The Canon of the Bible
Posted on May 31st, 2006 by TADCCBLOG
How would you defend The Bible against naysayers who challenge its authenticity? How do we distiguish The Sacred Texts from others some might pass off as part of The Bible/truth? (Note: Click on Comments below to post your own comment regarding this topic)
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Defending the Bible against those who challenge its authenticity should not be a difficult task. The Bible is the very Word of God. It is tried, tested, and pure (Psalm 19, Psalm 12). Hebrews 4:12 says “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” God’s Word does not need a clever argument to give it credible grounds. In an of itself, it proves to be strong and sure. For the one who is skeptical or who challenges its authenticity, I would say the best way to defend the Bible would be to encourage the person to read the Bible for themselves. We can rest assured that as people read the gospel, God will convict and draw people to himself.
Jeremiah,
How do you respond to those that believe their scripture is sacred, e.g, Muslims, Hindus, etc? What do you say to a person who has read the Bible and still does not believe in its inerrancy? What about the so-called lost books.
The above question is a great challenge. TADCC what is your response?
Well, for someone who believes their scripture is sacred over the Bible, it seems wise to respond in two steps. First we should make sure that we explain the gospel to them, because whether they believe the Bible or not, “it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16)”
Second, we should also explain to them why the Bible is credible and our ultimate source of authority in matters pertaining to God. The Bible claims to be the very word of God…”All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16).” Realizing this, we should explain that the Bible has over 5,000 manuscripts many of which date from the 1st century. No other book even approaches this number of ancient manuscripts. The accuracy of these manuscripts as compared to each other is astounding! Every major doctrine completely agrees and and the small percentage of descrepancies are mainly careless scribal errors…such as reversing the word order of Jesus Christ to Christ Jesus or accidently leaving out a letter in the spelling of something.
Also, we should speak of prophecies concerning Christ such as Isaiah 53 which speak of Jesus suffering and sacrifice to atone for our sins. The numerous prophecies fullfilled offer proof that the Bible is truly God’s Word. The unity of the entire Bible definitely reflects the God who inspired it. As one examines the messages and prophecies spoken about and fulfilled in Jesus Christ, it becomes transparently clear that the Bible is about God’s plan to redeem mankind through Jesus Christ. Here’s a brief outline that is just an example of how to answer the skeptic who believes his “scripture” is right and the Bible wrong:
Genesis 3:15 is God speaking to Satan who is in the form of the serpent. “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” This is the first prophesy concerning the coming Christ. Satan will temporarily kill Christ, but the ultimate defeat will come upon Satan as Christ rises from the dead. This is seen as the text says Christ’s heel will be bruised (his death followed by resurrection), which is a much lesser injury than Satan’s, which will be upon his head(complete defeat by Christ’s victory over death).
From hear we could progress to Genesis 22, and explain how God calling Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac was a small picture of what Jesus Christ would become…our sacrifice.
Then we can demonstrate how scripture becomes more and more decriptive about this coming sacrifice of Christ… Isaiah 53 ”
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
11He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”
What an incredible prophesy that was completely fulfilled in Christ! As the New testament expounds on and calls people to faith in this sacrifice of Christ, who, if they had eyes to see, could deny the inspiration of this scripture?
Also, the life we live in front of these skeptics is a powerful testimony of the power of God to transform lives. In addition to providing information concerning the reliability of the Bible, it is wise to share our own testimony about how God turned our hearts from stone to flesh through hearing the Word of God…”faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:17)”
Jeremiah,
Very thoughtful and well thought out approach to presenting the authenticity of the Bible to those that may have doubts about its veracity. However, in addressing the accuracy and oneness of the Bible, is there a place for either showing where other religions and beliefs strayed, or do you confine all discussions to the Word of God.
Yes, I would definitely say there is a place to address the falts and strayings of other religions, but that place is behind the Word of God. As light shines and exposes the darkness, so does the Word of God exposes the falts of other religions. Peter tells us to “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the HOPE that YOU have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” (1 Peter 3:15) Our emphasis should be to share and explain God’s Word because in it we have the promises of God that give us hope. This is something that every believer should be able to do. I am not convinced though, that God intends every believer needs to know how to pick apart and show the falts of another’s religion…this will come naturally anyway as we demonstrate the authenticity of God’s Word and the change He has wrought in our lives.
TADCC,
We have read Jeremiah’s thoughts on the presentation and support for the Bible being THE Word of God. Do you concur or disagree?
Jeremiah,
What part does demonstration of the Holy Spirit play in support of the Canon of Scripture? Does cessation teaching obfuscate the role the Holy Spirit plays in convicting the unbeliever that the Bible is the Word of God? Mark 16:20 states that the Lord confirmed the Word of God with signs following. Is there a place today for the Gifts as given in I Corinthians 12 in helping a person to understand that the Bible is the Word of God?
Without the Holy Spirit, all manner of persuasion will be fruitless. “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. (John 16:13)” The Holy Spirit is the one who guides us into all truth, not just some clever argument. Paul told the Corinthians ” My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power. (1 Cor. 2:4)” God proved Paul’s message to be true through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus also spoke of the need for more than just words to persuade a man of the Truth. “Jesus answered. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him (John 6:43 – 44).” So if we try to tell someone about Jesus, they will never come to Him apart from the working of the Holy Spirit.
Though I am not sure that miraculous signs must always be present for someone to believe in Christ, I do believe that the Lord still uses them to convince people of His Word. You give testimony, Pastor Sylvestor, about how the Lord did this very thing in India a couple of months ago, and I believe this. I also know of others who have believed apart from seeing miraculous signs with their eyes, but did see the power of the Holy Spirit in their hearts. With or without signs, the Holy Spirit must convict an unbeliever before he can truly believe. Jesus also said “When the Holy Spirit comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment. When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me. (John 15:26, 16:8)” This seems clear. The Holy Spirit bears testimony on the unbeliever’s heart to the validity of the Word of God. And He does use miraculous signs as a means to convince the unbeliever of the truth.
With all of this said, I do know believers who are cessasionists and do not believe that the Holy Spirit uses gifts such as tounges to draw unbelievers in our day. They definitely believe that no one can come to believe in Christ apart from the Holy Spirits conviction, but believe this is only an inner working of the heart apart from outward manifestations. This might hinder them from proclaiming the gospel with signs, but I don’t think this teaching obfuscates the role of the Holy spirit in convicting the unbeliever that the Bible is the Word of God.
Jeremiah,
Good response. However, for the cessasionists, it is taken for granted that either a person is literate or soon will be literate. How else could the Word serve as a guide if the new believer cannot read it or understand it.
In the first century a greater emphasis was placed on oral preaching rather than the written word. (Romans 10:15, “How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel..”.) We can understand why with all the gnostic gospels, e.g., Thomas, Philip, etc., that have come to light recently why the first century listeners placed a greater emphasis on the spoken word. The person preaching then could be instantly judged based on his pronouncements and demonstration of the Holy Spirit.
The Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 2:4 said that he would not come to them with “enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of Power”. It was from the preaching that the signs followed and God confirmed His Word. Throughout the Bible confirmed His Word with Miracles and Signs. God does not change His Modus Operandi. Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever”.