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Belgic Confession of Faith (4)

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Belgic Confession of Faith (4)

7 minuten leestijd Arcering uitzetten

Article 3 — Conclusion

What do we believe about this Word of God? We believe, as we saw already, in an organic, verbal inspiration. But we have to know why we believe in a divinely inspired Word of God. We need proofs of inspiration. I will divide them into two groups. 1) God’s Word testifies that the organs, the instruments, the human authors, were inspired. We read in Exodus 7:1, “And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh.” He calls Moses a god. Why? The word he would speak to Pharaoh would have to be considered not as Moses’ word but as God’s Word. And therefore the Lord said, “I make you a god to Pharaoh.” We read also in other parts of the Word that the Lord uses His servants as instruments. We read, “the Spirit of the Lord fell upon him,” “the hand of the Lord was strong upon him,” or “he received the Word of God.” Think of Ezekiel. I mention Isaiah 8:11; Jeremiah 15:19; Ezekiel 1:3; 3:22; 37:1— that what these prophets are speaking or writing has first been received from God. These instruments, the prophets, were aware of it themselves too. They say, “thus saith the Lord”; “hear ye the Word of the Lord”; “thus has the Lord God shown unto me”; or, “the word of the Lord came unto me.” They were aware that the Lord spoke to them and that the words they spoke were received from God. Sometimes they even go so far that when they are speaking to the people, they speak in the third person, “the Lord says,” or “He said to you.” Then suddenly they make a transition to the first person and say, “I say unto you”; then by “I” they mean God. They suddenly change from, “saith the Lord” to “I say unto you.” Then it does not mean “I, Isaiah,” but it means “I the Lord.” We also read that Christ promised His disciples the Holy Spirit and to teach them all things and to bring to their remembrance, whatsoever I have taught you (John 14:16,26). He says as it were, “I will give my Spirit so that years after it happened you will remember it as if it happened today.” The prophets and the apostles could say, “Ye received the word of God which ye heard of us” (1 Thes. 2:13). So, the word they brought was the Word of God. They knew it was the testimony of God.

2) The Bible speaks not just about persons, but also about the written Word as being inspired. There are many texts which prove this. In Hebrews 1:5-13 we find seven quotations from the Old Testament as being God’s Word. In these few verses we find quotations from Psalm 2:7; 2 Samuel 7:14; Psalm 97:7; Psalm 104:4; Psalm 45:6,7; Psalm 102:24-27, and the well-known Psalm 110:1. Thus what Scripture says is ascribed to God. In 2 Timothy 3:16 we read, “All Scripture (not part of it, but all Scripture) is given by inspiration of God.” Not: all Scripture, given by inspiration, is of God. As if it could be that there are also parts which are not given by inspiration, say parts of Paul or of Jeremiah. No, God’s Word says, “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God.”

3) 2 Peter 1:19-21, “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the daystar arise in your hearts.” That more sure word of God is God’s Word. That Word, Peter says, came not by the will of man, but the holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. Therefore, I am even more sure than if I had heard it with my ears, as the three men on the mount who heard the voice of God.”

Maybe, people of God, you would like to hear the Lord say with an audible voice, “You are My child.” You say, “If I heard such an audible voice, then I could believe.” Peter however says as it were, “No, we have something which is more sure, for your ears can deceive you, but the Word cannot deceive you. That Word is not brought forth by the will of man but by the will of God.

4) In 1 Corinthians 2:13 the apostle speaks not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth but which the Holy Ghost teacheth. So, the Holy Ghost teaches words and each word is the Spirit’s word. The inspiration of Scripture is verbal.

The Lord says to the prophet, “Behold, I have put My words in thy mouth” (Jer. 1:9), not My thoughts in your heart, but “My words in your mouth.” When the Jews said of the Lord Jesus in John 10:33 that He was making Himself God, then the Lord Jesus appealed to that which was written in the law; He referred to Psalm 82:6 where judges are called “gods.” He quotes that text literally and doesn’t say, this is “the thought” of that text, but He says that you read that literally, verbally, in your law, in the Word of God. In Galatians 3:16 Paul bases his whole argument on the use of one word from Scripture. If the Word of God had been only inspired in thought, he could never have built his argument on the use of that one word. Therefore, we see that the word of God is inspired verbally.

But does that mean that there is no human aspect in the Word of God? Oh, there surely is. We read about the authors of the Kings and Chronicles that they refer to their sources. They have made use of some other books. They have studied before, and the Lord also used their studying to write down His Word. Writers also gave expression to their own experiences. You can see they are not merely a cold typewriter; you hear their feelings, their fear or gladness. Moses, Luke, and the poets of the Psalms clearly give expression to their own feelings of joy and sorrow. There is a human aspect.

That human aspect is also evident in their style. If you compare Isaiah and Daniel with Amos or with Joel, then you can see these books are written by different human authors. But all have spoken the full truth of God. Sometimes they have not suppressed their own feelings. If you read God’s Word, friends, from the beginning to the end, there is no word of which you would say, “Moses, you should have left this out,” or “Paul, you should not have boasted that much.” No, the Spirit gave them to speak according to their own character but did not permit their sinful nature to express itself. The sinful inclinations of the heart were not creeping in. We see human aspects in their writings, but no sinfulness or errors.

Dear friends, this Word of God which we have discussed is infallible, reliable, and trustworthy. We read in 1 Timothy 1:15, “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation.” How many faithful sayings did we hear already in our life? How many things worthy of our acceptation? What did we do with that faithful Word? Did we treat it like a human word which you can doubt, can put aside, can neglect, can trample upon? Or did we ever fall under that Word? Friends, God’s Word is a book which can make us wise unto salvation. The Lord says of this book, “Search the Scriptures.”

• They testify of the majesty, greatness, holiness of the Author.

• The Scriptures reveal the way of salvation.

• They are the only instrument by which the Holy Spirit works faith in the heart.

• It was said to the rich man in Luke 16, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.” Did we already hear?

• Do we live by this Word? Is it a lamp to our feet and a light on our paths? May this Word be more precious to us than gold or silver. May it be our food and drink, our guide, teaching us the way we should go. Then we will not go astray, as God has promised in this Word.

Rev. C. Vogelaar is pastor of the Ebenezer Netherlands Reformed Congregation of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey.

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Bekijk de hele uitgave van maandag 1 juli 1991

The Banner of Truth | 28 Pagina's

Belgic Confession of Faith (4)

Bekijk de hele uitgave van maandag 1 juli 1991

The Banner of Truth | 28 Pagina's