Through the centuries of the
Christian era, man has succeeded in learning
many of the secrets of nature and has
harnessed her forces to his service, but in
the actual revelation of supernatural truth
nothing new has been discovered. Human
writers cannot supplement the Divine records
for they are complete, entire, “wanting
nothing.”
The Bible needs no addendum. There is more
than sufficient in God’s Word to meet the
temporal and spiritual needs of all mankind.
Though written two thousand years ago, the
Bible is still “up-to-date,” and answers
every vital question which concerns the soul
of man in our day. The Book of Job was
written three thousand years before Columbus
discovered America, yet it is as fresh to
the heart of man now as though it had only
been published ten years ago. The majority
of the Psalms were written two thousand five
hundred years before President Wilson was
born, yet in our day and generation they are
perfectly new and fresh to the human soul.
Such facts as these can only be explained on
the hypothesis that the Eternal God is the
Author of the Bible.
The adaptation of the Scriptures is another
illustration of their wonderful
completeness. To young or old, feeble or
vigorous, ignorant or cultured, joyful or
sorrowful, perplexed or enlightened,
Orientalist or Ocidentalist, saint or
sinner, the Bible is a source of blessing,
will minister to every need, and is able to
supply every variety of want. And the Bible
is the only Book in the world of which this
can be predicted. The writings of Plato may
be a source of interest and instruction to
the philosophic mind, but they are
unsuitable for placing in the hands of a
child. Not so with the Bible: the youngest
may profit from a perusal of the Sacred
Page. The writings of Jerome or Twain may
please, for an hour, the man of humor, but
they will bring no balm to the sore heart
and will speak no words of comfort and
consolation to those passing through the
waters of bereavement. How different with
the Scriptures - never has a heavy heart
turned in vain to God’s Word for peace! The
writings of Shakespeare, Goethe, and
Schiller may be of profit to the Western
mind, but they convey little of value to the
Easterner. Not so with God’s Word; it may be
translated into any language and will speak
with equal clearness, directness and power
to all men in their mother tongue.
To quote Dr. Burrell: “ In every heart, down
below all other wants and aspirations, there
is a profound longing to know the way of
spiritual life. The world is crying, “What
shall I do to be saved?” Of all books the
Bible is the only one that answers that
universal cry. There are other books which
set forth morality with more or less
correctness; but there is none other that
suggests a blotting out of the record of the
mislived past or an escape from the penalty
of the broken law. There are other books
that have poetry; but there is none that
sings the song of salvation or gives a
troubled soul the peace that floweth like a
river. There are other books that have
eloquence; but there is no other that
enables us to behold God Himself with
outstretched hands pleading with men to turn
and live. There are other books that have
science; but there is none other that can
give the soul a definite assurance of the
future life, so that it can say, “I know
whom I have believed, and am persuaded that
He is able to keep that which I have
committed unto Him against that day.”
Though other books contain valuable truths,
they also have an admixture of error; other
books contain part of the truth, the Bible
alone contains all the truth. Nowhere in the
writings of human genius can a single moral
or spiritual truth be found, which is not
contained in substance in the Bible. Examine
the writings of the ancients; ransack the
libraries of Egypt, Assyria, Persia, India,
Greece, and Rome; search the contents of the
Koran, the Zend - Avesta, or the
Bagavad-Gita; gather together the most
exalted spiritual thoughts and the sublimest
moral conceptions contained in them and you
will find that each and all are duplicated
in the Bible! Dr. Torrey has said, “If every
book but the Bible were destroyed not a
single spiritual truth would be lost.” In
the small compass of God’s Word there is
stored more wisdom which will endure the
test of eternity than the sum total of
thinking done by man since his creation. Of
all the books in the world, the Bible alone
can truly be said to be complete, and this
characteristic of the Scriptures is another
of the many lines of demonstration which
witnesses to the Divine inspiration of the
Bible.
CHAPTER ELEVEN: THE INDESTRUCTIBILITY OF THE
BIBLE IS A PROOF THAT ITS AUTHOR IS DIVINE
The survival of the Bible through the ages
is very difficult to explain if it is not in
truth the Word of God. Books are like men -
dying creatures. A very small percentage of
books survive more than twenty years, a yet
smaller percentage last a hundred years and
only a very insignificant fraction represent
those which have lived a thousand years.
Amid the wreck and ruin of ancient
literature the Holy Scriptures stand out
like the last survivor of an otherwise
extinct race, and the very fact of the
Bible’s continued existence is an indication
that like its Author it is indestructible.
When we bear in mind the fact that the Bible
has been the special object of never ending
persecution the wonder of the Bible’s
survival is changed into a miracle. Not only
has the Bible been the most intensely loved
Book in all the world, but it has also been
the most bitterly hated. Not only has the
Bible received more veneration and adoration
than any other book, but it has also been
the object of more persecution and
opposition. For two thousand years man’s
hatred of the Bible has been persistent,
determined, relentless and murderous. Every
possible effort has been made to undermine
faith in the inspiration and authority of
the Bible and innumerable enterprises have
been undertaken with the determination to
consign it to oblivion. Imperial edicts have
been issued to the effect that every known
copy of the Bible should be destroyed, and
when this measure failed to exterminate and
annihilate God’s Word then commands were
given that every person found with a copy of
the Scriptures in his possession should be
put to death. The very fact that the Bible
has been so singled out for such relentless
persecution causes us to wonder at such a
unique phenomenon.
Although the Bible is the best Book in the
world yet is has produced more enmity and
opposition than has the combined contents of
all our libraries. Why should this be?
Clearly because the Scriptures convict men
of their guilt and condemn them for their
sins! Political and ecclesiastical powers
have united in the attempt to put the Bible
out of existence, yet their concentrated
efforts have utterly failed. After all the
persecution which has assailed the Bible, it
is, humanly speaking, a wonder that there is
any Bible left at all. Every engine of
destruction which human philosophy, science,
force, and hatred could bring against a book
has been brought against the Bible, yet it
stands unshaken and unharmed today. When we
remember that no army has defended the Bible
and no king has ever ordered its enemies to
be extirpated, our wonderment increases. At
times nearly all the wise and great of the
earth have been pitted together against the
Bible, while only a few despised ones have
honored and revered it. The cities of the
ancients were lighted with bonfires made of
Bibles, and for centuries only those in
hiding dare read it. How then, can we
account for the survival of the Bible in the
face of such bitter persecution? The only
solution is to be found in the promise of
God. “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but
My Words shall not pass away.”
The story of the Bible’s persecution is an
arresting one. During the first three
centuries of the Christian era the Roman
Emperors sought to destroy God’s Word. One
of them, named Diocletian, believed that he
had succeeded. He had slain so many
Christians and destroyed so many Bibles,
that when the lovers of the Bible remained
quiet for a season and kept in hiding, he
imagined that he had made an end of the
Scriptures. So elated was he at this
achievement, he ordered a medal to be struck
inscribed with the words, “The Christian
religion is destroyed and the worship of the
gods restored.” One wonders what that
emperor would think if he returned to this
earth today and found that more had been
written about the Bible than about any other
thousand books put together, and that the
Bible which enshrines the Christian faith is
now translated into more than four hundred
languages and is being sent out to every
part of the earth!
Centuries after the persecution by the Roman
Emperors, when the Roman Catholic Church
obtained command of the city of Rome, the
Pope and his priests took up the old quarrel
against the Bible. The Holy Scriptures were
taken away from the people, copies of the
Bible were forbidden to be purchased and all
who were found with a copy of God’s Word in
their possession were tortured and killed.
For centuries the Roman Catholic Church
bitterly persecuted the Bible and it was not
until the time of the Reformation at the
close of the sixteenth century that the Word
of God was again given to the masses in
their own tongue.
Even in our day the persecution of the Bible
still continues, though the method of attack
is changed. Much of our modern scholarship
is engaged in the work of seeking to destroy
faith in the Divine inspiration and
authority of the Bible. In many of our
seminaries the rising generation of the
clergy are taught that Genesis is a book of
myths, that much of the teaching of the
Pentateuch is immoral, that the historical
records of the Old Testament are unreliable
and that the whole Bible is man’s creation
rather than God’s revelation. And so the
attack on the Bible is being perpetuated.
Now suppose there was a man who had lived
upon this earth for eighteen hundred years,
that this man had oftentimes been thrown
into the sea and yet could not be drowned;
that he had frequently been cast before wild
beasts who were unable to devour him; that
he had many times been made to drink deadly
poisons which never did him any harm; that
he had often been bound in iron chains and
locked in prison dungeons, yet he had always
been able to throw off the chains and escape
from his captivity; that he had repeatedly
been hanged, till his enemies thought him
dead, yet when his body was cut down he
sprang to his feet and walked away as though
nothing had happened; that hundreds of times
he had been burned at the stake, till there
seemed to be nothing left of him, yet as
soon as the fires were out he leaped up from
the ashes as well and as vigorous as ever -
but we need not expand this idea any
further; such a man would be super-human, a
miracle of miracles. Yet this is exactly how
we should regard the Bible! This is
practically the way in which the Bible has
been treated. It has been burned, drowned,
chained, put in prison, and torn to pieces,
yet never destroyed!
No other book has provoked such fierce
opposition as the Bible, and its
preservation is perhaps the most startling
miracle connected with it. But two thousand
five hundred years ago God declared, “The
grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the
Word of our God shall abide for ever.” Just
as the three Hebrews passed safely through
the fiery furnace of Nebuchadnezzar unharmed
and unscorched, so the Bible has emerged
from the furnace of satanic hatred and
assault without even the smell of fire upon
it! Just as an earthly parent treasures and
lays by the letters received from his child,
so our Heavenly Father has protected and
preserved the Epistles of love written to
His children.
CHAPTER TWELVE: INWARD CONFIRMATION OF THE
VERACITY OF THE SCRIPTURES
We are living in a day when confidence is
lacking; when skepticism and agnosticism are
becoming more and more prevalent; and when
doubt and uncertainty are made the badges of
culture and wisdom. Everywhere men are
demanding proof. Hypotheses and speculations
fail to satisfy: the heart cannot rest
content until it is able to say, “I know.”
The demand of the human mind is for definite
knowledge and positive assurance. And God
has condescended to meet this need.
One thing which distinguishes Christianity
from all human systems is that it deals with
absolute certainties. Christians are people
who know. And well it is that they do. The
issues concerning life and death are so
stupendous, the stake involved in the
salvation of the soul is so immense, that we
cannot afford to be uncertain here. None but
a fool would attempt to cross a frozen river
until he was sure that the ice was strong
enough to bear him. Dare we then face the
river of death with nothing but a vague and
uncertain hope to rest upon? Personal
assurance is the crying need of the hour.
There can be no peace and joy until this is
attained. A parent who is in suspense
concerning the safety of his child, is in
agony of soul. A criminal who lies in the
condemned cell hoping for a reprieve, is in
mental torment until his pardon arrives. And
a professed Christian who knows not whether
he shall ultimately land in Heaven or Hell,
is a pitiable object.
But we say again, real Christians are people
who know. They know that their Redeemer
liveth (John 19:25). They know that they
have passed from death unto life (I John
3:14). They know that all things work
together for good (Rom. 8:28). They know
that if their earthly house of this
tabernacle were dissolved, they have a
building of God, a house not made with
hands, eternal in the heavens (II Cor. 5:1).
They know that one day they shall see Christ
face to face and be made like Him (I John
3:2). In the meantime they know whom they
have believed, and are persuaded that He is
able to keep that which they have committed
unto Him against that day (II Tim. 1:12). If
it be asked, How do they know, the answer
is, they have proven for themselves the
trustworthiness of God’s Word which affirms
these things.
The force of this present argument will
appeal to none save those who have an
experimental acquaintance with it. In
addition to all the external proofs that we
have for the Divine Inspiration of the
Scriptures, the believer has a source of
evidence to which no unbeliever has access.
In his own experience the Christian finds a
personal confirmation of the teachings of
God’s Word. To the man whose life which,
judged by the standards of the world,
appears morally upright, the statement that
“the heart is deceitful above all things and
desperately wicked” seems to be the gloomy
view of a pessimist, or a description which
has no general application. But the believer
has found that “the entrance of Thy words
giveth light” (Ps. 119:30), and in the light
of God’s Word and beneath the illuminating
power of God’s Spirit who indwells him, he
has discovered there is within him a sink of
iniquity. To natural wisdom, which is fond
of philosophizing about the freedom of the
human will, the declaration of Christ that
“No man can come to Me, except the Father
which hath sent Me, draw him” (John 6:44)
seems a hard saying; but, to the one who has
been taught by the Holy Spirit something of
the binding power of sin, such a declaration
has been verified in his own experience. To
the one who has done his best to live up to
the light which he had, and has sought to
develop an honest and amiable character,
such a statement as, “All our
righteousnesses are as filthy rags,” seems
unduly harsh and severe; but to the man who
has received “an unction from the Holy One,”
his very best works appear to him sordid and
sinful; and such they are. The Apostle’s
confession that “in me (that is, in my
flesh,) dwelleth no good thing” (Rom. 7:18)
which once appeared absurd to him, the
believer now acknowledges to be his own
condition. The description of the Christian
which is found in Romans ... is something
which none but a regenerate person can
understand. The things there mentioned as
belonging to the same man at the same time,
seem foolish to the wise of this world; but
the believer realizes completely the truth
of it in his own life.
The promises of God can be tested: their
trustworthiness is capable of verification.
In the Gospel Christ promises to give rest
to all those who are weary and heavy laden
that come unto Him. He declares that He came
to seek and to save that which was lost. He
affirms that “whosoever drinketh of the
Water that I shall give him shall never
thirst.” In short, the Gospel presents the
Lord Jesus Christ as a Saviour. His claim to
save can be put to the proof. Yea, it has
been, and that by a multitude of individuals
that no man can number. Many of these are
living on earth today. Every individual who
has read in the Scriptures the invitations
that are addressed to sinners, and has
personally appropriated them to himself, can
say n the words of the well-known hymn: -
“I came to Jesus as I was.
Weary and worn and sad;
I found in Him a resting place
And He has made me glad.”
Should these pages be read by a skeptic who,
despite his present unbelief, has a sincere
and earnest desire to know the truth, he,
too may put God’s Word to the test and share
the experience described above. It is
written, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved,” - believe, my
reader, and thou, too, shalt be saved.
“We speak that we do know, and testify that
we have seen” (John 3:11). The Bible
testifies to the fact that “all have sinned
and come short of the glory of God,” and our
own conscience confirms it. The Bible
declares that it is “not by works of
righteousness which we have down, but
according to His mercy” God saves us; and
the Christian has proven that he was unable
to do anything to win God’s esteem: but,
having cried the prayer of the Publican, he
has gone down to his house justified. The
Bible teaches that “if any man be in Christ,
he is a new creature: old things are passed
away; behold, all things are become new;”
and the believer has found that the things
he once hated he now loves, and that the
things he hitherto counted gain he now
regards as dross. The Bible witnesses to the
fact that we “are kept by the power of God
thro’ faith,” and the believer has proven
that though the world, the flesh, and the
devil are arrayed against him, yet the grace
of God is sufficient for all his need. Ask
the Christian, then, why he believes that
the Bible is the Word of God, and he will
tell you, Because it has done for me what it
professes to do (save); because I have
tested its promises for myself; because I
find its teachings verified in my own
experiences.
To the unregenerate the Bible is practically
a sealed Book. Even the cultured and
educated are unable to understand its
teachings: parts of it appear plain and
simple, but much of it is dark and
mysterious. This is exactly what the Bible
declares - “The natural man receiveth not
the things of the Spirit of God: for they
are foolishness unto him: neither can he
know them, because they are spiritually
discerned” (I Cor. 2:14). But to the man of
God it is otherwise: “He that believeth on
the Son of God hath the witness in himself”
(I John 5:10). As the Lord Jesus declared,
“If any man will do His will, he shall know
of the doctrine” (John 7:17). While the
infidel stumbles in darkness, even in the
midst of light, the believer discovers the
evidence of its truth in himself with the
clearness of a sunbeam. “For God, who
commanded the light to shine out of
darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give
the light of the knowledge of the glory of
God in the face of Jesus Christ” (II Cor.
4:6).
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: VERBAL INSPIRATION
Not only does the Bible claim to be a Divine
revelation but it also asserts that its
original manuscripts were written “not in
the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but
which the Holy Spirit teacheth” (I Cor.
2”13). The Bible nowhere claims to have been
written by inspired men - as a matter of
fact some of them were very defective
characters - Balaam for example - but it
insists that the words they uttered and
recorded were God’s words. Inspiration has
not to do with the minds of the writers (for
many of them understood not what they wrote
(I Peter 1:10-11), but with the writings
themselves. “All Scripture is given by
inspiration of God,” and “Scripture” means
“the writings.” Faith has to do with God’s
Word and not with the men who wrote it -
these are all dead long since, but their
writings remain.
A writing that is inspired by God
self-evidently implies, in the very
expression, that the words are the words of
God. To say that the inspiration of the
Scriptures applies to their concepts and not
to their words; to declare that one part of
Scripture is written with one kind or degree
of inspiration and another part with another
kind or degree, is not only destitute of any
foundation or support in the Scriptures
themselves, but is repudiated by every
statement in the Bible which bears upon the
subject now under consideration. To say that
the Bible is not the Word of God but merely
contains the Word of God is the figment of
an ill-employed ingenuity and an unholy
attempt to depreciate and invalidate the
supreme authority of the Oracles of God. All
the attempts which have been made to explain
the rationale of inspiration have done
nothing toward simplifying the subject,
rather have they tended to mystify. It is no
easier to conceive how ideas without words
could be imparted, than that Divinely
revealed truths should be communicated by
words. Instead of being diminished the
difficulty is increased. It were as logical
to talk of a sum without figures or a tune
without notes, as of a Divine revelation and
communication without words. Instead of
speculation our duty is to receive and
believe what the Scriptures say of
themselves.
What the Bible teaches about its own
inspiration is a matter purely of Divine
testimony, and our business is simply to
receive the testimony and not to speculate
about or seek to pry into its modus
operandi. Inspiration is as much a matter of
Divine revelation as is justification by
faith. Both stand equally on the authority
of the Scriptures themselves, which must be
the final court of appeal on this subject as
on every question of revealed truth.
The teaching of the Bible concerning the
inspiration of the Scriptures is clear and
simple, and uniform throughout. Its writers
were conscious that their utterances were a
message from God in the highest meaning of
the word. “And the Lord said unto him
(Moses), Who hath made man’s mouth? or who
maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or
the blind? Have not I the Lord? Now
therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth,
and teach thee what thou shalt say” (Exod.
4:11-12). “The Spirit of the Lord spake by
me, and His word was in my tongue” (II Sam.
23:2). “Then the Lord put forth His hand,
and touched my mouth. and the Lord said unto
me, Behold, I have put My words in thy
mouth” (Jer. 1:9). The above are only a
sample of scores of similar passages which
might be sighted.
What is predicted of the Scriptures
themselves, demonstrates that they are
entirely and absolutely the Word of God.
“The law of the Lord is perfect, converting
the soul” (Ps. 19:7) - this altogether
excludes any place in the Bible for human
infirmities and imperfections. “Thy Word is
very pure” (Ps. 119:140), which cannot mean
less than that the Holy Spirit so
superintended the composition of the Bible
and so “moved” its writers that all error
has been excluded. “Thy Word is true from
the beginning” (Ps. 119:160) - how this
anticipated the assaults of the higher
critics on the Book of Genesis, particularly
on its opening chapters!
The teaching of the New Testament agrees
with what we have quoted from the Old. “Take
ye no thought how or what thing ye shall
answer, or what ye shall say: for the Holy
Spirit shall teach you in the same hour what
ye ought to say” (Luke 12:11-12), - the
disciples were the ones who spake, but it
was the Holy Spirit who “taught them what to
say.” Could any language express more
emphatically the most entire inspiration?
and, if the Holy Spirit so controlled their
utterances when in the presence of
“magistrates,” is it conceivable that He
would do less for them when they were
communicating the mind of God to all future
generations on things touching our eternal
destiny? Assuredly not. “But those things,
which God before had showed by the mouth of
all His prophets, that Christ should suffer,
He hath so fulfilled” (Acts 3:18). Here the
Holy Spirit declares thro’ Peter that it was
God who had revealed by the mouth of all His
prophets that Israel’s Messiah must suffer
before the glory should appear. “But that I
confess unto thee, that after the way which
they call heresy, so worship I the God of my
fathers, believing all things which are
written in the law and in the prophets”
(Acts 24:14). These words clearly evidence
the fact that the Apostle Paul had the
utmost confidence in the authenticity of the
entire contents of the Old Testament. “And
my speech and my preaching was not with
enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in
demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (I
Cor. 2:4). Could any man have used such
language as this unless he had been fully
conscious that he was speaking the very
words of God? “The prophecy came not at any
time by the will of man: but holy men of God
spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit”
(II Peter 1:21). Nothing could possibly be
more explicit.
Dr. Gray has strikingly and forcefully
stated the necessity of a verbally inspired
Bible in the following language: - “An
illustration the writer has often used will
help to make this clear. A stenographer in a
mercantile house was asked by his employer
to write as follows:
“Gentlemen: we misunderstood your letter and
will not fill your order.”
Imagine the employer’s surprise, however,
when a little later this was set before him
for his signature -
“Gentlemen: we misunderstood your letter and
will not fill your order.”
The mistake was only of a single letter, but
it was entirely subversive of his meaning.
And yet the thought was given clearly to the
stenographer, and the words, too, for that
matter, Moreover, the latter was capable and
faithful, but he was human, and it is human
to err. Had not his employer controlled his
expression, down to the very letter, the
thought intended to be conveyed would have
failed of utterance.” So, too, the Holy
Spirit had to superintend the writing of the
very letter of Scripture in order to
guarantee its accuracy and inerrancy.
Many proofs might be given to show the
Scriptures are verbally inspired. One line
of demonstration appears in the literal and
verbal fulfillment of many of the Old
Testament prophecies. For example, God made
known thro’ Zechariah that the price which
Judas should receive for his awful crime was
“thirty pieces of silver” (Zech. 11:12).
Here then is a clear case where God
communicated to one of the prophets not
merely an abstract concept but a specific
communication. And the above case is only
one of many.
Another evidence of verbal inspiration is to
be seen in the fact that words are used in
Scripture with the most exact precision and
discrimination. This is particularly
noticeable in connection with the Divine
titles. The names Elohim and Jehovah are
found on the pages of the Old Testament
several thousand times, but they are never
employed loosely or used alternately. Each
of these names has a definite significance
and scope, and were we to substitute the one
for the other the beauty and perfection of a
multitude of passages would be destroyed. To
illustrate: the word “God” occurs all thro’
Genesis 1, but “Lord God” in Genesis 2. Were
these two Divine titles reversed here, a
flaw and blemish would be the consequence.
“God” is the creatorial title, whereas
“Lord” implies covenant relationship and
shows God’s dealings with His own people.
Hence, in Genesis 1, “God” is used, and in
Genesis 2, “Lord God” is employed, and all
thro’ the remainder of the Old Testament
these two Divine titles are used
discriminatively and in harmony with the
meaning of their first mention. One or two
other examples must suffice. “And they went
in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of
all flesh, wherein is the breath of life.
And they that went in, went in male and
female of all flesh, as God had commanded
him” - “God” because it was the Creator
commanding, with respect to His creatures,
as such; but, in the remainder of the same
verse, we read, “and the Lord shut him in”
(Gen. 7:16), because God’s action here
toward Noah was based upon covenant
relationship. When going forth to meet
Goliath David said, “This day will the Lord
deliver thee into mine hand (because David
was in covenant relationship with Him); and
I will smite thee, and take thine head from
thee; and I will give the carcasses of the
host of the Philistines this day unto the
fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of
the earth; that all the earth (which was not
in covenant relation with Him) may know that
there is a God in Israel. And all this
assembly (which were in covenant
relationship with Him) shall know that the
Lord saveth not with sword and spear” etc.
(I Sam. 17:46-47). Once more: “And it came
to pass, when the captains of the chariots
saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, It is the
king of Israel. Therefore they compassed
about him to fight: but Jehoshaphat cried
out, and the Lord helped him; and God moved
them (the Syrians) to depart from him” (II
Chron. 18:31). And thus it is all thro’ the
Old Testament.
The above line of argument might be extended
indefinitely. There are upwards of fifty
Divine titles in the Old Testament which are
used more than once, each of which has a
definite signification, each of which has
its meaning hinted at in its first mention,
and each of which is used subsequently in
harmony with its original purport. They are
never used loosely or interchangeably. In
every place where they occur there is a
reason for each variation. Such titles are
the Most High, the Almighty, the God of
Israel, the God of Jacob, the Lord our
Righteousness, etc., etc., are not used
haphazardly, but in every case in harmony
with their original meaning and as the best
suited to the context. The same is true in
connection with the names of our Lord in the
New Testament. In some passages He is
referred to as Christ, in others as Jesus,
Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus, Lord Jesus
Christ. In every instance there is a reason
for each variation, and in every case the
Holy Spirit has seen to it that they are
employed with uniform significance. The same
is true of the various names given to the
great adversary. In some places he is termed
Satan, in others the devil etc., etc.; but
the different terms are used with unerring
precision throughout. A further illustration
is furnished by the father of Joseph. In his
earlier life he was always termed Jacob,
later he received the name of Israel, but
after this, sometimes we read of Jacob and
sometimes of Israel. Whatever is predicted
of Jacob refers to the acts of the “old
man;” whatever is postulated of Israel were
the fruits of the “new man.” When he doubted
it was Jacob who doubted, when he believed
God it was Israel who exercised faith.
Accordingly, we read, “And when Jacob had
made an end of commanding his sons, he
gathered up his feet into the bed, and
yielded up the ghost” (Gen. 49:33). But in
the next verse but one we are told, “And
Joseph commanded his servants the physicians
to embalm his father: and the physicians
embalmed Israel (Gen. 50:2)!! Here then we
see the marvelous verbal precision and
perfection of Holy Scripture.
The most convincing of all the proofs and
arguments for the verbal inspiration of the
Scriptures is the fact that the Lord Jesus
Christ regarded them and treated them as
such. He Himself submitted to their
authority. When assaulted by Satan, three
times He replied, “It is written,” and it is
particularly to be noted that the point of
each of His quotations and the force of each
reply lay in a single word - “Man shall not
live by bread alone” etc.; “Thou shalt not
tempt the Lord thy God;” “Thou shalt worship
the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou
serve.” When tempted by the Pharisees, who
asked Him, “Is it lawful for a man to put
away his wife for every cause?” He answered,
“Have ye not read?” etc. (Matt. 19:4-5). To
the Sadducees He said, “Ye do err, not
knowing the Scriptures” (Matt. 22:29). On
another occasion He accused the Pharisees of
“Making the Word of God of none effect thro’
their tradition” (Mark 7:13). On another
occasion, when speaking of the Word of God,
He declared “The Scripture cannot be broken”
(John 10:35). Sufficient has been adduced to
show that the Lord Jesus regarded the
Scriptures as the Word of God in the most
absolute sense. In view of this fact let
Christians beware of detracting in the
smallest degree from the perfect and full
inspiration of the Holy Scriptures.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: APPLICATION OF THE
ARGUMENT
What is our attitude towards God’s Word? The
knowledge that the Scriptures are inspired
by the Holy Spirit involves definite
obligations. Our conception of the authority
of the Bible determines our attitude and
measures our responsibility. If the Bible is
a Divine revelation what follows?
I. WE NEED TO SEEK GOD’S FORGIVENESS.
If it were announced upon reliable authority
that on a certain date in the near future an
angel from heaven would visit New York and
would deliver a sermon upon the invisible
world, the future destiny of man, or the
secret of deliverance from the power of sin,
what an audience he would command! There is
no building in that city large enough to
accommodate the crowd which would throng to
hear him. If upon the next day, the
newspapers were to give a verbatim report of
his discourse, how eagerly it would be read!
And yet, we have between the covers of the
Bible not merely an angelic communication
but a Divine revelation. How great then is
our wickedness if we undervalue and despise
it! And yet we do.
We need to confess to God our sin of
neglecting His Holy Word. We have time
enough - we take time - to read the writings
of fellow sinners, yet we have little or no
time for the Holy Scriptures. The Bible is a
series of Divine love letters, and yet many
of God’s people have scarcely broken the
seals. God complained of old, “I have
written to him the great things of My law,
but they were counted as a strange thing”
(Hos. 8:12). To neglect God’s gift is to
despise the Giver. To neglect God’s Word is
virtually to tell Him that He made a mistake
in being at so much trouble to communicate
it. To prefer the writings of man is to
insult the Almighty. To say that human
writings are more interesting is to impugn
the wisdom of the Most High and is a
terrible indictment against our own evil
hearts. To neglect God’s Word is to sin
against its Author, for He has commanded us
to read, study, and search it.
If the Bible is the Word of God then -
II. IT IS THE FINAL COURT OF APPEAL.
It is not a question of what I think, or of
what any one else thinks - it is, What saith
the Scriptures? It is not a matter of what
any church or creed teaches - it is, What
teaches the Bible? God has spoken, and that
ends the matter: “Forever, O Lord, Thy Word
is settled in heaven.” Therefore, it is for
me to bow to His authority, to submit to His
Word, to cease all quibbling and cry,
“Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth.”
Because the Bible is God’s Word, it is the
final court of appeal in all things
pertaining to doctrine, duty, and
deportment.
This was the position taken by our Lord
Himself. When tempted by Satan, He declined
to argue with him, He refused to overwhelm
him with the force of His superior wisdom,
He scorned to crush him with a putting forth
of His almighty power - “It is written” was
His defense for each assault. At the
beginning of His public ministry, when He
went to Nazareth where most of His thirty
years had been lived, He performed no
wonderful miracle but entered the synagogue,
read from the Prophet Isaiah and said, “This
day is this Scripture fulfilled in your
ears” (Luke 4:21). In His teaching upon the
Rich Man and Lazarus, He insisted that “If
they hear not Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded, though one
rose from the dead” (Luke 16:31) - thus
signifying that the authority of the written
Word is of greater weight and worth than the
testimony and appeal of miracles. When
vindicating before the Jews His claim of
Deity (John 5) He appealed to the testimony
of John the Baptist (vs. 32), to His own
works (vs. 36), to the Father’s own witness
- at His baptism (vs. 37), and then - as tho
they were the climax - He said - “Search the
Scriptures ** they are they which testify of
Me” (vs. 39).
This was the position taken by the Apostles.
When Peter would justify the speaking with
other tongues, he appealed to the Prophet
Joel (Acts 2:16). When seeking to prove to
the Jews that Jesus of Nazareth was their
Messiah, and that He had risen again from
the dead, he appealed to the testimony of
the Old Testament (Act 2). When Stephen made
his defense before the “counsel” he did
little more than review the teaching of
Moses and the prophets. When Saul and
Barnabas set out on their first missionary
journey they “preached the Word of God in
the synagogues of the Jews” (Acts 13:5). In
his Epistles, the Apostle continually pauses
to ask - “What saith the Scripture?” (Rom.
4:3, etc.) - if the Scripture gave a clear
utterance upon the subject under discussion
that ended the matter: against their
testimony there was no appeal.
If the Bible is the Word of God - then
III. IT IS THE ULTIMATE STANDARD FOR
REGULATING CONDUCT.
How can man be just with God? or how can he
be clean that is born of a woman? What must
I do to be saved? Where is true and lasting
peace and rest to be found? Such are some of
the inquiries made by every honest and
anxious soul. The reply is - Search the
Scriptures: Look and see. How shall I best
employ my time and talents? How shall I
discover what is well-pleasing to my Maker?
How am I to know what is the path of duty?
And again the answer is - What teaches the
Word of God?
No one who possesses a copy of the Bible can
legitimately plead ignorance of God’s will.
The Scriptures leave us without excuse. A
lamp has been provided for our feet and the
pathway of righteousness is clearly marked
out. A chart has been given to the sailors
on time’s sea, and it is their own fault if
they fail to arrive at the heavenly port. In
the day of judgment the Books will be opened
and out of these Books men will be judge,
and one of these Books will be the Bible. In
His written Word God has revealed His mind,
expressed His will, communicated His
requirements; and woe to the man or woman
who takes not the necessary time to discover
what these are.
If the Bible is the Word of God then -
IV. IT IS A SURE FOUNDATION FOR OUR FAITH.
Man craves for certainty. Speculations and
hypotheses are insufficient where eternal
issues are at stake. When I come to lay my
head upon my dying pillow, I want something
surer than a “perhaps” to rest it upon. And
thank God I have it. Where? In the Holy
Scriptures. I know that my Redeemer liveth.
I know that I have passed from death unto
life. I know that I shall be made like
Christ and dwell with Him in glory
throughout the endless ages of eternity. How
do I know? Because God’s Word says so, and I
want nothing more.
The Bible gives forth no uncertain sound. It
speaks with absolute assurance, dogmatism,
and finality. Its promises are certain for
they are promises of Him who cannot lie. Its
testimony is reliable for it is the inerrant
Word of the Living God. Its teachings are
trustworthy for they are a communication the
the Omniscient. The believer then has a sure
foundation on which to rest, an impregnable
rock on which to build his hopes. For his
present peace and for his future prospects
he has a, “Thus saith the Lord,” and that is
sufficient.
If the Bible is the Word of God then -
V. IT HAS UNIQUE CLAIMS UPON US.
A unique book deserves and demands unique
attention. Like Job, we ought to be able to
say, “I have esteemed the words of His mouth
more than my necessary food.” If history
teaches us anything at all, it teaches that
those nations which have most honored God’s
Word have been most honored by God. And what
is true of the nation is equally true of the
family and of the individual. The greatest
intellects of the ages have drawn their
inspiration from the Scripture of Truth. The
most eminent statesmen have testified to the
value and importance of Bible study.
Benjamin Franklin said: “Young man, my
advice to you is that you cultivate an
acquaintance with and firm belief in the
Holy Scriptures, for this is your certain
interest.” Thomas Jefferson gave it as his
opinion, “I have said and always will say,
that the studious perusal of the Sacred
Volume will make better citizens, better
fathers, and better husbands.”
When the late Queen Victoria was asked the
secret of England’s greatness, she took down
a copy of the Scriptures, and pointing to
the Bible she said, “That Book explains the
power of Great Britain.” Daniel Webster once
affirmed, “If we abide by the principles
taught in the Bible, our country will go on
prospering and to prosper; but, if we and
our posterity neglect its instructions and
authority, no man can tell how sudden a
catastrophe may overwhelm us and bury all
our glory in profound obscurity. The Bible
is the Book of all others for lawyers as
well as divines, and I pity the man who
cannot find in it a rich supply of thought
and rule of conduct.”
When Sir Walter Scott lay dying he summoned
to his side his man in waiting and said,
“Read to me out of the Book.” Which book?
answered his servant. “There is only one
Book,” was the dying man’s response - “The
Bible!” The Bible is the Book to live by and
the Book to die by. Therefore read it to be
wise, believe it to be safe, practice it to
be holy. As another has said: “Know it in
the head, store it in the heart, show it in
the life, sow it in the world.”
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of
God, and is profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness: that the man of God may be
perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good
works” (II Tim. 3:16-17).