The Book We Believe and Obey

Why Start With the Book: The View of Scripture Determines All

0:00 Our study in the Word of God today is the second in a brief series which I trust to conduct with you on the general theme, Here We Stand. And those who were with us last week will know that those three words, Here We Stand, are sort of an adjusted title from the famous words of Martin Luther, who in giving his defense before prelates, ecclesiastical, and civil leaders, confessed that he stood upon all that he had written because he was convinced it was the teaching of the Word of God. And in this series I am attempting to set forth a brief summary of those things which form the substance of our understanding of the Word of God as a congregation of God's people.

0:57 And last week in introducing the series, I sought to set before you the goals that I had in mind as we entered this series of studies. First of all, the categorized goals. It is my desire, by means of this series of studies in the Scriptures, to confirm the old-timers in their understanding and commitment to truth, to initiate the newcomers, and to inform the onlookers. And then the general goals, goals which I trust will be realized for all of us, to compel us to praise and worship, to immunize us against error, and to provoke us to love and to good works.

1:43 Now with that introduction behind us, and as it were beneath us, governing our perspectives, we come today to consider the first of the five major categories that will comprise the substance of this series of studies, here we stand. And I would direct your attention today, first of all, to the book we believe and obey. And our first study is to be a study concerned with the whole subject of the Scriptures, the book we believe and obey. Now, some might object or at least question and say, should we not start with God, the God whom we worship and serve? Should we not start with Christ

2:34 or the salvation that comes to us in Christ? We do not worship a book, do we? We worship the living God. We worship Him as those redeemed by His dear Son, by the salvation tendered to sinners in Jesus Christ. Why then start with the book? Why not with the God of the book, with the Savior of the book, with the salvation of the book? And there are certain so-called modern confessions of faith that, unlike the older confessions of faith, do start with Christ. They do start with salvation.

3:12 And on the surface, this seems very spiritual. It almost seems biblical, since Christ is the great central theme of Scripture, and the salvation in Christ is the great concern of Scripture. But let's not be deluded, let's not be deceived by that kind of pious evasion. For our understanding of the nature of this book, our estimation of its origin, will determine all that we think about God and all that we believe about the Savior and about His salvation.

3:52 Our attitudes towards and our treatment of this book, the Bible, will regulate every other part of our confession. Our attitudes towards and our treatment of this book Will regulate and determine every other part of our confession When Luther said Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God Why did he say that? Because he could say previously My conscience is held captive to the word of God You see, it was his view of Scripture that determined the issues that were spelled out in his 20 books that were piled up,

4:39 and to which his accusers pointed and said, Are these your books? And then the second question, What do you say about them? Will you recant them, or will you stand by them? Well, you see, he regarded the Scriptures as the Word of God.

4:53 It was his view of Scripture, setting Scripture above his own rational dictates, Scripture set above the pronouncements of popes and bishops and councils of bishops and popes. It was his view of Scripture that determined the substance of his confession. And therefore, if in the true Reformation spirit we are to say, Here we stand, we must begin with the Scriptures. For it is our attitude towards the Scriptures, our understanding of what the Scriptures are that will determine everything in our confession.

5:34 As we think through this subject this morning, we shall do so along four lines. First of all, the necessity for this book. Secondly, the nature of this book. Thirdly, the purpose of this book.

5:46 And fourthly, the proper attitude towards this book. And if I stick more to my notes this morning, it's only because I want to keep myself to the beaten track, and any one of these heads could very easily dilate itself into a full hour's exposition without any pauses except to breathe. It would be very easy, but I'm deliberately committing myself to a course in which we are not attempting to be exhaustive on any point, But I want desperately to do what our goals are. And I've got those goals before me to confirm the old timers, to initiate the newcomers, and to inform the onlookers.

The Necessity for This Book: General and Special Revelation

6:30 First of all, then, the necessity for this book. From what does the necessity for a book such as the Bible arise? Will you turn, please, to 1 Corinthians chapter 2?

6:47 And my method in covering these four headings is not to jump around to dozens of scriptures, but to acquaint you with the most significant or some of the most significant and most helpful scriptures on the various headings. In 1 Corinthians 2 and verse 6, the apostle says, We speak wisdom, however, among them that are full grown, yet a wisdom not of this world nor of the rulers of this world who are coming to naught, But we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, even the wisdom that hath been hidden, which God foreordained before the worlds unto our glory, which none of the rulers of this world hath known, for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

7:33 But as it is written, things which I saw not and ear heard not, and which entered not into the heart of man, whatsoever things God prepared for them that love him, But unto us God revealed them through the Spirit. For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For who among men knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of a man which is in him? Even so, the things of God none knoweth, save the spirit of God.

8:10 But we receive, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is from God, that we might know the things that were freely given us of God, which things also we speak, not in words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Spirit teacheth, combining spiritual things with spiritual words. Now the great principle that undergirds this statement of the Apostle is this, that we can know another person only so far as that person is willing to make himself known to us. Look at verse 11. For who among men knoweth the things of a man save the spirit of the man which is in him?

8:57 In other words, no one knows you like you know yourself. And we can know certain things about you by simple observation. We can know whether you're tall or short, thin or fat. or something in between.

9:11 We can know whether you have green hair, purple hair, brown hair, whatever these external characteristics are, but that's not real knowledge of a person. To really know a person, what he thinks, how he feels, the real person, that which cannot be discerned by simple observation of external characteristics, the Apostle says, Who among men knows a man save the spirit of a man which is in him? And to that extent, and to that extent alone, to the extent that the man is willing to reveal himself to me, can I really know him? That's why we say of certain people, well, I've known them for ten years, but I don't really know them.

9:53 Why? They've not been pleased to reveal much of what they really are. This is the tragedy of some marriages. People have lived together under the same roof for twenty years, but they don't know each other.

10:04 their relative unknown commodities because there's no communication in which there is that voluntary disclosure of what each really is. Now, what is true of two human beings is true of God. We can know nothing of God except that which God is pleased to reveal to us. Notice the wording.

10:28 Even so, in like manner as it is among human beings, verse 11, So the things of God none knoweth save the Spirit of God. Only God comprehends God. That's why Jesus could say in Matthew 11, No man knoweth the Father save the Son. And he to whomsoever the Son willeth to what?

10:53 Reveal him. You see, the Spirit fully comprehends God, for He is God. Only God can comprehend God. That's why the Son is said fully to comprehend God.

11:04 And if we are to know God, God must in grace and in condescension reveal Himself to us. We cannot know Him except He reveals Himself. If this is true of one finite human being to another, how much more is it true of the infinite God revealing himself to the finite creature? Now God has graciously chosen to reveal himself, and his revelation to his creatures finds expression in two channels.

11:40 The one is called by the theologians natural revelation, the other supernatural, or sometimes the terms are used general revelation and special revelation. And Psalm 19 is a celebration of God's goodness in cutting these two channels of self-revelation. Under no constraint by the creature, under no constraint of the circumstances themselves, but because He chose to do so, we read in Psalm 19, the heavens declare the glory of God.

12:26 In the firmament showeth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, their voice is not heard, their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. Here is a celebration of general revelation.

12:50 God is speaking to His creatures. God is revealing something of Himself. In the creation that He has made. But then in verse 7.

13:01 We have a celebration of this second channel of God's self-disclosure. The law of the Lord is perfect. Restoring the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure.

13:13 Making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right. Rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure.

13:22 Enlightening the eyes. So whenever you think of the two channels by which God has chosen to reveal Himself, think of Psalm 19 in which the psalmist celebrates the goodness of God in this self-revelation. Now this initial revelation, natural revelation, general revelation, what God reveals of Himself is a valid revelation. It is a true revelation.

13:52 It is a clear revelation. So much so that Paul tells us in Romans 1, and I want you to turn to that passage, that because of this self-disclosure of God to His creatures in creation, They are utterly without excuse if they do not worship the true and living God according to what that revelation reveals.

14:19 Romans 1.18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who hinder or suppress or hold down the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known of God is manifest in them. For God manifested it unto them. For the invisible things of Him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even His everlasting power and divinity, so that they may be without excuse.

14:58 Because that, knowing God, you see, there's been a self-disclosure. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork. It declares some of His essential Godhead, some of His essential attributes of wisdom and of power. But having that knowledge of God, they have not reacted accordingly and therefore God has brought down judgment upon them.

15:24 The wrath of God is revealed to them. And so God has revealed Himself in this channel of natural revelation. He has revealed Himself in general revelation. But now if there is to be this disclosure that man in his sinfulness desperately needs, because he puts down that revelation that comes by the natural order, by creation, there must be a revelation that is more precise and clear and that speaks to issues that can never be known by looking at the creation.

16:04 Here's a man who discovers that he's got something that his fellow men call a conscience. This moral arbiter within that condemns him when he sins. That gives him a sense of well-being when he does what is virtuous. Romans 2, 14 and 15.

16:20 And he asks the question, why is it that I have this conscience? What is it that makes me essentially different from the beasts? When the cow kicks over the bucket, she doesn't trouble herself. with a bad conscience that night But when I done something carelessly or thoughtlessly my conscience troubles me I must find out what is the answer to this matter of conscience I have a sense that I didn't just come here.

16:48 I look at the creation and I see the stamp of God upon it, power and wisdom, as we read in Romans 1.20. How can I know this God? What's the relationship of my conscience to this God?

17:01 How can I approach Him? How can I experience His nearness? And if it were possible for a man to get in a spaceship that would take him out to the farthest reaches of the farthest galaxy, and he had the years given to him to analyze and to synthesize all of his exposure, he's asking that simple question, what's the origin of my conscience? Where is God? How can I know Him?

17:28 He could go all the way out to the farthest reaches of God's creation, or he could turn inward to the deepest recesses of that creation and give himself to the study of the atoms and all that's involved in that world of space that is within. He still could have no answer to those simple questions. Though the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows his handiwork, he will never know from the heavens and from the firmament that he was made in the image of God. That he fell in Adam.

18:05 That he was loved in Christ.

18:09 That he was redeemed in Christ. That he shall one day be glorified with Christ. Assuming the man has become a believer. So you see there is this necessity for something beyond the natural or general revelation.

18:25 Hence the psalmist says, The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul, that which the glory of God revealed in the heavens and the firmament can never do. It is the law of the Lord in its perfection that is instrumental to the converting of the soul. What then do we say in summary? The necessity for this book arises from two fundamental facts.

18:50 Fact number one, God can only be known if He reveals Himself. Second fact, sinful creatures need a clear, authoritative word revelation if they are to know Him. Hence the necessity for the Word of God. God cannot be known unless He reveals Himself.

19:13 As a creature, yea, a sinful creature, I need a clear, authoritative word revelation if I am to know Him. Now it's interesting that appreciation for the Bible is always found in direct proportion to the acceptance and realization of our creatureliness and our sinfulness. When men acknowledge that they are creatures dependent upon God for all of their light They will revere the Bible and have a high view of Scripture When men are painfully aware of their sinfulness And the fact that sin has disrupted even our most noble faculties of thought

19:58 And rational capacity The mind, the noose is darkened In the language of Paul, having the understanding darkened, the God of this world hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God. To the extent that we take seriously our sinfulness, we'll appreciate the light that comes from Holy Scripture. when men think they are little gods who are not creatures dependent upon God and when men think that they are some kind of sinless creature they despise the Scriptures.

20:40 To the extent that we take seriously the implications of our creatureliness and our sinfulness we will treasure this blessed book. Now you think about that and you trace out the history of so-called Christian movements and Christianity, wherever you find a group of people who acknowledge their creatureliness and their sinfulness, you will find a people who treasure the Word of God and hold to the highest view of the inspiration and authority of the Scriptures. So why do we need such a book? because we cannot know God unless He reveals Himself.

The Nature of This Book: God-Breathed Revelation (2 Tim 3)

21:22 And as creatures, sinful creatures, we need a revelation that is clearer than that which God has given in the natural order. All right, moving now secondly to the nature of this book. Let me state the question. When we read this book, finding in it the words of apostles and prophets and evangelists, evangelists, if we want to consider the gospel writers in that sense evangelists. What are we reading? When we hold this book in our hands, do we hold a treasured collection of the religious consensus of Paul and Moses and Peter? Do we hold a book that is to be desired for its insights because the most sensitive and the most perceptive religious minds have left a record of their

22:11 insights, precisely what do we have in our hands when we hold this book? What is the nature of this book? Well, the answer to that question I wish to give by directing your attention to two of the most important texts in all of Holy Scripture concerning the nature of Scripture itself. If we go to the Bible to explain itself to us, what is its self-explanation? Turn, please, to 2 Timothy chapter 3.

22:42 We shall look first of all at 2 Timothy chapter 3.

22:52 Paul has been instructing Timothy concerning the fact that he will minister in the midst of a hostile situation where there will be declension, departure from truth, and the ungodliness that always follows departure from truth. But then he exhorts him, in spite of all of this declension, you press on, Timothy. You continue in the things that you have heard. Verse 14, But abide thou in the things which thou hast learned and been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them, and that from a babe thou hast known the sacred writings which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

23:31 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God And is also profitable for teaching, reproof, correction For instruction which is in righteousness That the man of God may be complete Furnished completely unto every good work Timothy, continue in the things you've heard You've been instructed from obey In the sacred writings In the Holy Scriptures And Timothy, no matter what kind of declension there is around you, that blessed word on which you fed, as it were, from your infancy, is worthy of your continued trust and confidence, because all Scripture is inspired or given by inspiration of God.

24:21 Now, there is a question as to what is the most desirable rendering of the language in the original. Should it be as we have in the 1901 edition, every scripture inspired of God is also profitable? Or should it be as you have in the authorized, all scripture is given by inspiration of God? Well, from a linguistic standpoint, either is possible.

24:43 But I would cast in my lot with E.J. Young and others who would say that the old authorized translation probably is to be preferred. But no material difference results anyway.

24:56 The great issue is whatever is Scripture is described in this verse as inspired of God. And that's a poor translation of this word. It's found only once in the New Testament. It's a compound word which literally means breathed out of God.

25:15 When we say inspiration, we think of something that's breathed in. We watch Mr. Rotman play his piano and we say he plays like someone who's inspired. Like something from Beethoven has come from without and gotten into him and coming out his fingers and the beads of sweat that drop off his head and the whole business.

25:34 Alright? When we think of inspiration, we think of something that is brought from without that takes hold of a man. But the emphasis here is not on something that happened in the writers.

25:47 Literally, Paul is saying, all Scripture is breathed out of God. In other words, the emphasis falls upon the activity of God in giving to us the Scriptures. and the best way I know to give you as it were a thumbnail sketch of what the apostle is saying here is to quote from E.J. Young in his most helpful book Thy Word is Truth written not for theologians but for common everyday Christians to ground them in this biblical doctrine concerning its own inspiration.

26:25 What can such a strange word mean? That is, breathed out of God. Why did Paul thus speak of Scripture? He spoke thus we believe because he wished to make as clear as possible the fact that the Scriptures did not find their origin in man, but in God.

26:44 It was God the Holy Ghost who breathed them forth. They owe their origin to Him. They were the product of the creative breath of God Himself. It is a strong figure, the expression breathed out by God.

27:01 A strong figure, however, is needed in order that Timothy may realize he is being asked to place his confidence not in writings which merely express the hopes and aspirations of the best of men, but rather in the writings which are themselves actually breathed out by God and consequently of absolute authority. The Scriptures, therefore, are writings which found their origin in God. They are the product of His creative breath. It is this then that we mean when we speak of the inspiration of the Bible.

27:43 We're talking about the activity of God. They came into being because they were breathed out by God Himself. And that's something quite different, Mr. Young says, from our common notion of inspiration, in which the focus is upon what a man absorbs.

28:01 He is inspired. Here the focus is upon God. What then do we have when we hold the Scriptures in our hands? We have the out-breathing of God.

Men Spake From God Borne Along by the Spirit (2 Peter 1)

28:14 We have words that God has originated. Now keep that in mind as we turn to the second key text, 2 Peter chapter 2. 2 Peter chapter 2. Peter has been speaking of the coming of Christ, and he assures his readers that in speaking of the coming of Christ, he is not deceiving them.

28:42 He is not giving them, verse 16, cunningly devised fables. And he says there are two lines of evidence that make certain that Christ will come in power and in glory.

28:54 Line of evidence number one, the testimony of eyewitnesses. Notice verse 16. We do not follow cunningly devised fables when we make known the power and coming of the Lord Jesus, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. And then he describes what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration.

29:16 And he says, What we saw upon that mount of the outshining of the majesty of Christ, it is no cunningly devised fable to say that that same Christ will come in the full display of that majesty to the entire moral universe at His second coming. Line of evidence number one, we were eyewitnesses, but he says there's a second body of evidence. Verse 19, we have the word of prophecy made more sure. From the testimony of eyewitnesses, he says, we now have the testimony of Scripture itself.

29:51 And why is the testimony of Scripture so important? Why is it more certain than even the testimony of eyewitnesses? Because, he says, verse 20, knowing this, that no prophecy of Scripture is of private interpretation. That is, it did not come into being because some man concocted a notion that he wanted to impose upon his fellow men.

30:12 For no prophecy ever came by the will of man. The word of prophecy does not originate in man. But men spake from God being moved by the Holy Spirit And that may be smooth English But it's weak conveyance of the vigor of the language of the apostle E.J. Young translates the phrase this way Being born by the Holy Spirit Men spake from God Orlensky Born along by the Holy Spirit from God Men made utterance.

30:50 And in the very arranging of the language, all of the emphasis is thrown forward in the sentence. All of the emphasis is put forward upon this bearing along by the Spirit. Men made utterance. So you see, Peter says this word of prophecy is certain because it does not originate in men.

31:11 It originates in the mighty activity of God. Men made utterance. Granted. That's why the Scriptures are the word of men.

31:20 That's why there are stylistic differences. You don't need to know the original to sense a difference in the style and vocabulary of John, of Peter, and of Paul. You don't need to know any Hebrew to pick up Isaiah and know that there's something very, very different from the lofty poetic flights of Isaiah to the rough-hewn agrarian language of Amos, who was taken from being a plowboy to be a prophet. Sure, men made utterance, and everything that is characteristic of men, their temperament, their personality, the culture out of which they spoke, the thought patterns, the mental furniture, and how it was arranged, men spake, and the Bible is vigorously and pervasively the word of men,

32:07 And that men gave utterance as borne along by the Holy Spirit, as under the dominant control of the Spirit, so that all of the interplay of their humanity in terms of culture and background and training and logical processes in vocabulary, the whole business, was under the gracious superintendence of the Holy Ghost, so that when they were done writing, what was left? The words of Peter, yes. But the words of Peter as the product of the bearing along of the Holy Ghost so that we look upon the Scriptures as the Word of God in the language of men.

32:58 That's the nature of Holy Scripture. All Scripture is breathed out of God. And there the activity of men is put almost into the shades completely. The dominant note in 2 Timothy 3 is that Scripture is the outbreathing of God Peter now adds this dimension Men made utterance yes but as they were born along of the Holy Spirit And I think in a very perceptive insight, E.J. Young points out, when we look at the phrase, men made utterance, or men spake, there is the conscious activity of the biblical writers.

33:40 They may use historical investigation, as Luke does. You open up the introductory words of Luke, and he says, Others have set things out in order, and I have considered all of the facts and sorted them out. I've set them out. Men speak using historical investigation, using oral report.

33:58 All of the devices of literary composition are to be found in the Bible. Men speak. They were conscious. They were active.

34:06 Ah, but as being born along by the Spirit, they were passive. They were under the control and dominance of the Spirit of God. So that what is given to us is this more sure word of prophecy. What is given to us are the very words of God.

34:28 That's why Paul could say in 1 Corinthians 2.13, In which things we speak, not in words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Spirit teacheth. He says the very choice of words is the result of the influence of the Holy Spirit. God says in Deuteronomy 18, 18, The Lord God will raise up a prophet.

34:56 And what will be the mark of that prophet? Listen to the language of Deuteronomy 18 and verse 18. I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren like unto thee, and I will put my words in his mouth, not just my thoughts in his head, my words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. You remember what our Lord said, quoting from Deuteronomy, in his conflict with Satan the tempter, it is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the head of Moses.

35:35 No, by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Jesus Christ regarded the Scriptures of the Old Testament as words that proceeded from the mouth of God. God said to Jeremiah in his commission, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth. I have set thee over the nations to be a prophet, to overthrow, to tear down, to destroy, to build, and to plant.

36:05 Jesus Christ said, Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory. In John 17, he describes his own as those who have received thy words. Now you say, why are you putting such emphasis upon the words? for the simple reason that the superintendence of the Holy Spirit extends to the words of the biblical writers.

36:35 For accuracy of thought is only maintained where there is superintendence over the words. What then do we have when we hold the Scriptures in our hands? Of course, this extends primarily, we're talking of the original autographs, I'm fully aware of that. but where to the extent we have an accurate translation it is safe to say that we hold in our hands what?

37:03 Not the collection of the religious aspirations of the most sensitive religious souls out of the Hebrew nation and down to the days of the apostles. No, no. What we hold in our hands is the product of the breath of God of God's influence in bearing along the biblical writers so that we have the Word of God in the language of men. Now this has two corollaries.

Corollaries: Absolute Authority and Inerrancy

37:32 And a corollary is simply a proposition that follows from another. Anything that follows is a normal result. And there are two corollaries to this biblical doctrine of the inspiration of the Scriptures. Corollary number one, the absolute authority of the Scriptures.

37:49 Corollary number two, the inerrancy or infallibility of the Scriptures. The absolute authority of Scripture derives from this fact that Scripture comes from God. And if it comes from God, all of the authority of the Godhead stands above it and speaks in it and comes to us through it.

38:15 What Scripture says, God says. It's just that simple. The absolute authority, therefore human tradition, must never stand on a parallel. Jesus said in Mark 7 to the leaders of his day, You cancel the word of God by your foolish traditions.

38:33 Tradition must bow to the authority of the word of God, for man's traditions are never breathed out of God, or the result of being borne along by this powerful superintendence of the Spirit. Only Scripture. It's to take precedence above the so-called first laws of human reason. Whenever you read in the theologian, it is a common understanding of the first laws of human reason.

38:59 Put a big red question mark in the margin. Watch out for anyone who builds theology upon the so-called first laws of human reason. For Isaiah 55 says, My thoughts are not your thoughts. As the heavens are high above the earth, so are my thoughts above your thoughts and my ways above your ways.

39:16 The first laws of infinite reason many times go far beyond the first laws of finite, depraved, darkened reason. This does not mean we give ourselves to irrationality, but we humbly and worshipfully bow before a God whose mind many times goes beyond the limits of this poor little teacup brain to hold. And when you can take the Atlantic Ocean and fit it in your coffee cup, you can fit the mind of God in your little pea brain.

39:53 There comes a point where reason is found at rest in God. And Spurgeon said that's faith. Reason at rest in God. So corollary number one, the nature of Scripture, the words of God in the language of men.

40:11 We derive from this its absolute authority. and secondly, its inerrancy or infallibility. If breathed out of God, then they reflect the character of the God who breathed them. And the Scripture says of that God, He cannot lie, He's absolute truth, and He is omnipotent, He can do all things.

40:32 And to say that God cannot get an infallible record and revelation because He's dealing with infallible men is to impugn the omniscience of God on the one hand, And also the character of God on the other hand. Jesus could say, He who was truth incarnate, Father, sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth.

41:01 Take all that prophets have said, from Moses down through Malachi. Put it all in a column. Add up Moses plus Joshua plus Samuel plus, plus, plus. Draw your line.

41:16 And what's the sum of all of this? The psalmist said, the sum of thy word is truth.

41:23 Not truth plus human error. Truth plus human prejudice. Truth plus human limitations. Add it all up, the psalmist says, and the sum of thy word is truth.

41:36 Thy word is truth. All of its statements of history are true. All of its assertions accord with reality. The scriptures are not just true when they speak to explicitly religious issues.

41:52 Haven't we seen this Sunday nights? Who would have thought, just reading through Genesis 2, that the history of how God made the man and the woman was filled with profound theological implications. But when we turn to the New Testament, that we find the New Testament writers building the theology of masculinity and femininity not upon a profound philosophical dissertation or religious discourse in Genesis 2, but upon some historical narrative.

42:27 Therefore, we do not say Scripture is true when it speaks in, quote, religious areas. No, no. All of its facts are facts. all of its declarations accord with reality, we stand, I trust, unflinchingly upon the inerrancy of Scripture.

42:47 And ultimately, we must stand here because that's precisely where our Lord stood. And we cannot have the Christ of the Bible without an inerrant Bible.

43:00 Christ said the Scriptures cannot be broken, not one jot or tittle. the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet and the little bit of a tail on a letter that will make the difference between two letters the tittle not one shall pass till all be fulfilled and ultimately the issue is whether or not we will stand with Christ and his view of the word of God alright then the necessity for this book it derives from the principle that we cannot know God unless He is pleased to reveal Himself. And as sinful creatures, we need a revelation that is more extensive and clear than that which is given nature. What is the precise nature of this book?

43:48 God-breathed revelation. Men spake is borne along by the Spirit. We have the words of God in the word or language of men. the two corollaries. Scripture then is of absolute authority and is inerrant and infallible.

The Purpose of This Book: To Save and To Equip for Service

44:08 Now we come in the third place to the purpose of this book. If I go a bit longer this morning, dear people, please hang in with me.

44:17 I feel this is so vital. What then is the purpose of this book? Why did God go to such pains to give us such a revelation? Turn to 2 Timothy chapter 3 again, and you'll see the answer.

44:34 2 Timothy chapter 3.

44:39 Paul says to Timothy, Timothy, the Scriptures were given for two reasons. Fundamentally, verse 14, Abide in the things which thou hast learned and been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them, and that from a babe thou hast known the sacred writings. Purpose number one, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is also profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, furnished completely unto every good work.

45:19 You see the two basic purposes for which the Scriptures were given. to make wise to salvation to make us fit for service. To make wise to salvation to make us fit for service. To make us wise unto a salvation which focuses in the person and work of the Redeemer.

45:41 To make thee wise unto salvation which is to be found where? In some kind of self-help? No, no. Whenever the Scriptures are used to turn you inward upon yourself, they're being abused, not used.

45:57 Reverend Ike and Dr. Norman Vincent Peale manipulate the Scriptures to turn you in upon yourself to be your own Savior. They're not opening up the Scriptures, they're resting the Scriptures.

46:12 Timothy, if you rightly read and understand the Scriptures, they will point you out of yourself and to Christ.

46:24 And furthermore, they'll make plain that the only way to get into Christ is by faith. Not the sacraments. Not the so-called true church. Not by personal reformation.

46:39 The Scriptures will point you out of yourself to Christ. And they'll say that the only path to Christ is faith. that's why the law was given to make us feel our need of Christ to make us despair of ever saving ourselves that's why Christ is the great theme of the scriptures look at Luke 24 verses 25 to 27 if the scriptures were given to make men wise to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus then can we not assume that Christ will be its central theme? Faith in Christ, its central emphasis.

47:24 In Luke 24, our Lord speaking to the two on the road to Emmaus, verse 25, And He said unto them, O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets had spoken, behoved it not the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory? and beginning from Moses and from all the prophets. He interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. Oh, what a Bible conference.

47:56 I don't envy so much being able to stand by the side of Lazarus' tomb and see him called forth, though I wouldn't turn down the opportunity if it were given to me. But if there is one thing I would envy It would be that Post-resurrection Bible Course of our Lord Moses And in all the prophets The things concerning himself I wonder how much When I read the Old Testament It is true of me That my eyes are held And I do not see But our Lord in this interplay and this exchange with these two disciples made known to them that

48:43 He was the great theme of the Old Testament Scriptures. He further does it with the eleven.

48:51 No, the eleven, yes. It was after His ascension that Matthias was elected. You read later on in Luke 24 and verses 45 and following. He did a similar thing.

49:00 Paul says in Romans 1.1 that His gospel centers in Christ and is based upon the teaching of the apostles and of the prophets of the Old Testament. What's the purpose of this book? It's to make us wise to salvation.

49:15 It's to set forth Christ and to show us that the way to Him is the way of faith. And the second great purpose is to make us fit for service. Verses 16 and 17. Profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, instruction in righteousness.

49:34 Why? That the man of God may be complete. That is, that he as a man may be furnished with all that is necessary for the service to which God appoints him. Why does God give us so much of that Old Testament history?

49:48 It's not only to point to Christ, dear people. 1 Corinthians 10 says after giving us a reminder of some of the sordid history of the nation of Israel dancing around a calf while Moses is up on the mount committing fornication in acts of uncleanness and idolatry Paul says, these things were written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the age are come, that we should not lust after evil things as they lusted. And I say to you young men, particularly preparing for the ministry, The devil, if he can't keep you from climbing the hill of any truth, will push you over the other side. And when you begin to grasp the perspective of Luke 24, that Christ is the great theme of Scripture, then the devil comes along and says,

50:34 yes, and he's the only theme. And if you take Old Testament incidents and use them as the basis of hortatory preaching, warning and exhorting, that's moralistic, it's not Christocentric, rubbish.

50:47 Paul did it. These things are written to admonish us. When you read what happened, God is saying, don't lust after evil things. You're in covenant relationship to God.

51:03 We're admonished. Romans 15, 4. That ye through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. It's right to have a promise box.

51:13 that ye through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. Psalm 119, 105, By words, a lamp to my feet, a light to my path, given to perfect the whole man unto God-ordained service.

Corollaries of Purpose: Perspicuity, Sufficiency, Christocentricity

51:31 Now, if that's the purpose of the book, to make wise to salvation, to make fit for service, may I quickly give you three corollaries, and I'll only mention them. I don't have time to open them up. First of all, the first corollary is the perspicuity And the S comes before the P You've got to spit to say perspicuity It's not perspicuity, it's perspicuity Which means the clarity of Scripture Now not all things are alike clear in the language of our own confession And even an apostle found it difficult to understand another apostle 2 Peter 3 Our beloved brother Paul Peter says it's written some things hard to be understood. But the central purpose of Scripture, if it's given to save and to fit us for service,

52:19 God is going to give us a record that in the main is clear to accomplish those ends. That's why He could say to the Jews of His day in John 5, 39, Ye search the Scriptures, for in them you think ye have eternal life. These are they which testify of Me, but ye will not come to Me. He says the Scriptures are clear.

52:39 They're to point you to me. That's their purpose, to make wise to salvation. But you search them, missing their purpose. What did he say to those on the road to Emmaus?

52:49 He said, fools and slow of heart. He said the problem is not in the obscurity of the revelation. The problem is in the perversity of your heart. Fools and slow of heart.

53:03 So if the Scriptures were given to make us wise, we can read them in the confidence that in humble dependence upon the Holy Spirit, Christ can be seen, that we will be led to faith in Him. The second corollary, not only the perspicuity, but the sufficiency of Scripture. What do we need in order to see men brought to faith? Do we need to have a reenactment of apostolic miracle?

53:31 No. You read Luke 16 beginning with verse 22 and following. The rich man in hell said, Oh, Father Abraham, if only somebody will come back from the dead with the smell of the grave upon him, then my brothers will leave their preoccupation with the world, the flesh, and the devil. Then they'll believe.

53:50 And what was the answer? They have Moses and the prophets. If they will not hear them, neither will they. Listen, the one come back from the dead.

54:00 Not only the perspicuity of Scripture But the sufficiency of Scripture Sufficient to bring men to faith We do not need the reenactment of apostolic miracle We need the opening up of the Scriptures In the power and demonstration of the Holy Ghost And what about Christian maturity? Well, Paul says to Timothy Everything you need is a man of God And the man of God has greater demands upon him in terms of his spiritual responsibilities than the average person in the assembly. But he says, by the Scriptures, Timothy, you can be furnished completely to every good work. You don't need the super insights of the psychologist.

54:44 You don't need the so-called perspectives of the experts. We do not despise any legitimate sphere of learning in which God enriches the human race in common grace. I'm not anti-intellectual, but I'm saying the Scriptures are sufficient.

55:03 You want to know how to evangelize? We go to the Scriptures. What is our message? Go to the Scriptures.

55:09 How are we to worship? Go to the Scriptures. How are we to conduct our congregational life? Go to the Scriptures.

55:16 Here we stand, so help us God, believing that if the purpose of this book is not only to make wise to salvation, but to make us fit for service, that those scriptures are perspicuous. They are sufficient. We hold to the perspicuity as a corollary of the purpose of the book, the sufficiency. And then I've coined a word to balance out these corollaries, the Christocentricity.

55:43 Revelation 19.10 says, The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. You see it's not a matter of worshiping Christ or the book The more we reverence this book Study it and examine it with dependence upon the spirit Since Christ is its central theme He will become more and more precious to us Luther used the quaint analogy He said the scriptures are the cradle in which we find the Savior If you came to Bethlehem and wanted to find Jesus there was one place you could find him in that manger cradle. If you look for him anywhere else you'd have missed him.

56:28 You want to find Christ? There's one place you're going to find him in this cradle. Isn't that a beautiful analogy? Now when we come there we don't worship the cradle.

56:36 Like the shepherds we fall down at his feet. We worship him. But you look for him anywhere else but in that cradle and you won't find him. And if we are rightly studying this book dear people the evidence will be Christ is more and more known.

The Proper Attitude: Gratitude, Reverence, Attention, Trust, Obedience

56:52 Christ is more and more trusted. Christ is more and more loved. Christ is more and more served. And then finally, having looked at the necessity for this book, the nature of the book, the purpose of the book, what's the proper attitude to this book?

57:08 Well, spend the afternoon reading Psalm 119 and you'll get your own answer. Read the 119th Psalm. And there's a beautiful, comprehensive statement of the proper attitude to this book. But may I just suggest, and I'll again only give you the words, and you work out the implications.

57:25 If this book is what we've said it is because that's what it claims for itself, God-breathed revelation, if its purpose is to save and to fit us for service, if it is perspicuous, clear, if it is sufficient, adequate for all our needs, and if it focuses in Christ, then our attitude ought to be one of overwhelming gratitude for this blessed book. Oh, how long has it been since on your face before God you said, Lord, thank you for the Bible. Come on now, how long has it been since you said thank you for the Scriptures? Do you realize sitting here this morning there are millions upon millions who have not seen one page of this blessed book?

58:10 to whom special revelation is just a word if they even heard it.

58:19 Oh, what overwhelming gratitude ought to be ours. Secondly, what profound reverence ought to be ours. Isaiah 66, 1 and 2, To this man will I look even to him who trembles at my word. Dear people, we deal with God in His word.

58:34 We don't just deal with a book called the Bible that is in some way deposited, detached from the God who gave it. It is God Himself who has dealings with us in His Word, and there ought to be profound reverence for that Word. And I say to the unconverted among us, God says, if they escape not who refused Him that spake from earth, how shall we escape if we refuse Him that speaketh from heaven? Jesus said in John 12, 48, The word that I have spoken unto you shall judge you in the last day.

59:11 When I stand and other elders stand and expound the word of God, O unconverted man, woman, boy or girl, has it gripped you? You are dealing with God.

59:25 When we tell you, He that believeth not shall be damned. That is not our religious opinion. That's not the religious opinion of apostle or prophet. That's the breathed out word of God.

59:40 When we tell you that God receives the vilest of sinners, who simply throw themselves upon His mercy, that's not wishful thinking on our part. That's word buttressed by the character of God who cannot lie. When Christ says, Him that comes to me I'll in no wise cast out, That's buttressed by the character of incarnate truth. Oh, unsaved man, woman, boy or girl, trifle no longer.

60:13 The same God who speaks in Scripture will once again unfold special revelation. Special revelation ceased with the closing of the canon of Scripture. But it's going to open up again When the judge comes back And he'll speak again And he'll say to them on the left hand Depart from the ye cursed Oh there ought to be overflowing gratitude Profound reverence Serious attention These were more noble than they at Thessalonica In that they received the word with readiness of mind And searched the scriptures daily Proverbs 2 Seek it as silver where Humford is treasure, oh, there ought to be serious attention.

60:59 There ought to be humble trust. There ought to be diligent obedience.

61:05 You see, every part of our life as a congregation either gives lie or affirms what we say we believe the Bible to be.

61:14 Does your home reflect a high view of the Bible? Fathers, listen to me. Do you gather your children around and instruct them from the Bible? or do you let them be instructed by TV?

61:31 Do you shape their thoughts about things and sex and the home and marriage by the Bible or are you letting it be molded by the wicked anti-Christ perspectives that ooze from the TV day and night? All of the new prime time shows preoccupied with murder or with divorce infidelity, all of the soaps dripping with illicit sex and lechery?

62:03 Here we stand. Now, it's one thing to say we have this view of the Bible, but does our home life reflect it? What about our individual lives? May God grant that our church life will reflect it.

62:16 Some of you are new among us. Do you wonder why in the world they take the time to read a chapter they don't even preach from every Sunday morning, and now they even do it Sunday night. You see why? We believe God has revealed Himself in this book.

62:29 We want to know what He said. Some of you were with us Wednesday night. That was a new experience for you. See a whole group of people for 45 minutes looking at one passage of Scripture, phrase by phrase, the requirements for an elder, daring to discuss a fellow human being's life and conduct in the light of the Word.

62:46 Why? We believe that Word is binding upon the church. We have no right to recognize any man to the office of an elder who does not meet the biblical standard. Why do we not elect women to the eldership?

62:59 Because God forbids her from that office.

63:03 But why do we seek to treat our women with gentleness and love and consideration? Because God says that's the way they're to be treated. Giving honor to them because of their peculiar position, not despising them. Oh, the day comes, dear people, when anything beyond the Word of God takes precedence in our congregational life.

63:24 And I pray God to blow upon this thing and split it into a thousand pieces.

Applying It to Home and Church Life

63:32 God's name not be dishonored by a body that professes to be subject to King Jesus and disregards the charter of the King. Well, that's the book we believe. and by God's grace obey. Can you stand with me this morning and say, Here I stand, so help me God.

63:54 Has God given you a profound sense of your need for this book? A need arising from the fact that God can only be known if He voluntarily chooses to disclose Himself. And as a sinful creature, you need a revelation that comes to you from without. Do you see in the nature of this book what it really is?

64:14 God-breathed Scripture. The words of God in the language of men. Do you feel the weight of the corollaries that flow out of that? It's absolute authority.

64:27 What God says, Scripture says. What Scripture says, God says. It's infallibility and inerrancy. Do you see the purpose of the book?

64:36 Given to save for the salvation that focuses in Christ and is given to the believing sinner. Do you see its purpose is to make us adequate for all the demands of God-ordained service. If so, may these responses of profound reverence and overwhelming gratitude and humble obedience and trust, oh, that they may mark us all our days. The Bible we believe and obey.

Closing Appeal and Prayer

65:05 Let us pray. Amen.

65:13 Oh God, our Father, we would thank You for this blessed book. We worship You for Your goodness in ever choosing to give it to us. We thank You for the Savior who is the focal point of all of its pages. We thank You for the salvation that is given to every believing sinner.

65:37 And, O God, we pray that a deeper and a more extensive love and appreciation for this book will be worked in our hearts, a greater diligence in searching out its truth, a greater obedience to its precepts, greater confidence in its promises. And, O, may this assembly be a congregation of people who are known as those whose consciences are held captive to the Word of God. Hear our prayer, and may the blessing of Your presence rest upon us and abide with us. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

66:32 Thank you.