This series of Biblical studies is based on
notes written by Rev. A. Donald Magaw over 50 years of his ministry, and were
compiled and edited by Rev. Donald A. Magaw.
Lesson 1.
These are the topics we will be discussing in the next several lessons and this
what we believe to be true, and is the basis of the doctrinal stand of our
church.
The inspiration of the Bible, both the Old and New Testament.
The creation of man by the direct act of God;
The incarnation and virgin birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ;
His identification as the Son of God;
His vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind by the shedding of His blood on
the cross;
The resurrection of His body from the tomb;
His power to save men from sin;
The new birth through the regeneration by the Holy Spirit;
The gift of eternal life, by the grace of God.
C.I. Scofield said that the Bible is the most widely circulated of books, and at
once it provokes and baffles study. But even the non-believer realizes that it
is almost total ignorance not to know something about the Bible.
First, the Bible is one book. Seven great marks attest this unity. 1) From
Genesis on the Bible bears witness to one God. Whenever He speaks or acts, He is
consistent with Himself, and with the total revelation concerning Him 2) The
Bible forms one continuous story—the story of humanity in relation to God. 3)
The Bible hazards to most unlikely predictions concerning the future, and when
centuries have brought round the appointed time, record their fulfillment. 4)
The Bible is progressive in unfolding the truth. Nothing is told all at once and
once for all. Without the possibility of collusion, often with centuries
between, one writer of Scripture takes up and earlier revelation, adds to it,
lays down the pen, and in due time another man moved by the Holy Spirit, and
another, and another, add new details till the whole is complete. 5) From
beginning to end, the Bible testifies to one redemption. 6) From beginning to
end the Bible has one great theme—the person and work of Christ. 7) And finally,
these writers, some 44 in number, writing through twenty centuries, have
produced a perfect harmony of doctrine in progressive unfolding. This is, to
every candid mind, the unanswerable proof of the Divine inspiration of the
Bible.
Second, the Bible is a book of books. 66 books all of which are complete in
itself, and have its own theme and analysis.
Third, The books of the Bible fall into groups: Preparation, Manifestation,
Propagation, Explanation and Consummation.
Fourth. The Bible also tells the human story.
Fifth. The central theme of the entire Bible is Christ.
As far as the inspiration of the Bible is concerned, if you undermine faith in
the infallibility, its authority, its divine inspiration you have the problem
that the whole house will crumble because His Word is the foundation upon which
everything else rests. All we know about sin and salvation, heaven and hell,
eternal life and death, the plan and purpose of God, and about His will for our
lives is revealed in no other place than in the Word of God. If one does not
believe that the Bible actually is God’s Word, then we might as well close up
the church and join the Elks or some other lodge for our times of happiness.
There are six basic theories of inspiration held by men today. They are natural
inspiration, universal Christian illumination, thought inspiration, partial
inspiration, mechanical inspiration and Plenary-verbal inspiration.
Natural inspiration is not acceptable because the writer would be no more
inspired than any modern author, making the Bible no more infallible than any
other book,
Universal Christian illumination is not acceptable because it makes all
Christians inspired equally as much as Paul and Moses. This means that we could
write our own Bible. If this is the case, the question arises, why no new books
since the Canon was closed?
Thought inspiration is not acceptable because it states that only the thoughts
were inspired. But how can you express the right thoughts without the right
words?
Partial inspiration is not acceptable because it states that the Bible only
contains the Word of G0d. This would give any man the right to write his own
Bible.
Mechanical inspiration is very unreasonable because it states that the men were
machines in the hand of God, but this does not account for the differences in
style and in vocabulary.
The only satisfactory theory is the theory of plenary-verbal inspiration. This
states that all Scripture is equally inspired, extending to the words
themselves. It also states that all Scripture is without error.
What is inspiration?
Inspiration is the extraordinary supernatural influence exerted by the Holy
Ghost on the writers of our Sacred Books, by which their words were rendered
also the words of God, and therefore, perfectly infallible.
Dr. Pardington has defined inspiration as: the divine influence which renders a
speaker or writer infallible in the communication of truth, whether previously
known or not,
Strong defines inspiration as follows: by the inspiration of Scriptures we mean
that special divine influence upon the minds of the Scripture writers in virtue
of which their productions, apart from errors of transcription and when rightly
interpreted, together constitute an infallible rule of faith and practice.
Plenary inspiration states that inspiration extends to every part of the
Scripture, including history, poetry, prophecy, doctrine and all other ideas
whether they are revealed or known or copied, and that it caused the writers to
write just what God wanted written and to write it accurately. This means that
inspiration is full, complete, entire, extending to every part.
Verbal inspiration is the work of God through the Holy Spirit so directing men
in the choice of the subject matter and in their choice of words that their
writing contain, written accurately, exactly what God desired, and all that He
desired them to contain. It is the doctrine of superintendence, or guidance;
that is, God so guided in the writing of the books of the Bible that words are
His words in the style of the writers. This statement when simplified says that
the Holy Spirit spoke to the writers of our Scriptures and told them what to
write and what to say, thus giving us the Scriptures exactly as God would have
us to have them.
Clement of Rome, who lived about 90 AD, said that the Scriptures are the true
words of the Holy Ghost. Augustine also contended for the Scriptures when he
said that they were infallible and accurate in every word. It has also been said
the Scriptures are guaranteed by God even in their very language.
The dean of Westminster in an address delivered in Westminster Abbey on December
3, 1904, said “If the Bible was not inspired by a Divine Spirit, how could it
record what did not actually take place? If an element of human misconception
and mistake was to be recognized in the Bible, how could we regard it any longer
as an inspired book, or use it as an infallible guide of life?”
And then after speaking of some of the Bible difficulties, he said, “behind and
beneath the Bible, above and beyond the Bible, was the God of the Bible. Herein
lies the true and only explanation of the mystery of inspiration.
It is strange to note that in 1870, at the Vatican Council, the Roman Catholic
Church declared the Scriptures a revelation without error, which was written by
the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, and that they have God as their author; this
was in spite of their inconsistent attitude toward the Bible. This was also
declared at the Council of Trent.
We have seen what plenary inspiration and verbal inspiration is by citing
various scholars as to their definitions. When we combine the two into
plenary-verbal inspiration, we have a joint definition. Plenary-verbal
inspiration means that every word in every part of the original manuscripts of
the Bible is given by inspiration of God, or given by God through the
Spirit…this applies to the Bible in the original language, Hebrew and Greek; not
the various translations.
What does the theory of plenary-verbal inspiration teach? This theory teaches
that only the original text of the Old Testament and the New Testament are
inspired and that no copies or translations, which were made, are inspired.
Although we do not have the original manuscripts, scholars say that the copies,
which we have, are so very close to the original that no important doctrine is
affected because we do not have the originals.
Plenary-verbal inspiration does not hold God accountable for all that is said.
This means that although the words are inspired, it does not mean that God
agrees with all that is said. There are instances recorded that tell us the men
as David sinned; now because it is inspired it does not mean that sin is all
right. But inspiration simply means that the Bible is God’s words along with the
events that God saw fit to relate to us, not that God agrees with all that is
said and done.
With inspiration God always gave the words, but He did not always give the
thoughts! This is quite evident in I Peter 1:10-11;
Daniel 12:8-9 and Psalm
22:16-18. I Peter states that the prophets searched what the Spirit of Christ
did signify in them, not understanding exactly what they wrote. In Daniel, when
Daniel says that he heard but understood not. Finally in Psalm 22, where the
Psalmist talks about the parting of Christ’s garments, I do not believe that he
could have completely understood exactly what he wrote. These are only three of
many examples of God giving the words but not the thoughts.
It is interesting to note that the effect of inspiration on the writers did not
help them in other things. It did not keep them from error in their lives, nor
did it make them the smartest men in the world; it did not make them of equal
understanding, nor did it cause them to live sinless lives.
Our Holy Scriptures were not actually written by the hand of God, but on two
occasions and only two (excluding the writing on Belshazzar’s wall), we read of
the Deity writing: once in the Old Testament and once in the New Testament. The
first example is the Ten Commandments and the second a case of special grave
when Jesus stooped down and with his finger wrote on the ground (John 8:6-8).
There are some parts of the Bible that are the exact words of God. Some of the
examples of these are Exodus 24:12,
Deuteronomy 10:2 and Mark 1:11. There are
other parts of the Scriptures that are the words of God put into the writer’s
mouth. Two examples of this may be found in Jeremiah 30:1-2, and
I Corinthians 14:37. Some parts of the Bible are the thoughts of God in the words of the writers. These can be seen the Matthew 3:17 and Luke 1:1-14.
With the various ways that the word and thoughts are recorded it is to be said,
however, that all Scripture is inspired. In II Timothy 3:16 we read, all
scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. This verse says that
the Scriptures are for reproof but it also says that it is for correction. How
can an incorrect book be expected to correct us? This is one of the many
problems raised by those who would deny verbal inspiration.
There are many factors, which prove the doctrine of plenary-verbal inspiration.
Pardington has stated, “There are nine external proofs of inspiration. These
are: questions of introduction, attested miracles, fulfilled prophecy, the
spread of the Gospel, the existence of the Christian church, the testimony of
Christian experience, and the testimony of archeology.”
There are many indirect proofs of inspiration in the Scriptures themselves.
These are the supernatural character of the Bible, the supernatural character of
Christ, the unity of the Scripture, the number of the Scripture, the chronology
of the Scripture, and the wonderful knowledge of the Scripture: light before
sun, firmament, music of sphere, circulation of blood, gravity, number of stars,
order of creation, revolution of the earth and the weight of the atmosphere. Dr.
Lee’s Inspiration says, “Matters of science and geographical details, mentioned
in the Bible, are stated with infallible accuracy,”
One of the previously mentioned proofs of inspiration is the character of
Christ. His testimony implies that the Bible is inspired. In the following
verses this fact can be seen: Matthew 5:18;
John 10:35; Luke 21:22 and
Luke
24:44. The verse in Luke 24 speaks of the prophecy, which concerned Christ.
One of the best proofs of inspiration is the Scripture’s own testimony, there
are no less than 33 prophecies in the Old Testament which center in the person
of the Messiah—every one of which, relating to his earthly life, has been
fulfilled to the letter. It has been mentioned that Scripture proves itself,
II
Timothy and II Peter 1:20-21. “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the
Scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old
time by the will of man: but Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the
Holy Ghost.” **(see follow-up note at the end of these notes) Because of these
two verses, we see that the Scripture plainly teaches that it is the inspired
Word of God.
The expression “thus saith the Lord,” occurs in the Bible over 3800 times. This
shows that the Lord God spoke to the authors and told them exactly what to write
or tell the people. The expression “it is written” occurs in
Matthew 4:7;
Galatians 3:10; Hebrews 10:7;
II Peter 3:2, 15-16 and Revelation 2:7, showing
that the New Testament writers believed that the Old Testament was inspired and
therefore, infallible.
Another proof of inspiration is the way in which Christ and the apostles treated
the Old Testament. This is seen in John 10:35 and also in
Matthew 8:16-17 where
Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law; verse 17 says that it might be fulfilled
which the prophet spoke that “Himself took our infirmities, and bare our
sickness” showing that another prophecy of the Scripture is being fulfilled.
Other passages of Scripture which witness to inspiration are
II Samuel 23:2;
Isaiah 1:2; Jeremiah 1:7-9;
Ezekiel 3:4; Matthew 1:22;
2:15; Mark 12:36,
Luke
1:70 and Acts 1:16.
The final major proof of inspiration is the testimony of the archaeologists. For
all recent discoveries in Egypt and other Bible lands that have any relation to
the Bible, speak with one united voice that testifies to the accuracy of the
statements of the Bible. One of the prime examples of this is the treasure city
of Pithon, which was built for Rameses II by the Hebrews during the time of
their bondage in Egypt. At this site it has been discovered that the walls of
the houses were found to be made of sun-bakes bricks, some with straw and some
without straw, exactly in accordance with Exodus 5:7, written 3,500 years ago
“Ye shall not more give the people straw to make bricks, as heretofore.” This
finding thus proves the accuracy of this passage. There have been many other
similar findings in the Bible land to prove the accuracy of Scripture.
It should never be forgotten, that, in spite of all the critics have said, no
error or contradiction of any kind has ever been proved to exist in the
Scriptures as originally given by God.
S.T. Coleridge has said, “Whatever finds me bears witness that is has preceded
from the Holy Spirit; in the bible, there is more that finds me than I have
experienced in all other books put together.”
Some additional thoughts on inspiration:
It is fashionable today, to say that the Bible contains the Word of God. Beware
of anyone who says that. The Bible does not merely contain the Word of God; it
is the Word of God. To say that It contains the Word of God means that there may
be parts of It that are not His Words (or things God wants us to know, i.e. The
sins of men) In these cases man sets his puny mind to decide what is and what is
not truth, what is and what is not God’s Word. He makes his mind judge the Book,
whereas the Book is supposed to judge his thoughts. The person or group who does
not believe in the inspiration of the Bible has no right to claim to be a
Christian; for all we know of Christ and Christianity is revealed in this Book,
God’s holy and inspired Word. When someone says that It only contains the Word
of God, he is either untaught, or he is unsound in his faith. No Bible believing
Christian would make such a statement. If the Bible is not the Word of God, then
why are we here? Why do we even have a church?
Men wrote the books of the Bible; sometimes the words were given to them
exactly. Sometimes they used words and thoughts relative to their own
understanding. These men came from various backgrounds. The prophets, the kings,
the tax collector, the physician, the Roman citizen, and many others all wrote
as they were led of the Holy Spirit.
Some books were written to give us history, some to sing praises, and some to
give us prophecy, some to gives us the rules for Christian living. The book of
Ecclesiastes was not given to teach us doctrine, but to show us how life looks
to a wise and thoughtful man.
Sinners do not like to read the Bible because they find in it a picture of
themselves; and it is never a good picture. I know that this is God’s Word….
only God could have written it.
This book makes known God’s plan, God’s revelation of Himself, God’s picture of
man, and God’s judgment that awaits the sin of man. It sets down the will of God
for men, the plan of God for men, the message of God for men, and the method to
be employed in presenting the message. This Book is the very foundation of our
faith. If it is not God’s Word, then we might as well close up shop right now
for all our doctrine is found in this Book.
Christians may not always agree on how to interpret the Bible, but there is no
contradiction therein. If you read something in the Bible that seems to be
contradicting something else, you can be very sure of one of two things: either
you do not understand the Word of God, or what you think is a contradiction is
not a contradiction but a difference made in translation or something else.
There are many words in the Greek and Hebrew that we really do not have an
English equivalent or maybe we do not even know how a word is applied. In
English there are words today that have changed in meaning over the years. (For
example: Gay used to mean happy, now it means something else) There are no
contradictions in the Word of God, because God will not contradict himself.
Some would like to say that Paul and James contradict each other. Paul said, you
are saved by faith…not works. James said, faith without works is dead. Not a
contradiction, but a further explanation. James is really saying if you have
faith, you WILL show it with your works. In other words, a Christian cannot just
sit around on his duff and not live the life Christ has shown us as necessary.
Men of the Bible had disagreements. Peter and Paul argued at Antioch. And
Galatians 2 is a record of that argument
We do not worship the Book; we worship the God of the Book.
When God speaks, He always speaks the truth. Today, there are those who would
say that the Bible is old fashioned, that it is out of touch with reality. We
are told that things have changed. Maybe so, but God has not changed. For
example, this idea of same-sex marriage…God did not create Adam and Steve…he
created Adam and Eve. And we are warned that in the last days, men and women
will turn to the unnatural use of their bodies. God still calls it sin. Man does
not want to hear it. After all, who even in this world wants to be told that
they are wrong? I love it when I hear that a person is born gay due to his
genetic make-up. In one sense they are partially right, all men are born unto
sin due to the fact that sin entered the world through Adam and Eve.
The Bible has had many translations. The thing to remember when deciding which
translation to use, is who were the people doing the translating. Was the
translation done by Bible scholars or by a group of English professors? It will
make a difference in how the Word is recognized. There are several good
translations and there are a few to avoid, the Revised Standard Version is one
that teaches that Christ was born of a young woman, not a virgin as Scripture is
correctly translated.
There are many false groups out there. Christian Scientists, who are neither
Christian nor scientists. Jehovah Witnesses…. and even some of the
TV/Radio/Internet preachers who are in it for the money. What is this junk about
sending $10 and they will send you a prayer cloth? Or be ordained for $25 (on
the back of a magazine or matchbook cover)?
Satan is not only attacking the church of Christ in the world…. he is attacking
the church from within. Read II Timothy and
Jude.
** (Follow-up note: Critics have claimed that “no prophecy of Scripture is of
any private interpretation.” This is correct, we must use other Scriptures to
see what the prophet was trying to convey. However, that passage by itself is
out of context because in the next verse we are told that the prophets spoke,
not of their own will but as “they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” This means
that the prophets wrote what they were told to write and the ideas were not
their own. Most theologians interpret this passage of Scripture to mean that the
prophets did not write “private ideas” but that the prophecy was the actual Word
of God as given to the prophets by the Holy Spirit.
Any good lawyer will tell you that if a witness gives any part of his testimony
that is false or incorrect, then the whole testimony is subject to being
discounted. If any part of the Word of God is incorrect, then the whole of the
Bible is useless. Through-out the centuries, critics have tried to disprove the
Bible through archeology…and have failed miserably as every effort to disprove
Scriptures has resulted in the Bible being vindicated 100%.
There have been many theories to discount or explain away the various events of
the Bible, but each of them have more problems that are created instead of
believing through faith. For example, critics would say that the Israelites
crossed the Reid Sea and not the Red Sea. The Reid Sea average depth is only 6
inches of water….so how do you explain that the army and horses of the Egyptians
drowned in 6 inches of water? It is a lot easier to accept the Biblical account
than it is to rationalize what the critics have suggested.
Another example is evolution…first evolution is only a theory. If evolution is
correct then explain why it cannot be reproduced by science. If evolution is
correct, things should be getting better, not worse…illness would not happen. If
evolution is correct, then men would become smarter…it is obvious with many
people that their brain has never evolved!