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The Written Word of God (2)

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The Written Word of God (2)

7 minuten leestijd Arcering uitzetten

In the previous article we have noticed how the Lord has taken care of His Word, not only in that it was spoken but also that it was kept pure during the first centuries of the world. Why is that situation different now, and why is the Word now a written Word? Is the Lord not Almighty and thus able take care of His Word? Yes, He is the Lord, and for Him nothing is too wonderful…but He is also wise. We know that after the time of Noah the people did not become as old as they did before the flood, and therefore the necessity that the Word be written became greater. A number of reasons can be given why the Lord decreed that this was necessary, and we will list a few of them:

1. That the divine revelation should not be forgotten.

2. That God’s Word might remain pure. The snares of Satan became more severe, but also our corrupt nature was a danger to the purity of the Word.

3. That the written Word might be more easily spread throughout the world.

4. That God’s special care for our salvation might be shown. Without God’s Word we cannot be saved as it is used by the Holy Spirit to teach us.

5. That the people through the written Word might know exactly the will of God as revealed in His Word.

6. That the sinner might be warned of the punishment that will come, but also a poor sinner might find encouragement that the Lord is faithful to His children.

We find these reasons written in the third article of the Confession of Faith—”And that afterwards God, from a special care which He has for us and our salvation, commanded His servants, the apostles and the prophets, to commit His revealed Word in writing.”

The first writer of God’s Word was Moses, who lived about twenty-five years after the creation; the last writer was John on the Isle of Patmos, who died about ninety-six years after Christ. There is a space of about sixteen hundred years between Moses and John. During this period of time the Lord enabled some of His servants to write His Word, which He wanted to use in the following centuries for the benefit of His Church. During the Old Testament times those servants were the prophets, and in the New Testament times they were the apostles and evangelists. You must understand that not every word which was spoken by God’s servants was written in the Bible. Many things had value only for that moment when they were spoken to a special person or group of people, and not for the church in general. Thus, it is in the wisdom of the Lord that those things are written in the Bible, and other things were left out by Him. We know that the Bible contains sixty-six books, each quite different from the others; yet it is the Word of God from the beginning to the end. In them is not only spoken of God and His worship but also of worldly and natural things. The Bible is written in such a way as to set it apart from all other books, verifying that it has a higher origin.

What is this higher origin? It is written by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, but it is not written without God the Father, nor without God the Son, who is also called the Word. The Apostle Peter speaks of this inspiration, “Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” (2 Peter 1:21b). How can we explain this inspiration? Some think that this has been a mechanical inspiration, that these men have been as a machine, a willless instrument in the hand of the Holy Spirit. Our Reformed forefathers have always denied this; instead they spoke of an organic inspiration, meaning that the Holy Spirit made use of men—holy men—but as rational and moral beings. The thoughts of God were inspired in their minds, but this did not wipe out their human nature. The Holy Spirit made use of their natures and minds, but it was under the leading of the Spirit. These holy men themselves searched out, thought, spoke, and wrote the Word, but the Holy Spirit led them in all truth so that they could not err in their writings. At the beginning of Luke 1 we find it clearly stated that the human mind was used: “It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus.”

The best proof of the organic inspiration is the different styles of the writers, according to character, understanding, talent, education, etc. By this we see that the whole personality, with its gifts and talents, is useful in this work. Although there were many differences among the writers, it was the same Spirit that urged them to write and gave them His leading. This writing was not accidental nor against their will, as the Lord inclined their heart for it. Sometimes the Lord gave them an express command to do so, as with Moses and John, but probably not always in the same way. Not all the words in the Bible are spoken by God, but some are spoken by men and some even by Satan. Sometimes very wicked things are described in order to warn us from doing the same, for the Lord will surely punish us if we do so.

In the article it is mentioned that a part of the Bible was written by the Lord Himself, namely, the Holy Law on Mount Sinai. The Lord had first spoken these words unto Israel and afterwards wrote them upon two tables of stone. Why did the Lord write this with His own finger?

1. To teach that the Law is of higher authority than all human writings.

2. To make it very clear that we must hearken to the Law of God.

3. To show that it is an eternal Law which shall never end, just as stone endures forever (from a human viewpoint).

4. To signify that it is the Lord who writes the Law in the hearts of the elect, which can never be destroyed by Satan.

You will perhaps ask why the tables of stone were written upon both sides. It was to prevent the possibility of something being added or erased from the Law. It is our duty to hearken especially to these words of God, but also to the entire Bible as it is God’s Word, and is valid until the end of the world. We all know that the Bible is old—almost twenty-five hundred years old—but it is not old- fashioned. The Bible can make us wise for eternity.

The Bible is not only meant for Israel but for all nations. It does not begin with the history of Israel but with the history of Creation. It does not end when Israel is no longer a theocracy, but it ends with the new heaven and the new earth. This shows its international character. Its main content is Christ, both in the Old and New Testament. When we see the sun, then we must acknowledge its existence and glory; likewise, when we read the Bible, we see its divine origin and holiness. As it is the only means which is used by the Lord to our salvation, it is worthy to be searched by young and old, with the prayer in our heart and on our lips that the Lord may use it for that purpose even though we have forfeited all blessings for time and eternity.

(to be continued)

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The Written Word of God (2)

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