Bible
Study
Chapter
1 On Holy Scripture, section 5: Scripture and Extra-Biblical Sources
By
Moses Flores
I.
The Testimony of the Church (External Evidence)
“We may be influenced by the testimony of the Church to value the Bible highly and reverently…”
Last week, we dealt with the authority of the Scriptures and the basis for that authority. In summary, the Scriptures are to be accepted as the Word of God because of their ultimate author and origin is God Himself who is truth. This week, we focus on “evidences” that many have used in order to cause others to accept the Bible as the word of God and we ask the question along with it: Are these evidences sufficient to prove that Scripture is the word of God?
We begin
with the “testimony of the Church.” As
mentioned briefly in the last study, the Roman Catholic Church claims that it
is their gift from God to infallibly decipher what the canonical Scripture
are. Therefore, it is her “infallible
witness” that bears the weight as the proof that the Scriptures are in fact,
the Word of God. This is the historical
context in which the
Being logically consistent with the fact that Scripture is the very Word of God, not because anyone says so, but because it proceeds from God Himself and that the Scriptures carry in inherent authority not dependent on the validation or approval of the creature, it follows that God’s word, essentially is self-validating. Now, logically speaking this would seem to fall into the category of the logical fallacy known as “circular reasoning” or “begging the question.” However, this is not so since God is the most Supreme Being and carries the most supreme authority, what is there above Him that would validate His word to us? Being that there is no higher authority than God Himself, God does not ask us to accept his Word on the basis of anything in creation but simply because it originates from Himself. The Bible is the Word of God because it is from God Himself. It sounds logically suspect, but is scripturally sound and consistent with the concept of Theism.
But we ask
the question, as the
The
Though the Church offers this
testimony to the Word of God, the Church alone
cannot authenticate that the Scriptures are indeed the Word of God. For, contrary to Roman Catholic belief, the
Church is not an infallible institution.
That is, in history, the Church has erred both doctrinally and
morally. At times she has been unclear
about certain doctrines and issues.
Here, even the Roman Catholic Church is not alone as offering testimony
to the Word of God. The
This is not to say that no thing which the Church produces cannot be trusted because she is fallible, but only to say that the Church, and whatever documents such as confessions or creeds she produces, are not more authorative than the Scripture so as to “prove” that they are the Word of God. Thus, the Church alone cannot validate the Scriptures as the Word of God.
Other external evidences that Christians have offered, especially as of late, for the validity of the Bible include things like history and archeology. Again, while these have some value as to point out the historicity of the Bible, they do not, in and of themselves, prove that the Scriptures are the Word of God. For if a Christian is going to argue that simply because historical or archeological data authenticates the Scriptures as the Word of God then he must also yield, on the basis of the same logic, that historical and archeological data and discoveries mentioned in the Islamic Scriptures would also validate the Koran as being “true” on the same level with the Christian Scriptures. In the end, arguments like this actually place reason, or history or archeology or science – whatever it may be – as the “higher authority” over the Scripture thereby placing the creature above the Creator!
With this
in mind, it is easy to see how even Protestants can fall into the depths which
II.
The Testimony of Scripture (Internal Evidences)
The Westminster Confession also says that “Scripture itself shows in so many ways that it is God’s word…” That is to say, that the Bible itself contains “proofs” that it is not the product of men but the Word of God.
First, it shows this in the “spiritual subject matter.” That is to say, the content which it contains could have not been devised by mere human means. I Corinthians 2:10-11 says:
“But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God….”
Many things in Scripture could only have come to us from the mind of God. Take the Gospel for instance; all religions except Christianity argue that one is saved by their own works in some form or another but the Christian Scriptures teach that God Himself would be the savior of His people and bear their iniquities through His suffering servant the Messiah. For being a work of the time that it was written in, this was certainly something totally unheard of! That God would humble himself and bear the sins of His people in His Son, Jesus Christ. This was so revolutionary that even the Jews rejected their own God in the flesh. Other topics taught in Scripture include things like election and predestination based solely on the grace of God, justification by faith alone, atonement, the doctrine of the Trinity (certainly something far beyond any human mind is able to understand),etc…None of these truths could have ever been discovered through nature or any human philosophy.
Second, “in the effectiveness of its teaching” do the Scriptures show themselves to be the Word of God. In John 7:17 Jesus said, “If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on my own authority.” That is to say, Word of God has never failed to bring about what it promises if one does what it says to do. Thus, we have heard many testimonies from people who have said they have begun to live according to the Scriptures and have been blessed and experienced what they have been lacking in all their life.
Third, “in the majesty of its style” the Scripture testify that they are the Word of God. Even as literature, the Bible shows itself to be not a simple collection of simple writings. The Bible contains many literary tools that convey the message it carries. For instance, in the Psalms and wisdom literature there are many different structures that are employed by the authors. One of the most interesting things about the poetry of the Bible, for instance, is that the authors did not rhyme with words, but rather they rhymed thoughts. For instance, in Psalm 94:14 we read, “For the LORD will not cast off his people, nor will He forsake His inheritance.” Both these statements say the same thing but in different ways. Of course, one can do to an entire study on the many different styles of writings contained within the Bible, but that is well beyond the scope of this study.
Fourth, the Scriptures offer “the agreement of all its parts.” The Bible was written by several different authors within a span of about 1500 years. Surprisingly, with so many authors from diverse educational backgrounds and lifestyles, the message proclaimed in it is united. Coherency is a mark of truth. Even within logic, something cannot be both true and false at the same time and in the same sense. This law is known as the law of non-contradiction and is the basis of the sub-field of philosophy known as logic. The Bible itself shows itself to be a consistent whole on its subjects. For instance, in the New Testament we see the outpouring of the Spirit of God on the people of God. Now, should this been seen as something new that God decided to do or something long promised? According to passages like Ezekiel 36:25-27, it would seem to be the case that the giving of the Spirit of God to all the covenant people of God is something that has been long promised. Also, the doctrine of justification by faith alone is something that many feel the Old Testament Scriptures did not teach. However, the apostle Paul himself quotes from the Old Testament in the New Testament to support the doctrine when he quotes from Habakkuk 2:4 to show that the “just shall live by faith.” Some, particularly of the Roman Catholic strain would say that Paul and James disagree in regards to justification, however fair exegesis easily resolves this dilemma as well as other apparent contradictions. In short, there are no contradictions in the Bible regarding its own teachings about God or salvation.
Fifth, the “unified aim from beginning to end (to give all glory to God)” is offered as a testimony that the Scriptures are the Word of God. If the Scriptures were actually a product of men alone, then it would seem to be the case that there would be traces of wanting to glorify the men who came up with this. However, this is not the case at all. Instead, all that is said in the Scriptures is said to ultimately give the glory to God. This is especially true in salvation. Jonah 2:9 says that “salvation is of the LORD.” This can only be taken to say that the entirety of all that comprises salvation – predestination, election, calling, regeneration, faith, repentance, justification, conversion, sanctification, and glorification - are all ascribed to be “of the LORD”. That is, they are freely and graciously given and not earned. This is seen in Genesis when God sacrifices the animal and gives the skins to Adam and Eve to cover themselves, all the way through the book of Revelation where the people sing in triumphant victory over the devil through Christ their Lord. No portion of the Bible in any way is meant to or does give any glory to man for what he is or for salvation.
Sixth, it is offered from the Scriptures that the “full revelation it makes of the only way of man’s salvation,” is a testimony to its divine origin. Christianity is the ONLY religion that proposes that one is saved on the basis of the person and work of another. Only Christianity says that the God became a man in the person of Jesus Christ, lived amongst men and lived a fully righteous and blameless life. Only Christianity claims that Christ was “very God of very God and very man of very man.” Only the Bible claims that God is three persons subsisting in the one substance that is God. Only the Bible claims that the way of salvation is not through obedience to law but to obedience to faith in Jesus Christ. Philosophy or human religions have never offered such great and wondrous claims! Truly a testimony to the origin of the Scriptures.
Finally, there are the Scriptures “many other incomparably outstanding features and its complete perfection.” No doubt the reader many think of many other features of the Scriptures that make it superior to works of men. We can even think of how the Scriptures have been preserved and taken care of better than other historical works of its own time. For instance, the New Testament alone has roughly about 25,000 manuscripts that have been preserved and passed down through the centuries that enable us to know that the New Testament we have today is the same, or extremely close to the Scriptures that the apostles wrote. Not even the works of Aristotle can claim to have been preserved in the same way boasting less than 100 manuscripts!
III. The Ultimate witness to Scripture as the Word of God
Now let us ask the question: Which of these, or which combination of these is the most convincing that the Bible is the word of God?
[listener’s respond]
If you have ever had a conversation with an atheist or with a stubborn unbeliever about the Bible, I’m sure that one of these testimonies has come out of our mouths and yet the unbeliever has remained unconvinced that the Scriptures are the word of God. We can argue till we are blue in the face that the Scriptures are the word of God, but nothing we say will ever convince the unbeliever that the Scriptures are the Word of God. Why? I Corinthians 2:14 reveals the answer:
“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
By “spiritually discerned” the Scriptures intend to say that the natural man is excluded from the life of the Spirit and is unable to evaluate spiritual things. The Bible also said that the unregenerate man is “dead in trespasses and sins” (cf. Eph. 2:1).
Thus, the
“However, we are completely persuaded and assured of the infallible truth and divine authority of the Bible only by the inward working of the Holy Spirit, who testifies by and with the word in our hearts.”
That is, rather than hearing that the Bible is the Word of God from someone else or from thing about the Word, it is God Himself in the person and work of the Holy Spirit who alone opens our hearts and minds to the truthfulness and authority of the Word of God. Again the Scriptures tell us in I Cor. 2:6-12:
“However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written ‘eye has not seen, nor hear heard, nor have entered in to the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love him.’ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”
Thus, though we have these many proofs and testimonies that the Scripture are the Word of God, they alone are insufficient to lead one to hold the belief that these are in fact the Word of God.
If one wishes to argue that on the basis of the many proofs and testimonies that the Scriptures are the Word of God then one has to understand that the Christian now steps on the same epistemological ground that the unbeliever can claim to stand upon. Essentially, these types of arguments proceeds from a “neutral” ground, namely that of reason. From here, the evidences and testimonies are presented and the conclusion is along the lines of something like this: “therefore, it is reasonable to believe that the Bible is the word of God.” If this is true, then God is no longer God since reason has now been elevated to a status that is able to give authority to the Scriptures.
Essentially,
this section of the
Now, you may ask: “If this is true, then of what value to these testimonies of Scripture and other source serve?” In a nutshell, they are for believers to strengthen and confirm their faith. They are given that “we” (Christians) might know the things that have been freely given by God (I Cor. 2:12). These are not given that unbelievers may know. So, now when we argue for the validity of the Bible, we may present these testimonies as testimonies but not as proofs and we offers them not for reasons to believe but as reason why we – that is, the Christian – believes the Bible to be the word of God. But we leave the convincing of the authority and truthfulness of the Scriptures to their author, God Himself in the person and work of the Holy Spirit. So when we offer testimonies about Scripture we do so while praying that the Holy Spirit would convince the unbeliever concerning the authority of Scripture.
In conclusion, there are many wonderful testimonies that have been offered externally and contained intrinsically within the Scriptures that show that it is the word of God. However, none of these are able to fully convince and persuade anyone of the authority and truthfulness of Scripture. Rather, only the Holy Spirit – who is God Himself – can and does fully persuade someone that the Scriptures are truth and carry the full authority of God who spoke the Scriptures into existence (2 Tim. 3:16).
Review Questions