February 1998

It seems like today, more than ever, there is an enormous turbulent sea of conflicting views on mankind and eternity waiting to engulf the naïve explorer. From the Book of Mormon to the Book of Mohammed, one might be lost in the vast ideologies of men, unable to discern a true path to divine light and everlasting life. However, there is an eternal Rock which stands immovable upon which to build one’s faith. The author will attempt to give a prospectus to the reader on the soundness and indestructibility of this everlasting foundation, God’s Word, the Bible.

First of all, what distinguishes the Bible from any other religious or humanitarian text? Why put all one’s faith in a document transcribed perhaps millenniums ago? Did God really give His Word to us in the Bible? How could human writers pen God’s words? These might be some questions springing up in one’s mind.

It may seem like it would be quite meaningless to put all of one’s faith in a book which on the surface is seemingly no intellectual "proof" to back up the text. However, the author’s task in this paper is to lay out the foundations of his own faith in a simple yet precise way to give a pristine revelation to the reader.

Whether you might be reading this paper in an hectic office or in a cozy living room, look around and maybe even peer out a window. What do you see? Maybe a gigantic oak flanked by lowly grass and brilliant tulips. Ask yourself, "Could these things just exist out of nothing?" There has never been a recorded instance of scientific self-creation (Ryrie 29). In our aforethought illustration, what happens to the lawn in the fall? The lawn is blanketed with decomposing oak leaves. To prove the theory of evolution (everything getting better and better…thus self-creation), in this landscape scene, would be like watching all the thousands of leaves falling directly into the trash can or compost pile on the other side of the house/office all on their own without any kind of intervention. According to probability, this would be silly, as you might recall many late chilly afternoons slaving under the oak with a metal rake and maybe a few energetic youngsters helping manage the sea of scattered leaves. Therefore, to say that something can come out of nothing, or get better without any kind of outside help, is nonsense.

There must have been a Creator to put everything in it’s place. The statistical probability of creation by chance is innumerable. By looking around and reflecting on what you see, if God so opens your mind (I Corinthians 2:14), you will realize that He is giving a taste of Himself to you through these things. I think the New Living Translation sheds light on this, "From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God" (Romans 1:20, NLT). Therefore, God makes Himself known to man in the outer world.

Not only is God revealed around us, but the Holy Spirit is also known to the inner man in the form of a conscience. When I speak of conscience, I am not referring to a fairy-tale land of Pinocchio and Jimminy Cricket. Instead, a conscience is something deep inside man which pronounces what is right according to a set standard (such as the Law, or God’s Word) and reveals what is contrary to this standard (Thiessen 162). "For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves…their conscience bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them" (Romans 2:14,15, NKJV). Everyone is born with a conscience, but through the sin nature, the conscience can be deceiving when it is not influenced by the Holy Spirit (I Timothy 4:2).

Now that we have defined God’s general revelation through nature and in man, we will explore how the Scriptures reveal the Lord. Although man might see God in nature and feel good and evil promptings in his heart, man must have clear divine light and guidance concerning his eternal state…the long run. God, through His perfect will and because of His divine attributes, chose to bestow to certain people in His creation a revelation of Himself through which salvation could clearly be made known to mankind (Theiseen 43,44).

Also, if one looks at the history and nature of the Bible itself, he will see God’s revelation through it. It has been said that there has not been so much praise and exaltation, yet also persecution and strife, over a book like there has been the Bible (Thiessen 45). As one searches through the pages of history, he will see the divine hand of God moving through different people and events to preserve the text of the Holy Scriptures (Thiessen 46). In addition, no book has ever been as influential in producing the highest standard in life as the Bible (Theissen 47).

Although the suppositions in the above paragraph can be elasticized by critics, if one inspects the Bible as a whole, he will see a perpetual line of truth being revealed. Fulfilled prophecy is an anchor of divine revelation, such as the prophecies of Isaiah (Coming King), Jeremiah (Coming Destruction), and Eziekiel (Coming Glory). How could something be revealed beforehand unless through supernatural means? And what does the Bible say about itself? It is the divine revelation of God (Exod.14:1, Isa.1:2, Joel 1:1, I Cor. 14:37, I John 5:2, II Peter 3:2). Anyone of these apologetic ideas cannot be all-inclusive on their own, but as a network, act as a defense for divine revelation.

Now that we have a matrix of evidence supporting divine revelation of the Bible, how do we know that the Lord specifically authored the book? I believe one key passage directly answering this question is found in II Timothy 3:16 (NKJV), "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." Did God sign His name to some documentary work of men? NO! Inspiration means "God breathed" (Ryrie 69). God formulated his thoughts and revealed them to man, as deemed, to originally record. Let us take a deeper look into this issue.

Because God can be described as personal, almighty, holy, and loving, we can believe that He has a caring interest in man’s sinful condition (Theissen 66). If this is true, we can expect that He would make His standards and plan of salvation known to mankind (Theissen 67). As mentioned before, from looking at the Bible as a whole, one can also see an overall oneness in every light. Finally, another amazing aspect is that God miraculously chose to divinely reveal the future through His communication to man, which is called "prophecy" (Baker 6).

Now, let us dig ourselves out of the deep theology ditch and walk through the field of practical living. The author is so grateful to the Lord for the divine revelation He has given to mankind through not only the majestic earth, but also through His marvelous Word. Let me go on to explain.

When I was real young, my Dad would read stories to me right before I went to bed. We would read out of a "Picture Bible" which illustrated many Bible stories in comic form. I was so thrilled each night and begged my Dad to keep reading more!! I remember that one night, after we had finished reading, the topic "What is a Christian?" was brought up. My Dad explained to me, in simple childhood terms, how to become one through prayer. That night, I prayed to receive Christ into my heart. I did not understand many different aspects of Christianity, but I know I prayed "to ask Jesus into my heart". I was so excited!

However, in the years that followed, I really didn’t live "like a Christian". Old selfish me was the master I was serving. I remember in December of 1989, God convicted me of my sin, and I slowly developed a hatred of it. I’m not sure if this was for peace sake, or to honor the Lord. One thing I know, that when I sinned, it didn’t feel good inside afterwards!

God continued to work on me, and in April 1992, it seemed like the Lord grabbed a spotlight and started to shine it in so many areas He wanted transformed in my life. I believe this was the transverse point…I had to either decide to continue on in my damaging sinful ways, or to seek Christ and His will for my life. I resolved, by the grace of God, to pursue that which is of God. Although sometimes painful in the earthly sense, I believe this was the point at which God started His work of bringing me into conformity to Christ. At times, I was (and am) spinning my wheels in sin, but God started to bring my life closer to the middle of the concrete path of submission to Christ.

In obedience to the Word, I was baptized in February of 1993. I knew this was the next step in the Christian life. Like I said, I thought of it as a step in Christianity. I don’t believe I honored it as much then as I do now, for I have come to realize that it is much bigger than a step. Although baptism is not needed for salvation, baptism is an outward indication that one has rejected his sinful life and has taken on the cross of Christ. On the other hand, I believe every professing Christian, before he is baptized, needs to take to heart this stern warning: "If anyone sins deliberately by rejecting the Savior after knowing the truth of forgiveness, this sin is not covered by Christ’s death; there is no way to get rid of it. There will be nothing to look forward to but the terrible punishment of God’s awful anger which will consume all his enemies"

(Hebrews 10:26-27, TLB).

Then, in the fall of 1996, the Lord seemed to bring me to the next step in my Christian walk by giving me a hearty appetite for discerning what true Christian living really is. As time went on, I began to mine nuggets of truth out of Scripture and pour over numerous books which expounded upon the Bible. I believe this led to more growth.

In closing, I am so thankful to the Lord for revealing His Word and will through writers inspired by the Holy Spirit. Without this guide-map, I would surely be lost in the raging sea of religious apostasy, from Mormanism to Islam, Atheism to Humanism. "Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day….Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path…The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple" (Psalm 119:97,105,130, NKJV).

_________________

Baker, William H. Survey of Theology. Chicago: Moody Bible Institute, 1989.

Ryrie, Charles. Basic Theology. Wheaton, Illinois: Victor Books, 1986.

Thiessen, Henry C.  Lectures in Systematic Theology.  Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1979.

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