The Creation Account, Part 4

We wrap up our topical study on the issue of the creation account as found in Genesis, chapter one and two today. We have thus far looked at some of the various views of the creation accounts to point out their weaknesses and strengths. Today, we are going to look at the Biblical View and discuss why it must be true above all else and that anything else we believe must fall in line with that view without contradiction. So far, we have looked at the following views: Mythology, Pictoral Day, Old Earth Creation, Young Earth Creation, Gap Theory, and Naturalistic Evolution.

The final view that needs to be considered is the Biblical View. In other words, what does the Bible say in regards to the creation account? These issues include, but certainly are not limited to, what it says about the uniqueness of man above the rest of God's creation, the origin of sin that requires a Savior, and the teachings of Jesus and the Apostle Paul which point to the fact that they clearly believed the creation account as found in Genesis 1-2. 

In regards to the uniqueness of man, the New Testament teaches that man is the pinnacle of God’s creation in that he was created in the image of God unlike any of the other creatures before him. Millard Erickson says of this, “There is something that gives humanity value from above. The value of humans is not that they are the highest products of the evolutionary process thus far but that the supreme eternal being has made them in his own image. It is not our estimation of ourselves, but the judgment of the holy God that gives us value.”

  

In regards to the origins of sin, the Bible also teaches that man rebelled against God in the Garden of Eden when they chose disobedience rather than obedience in regards to the Tree of Knowledge as recorded in Genesis 3. That single act of rebellion brought sin into God’s creation for the first time. As a result of that sin, death came upon all mankind both spiritually and physically. That is why Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” And because of the wages of man’s sin that was introduced into the world by Adam and Eve, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8).

Also, the teachings of both Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul are predicated on the historicity of the creation account. For example, Jesus’ response to the religious leaders in regards to divorce, Jesus referenced the creation account when he said in Mark 10:6-8, “But from the beginning of creation, God MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE. "FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH; so they are no longer two, but one flesh.” Jesus clearly believed in a historical Adam and Eve. Also, the Apostle Paul referred to Adam and Eve on several occasions. When speaking to the Romans he said that “death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come (Rom. 5:14). Also, when speaking to the Corinthians, Paul said that “in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive (1 Cor. 15:22), and that "The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit (1 Cor. 15:45). Also, when speaking to Timothy in 1 Timothy 2:13-14 he said, “For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve. And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.” It is also clear that the Apostle Paul believed in the creation account as well. 

In conclusion, after looking at several alternative views of the creation account, the question is now which ones agree with or contradict the writings of the Bible? Most conservatives hold to the view of Old Earth Creationism, Young Earth Creationism, or the Gap Theory. On the other hand, most conservatives categorically reject the Mythological, Pictorial Day, and Naturalistic Evolutionary views.

The reason for these views by conservatives is because Old Earth Creationism, Young Earth Creationism, and the Gap Theory all require an intelligent creator. Of course, they strongly disagree on particulars such as whether the creation account in Genesis 1 and 2 should be taken literally, or that something happened between verses 1 and 2, but they all concur that an intelligent creator (God) was involved.

On the other hand, their rejection of the Mythological, Pictorial Day, and Naturalistic Evolutionary views is because those views reject the account in Genesis 1 and 2 as factual, deny the involvement of an intelligent creator, and they embrace Naturalistic Evolution and its view of random mutation and natural selection which contradicts the teachings of the Bible and thus “impugns the authority of Christ and His apostolic witnesses”. 

Just so that you know, I believe that the Young Earth Creation view best aligns with the teachings of Scripture.

The Creation Account, Part 3

We continue our topical study on the issue of the creation account as found in Genesis, chapter one and two. Just to recap, this is based on a paper that I wrote in 2014 for a class called Old Testament Background Studies in Genesis. In it, I briefly looked at some of the various views of the creation accounts to point out their weaknesses and strengths, at least as far as I could discern, and which ones we as Bible-believing Christians should reject and embrace. Again, this study is not meant to be exhaustive, but to serve as a good starting point for the reader to pursue on their own. Last time, we looked at what is called the Pictoral Day, Old Earth Creationism, and Young Earth Creationism. Today, we will look at the Gap Theory and Naturalistic Evolution. 

The Gap Theory first made its way into the mainstream as a result of the printing of the Scofield Reference Bible in 1909. Yes, that beloved reference Bible. This theory assumes a gap of time between verses 1 and 2 of Genesis 1. It is during this time that they postulate that a pre-Adamic world once existed and was subsequently destroyed in the rebellion of Lucifer and the fallen angels that are referred to in Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14. 

The reason for this view is found in Genesis 1:2 which says that “The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters”. At issue is the word “was” which they believe should be translated as “became”. In other words, the earth became formless and void as a result of some act of judgment in time past. It is in this “gap” of time that they conclude that “all the ages that are demanded by geologists occurred and ended with the glacial age”.   The theory also explains why there is the apparent contradiction in how old science says the earth is and the biblical account.

The theory goes on to surmise that in Genesis 1:3, God starts the process of reparation as described in the six days of creation. The rationale for this view comes from a “desire to reconcile the voluminous scientific evidence for Earth’s antiquity” and still concedes the six literal days of creation.   In the end though, too much of the theory rests on the translation of the word “was” and the questionable use of the phrase “formless and void.”   

Next is the view that is referred to as Naturalistic Evolution. Before 1900, the issue of evolution was a non-controversial subject. Everyone, for the most part, embraced the biblical view of creation either by conviction or conformity. However, the issue of evolution was brought to the forefront by the Progressive Movement in the early 20th Century in a series of court cases that eventually came to be known as the Scopes Monkey Trial.

  

In essence, Naturalistic Evolution teaches that all creation is purely accidental and that no supreme power was involved at all. It presupposes that everything came into existence in a randomly generated sequence through mutation and natural selection. Of course, this view by necessity requires millions, if not billions of years, for these mutations to take place. Charles Ryrie puts it this way, “If one were to reduce the process to a formula it would look like this: M(utations) + N(atural) S(election) x T(ime) = Evolution.”

   

It is interesting that in regards to the necessity of time for the evolutionary process to take place, Tremper Longman points out in his book How to Read Genesis, "Many modern readers stumble over the six days of creation. They ask how it could have happened so quickly. It is interesting to note that before the nineteenth century and the work of Charles Darwin the question was just the opposite. For instance, in the sixteenth century John Calvin encountered skepticism concerning the biblical account because it took God so long to create. The biblical account seemed ridiculous to many readers in the sixteenth century because they knew that God could create instantaneously if he so willed.”

  

Of course, Naturalistic Evolution does have its weaknesses as well. Some of these include issues with mutations that tend to be overwhelmingly useless or even detrimental, natural selection which rarely brings about improvements, time for probability and chance, and the second law of thermodynamics which says that all things move from orderliness to chaos, and yet, it supposes the exact opposite.

The Creation Account, Part 2

Today, we continue our topical study on the issue of the creation account as found in Genesis, chapter one and two. Just to recap, this is based on a paper that I wrote in 2014 for a class called Old Testament Background Studies in Genesis. In it, I briefly looked at some of the various views of the creation accounts to point out their weaknesses and strengths, at least as far as I could discern, and which ones we as Bible-believing Christians should reject and embrace. Again, this study is not meant to be exhaustive, but to serve as a good starting point for the reader to pursue on their own. Last time, we looked at the Mythological view. Today, we are going to take a look at what is called the Pictoral Day, Old Earth Creationism, and Young Earth Creationism.  

The second view to consider is called the Pictorial Day. It is often times also referred to as the Revelation Theory. In essence, it says that the days in Genesis 1 are indeed “literal days of twenty-four hours each, but they are days only in the life of Moses. The basic view is that during those six literal days, God revealed to Moses exactly how creation occurred, and as God spoke, Moses recorded what was said to him in a six-day format.

Of course, this view clearly has accommodationism in mind as that it still maintains the literal twenty-four hour days and yet also allows the scientific community to have the long periods of time that they demand for the formation of the earth through the means of evolution. However, just like the Mythological view, it again discounts the clear intent of the author in that he clearly intended the book to be a historical account. This is again seen in its narrative style, attention to genealogies, dates. Why would the writer go through the trouble of giving these details if he knew the twenty-four hour periods were only in his life and not the actual account? Wouldn't make sense. Again, it is merely an attempt at accommodationism which we Christians are far too prone to.  

A third view of the creation account is called Old Earth Creation or Progressive Creation.   Like their Young Earth counterparts, they do believe that the emergence of different life forms was due to the actions of an intelligent creator. The difference between the two is that this group does not accept the historical account of creation as found in Genesis 1 and 2 to be literally true. Instead, they choose to view creation through the lens of science and insist that one can be a Christian and believe in Old Earth Creation as long as “one accepts the central doctrine of salvation through a profession of faith.”   

The most glaring problem that Old Earth Creationists face is that their theory does not fit the scientific evidence. In order to resolve the discrepancies between the Bible and Science, they insist on what is called the Day-Age and Gap Creation ideas. The Day-Age idea says that creation was by God, but he did it in “God-length days that may have lasted thousands, if not millions, of years.” They accompany the Day-Age idea with Gap Creation which says that “all life emerged in cycles of creation followed by long periods of stasis” that was repeated continually until humans were created." 

The fourth view of creation is that of Young Earth Creation. By most conservative scholars, this group is considered to be the most faithful to the Scriptures. Those who hold this view take the creation account in Genesis 1 and 2 literally. This is to say that God created the heavens and the earth in six literal twenty-four hour periods. This means that God created everything by fiat. That is to say that God merely spoke, and it was created just as Hebrews 11:3 implies, “By faith, we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.” Young Earth Creationists also insist that earth cannot be more than 10,000 years old. And, they conclude that the fossil record bears out that a cataclysmic event did take place in time past, and that event is the worldwide flood that is recorded in Genesis 6.

Naturally, this view does have its challenges, especially from the scientific community who consider the idea of a divine being calling things out of nothing to be absurd. One of their contentions is that modern dating methods do place the age of the earth much older than 10,000 years. These methods used by geologists today include carbon-13 and carbon-12 ratios which actually place the oldest fossils as far back as 3.86 billion years. Of course, both of these methods of dating have not proven to be the most reliable at times. 

Bear in mind, that for the moment, I am just listing the various views with their own strengths and weakness. We still have the Gap Theory, Naturalistic Theory, and what I will call the Biblical View.

The Creation Account, Part 1

Today, I want to start a new topical study on the issue of the creation account as found in Genesis, chapter one and two. This is based on a paper that I wrote in 2014 for a class called Old Testament Background Studies in Genesis. In it, I briefly looked at some of the various views of the creation account to point out their weaknesses and strengths, at least as far as I could discern, and which ones we as Bible-believing Christians should reject and embrace. These views consist of Mythology, Pictorial Day, Old Earth Creationism, Young Earth Creationism, Gap Theory, Naturalistic Evolution, and would I refer to as the Biblical View, which is how Bible itself speaks to the issue. 

For centuries the interpretation of the creation account in the book of Genesis was pretty static in that the commonly held teaching that the narrative was to be interpreted literally was accepted by the majority of the church leadership and those in attendance. However, with the advent of the enlightenment and the introduction of rationalism (a belief or theory that opinions and actions should be based on reason and knowledge rather than on religious belief or emotional response) and empiricism (the theory that all knowledge is derived from sense-experience, i.e., experimental science) the historicity of the book has been called into question. 

Specifically, it is the first two chapters of the book that draws the most ire from those who find its account to be on par with such writings as the Epic of Gilgamesh or the stories of Zeus. Others will concede while that upper-story religious truth can certainly be found in the text, but will deny its historical value and the actual validity of the text where it seems to contradict the findings of modern science. However, if indeed the creation account is not a literal account, but simply an upper-story narrative that is only meant to present moral or religious truth, how does that impact the teachings of the Bible? 

The first view to consider is the mythological view. According to John Walton, author of the NIV Application Commentary on Genesis, the mythical approach of interpreting this book is the “most troubling category for those who take the Bible seriously.” The reason for this is because in our modern society the term almost automatically implies a “judgment that the story is not true or at least unhistorical.” However, that is not necessarily the way those in the ancient world saw mythology. Instead, they saw myths as a means of explaining the world around them in the form of a story which usually had religious and moral purposes. Actually, mythology to the ancient world was like science in our own in that both were and are mere attempts to understand cause and effect. C. John Collins, professor of Old Testament at Covenant Theological Seminary insists that with that in mind, it is wise to shy away from triumphalism by arrogantly implying that our modern world is more sophisticated than theirs.   

On the other hand, it must be acknowledged that the very word “myth” does by its very nature imply that not every aspect of the story is to be taken as absolute truth even though it is told as such. Millard Erickson, the author of Christian Theology, also points out that myth is a literary device that is used to convey a “supernatural or transcendent truth in earthly form." Those who hold this view will contend that the Bible was never meant to have any authority in regards to empirical issues such as history or science. Instead, the authority of the Bible only rests in issues of religion and therefore serves to only bring men into a “proper relationship with God”  

Ultimately, those who hold this view usually embrace Naturalistic Evolution (the view that new species of life came into being as a result of natural causes) instead of Biblical Creation. However, they do so by ignoring the clear intent of the author. One example is that the writer clearly intended the book to be an actual historical account due to its narrative style, attention to genealogies (e.g., descendants of Adam and Noah), and dates (e.g., the exact date in relation to Noah’s life that the rain began to fall). 

Therefore, I reject the mythological approach to the interpretation of the account and so should you. 

Scripture: Inspiration and Preservation, Part 5

This will be the final posting in a series on the issue of the inspiration and preservation of the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15). We have so far defined revelation as a disclosure of information that could not have been known otherwise. Also, the two types of revelation which include general and special, and inspiration. Last time, we looked at proofs of its inspiration and preservation such as what the Bible says of itself, its indestructibility, its transmission, fulfilled prophecy, scientific accuracy, history, and the lives that have been transformed because of it. 

Today, we are going to look at inerrancy and canonization. The word inerrant means “without error.” Packer and Oden say that it means that the “Scripture in it’s entirely is free from all falsehood, fraud, or deceit. However, that can mean different things to different people.  Some hold to absolute inerrancy, which means that the Bible is absolutely true in all areas that it addresses in the areas of science and history. Others hold to full inerrancy, which means that the Bible is completely true, but it is not “given primarily to scientific and historical data.” Another view is referred to as limited inerrancy, which means that the Bible is only inerrant in issues of salvation and not necessarily facts in any other area. And still others view that the Bible is only inerrant in purpose.

Why is this issue so important? Does the whole of Christianity rest on how many “stalls for horses” King Solomon really had (I Kings 4:26 and 2 Chronicles 9:25)? “The argument is simply: (1) the Bible is the Word of God; (2) God cannot err; (3) therefore the Bible (which is the Word of God) cannot err. That means that the Bible is factually accurate and correct in what it affirms.” 

However, does that only apply to the original autographs that we no longer have? Or does it also extend down to the copies of those autographs? Well, there is no doubt that there are indeed grammatical errors in the manuscripts we have today. It is believed that these variations occurred as the “result of handwritten scribal errors in the course of making copies and were not part of the originally inspired autographs themselves.”  Furthermore, of the nearly 5,700 New Testament manuscripts that we have today, they can be reconstructed with over a 99 percent accuracy.  Therefore, it must be concluded that the issue of inerrancy applies only to the originals and not the copies. 

Finally, we come to canonization. A canon is a measuring rod, rule or standard. In reference to the Bible, the Canon refers to those books that have been measured and found worthy to be a part of the Bible. It is essentially viewed in two stages: what has been determined by God and what has been recognized by Man. In regards to canonization, it was God who decided what would be in the Canon of Scripture. Harold Willmington puts it this way, “The Bible is not an authorized collection of books, but rather a collection of authorized books.

A few things to consider are that the Old Testament as we know it today was compiled by the Jewish people under the providential oversight of God. It was firmly established well before Christ. Of course, no doubt God was involved in this process. However, our Lord further confirmed it by quoting from or alluding to every book in the Old Testament Canon with the possible exception of 

Some have looked at Luke 11:51 as verification of this when Jesus said, “from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation.' To understand this statement more clearly, one must understand that the Hebrew Bible starts with Genesis and ends with 2 Chronicles.  In Genesis 4:8 we see the blood of Abel when it says, “And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.” And in 2 Chronicles 24:21 we see the blood of Zechariah when it says, “So they conspired against him (Zechariah) and at the command of the king they stoned him to death in the court of the house of the LORD.” This served to affirm that Jesus believed everything in between.

In regards to our New Testament, it was essentially decided by several factors. These included: authorship, local church acceptance, church father’s recognition, subject matter, and personal edification. However, James Sawyer warns evangelicals to not simply rely on “unexamined theological assumptions and historical inaccuracies” when it comes to their acceptance of the canonization of the New Testament.  His challenge is for evangelicals to not downplay the “witness of the Spirit” for assurance instead of relying so heavily only on historical arguments. In other words, the Holy Spirit played a large role in the accumulation of the inspired manuscripts and He is fully responsible for them and not the schemes of man. In regards to the finalization of the Canon, most will agree that the Old Testament Canon was closed by the year 300 B.C. and the New Testament was closed at the Third Council of Carthage in 397 A.D.

In conclusion, we have seen how God has throughout the centuries preserved His Word in such a way that we can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we do indeed hold the very Words of God in our hands. Henry H. Halley once wrote, “Apart from any theory of inspiration; or any theory of how the Bible books came to their present form; or how much the text may have suffered in transmission at the hands of editors and copyists…it bears on its face the stamp of its Author; that it is in a unique and distinctive sense THE WORD OF GOD.

Scripture: Inspiration and Preservation, Part 4

This will be part four in an ongoing series on the issue of the inspiration and preservation of the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15). We have so far defined revelation as a disclosure of information that could not have been known otherwise. Also, the two types of revelation which include general and special, and inspiration. Then finally, we started to look at the issue of proof. We have already looked at what the Bible says of itself, its indestructibility, and its transmission, Today we are going to look at fulfilled prophecy, scientific accuracy, history, and the lives that have been transformed because of it.

There is no doubt that the Bible is indeed a book of prophecy and the purpose of prophecy is not only to establish the authenticity of the prophet but also the authenticity of the source of the prophecy. As a matter of fact, the Bible goes so far as to bring about the death penalty for those who presume to speak on behalf of God. “But the prophet who speaks a word presumptuously in My name which I have not commanded him to speak, or which he speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die” (Deuteronomy 18:20).

It is estimated that there are at least 456 prophecies in the Bible that refer to the Messiah alone. Of these, there are at least 109 of them that Jesus had to fulfill at his first coming alone.”  Some of these would include his virgin birth (Isaiah 7:14), birthplace (Micah 5:2), being proceeded by John the Baptist (Isaiah 40:3), triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Zechariah 9:9-10), the piercing of his side on the cross (Zechariah 12:10), and the list could go on and on. In Psalm 22 alone, it is prophesied of the darkness that occurred at the moment of his death, the mocking that he received, the piercings in his hands and feet and the casting of lots for his robe.

Another proof of inspiration is its scientific accuracy. It has been said that although the Bible is not a science book, it is accurate when it speaks on scientific matters. Just to name a few. In Leviticus 17:11, it says that the life of the flesh is in the blood. In Psalm 8:8 it says that there are paths or currents in the sea. In Isaiah 40:22 it says that the earth is a sphere and yet for many years people believed that the world was flat. In Job 26:7 it says that the earth is suspended in space. In Genesis 15:5 it says that the stars were innumerable. In Jonah 2:6 it says that there are mountains and canyons in the sea. In Genesis 7:11 it says that there are springs and fountains in the sea. In Ecclesiastes 1:6-7 it speaks of the hydrologic cycle. In Romans 1:20 it speaks of matter.  And once again the list could go on and on.

And yet another proof of the inspiration of the Bible is history, especially in the realm of archeology. It has been said that with every turn of the archeologist's spade, another skeptic is put to silence. Halley’s Bible Handbook lists 112 examples and Unger’s Bible Handbook lists 96. In Genesis 2:8-14 it says that the Garden of Eden was in the lower Mesopotamian Valley and it is now referred to by even the evolutionists as the birthplace of human life or the Cradle of Civilization. In Genesis 11:1-9 it mentions the Tower of Babel and dozens of ziggurats have been found in Mesopotamia. The Bible states that the birthplace of Abraham was in Ur of the Chaldees (Genesis 11:27-31). For many years, people doubted if it ever existed until C.L. Wooley came along in 1922 and found it. It is now one of the best known ancient sites in the world that dates back to around 2000 B.C.

The final proof (at least for this paper) for the inspiration of the Bible is the lives that it has transformed. There is not enough room in this paper or any other for that matter, to list the lives that have been “elevated to new levels of peace and joy by turning their lives over to Christ.” The Bible says in Psalm 119:9, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Your word.” Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

There is no doubt that the Bible has changed the lives of many. The Apostle Paul said of himself in 1 Timothy 1:12-15 “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.”

Scripture: Inspiration and Preservation, Part 3

This will be part three in an ongoing series on the issue of the inspiration and preservation of the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15). As stated earlier, entire books have been written on this issue, and it is not meant to be exhaustive by any means. However, it will cover the basics, and, hopefully, encourage you to further study and strengthen your faith in the Word of God, especially, in a day in which fewer and fewer seem to believe it.

We have so far defined revelation as a disclosure of information that could not have been known otherwise. Also, the two types of revelation which include general and special, and inspiration. Today, we are going to look at the subject of proof. What are the proofs of the inspiration of the Bible? Well, there are many. These include the Bible itself, its indestructibility, its transmission, fulfilled prophecy, scientific accuracy, history and the lives that have been transformed because of it.

The first proof offered is the Bible itself. Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:16 that “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” As a matter of fact, the term “thus says the Lord” is found over 3800 times in the Bible.

Second, the inspiration of the Bible is seen in its indestructibility. It has survived throughout the centuries in spite of all events to the contrary. For example, the Roman emperor, Diocletian, made a degree that all Bibles were to be destroyed in 303 A.D. His reasoning was simply that if Christians were “people of the Book”; once the book was removed, Christians would cease to exist. He even went so far as to raise a pillar to his “success” that said, “Extincto Nomene Christianorum” which means “the name Christian is extinguished.” Ironically, only 25 years later, the new Roman Emperor, Constantine, commissioned 50 copies of the Bible to be prepared at government expense.

Voltaire, the French infidel, once said “that in one hundred years from his time that “Christianity would be a thing of the past and that the only Bible left on earth would be in a museum.”  As a God-hater who greatly despised the Bible, he was sorely mistaken in that statement. The Bible today is still the number one best seller of all times! Josh McDowell refers to these things as “historical irony”.  He made a quote that “We might as well put our shoulder to the burning wheel of the sun, and try to stop it on its flaming course, as an attempt to stop the circulation of the Bible.

The Bible itself speaks of its own indestructibility. Isaiah 40:8 says “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.” Also, in Matthew 24:35, Jesus said: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” Other references include

Isaiah 55:11; 59:21; Matthew 5:18 and Luke 16:17.

Another proof of the inspiration of the Bible is in the way in which it has been passed down through the centuries through the copying of the autographs or what is known as transmission. It’s obvious that God has preserved His Word by the hands of dedicated copyists. The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 revealed that the copies of the Scripture that we hold in our hands today are incredibly accurate when compared to the oldest known copies. However, with this discovery came even older extant copies that date back to the first century B.C.

The scribes and the scholars who did most of the copying over the centuries took surprising steps to ensure accuracy. For example, copies of the Pentateuch which were meant to be read in the synagogues were written on skins. These rolls were to be sewn together with string made from clean animals and prepared only by a Jew.   Everyone was to contain a certain number of columns and they were not to be shorter than forty-eight lines and not more than sixty lines and the breadth was not to be more than thirty letters. It was to also be written in only black ink.

They were so careful with the process that in order for a copy to be considered authentic and worthy to be read in the synagogue, there could not be even one deviation from the original codex. Also, “no word or letter, not even a yod, must be written from memory, the scribe not having looked at the codex before him.” 

Furthermore, it was stated that the copyist “must also sit in full Jewish dress throughout the entire process, wash his whole body, and to not begin the name of God with a pen newly dipped in ink, and should a king address him while writing that name he must take no notice of him.” The rolls that failed to meet the above criterion were condemned to be buried, burned or banished to the schools to be used as reading books.

This method of copying continued until the invention of the “movable-type printing press by Johann Gutenberg in Germany in the 15th century. As a matter of fact, the first major book to be printed for distribution was the Bible! It was known as the Gutenberg Bible.

Scripture: Inspiration and Preservation, Part 2

I am going to continue discussing the issue of the inspiration and preservation of the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15). As stated earlier, entire books have been written on this issue, and it is not meant to be exhaustive by any means. However, it will cover the basics, and, hopefully, encourage you to further study and strengthen your faith in the Word of God, especially, in a day in which fewer and fewer seem to believe it.

Last time, we defined revelation as a disclosure of information that could not have been known otherwise. Also, the two types of revelation which include general and special. Both speak of situations in which God is revealing Himself to some extent. Today, we are going to tackle the subject of inspiration. Obviously, one can have a revelation without it necessarily resulting in an inspiration, but one cannot have an inspiration without first having received a revelation. The word “inspired” literally means “God-breathed” or as Erickson puts it, “breathed into by the Holy Spirit”  It is seen in 2 Timothy 3:16 where it says that “All Scripture is inspired by God.” The inspiration spoken of here is more than just that of an artist or a musician being inspired to create something. Instead, it is a unique event in which God speaks words to man and man in turn, writes those words down.

When speaking of these words as contained in the Bible, Peter said in 2 Peter 1:16-21 that the Bible is the “prophetic word made more sure”. In the context of that statement, Peter had just stated that even though he and the others who were him had seen Christ transfigured before them on the mountain (Matthew 17:2-5); their testimony was not to be compared to the testimony of the Bible itself. In other words, the Bible, by its own claim to inspiration, is always the superior witness.

There are several views as to inspiration. First, there is the natural view which totally denies any supernatural element in the process. Those who hold this view merely see the Bible as a great work of art on the level of Shakespeare or any other great artist. A second view is that of partial inspiration which believes that while not all of the Scriptures are inspired, some are. The third view is what is called conceptual inspiration. In this view, it’s not necessarily the words themselves that are inspired, but the concept behind those words, i.e., the overall message. A fourth view is what some would call encounter inspiration. In other words, the Bible “becomes” inspired to each individual reader as they “encounter” perceived truth. 

And finally, there is what is called plenary verbal inspiration. This is the correct view. It implies that not only is the message of the Bible inspired, but the very words of that message are inspired. The word “verbal” actually means “by means of words” or “word for word”. Jesus said in Luke 16:17 "But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter of the Law to fail.” That same language is found in Matthew 5:18 where it says, “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” The word for “letter” in this verse is the Hebrew word iota and the word for “stroke” is the Hebrew word keraia as in Luke 16:17. The iota, or jot as it is sometimes called, refers to the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet and the word keraia refers to the small appendage that differentiates two similar letters in the Hebrew alphabet. In our English language, it would almost be the equivalent of what we would call the dotting of an “I” and the crossing of a “T”.

Now, some would argue that verbal inspiration of necessity requires dictation. Grudem is quick to point out that even though the words in the Bible are indeed God’s words, we are talking more about the “result” than the actual words themselves.  He further points out that God actually used a “wide variety of processes” to bring about the desired “result”. However, that is not to say that no dictation is to be found in Scripture. It is obvious from the text at times that the author did indeed pen the words verbatim as they were spoken to him. For example in Revelation 2:1 it says, "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:” It’s obvious from the text that the Apostle John was told emphatically to write exactly what the angel said to write. In the end, it means that God made sure that the human personalities and the individual writing styles of each were under the oversite of God and He directed each of them to write exactly what He wanted them to write. Finally, that brings us to the “plenary”. The word means “full” or “all”. In other words, when the words “plenary verbal inspiration” are all added together; they mean “all words God-breathed.”

Congratulations, Marling!

Congratulations, Marling! She is one of several students who is sponsored by Building Lives International. The funds given by this ministry allowed her to successfully complete not only high school studies but continues to provide for her as she studies at university. She is well on her way to becoming a teacher! We are so proud of her and equally honored to be a part of her journey. Marling, lives in Esteli, Nicaragua.

Best of Lynchburg

Thank you, Lynchburg, for making Spearman Artisanry one of the "Best of Lynchburg" for two years in a row. Also, be sure to check out my Artist Profile in the new January/February issue of Lynchburg Living magazine.

http://www.lynchburgliving.com/artists-profile-jannett-spearman-januaryfebruary-2019/

URBANA 2019

I just returned from URBANA which takes place every two years in St. Louis, MO. For one week, almost 11,000 college students come from all over the United States and Canada for a time of recommitment and to look for opportunities to serve the Lord through various ministries. We were just one of the hundreds that were represented. 

For those who do not know, the Network of International Christian Schools operates 19 international Christian schools in 16 countries (United States, Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Venezuela, Malaysia, Brazil, Ghana, Kenya, Turkey, China, Singapore, Indonesia, Korea, Japan, and Kosovo). We are constantly looking for teachers, administrators, business managers, and guidance counselors who are passionate about sharing their faith. Our students represent over 120 countries and are primarily the children of businessmen, military personnel, missionaries, diplomats, and embassy staff. Jannett and I have had the opportunity to serve with them in Lima, Peru at the International Christian School of Lima. 

In the end, we were able to speak with about 175 students about possibly using their gifts and talents serving overseas with our organization. 

Scripture: Inspiration and Preservation, Part 1

In this post I am going to take a closer look at the Scriptures and what we believe in regards to their inspiration and preservation (2 Timothy 2:15). Since the subject is large, it will be in several parts. Of course, entire books have been written on this issue, and it is not meant to be exhaustive by any means. However, it will cover the basics, and, hopefully, encourage you to further study and strengthen your faith in the Word of God, especially, in a day in which fewer and fewer seem to believe it. 

Christianity rises and falls on not only the inspiration of Scripture but also upon God’s ability to preserve them for future generations. As such, issues such as revelation, the various views, and proofs of inspiration, inerrancy and ultimately canonization must be looked at together and in order. Revelation comes first. The word revelation speaks of a disclosure of information that could not have been known otherwise. In Scripture, the word speaks of God giving information to man that he otherwise would not have known on his own. In regards to revelation, there are two types that must be dealt with before we proceed: they are general and special. Both speak of situations in which God is revealing Himself to some extent.

General revelation is by definition, “God’s disclosure of Himself in nature as the creator and sustainer of all things.”  Most would agree that this revelation comes through nature (Psalms 19:1-6), conscience (Romans 2:14-15), and history (Deuteronomy 28:9-10). The Bible tells us two things about general revelation. First, it is seen by all men. Barnabas and Paul asked, "Men, why are you doing these things? We are also men of the same nature as you, and preach the gospel to you that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, WHO MADE THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH AND THE SEA AND ALL THAT IS IN THEM. In the generations gone by He permitted all the nations to go their own ways; and yet He did not leave Himself without witness” (Acts 14:15-17, NASB). Second, it leaves all men without an excuse. Paul said in Romans 1:20, “For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” It’s that “natural knowledge of God that is the basis for divine  judgment.” 

Therefore, no man will stand before Him in the day of judgment with a valid excuse. However, ultimately, general revelation is not enough. While it does indeed point to God, it is insufficient to reveal the totality of God and salvation. We see this in Romans 2:12-16. However, most do agree that general revelation, if accepted, will of necessity lead to special revelation. Some will also argue otherwise and say that many will die with only the general revelation of God and will be held accountable for how they responded to it.  

Special revelation is when God reveals Himself to men “directly in a personal way.”  It is information that cannot be learned any other way, but through God (1 Corinthians 2:14) and it must be accepted by faith (Romans 10:17). Swindoll and Zuck point out that it was necessary as that it would have been impossible for Adam and Eve to just look around at God’s creation in the garden and have been able to surmise from creation alone what God’s will and purpose for their lives was. God had to have eventually communicated with them by using words.  

The conclusion would be that the ultimate form of special revelation is the Bible itself; for it is the Bible that contains the gospel that is necessary for salvation. Thus is the urgency of getting out the gospel (Romans 10:13-15). It is only through special revelation that we are able to “learn truth about God that cannot be known or discovered by general revelation alone.”