a; EI~/.£ {1)-0 (J) So.~ suBJEcT Da dB, 71f.- E.F IV CLASSIFICATION: TEXT II Timothy 3:16-17 ----.EXPOSITORY TITLE BIBLIOGRAPHY - THE DOCTRINE OF THE BIBLE --BIOGRAPHICAL - - TEXTUAL __V_ TOPICAL SCRIPTURE READING•--------------- ---wDEVOTIONAL DELIVERIES: Date Hour Place Results and Comments: F . B . C. 1/2/83 a.m. San Angelo, TX (XXX++++) Bek tore B. C. 1/9/83 p.m. San Angelo, TX (XXX+++ ) ~ f. f (Y-.'f-_1,. -1-H+) . 8.G, 3/'// 7 A-~ 5A'>1 ~ 1e Iv. -r'f / _gARD I5 ~ 11 -¥ -JJ.. A-wt W/~11--4 BIBLIOGRAPHY ___________ ,, A- ......., -r;, ., 'fr- Quon~ t!,t}IJ.,- l HE .ol/JI..I QUESTIONS PEOPLE ASK ABOUT THE BIBLE ~~ "f--C6Y\. ~ Scripture: II Timothy 3:16-17 1 INTRO: CONGRESS HAS DECLARED 1983 "THE YEAR OF ~ THE BIBLE." AMERICANS PUBLISH MORE BIBLES THAN ANY OTHER PEOPLE ON EARTH--AND BUY THEM ALSO. LAST YEAR AMERICANS SPENT $170 MILLION FOR BIBLES AND THE GIDEONS DISTRIBUTED MORE THAN 1 MILlt ~9 N FREE BIBLES. THE ~ BB §TO.BX OF THE DECEMBER 27, 1982 7 EDITION OF NEWSWEEK WAS, "HOW THE BIBLE ~[illE AMERICA." THE SEVEN-PAGE ARTICLE STATES ~ NO OTHER COUNTRY IS AS OBSESSED WITH THE BIBLE AS THE UNITED STATES. THE VAST MAJORITY OF AMERICANS, RECENT GALLUP POLLS REPORT, STILL REGARD THE BIBLE AS THE WORD OF GOD, AND MORE THAN ONE AMERICAN IN THREE BELIEVES THAT EVERY SCRIPTURAL WORD IS TRUE. "FOR CENTURIES IT HAS EXERTED AN UNRIVALED INFLUENCE ON AMERICAN CULTURE, POLITICS AND SOCIAL LIFE. 1 NOW HISTORIANS ARE DISCOVERING THAT THE BIBLE, PERHAPS EVEN MORE THAN THE CONSTITUTION, IS OUR FOUNDING DOCUMENT. # THERE WERE TIMES WHEN BIBLE STUDY WAS THE CORE OF PUBLIC EDUCATION AND NEARLY EVERY LITERATE FAMILY NOT ONLY OWNED A BIBLE BUT READ IT REGULARLY AND REVERENTLY. BECAUSE OF THIS PERVASIVE BIBLICAL IN­ FLUENCE, THE UNITED STATES SEEMED TO EUROPEANS ~TO BE ONE VAST PUBLIC CONGREGATION - A NATION, / AS G.K. CHESTERTON SAID, 'WITH THE SOUL OF A CHURCH. I "DURING HIS SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGN FOR THE WHITE HOUSE, RONALD REAGAN POINTED TO A BIBLE AND SAID, INDEED, IT IS AN ,:IflPJ5f'Vi A.Bl-£ FACT THAT ALL THE COMPLEX AND HORRENDOUS QUES­ TIONS CONFRONTING US AT HOME AND WORLDWIDE HAVE THEIR ANSWER IN THAT SINGLE BOOK.'" l BUT THIS IS AN AGE OF SKEPTICISM. IT IS FASHIONABLE TO DOUBT AND QUESTION ANYTHING OLD, OR TRADITIONAL, OR HISTORICAL. OFTEN WHEN SHARING CHRIST WITH OTHERS, I HEAR THE OBJECTION, "YOU KEEP SAYING, 'THE BIBLE SAYS ... ' BUT CAN WE TRUST THE BIBLE?" THIS INQUIRY RAIS S THREE O HER QUESTIONS. TJ.,1c_ ~ ~ ' \ ~ ~It./~ J!_-n,,.3:1'-11 I. HOW DID WE GET OUR BIBLE? /($~~~ --,II Timothy 3:16a "All scripture is given by inspiration of God." --II Peter 1:21 "For the prophecy cmne not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." --NO~E: The Bible is compose d of 66 books, 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament. These 66 books were written by at least 38 different authors from all walks of life over a period of 1,500 years in three different languages. The books are made up of history, law, poetry, philosophy, doctrine and prophecy. How did all of these various books come together to form the one book we call the Bible? How did we get our Bible? 1. Historicity of the Bible --NEW TESTAMENT ( 1) ~ tt(;,.1Bible --NOTE: We can start with the printed Bible of today and it is obviously easy to show that they correspond to the printed Bibles of the 16th century-when printing was invented. (2) 16th Century - Printed Bibles (3) Through English and Latin Versions, r;.,,.,,,J,-n 5 ,,,.,,,f- we can go back to: 0 ,~- iJ ' · 1 5 ( 4) 4th Century - G~eat Manuscripts'~ l<e<I\ fl!Ar1; C;,;tn~;f_;;,.f,t"":' ~ a. Codex Sinaiu'1s (in 13Ritr5"A -AtJ.sevi} PIT· .s'r'l'la.~ b. Codex Vaticanus (in Rome) c. Codex Alexandrinus (in the British Museum) 2 (5) 3rd Century - Writings of the Church Fathers and on to: (6) 2nd Century - when versions in several languages are found. A short step to the: (7) 1st Century - when the New Testa­ ment writings were actually written. --NOTE: Through all these steps we find no change in the books we now have in our New Testament. --OLD TESTAMENT ( 1} . - ~; Bible - Nb! E: Our Old Testament is identi­ cal with the Bible of the Jews today. ( 2) 1st Century --NOTE: The Jews have always used the same Bible (as our Old Testament) back to the time of Christ. (3) 200 B.C. --NOTE: The Hebrew Bible was translate d into Greek about 2 centuries before Christ, and this translation is essentially the same as our Old Testament. ---APOCRYPHA -~NOTE: But what about the additional books found in the Greek Old Testament called the "Apocrypha?" They were NEVER a part of the Jewish scriptures and were N ER regarded as Scripture by Hebrew scholars. They were NOT WRITTEN IN HEBREW an d were not included in Scripture by any group of Christians until December 4, 1563 when the Council of Trent arbit­ rarily decided to include them because they supported certain doctrines not found in the New Testament . .. 3 The Apocrypha contains inaccuracies in history and doctrine which make it impossible for it t o be re arde~f.s ·e,,,, d part of the Bible . l3~fr o/ f)KM~;~'i:J,ttt 2. Canonici ty of the Bible ~i T£Jtf-'~i<t: --I John 4: la "Beloved, believe not evti'ry spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God." --NOTE: What determines whether or ot a book belon sin the B' le? · is is- the que stion that is dealt with by what we call the "Canonibily of the Bible." This word was first used by the poet Amphildchius in 380. The first corporate witness was the Cowic· r of baa ·cen in 364 A.D. But \'.llii!S;g;i._:the basis for accepting one book and rejecting another? 1 e 1 se says, prophecy came not in old time by will of man, but holy men of God spake 1 as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." Who were these "holy: men of God?" --OLD TESTAMENT - These books were written or put forth by prophetic men whose s iritual credentials were not uestioned. -> It was not the A::cfloi'T,A(llc.-£ of the people that caused the Canonicity, but the /x Canonicity that caused the acceptance by the people. --NEW TESTAMENT - T ese either by apostles or their asso ciates. ---7~ The Bible is not an authorized collection of books, but a collection of authorized books. ---~?~ Canonicity did not raise a book to the position of Scripture, but recognized that it was already Scripture. A@THEB DETER-"1-:VV::Z.l"tr FAcrof(; I T.5 A-Gf<E E/tlENT w.:z TH THE T~4CH+N6-5 CF<'THE BMkS, --::r 1,1.. 11.1: Pvrtf.-1-To~r V- CL,11.,~+ L4Z-4RIJ< "G,-,eey; G-uJ..I r ,..,,41. , . '' II. WHAT IS "INSPIRATION?" - - · l: Timothy 3: 16a "All Scripture is given by INSPIRATION." - But what is meant by "inspiration?" 1. What t Is Not (1) Intuition ._- - This is the kind of "inspiration" that prompts an artist to paint a picture, or a mus ician to compose music. or a poet to write a poem. (2) Mechanica l ~- This view holds that the write rs were mere tools, passive instruments whose personalities and vocabularies were bypassed - like a pen in a writer's hand. 2. Wha t It Is --Dynamid ...,,. - This maintains that the guidance of the Holy Spirit, rendere~ the writers infallible in their communi­ cat ions of t ruth and thus making their writings inerrant. Yet it leaves room for the freest and fullest play of III. personality and style . ~ ' Paul, law and Luke, medicine . J;1::.J. 3 . Evi d ence of Inspiration --NOTE: Evidence is twofold: Internal and ' External oJ.£,S~ ' (1) Internal 71.. a. rI Timoth 3:16 and II Peter ~ 1:20-21 . 'I~ oflfJil~u. ft b. "Thus s-ai th the Lord II used lf:_30 vs_s- c. The way Old Testament quotations are introduced in the New Testament. --E.G., Matt. 1:22' 11 this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying ... 11 5 d. The way Christ and the apostles treat the Old Testament --E.G., Matt. 8:16-11 and John 10:35 e. The expression, "It is written" ~, Matt. 4:7; Luke 4:10; Gal. 3:10; Heb. 10:7 ... f. Unity of S cripture. )S-HJ~Y - ~ R_,.1/ , g. Accuracy of Scripture. --E.G., order of creation in accord with science - Genesis 1 ( 2) External a. Fulf ille d prophecy.~, Birth of Christ. b. Spread of the Gospel. V~~ c. Preservation of the Bib e . n N d. Existence of the church. -:S!s~.s, ljeJ • t';:,fJ r e. Archaelogica l findings. f. Testimony of Christian experience --"Oh taste and see that j;;he _Lord is good" (Psalm 34: 8) . III. WHY DO WE NEED THE BIBLE? --II Timothy 3:16b-17 [DO NOT READ HERE] 1. For Authority in Religion \ ·- -II Timothy 3: 16b [READ] -~NOTE: There are three and only three possible sources of authority in the Christian religion - the chur ~h, reason, the Bib~ . --Te Chur~h - This is t he position of the Romari Catholic Church which exalts tradi tion to a plane of equality with the Scriptures and claims the power of special authoritative revelation in addition to the Scriptures, and it has used this power.