On Pitting Paul Against Jesus - C.S. Lewis

“In the earlier history of every rebellion there is a stage at which you do not yet attack the King in person. You say, ‘The King is all right. It is his Ministers who are wrong. They misrepresent him and corrupt all his plans –which, I’m sure, are good plans if only the Ministers would let them take effect.’ And the first victory consists in beheading a few Ministers: only at a later stage do you go on and behead the King himself. In the same way, the nineteenth-century attack on St. Paul was really only a stage in the revolt against Christ. Men were not ready in large numbers to attack Christ Himself. They made the normal first move—that of attacking one of His principal ministers. Everything they disliked in Christianity was therefore attributed to St. Paul. It was unfortunate that their case could not impress anyone who had really read the Gospels and the epistles with attention: but apparently few people had, and so the first victory was won. St. Paul was impeached and banished and the world went on to the next step—the attack on the King Himself.”

-C.S. Lewis-

Which Version of the Bible Do You Believe is Inerrant?

(A response to a friend)

Regarding which Bible version I find to be inerrant, I am not a KJV onlyist. I believe the scriptures are inerrant in their original form, and I believe that we have those original words in the 1000's of early manuscripts that can still be studied today, but some of it is complicated. Studying those is where we will find the 100% word for word inerrancy. I also believe we have those original words translated into English (except for a few textual variances) in a few of the translations such as the KJV, NKJV, and the NASB, among others. My not coming to a decision on which one is the best of all (because the variants are obvious) is not due to the fact that I believe that one is not more correct than the other, but because I have not done a complete study on all the variants; which means I am still growing and learning in this area and not opposed to being corrected.

When it comes to the KJV, I believe it is one of the best translations, but I do not believe it is the standard by which all translations should be judged.

God Bless,

Doug

The Inspiration of Scripture

What does it mean for Scripture to be inspired?

The Good Fight of Faith - J. Gresham Machen

Below is a quote by J. Gresham Machen from the 1930’s laying out the battles taking place in the church. In the quote Machen rightly ascribes these battles to the modernists of his day. What is amazing about this quote is that it perfectly captures the arguments of the post-moderns in the church today.

"You will have battles when you go forth as minister into the church. The church is now in a period of deadly conflict. The redemptive religion known as Christianity is contending, in our own church and in the all the larger churches of the world, against a totally alien type of religion. As always, the enemy conceals his most dangerous assaults under pious phrases and half-truths. The shibboleths of the adversary have sometimes a very deceptive sound. ‘Let us propagate Christianity,’ the adversary says, ‘but let us not always be engaged in arguing in defense of it; let us make our preaching positive, and not negative; let us avoid controversy; let us hold to a Person and not to a dogma; let us sink small doctrinal differences and seek the unity of the church of Christ; let us drop doctrinal accretions and interpret Christ for ourselves; let us look for our knowledge of Christ, not to ancient books, but to the living Christ in our hearts; let us not impose Western creeds on the Eastern mind; let us be tolerant [think all views are equally correct] of opposing views.’ Such are some of the shibboleths of that agnostic Modernism which is the deadliest enemy of the Christian religion today. They deceive some of God’s people some of the time; they are heard sometimes from the lips of good Christian people, who have not the slightest inkling of what they mean. But their true meaning, to thinking men, is becoming increasingly clear. Increasingly it is becoming necessary for a man to decide whether he is going to stand or not to stand for the Lord Jesus Christ as he is presented to us in the word of God."

J. Gresham Machen – The Good Fight of Faith (sermon)

Reformation Radio Show

Oct. 31, 1571, It was a Wednesday morning and everything seemed normal. Business was going along as usual in the German province of Saxony. In fact, most people were most likely not focusing on this day since the following day was "All Souls Day". A day when Frederick the Wise would bring in religious relics for the city to see, and offer the people a chance to buy indulgences. But little did the world know that an unknown emaciated Augustinian monk with a hammer and a piece of paper with 95 thesis was on his way to the Castle Church in Wittenberg. And God was going to use this hammer to shake the world and call light out of darkness.

This weekend I had the privilege to be a guest on the apologetics.com radio show in Los Angeles with host Chris Neiswonger. The topic was the reformation. We spent the majority of the time discussing the five solas of the Reformation.

Sola Scriptura - Scripture alone
Sola Christus - Christ Alone
Sola Gratia - Grace Alone
Sola Fide - Faith Alone
Soli Deo Gloria - To the Gloria of God Alone

If you would like to listen to the program you can download the mp3 version at the Apologetics.com radio page. Just scroll to the bottom and you should see a link for there. You can also go download it as a podcast in itunes. Simply search for Apologetics.com.

Happy Reformation Day!

Doug

Why Read the Psalms

The book of Psalms… "Tends only to refine and exalt the nature of man, to elevate the soul to God, and inspire it with the admiration and love of his character, to curb the passions, purify the affections, and excite to the cultivation of whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report. It has guided the saint in doubt and difficulty; it has nerved him for self-denial and suffering; and it has imparted support and comfort to him in the hour of death"

-Rev. James Anderson, Forward to John Calvin’s commentary on the Psalms-


"Genuine and earnest prayer proceeds first from a sense of our need, and next, from faith in the promises of God. It is by perusing these inspired compositions (Psalms) that men will be most effectually awakened to a sense of their maladies, and, at the same time, instructed in seeking remedies for their cure. In a word, whatever may serve to encourage us when we are about to pray to God, is taught us in this book. And not only are the promises of God presented to us in it, but oftentimes there is exhibited to us one standing, as it were, amidst the invitations of God on the one hand, and the impediments of the flesh on the other, girding and preparing himself for prayer: thus teaching us, if at any time we are agitated with a variety of doubts, to resist and fight against them, until the soul, freed and disentangled from all these impediments, rise up to God; and not only so, but even when in the midst of doubts, fears, and apprehensions, let us put for the efforts in prayer, until we experience some consolation which may calm and bring contentment to our minds.

–John Calvin-

Science, Philosophy, and the Word of God

"In the year 1861 the French Academy of Science published a list of fifty-one so-called scientific facts, each of which, it was alleged, disproved some statement in the Bible. Today the Bible remains as it was then, but not one of these fifty-one so called Facts is held by men of science.. . .. Does anyone really believe that science and Philosophy have yet reached, even approximately, their final form? May it not rather be contended that they are so far removed from their ultimate [true] form that if the teachings of the Bible were in complete harmony with present-day science and philosophy they would be out of harmony with the science and philosophy of the future."

Loraine Boettner, Studies in Theology

How firm is your foundation? The wise man will build his house upon the rock, which is the Word of God. (Matt. 7:24)



Science, Philosophy, and the Word of God

The Da Vinci Code and Christians

I realize that posting a VLOG on Dan Brown's "Da Vinci Code" Is like kicking a dead horse and telling it to die. But when someone asks you an honest question you want to give an honest answer, even if the answer has already been given in a much better way to the extent that the mere mention of the book now makes you yawn. With that said, I was asked to give a response to someone who was asking why Christians take such issue with the "Da Vinci Code" when it is a work of fiction. Below is my response.







The Da Vinci Code and Christians

Intimate Knowledge of God

…How few, even among believers, appreciate the privilege of access to the great Author of the universe through His word! Poor and rich, high and low, ignorant and learned, young and old, all alike are welcomed to the audience-chamber of the King of kings. The most intimate knowledge of God is possible on one condition—that we search His Holy Scriptures, prayerfully and habitually, and translate what we there find, into obedience. Of him who thus meditates on God’s law day and night, who look and continues looking into this perfect law of liberty, the promise is unique, and found in both Testaments: “whatsoever he doeth shall prosper”; “that man shall be blessed in his deed.” (Comp. Ps.1:3; Josh. 1:8; James 1:25.)

A.T. Pierson, George Muller: All Things are Possible.

I am currently teaching through Grudem's Systematic theology at our church. Here are some notes on the inspiration of Scripture if anyone is interested and if they make any sense to you.

Doug


Inspiration

Authority and Inspiration - Directly related, Authority is based on inspiration

What is your authority on matters of truth? (Positive test for truth)

Evangelicalism is set apart by it’s use of scripture as its foundation.
The entire Christian system is based on the authority of Scripture. If it is not inspired then it is not our final authority, because we will have to judge it with something else.

What will be our judge if scripture is not? What will we use to test and see which scriptures are true and which ones are in error. Science, Reason, Look within ourselves.

Verbal and Plenary Inspiration.
Verbal – Word for word. Not basic ideas
Use the analogy of the secretary
Plenary-full; complete; entire; absolute; unqualified

We believe in the Verbal Plenary understanding of Scripture because

1.) It’s what the Bible claims for itself.
2.) We are convinced by the internal witness of the Spirit.
3.) Other evidence which is useful
4.) The words of Scripture are self-attesting

Objection, this is a circular argument
Objection, this theory implies dictation.

It is what the Bible claims for itself
1. Thus saith the Lord is all throughout scripture
2. God spoke through the prophets, (p. 74)
3. II Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is God Breathed”
a. Theopneutos – “breathed out by God”
b. Not one section or word is not breathed by God
c. Breathed out is metaphor for “speaking the words of scripture
d. 2 Pet. 1:21 not by the will of man

4. This covers Old and New testament
a. 2 Pet. 3:16 N.T. writings are called “graphe”

1Co 14:37 If any man thinketh himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him take knowledge of the things which I write unto you, that they are the commandment of the Lord.

Joh 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth: for he shall not speak from himself; but what things soever he shall hear, these shall he speak: and he shall declare unto you the things that are to come.

We are convinced by the internal witness of the Father

1Co 2:14 Now the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him; and he cannot know them, because they are spiritually judged.

This does not mean that the natural man cannot understand the words of scripture, but that he cannot receive them. (Rom. 1)

John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice and they follow me.
Does this mean that the other men could audibly hear his voice?
This isn’t audible hearing it’s internal

This conviction though, never comes apart from the scripture but always through it..

This is not a Gnostic Gospel nor is it private.

2Pe 1:20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture is of private interpretation.

Other Evidence is useful but not finally convincing
-24000 Manuscripts of the New Testament alone
-Internal Evidence, 66 books by 40 authors over 2000 years and they give one perfect non-confliction message
-when something is true there tends to be evidence, but some blinded eyes will not see it.

1:5 We may be moved and induced by the testimony of the Church to a high and reverent esteem of the Holy Scripture (1Ti_3:15). And the heavenliness of the matter, the efficacy of the doctrine, the majesty of the style, the consent of all the parts, the scope of the whole (which is, to give all glory to God), the full discovery it makes of the only way of man’s salvation, the many other incomparable excellencies, and the entire perfection thereof, are arguments whereby it doth abundantly evidence itself to be the Word of God: yet notwithstanding, our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority thereof, is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts(Isa_59:21; Joh_16:13, Joh_16:14;1Co_2:10-12; 1Jo_2:20, 1Jo_2:27).

The words of Scripture are self-attesting

This means the words of Scripture judge everything else, nothing judges it.

-There is not higher authority? Where will you go to prove the Bible but the Bible itself. Man’s reason (those scripture never violate true reason) Science. Internal feelings.

Objection, this is circular argument.

How do we know the Bible is the true authority?
Because it says it is the true authority
How do we know that that is a true statement.
Because the Bible is the true authority

Axiom- That foundational belief with cannot be proven by any other foundation. If is proven by something else then what it is proven by is truly your axiom.

Every belief system has an axiom that cannot be proven.

We cannot know anything as true unless it is proven by science.
Then this statement cannot be true because it has not been proven by science.

Transcendental argument- It is the only belief system that makes sense of the world as it really is.

Objection, The verbal and plenary understanding implies dictation

Dual authorship – We can tell what was written by Paul and what was written by John because of different styles.

How can we have this if we have verbal inspiration?

Read Clark,

A. Because of this to disobey or to disbelieve any word of Scripture is to disbelieve God Himself.

Truthfulness of Scripture
God cannot lie
Therefore the word of God contains nothing that is not true
God’s words are the standard for truth
i. “your word is truth”
ii. Not your word is the truth as if the word lines us to some external standard
No fact will ever contradict the Bible, if there is a fact that contradicts the Bible it is a misinterpreted fact or misinterpreted scripture.
Boettner P. 35