Biblical Essays
THE BIBLE – ITS SUFFICIENCY AND SUPREMACY
We are aware some seek to persuade that things are so totally changed since the Bible was penned, that we need guidance other than that which its precious pages supply. They tell us that society is not what it was; that the human race has made progress; that there has been such a development of the powers of nature, the resources of science and the appliances of philosophy, that for the Christian era to maintain the sufficiency and supremacy of the Bible at this twenty-first century point in the world's history can only be regarded as childishness, ignorance, or imbecility.
Those who tell us such things may seem very clever and very learned; but we have no hesitation whatsoever in telling them that in this matter, “They do greatly err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God.” We certainly desire to render all due respect to learning, genius, and talent, whenever we find them in their right place and at their proper work; but when we find them lifting their proud heads above the Word of God; when we find them sitting in judgment, and casting a slur on that peerless revelation, we feel that we owe them no respect whatsoever. We consider and treat them as so many agents of the devil, in his efforts to shake those eternal pillars on which the faith of God’s people has always rested. No matter how profound in their reading and thinking, we cannot listen to men who dare to treat God’s Holy Book as though it were man’s book, and speak of those pages that were penned by the All wise, Almighty, and Eternal God as though they were the production of a shallow and short-sighted mortal.
It is important that we clearly understand and see that men must either deny that the Bible is the Word of God, or admit its sufficiency and supremacy in all ages and in all countries and in all stages and conditions of the human race. God has written a book for man’s guidance, and our argument is simple: that book must be amply sufficient for man, no matter when, where, or how we find him. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God...that the man of God may be perfect throughly[Gr] furnished unto all good works” (2 Tim. 3:16-17; emphasis added). Surely, this is enough. To be perfect and throughly furnished, a man must be independent of all the boasted powers of science and so-called philosophy.
In writing this essay, we expose ourselves to the sneer of the learned rationalist, and the polished and cultivated philosopher. But we are not concerned about this. We received an email response that greatly touched us – one we deeply admire. It was from a pious, 94 year old woman, who felt ignorant when brought face to face with a very learned man who was endeavoring to show her that the inspired writer had made a mistake in asserting that Jonah was in the whale’s belly. He assured her that such a thing could not possibly be, because the natural history of the whale proved it could not swallow anything so large.
“Well,” said the woman, “I do not know much about natural history; but this I know, that if the Bible were to tell me that Jonah swallowed the whale I would believe it.”
It is possible that many would pronounce this elderly woman to be under the influence of ignorance and blind credulity; but, for our part, we would much rather be considered ignorant and blind confiding in God’s Word, like this woman, than the learned rationalist trying to pick holes in it. We have no doubt who is in the safer position.
However, let it not be supposed that we prefer ignorance to learning. Let none imagine that we despise the discoveries of science, or treat with contempt the achievements of sound philosophy. Far from it; in their proper sphere we honor them highly. We prize the labors of those learned men who have consecrated their energies to the work of clearing the sacred text of the various errors and corruptions which, from age to age had crept into it through the carelessness or infirmity of copyists; taken advantage of by a crafty and malignant foe. Every effort put forth to preserve, unfold, illustrate, and enforce the precious truth of Scripture, we most highly esteem. On the other hand, when we find men making use of their learning, science, and philosophy for the purpose of undermining the sacred edifice of divine revelation, we deem it our duty to raise our voice against them in the clearest and strongest way, and to solemnly warn against their baneful influence.
We believe that the Bible, as written in the original Hebrew and Greek languages, is the Word of the only wise and true God, with whom one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day; Who saw not only the end from the beginning, but every single stage of the way. Therefore, we consider it blasphemy to assert that we have arrived at a stage of our career in which the Bible is not sufficient, or that we are compelled to travel outside its covers to find guidance and instruction for the present age, and for every moment of our earthly pilgrimage. The Bible is a perfect chart, in which every exigency of the Christian mariner has been anticipated. Every rock, every sand-bank, every shoal, every strand, and every island has been carefully noted. All needs of the Lord’s church, its members and ministers, has been fully provided for. How could it be otherwise if we admit the Bible to be the Word of God? Could the mind of God have devised, or His finger sketched an imperfect chart? Impossible; we must either deny the divinity or admit the sufficiency of The Book. These are the only alternatives. There is not a single point between these two positions. If the book is incomplete, it cannot be of God; if it be of God it must be perfect. But if we are compelled to seek other sources for guidance and instruction, then the Bible is incomplete, and being such, it cannot be of God.
What then are we to do? If the Bible is not a divine and therefore all-sufficient guide-book, what remains? Some will tell us to lean on tradition. But, no sooner have we launched out into the wide field of tradition than our ears are assailed by ten thousand strange and conflicting sounds. With a tradition things may seem very authentic, very venerable, well worthy of respect and confidence, and so commit ourselves to its guidance. Then at some point after we have done so, another tradition crosses our path, putting forth a strong claim on our confidence – taking us in an opposite direction. So it is with tradition. The mind is bewildered, and one is reminded of the assembly at Ephesus, concerning which we read that, “Some cried one thing, and some another; for the assembly was confused.” The fact is, we want a perfect standard and this can only be found in a divine revelation, which, as we believe, is to be found within the covers of our most precious Bible. What a treasure; we should constantly bless God for it; we should praise His name for His mercy in that He has not left His church dependent on human tradition, but on the steady light of divine revelation. We must not let tradition assist revelation, but we must always use revelation as the test of tradition. We might as well bring out a flashlight to assist the sun’s meridian beams, as calling in human tradition to aid divine revelation.
But there is another ensnaring and dangerous resource presented by the enemy of the Bible that is accepted by too many of the people of God, and that is expediency, or the attractive plea of doing all the good we can without due attention to the way in which that good is done. The tree of expediency is a wide-spreading one, yielding tempting clusters. But remember, in the end its clusters will prove as bitter as wormwood. No doubt, it is well to do all the good we can; but let us always look to the way in which we do it. Let us not deceive ourselves by the vain imagination that God accepts services based on positive disobedience to His Word. “It is a gift,” said the elders, as they boldly walked over the plain commandment of God, as if He would be pleased with a gift presented on such a principle. There is an intimate connection between the ancient “corban” and the modern “expediency,” for “there is nothing new under the sun.” The solemn responsibility of obeying the Word of God was removed under the plausible pretext of “corban ‘or’ it is a gift” (Mark 7:7-13).
Thus it was of old. The “corban” of the ancients sought to justify many a bold transgression of the law of God; and the “expediency” of our times allures many to overstep the boundary line laid down by divine revelation.
We admit that in our age expediency offers attractive inducements. It seem so very delightful to be doing a great deal of good, to be involved in a large hearted benevolence, to seek for and reach tangible results. It would difficult indeed to estimate the ensnaring influences of such objects, or the immense difficulty of throwing them overboard. While standing on the narrow path of obedience, have we ever been tempted to look out on the golden fields of expediency and say, “Alas! I am sacrificing my usefulness for an idea”? But what if it should turn out that we have the same foundation for that “idea” as for the fundamental doctrines of salvation? The question is, “What is the idea? Is it founded on ‘Thus saith the Lord’”? If so, let us tenaciously hold to it, though ten thousand advocates of expediency hurl at us the grievous charge of narrow-mindedness.
There is immense power in Samuel’s brief but pointed reply to Saul, “Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord! Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams” (1 Sam. 15:22).
Saul’s word was “sacrifice.” Samuel’s word was “obedience.” No doubt the bleating of the sheep and the lowing of the oxen were most exciting. They would be looked on as substantial proofs that something was being done; while on the other hand, the path of obedience seemed narrow, silent, lonely, and fruitless. But those pungent words of Samuel: “to obey is better than sacrifice” – what a triumphant answer to the most eloquent advocates of expediency. They are truly conclusive and commanding words. They teach us that it is better to stand on the pathway of obedience like a marble statue, than to reach the most desirable ends by transgressing a plain precept of the Word of God.
But let none suppose that one must be like a statue on the path of obedience. Far from it; there are rare and precious services to be rendered by the obedient one – services that can only be rendered by such, and that owe all preciousness to being the fruit of simple obedience. We have a marvelous pattern of this in our blessed Lord, who for thirty years lived in retirement, known by men only as “the carpenter” (Mark 6:3), but known by the Father as the Holy One of God, the perfect meat-offering of Leviticus 6:19-33 – wholly burnt upon the altar. True, they may not find a place in the public record of man’s bustling activity; but they are recorded on high and will be published at the right time. As an old Scottish preacher often said, “Heaven will be the safest and happiest place to hear all about our work down here.” May we remember this, and in simplicity pursue our way, always looking to Christ for guidance, power, and blessing – may His smile always be enough; may we not be found seeking to catch the approving look of a poor mortal whose breath is in his nostrils, nor sigh to find our names amid the glittering record of the great men of our age. The servant of Christ looks far beyond all such things. The grand business of the servant is to obey. His object should not be to do something great, but simply to do what he is told. This makes everything plain; and makes the Bible precious as the depository of the Master’s will, to which we must continually take ourselves if we are to know what to do, and how to do it. Neither tradition nor expediency will do for the servant of Christ. The all-important inquiry is, “What saith the Scriptures.”
This settles everything. From the decision of the Word of God there must be no appeal. When God speaks man must bow. It is not a question of obstinate adherence to a man’s own notions. Quite the opposite – it is a reverent adherence to the Word of God. Let us distinctly mark this. When one is determined to abide by Scripture, it often happens that he will be pronounced dogmatic, intolerant and imperious; and, without doubt, one has to watch over his temper, spirit, and style, even when seeking to abide by the Word of God. But, we must never forget that obedience to Christ’s commandments is the opposite of imperiousness, dogmatism, and intolerance. It is not unusual that when a man tamely consents to place his conscience in the keeping of other men, and bows his understanding to man’s opinions, he is considered meek, modest, and liberal; but let him reverently bow to the authority of Holy Scripture, and he is looked on as self-confident, dogmatic, and narrow-minded. So be it – the time is rapidly approaching when obedience will be called by its right name, and meet its recognition and reward. Christians must be content to wait for that moment, and while waiting for it, be satisfied to let men call us whatever they please. “The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.”
But in drawing this essay to a close, we merely add that there is a third hostile influence against which Bible lovers will have to watch – rationalism; the supremacy of man’s reason. With the most unflinching decision, the faithful disciple of the Word of God will have to withstand this audacious intruder. It presumes to sit in judgment on the Word of God – to decide on what is and what is not worthy of God – to prescribe boundaries to inspiration. In other words, instead of humbly bowing to the authority of Scripture that continually soars into a region where blind reason can never follow, it proudly seeks to drag Scripture down to its own level. If the Bible puts forth something that clashes with the conclusions of rationalism, then there must be some flaw in the Bible. God is shut out of His own book if He says anything that blind, perverted reason cannot reconcile with her own conclusions – conclusions that are usually the grossest absurdities.
This is not all. Rationalism deprives us of the only perfect standard of truth, conducting us into a region of the dreary uncertainty. It seeks to undermine the authority of a Book in which we can believe everything, and carries us into a field of speculation in which we can be sure of nothing. Under the dominion of rationalism the soul is like a vessel broken from its safe moorings in the haven of divine revelation, to be tossed like a cork upon the wild watery waste of universal skepticism.
We do not expect to convince a thorough rationalist; nor do we expect to win over the decided advocate of expediency, or the ardent admirer of tradition. We do not have the competency, leisure, or website memory to enter into a line of argument that would be required if we sought such ends. But we are prayerfully hopeful that from a perusal of this essay, Christians may rise up with a deepened sense of the preciousness of God’s Word. We earnestly desire that the words, “The Bible: its sufficiency and supremacy,” be deeply and broadly engraved in our hearts.
In this age, superstition, expediency, and rationalism are at work, and as a result we feel a solemn duty to perform because these many agents of the devil are constantly at work attempting to sap the foundations of our holy faith. We owe it to that blessed Volume of Inspiration, from which we have drunk the streams of life and peace, to bear our feeble testimony to the divinity of its every page – to give expression of our profound reverence for its authority, and our conviction of its divine sufficiency for every need, whether of the believer individually, or the church collectively. May each of us earnestly seek to set a higher value than ever on the Holy Scriptures – to warn in urgent terms against every influence, whether tradition, expediency, or rationalism; anything that tends to shake our confidence in those heavenly oracles. In this age, there is a spirit abroad and principles at work, that make it imperative on us to keep very close to Scripture – to treasure it in our hearts, submitting to its holy authority.
May God the Spirit, Author of the Bible, produce in all believers a more ardent love for the Bible. With its contents, may He enlarge our experimental acquaintance, and lead us into more complete subjection to its teachings in all things, that God may be more glorified in us through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
