02-The Bible's Conception
THE BIBLE’S CONCEPTION
CHAPTER TWO The casual reader of the Bible must become suddenly aware that it is not the product of the human brain. It possesses that indefinable something which forbids such an irrational conclusion. As Percy Crawford, director of the Young People’s Church of the Air Broadcast, says:
“If the Bible is the product of man’s genius, with God left out altogether, then if there has been any evolution or growth of man’s learning capacity, why doesn’t some professor from some of our great schools of learning write an entirely new Bible instead of tearing out a few pages of our present Bible? But they can’t do it. What man has made, man has improved . . . If man wrote the Bible, and man only, man could improve upon it.”
It is quite obvious that man was but the instrument used to write the Book. David said, and every writer could employ the same language, “The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and His Word was in my tongue” (2Sa 23:2).
Above 3,000 times we have the expression, “Thus saith the Lord,” for “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2Ti 3:16). THE DIVINE LIBRARY The fact that God is the Author of the Book does not set aside either human personality or the style of the writer. Indeed, one who is familiar with the writer can immediately identify the Book from which he reads. Dr. W. Graham Scroggie puts it like this:
“The thought of God has been given a body in the language of men . . . And when God would give a revelation to men. He did not do violence to human personality and style, but rather made use of these.” For this reason, no two writers are alike. And we are certain they did not collaborate to ascertain what should be written.
Each penman supplied his contribution to the Divine Library in absolute dependence upon God, and under the perfect control of the Holy Spirit.
This alone explains why most of the writers omitted many things well-known to them and related many things about which they knew nothing at all. Peter, referring to this very truth in connection with the Old Testament writers, who wrote about,
“The sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow,” says: “Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into” (1Pe 1:11-12).
How interesting then to note the subject matter of the writers!
- Some, like Paul, travel back into the unfathomable ages and bring to light the secret counsels of God.
- Some, on the wings of lightning, hasten us forward to eternity future to dwell upon the ineffable blessedness of the saints and the unutterable anguish of the sinner.
- Some delight to dwell upon current history and trace the divine estimate in either grace or judgment.
- Some again specialize in unveiling prophetic events yet to be developed in world history.
FOUR GOSPELS The four Gospels provide a lucid example of what is before my mind. Here we have a fourfold presentation of Christ.
Each writer looks at Him from a different angle and in a distinct relationship.
- Matthew pictures Him as Messiah the King;
- Mark portrays Him as the Servant of the Lord;
- Luke presents Him as the Son of Man;
- John propounds Him as the Eternal Son of God in Manhood. In these records there are many similarities, yet there are many diversities. But when all the evidences are collected and pieced together, we have set before us the Man Christ Jesus in divine perfection.
PAULINE EPISTLES The same truth is heralded in the Pauline Epistles. Each book deals with a particular truth. For instance:
- Romans elaborates upon justification;
- Corinthians elucidates sanctification;
- Galatians evaluates liberation;
- Ephesians expounds union;
- Philippians expresses transformation;
- Colossians exemplifies anticipation;
- Thessalonians enunciates glorification.
All are necessary, however, to give a perfect revelation of Truth.
I oftentimes liken the writers of the Bible to the members of the Body of Christ. They all have different gifts. The Holy Spirit, in His Sovereignty, divides to each man severally as He wills. So, in the body,
“There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are diversities of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all” (1Co 12:4; 1Co 12:6).
This enables us to appreciate why one man writes about law, another about history, another about poetry, another about drama, another about prophecy, another about ethics, another about wisdom, and another about apocalypse. A DESCRIPTIVE GOD Who amongst men can write like God? Can you imagine any man using ten words to describe the original creation?
Take, for instance, the modern evolutionist’s story, or theory, of creation’s dawn. To say the least, and to speak in the kindliest manner, it is pathetic.
The more you read, the less intelligent you become! It is one mass mess of irrationalism. But God!
Let Him introduce Himself and His story of creation. He says: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Gen 1:1). And, I let another speak here, “This is the most sublime statement in all literature.” Yet, it is but characteristic of God. When He proposes to set before men His plan of salvation, He says: “For God so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Then, too, when He would sound the warning note, His trumpeter peals forth: “Prepare to meet thy God!” (Amo 4:12).
What a descriptive God!
These are the very things, beloved, which designate the Bible as “The Word of God.”
PARADES SINS OF HOLY MEN
I cannot afford to pass up, in absolute silence, the manner in which the Bible parades the sins of otherwise holy men. It is customary with men, when writing biography, to eulogize the good and eliminate the bad. Not so with God.
He is altogether impartial.
Nothing is hidden from His thrice-holy eyes, and nothing is withheld from the story.
- He will inform us that David is a man after His own heart, and yet He will take time out to expose his sins of adultery and murder.
- He will inscribe Peter’s speech at Pentecost and count the number of converts, but He will insist likewise that he denied His Lord with oaths and curses.
- He will pronounce His condemnation upon Moses, the meekest man in all the earth, and forbid him entrance to the Promised Land for speaking inadvisedly with his lips.
- He will have Paul apologize for his mistaken zeal in calling the High Priest a whited wall, even though he ranks the highest of the Apostles. And so we could go on. But enough has been mentioned to prove that man, whose breath is in his nostrils and sin in his soul, did not write this Book. His fertile, imaginative brain is not sufficient for this work. THE BLUE-PRINT
I referred a moment ago to the unity of the Book. This is a sublime truth. But, it strengthens the conviction that back of the Bible is a Master-Mind. Here it was planned and the blue-print produced. Then followed the work we possess. The marvel of all this is that no writer ever saw the blue-print. He was simply putting on parchment what the Holy Spirit knew to be there. He guided the writer. Otherwise, how could some forty writers, chosen from different walks in life, and covering a period of some fifteen hundred years, arrange such a variety of subject so as to be in perfect agreement? With God, and God alone, this is possible. The blue-print for the universe is disclosed thus:
“In Him were all things created . . . All things were created by Him and for Him” (Col 1:16).
Again we have the blue-print for redemption discovered in these words,
“For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things, to whom be glory for ever. Amen” (Rom 11:36).
And have we not the blue-print for future world happenings in the “Book written within and on the back side, sealed with seven seals” in Revelation 5?
Then, as to the Bible, the blue-print is clearly announced by Christ who speaks prophetically, saying:
“Lo, I come: in the volume of the Book it is written of Me” (Psa 40:7).
Jesus knew what the Book contained. Indeed, in the truest meaning of the words, He Himself wrote it.
Yes, beloved, His fingers wrote the Book long before they wrote on the two tables of stone (Exo 32:16); or wrote on the Babylonian Palace walls (Dan 5:5); or wrote on the ground in the Jewish Temple (John 8:6). And the same fingers wrote our name in the Book of Life! So we rejoice.
Well might we sing:
“’Twas grace that wrote my name In Life’s eternal book, ’Twas grace that gave me to the Lamb Who all my sorrows took.” This leads me, in closing, to make a stupendous, an almost unbelievable statement.
I believe that we have in the Bible an exact replica of what the fingers of God wrote in the by-gone eternity. How we ought to handle it with reverence! How we ought to cherish it with adoring appreciation! How we ought to preach its message to our fellowmen!
ASSURANCE OF SALVATION And we have a wonderful message to preach!
It tells of the love of God revealed in the Person of Christ who “was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed” (Isa 53:5).
It tells us of salvation without human efforts of any kind. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph 2:8-9).
Indeed, the Lord says, “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price” (Isa 55:1).
So, as a poor, sinful, bankrupt soul I come to God, through Jesus Christ, and on the merit of His Calvary work claim forgiveness and salvation. Then I may know the assurance of salvation from the precious Book which declares:
“I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand. My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one” (John 10:28-30).