God The Word - Defends The Word of God
The Dean Burgon Society's 1996 Annual Meeting
Dr. Robert Barnett, Vice President of the Dean Burgon Society
© Copyright 1999 by the author, reproduction and distribution rights assigned to the Dean
Burgon Society.
Thank You for an opportunity to have a part in the DBS annual Bible Conference this
year in Boston. Special thanks to Grace Baptist Church and to your pastor Dr. Kirk
DiVietro.
The heart of the Bible version question:
Who will we trust in questions of textual criticism, textual translation, and textual
interpretation? WHICH BIBLE EXPERT IS WORTHY OF OUR FAITH AND TRUST?
In this day when the Bible is under attack as never before, who do we trust to treat
the Bible in an honest manner? Some trust their denomination, others their schools or
professors, others trust their pastors, some trust the bookstore clerk. Some trust a
friend. All of us must trust someone concerning which Bible we will rest our immortal
souls upon for all time and eternity.
Once during correspondence with the president of a so-called fundamental Baptist
college and seminary, he seemed amazed that I would claim to have enough education to
delve into such Bible questions as textual criticism. He reminded me that as president of
two previous Baptist schools, he had two highly educated professors who had part in the
translation of the NKJV and another modern translation, either the NIV or NASV. But
neither believed they had the expertise to deal with questions of textual criticism. Later
in his letter he told me about a reputable pastor in Ohio who had switched he entire
church over to the NIV.
1. These 2 professors admitted to blindly
following the revised text of other men for their translation work. They were blindly
trusting other textual experts just as millions of lay people are now blindly trusting
them and their translation work.
2. I asked the college president if the
reputable pastor in Ohio was more of an expert on textual criticism then his two
professors who blindly did the translation work?
3. The words of Jesus Christ in
LUKE 6:39
come to mind: "And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall
they not both fall into the ditch?"
4. Today the blind are leading the blind
in textual criticism and translation work thereby causing denominations, universities,
churches, families, and individuals to fall into the ditch of disbelief.which leads to
dispair.
5. All of us must trust somebody
concerning textual criticism and translation work. I have found but one expert who is
worthy to be trusted. He has never failed in anything I have trusted Him to do.
There is one Bible expert and authority who stands above all others, our Lord Jesus
Christ. He is not only the eternal author of all scripture, but is also called the Word of
God . He is identified as the Word of God personified from three perspectives:
1. Our Lord is coming back to earth as King, and as such is
named as the sovereign ruling Word of God:
(Rev 19:13 KJV) And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and
his name is
called The Word of God.
(Rev 19:15 KJV) And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should
smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the
winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
(Rev 19:16 KJV) And he hath on [his] vesture and on his thigh a name written,
KING
OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
He has the omnipotent power to deal with all textual critics including the first one
Satan!
2. Our Jesus is Savior, the incarnate Word made flesh for our
redemption:
(John 1:14 KJV) And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld
his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
He has the omniscient wisdom to deal with all textual critics!
3. Our Christ is God, the eternal Word, coequal with the
Father and the Holy Spirit:
(John 1:1, 2) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and
the Word
was God. The same was in the beginning with God.
He has the eternal presence to deal with all textual critics! He not only was the
eternal word in the past, He bears witness as the eternal word in Heaven today.
(1 John 5:7) "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and
the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." Every modern Bible either removes this
verse, removes the doctrine of the trinity from it, or calls it into question by a
footnote or marginal reference.
Our Final Authority
Regarding Holy Scripture
As the eternal, incarnate, sovereign Word personified, our Lord Jesus Christ commands
respect as our final authority regarding all His Words of Holy Scripture.
A. Jesus Christ practiced the infallible
authority of Holy Scripture in His works or ministry v. 17
MAT 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am
not
come to destroy, but to fulfill.
(The Word "fulfill' and "fulfilled" are used of Christ's words over 40
times in the gospels.
Jesus Christ believed, obeyed, and fulfilled every word of Holy Scripture in His work.
"Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to
finish his work." (John 4:34) "And he that sent me is with me: the
Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him."
(John 8:29 ) Jesus Christ did nothing contrary to God's Holy Scripture. "I can
of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because
I
seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me." (John
5:30) "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of
him that sent me." (John 6:38)
Jesus Christ not only fulfilled every word of God in His life, but He accepted and
taught us to believe the literal interpretation of Bible accounts:.
For example:
1. Christ believed the Genesis account
of Creation: He believed in---
(Mark 13:19 KJV) For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from
the
beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.
2. Christ believed Adam and Eve were
real people created and instructed by God:
(Mat 19:4 KJV) And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which
made them at the beginning made them male and female,
(Mat 19:5 KJV) And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall
cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?
(Mat 19:6 KJV) Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath
joined together, let not man put asunder.
3. Christ believed the murder of
righteous Abel:
(Mat 23:35 KJV) That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth,
from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of
Barachias, whom
ye slew between the temple and the altar.
4. Christ believed in Noah, the ark,
and the universal flood:
(Mat 24:38 KJV) For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
LUK 17:26 And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the
Son of man.
5. Christ believed in Lot's
deliverance and Sodom's destruction:
(Luke 17:29 KJV) But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and
brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
LUK 17:28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank,
they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
LUK 17:29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from
heaven, and destroyed [them] all.
LUK 17:30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
San Francisco is rapidly becoming a match for Sodom.
6. Christ believed the account of
Lot's wife turning to a pillar of salt:
(Luke 17:32 KJV) Remember Lot's wife.
7. Christ believed God's revelation to
Moses in the burning bush..
(Mark 12:26 KJV) And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the
book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and
the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?
8. Christ tied the truth of His own
death, burial, and resurrection to Jonah and the whale:
(Mat 12:40 KJV) For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly;
so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
(John 12:24 KJV) Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into
the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
9. Christ claimed to be the fulfillment
of the law, psalms, and prophets.
(Luke 24:44 KJV) And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you,
while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the
law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
10. Christ allowed no distinction in
authority between the written words of Moses and His own words as God incarnate.
(John 5:46 KJV) For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote
of me.
(John 5:47 KJV) But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?
(John 5:39 KJV) Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and
they are they which testify of me.
(John 5:40 KJV) And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
11. Christ claimed the words of Holy
Scripture are living words: (Living because Inspired)
(John 6:63 KJV) It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing:
the
words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
(John 6:68 KJV) Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go?
thou hast the words of eternal life.
(John 6:69 KJV) And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of
the living God.
(John 5:24 KJV) Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth
on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation;
but is passed from death unto life.
As Peter said, 1PE 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of
incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
12. Christ's words which were revealed
from God were to believers received words :
(John 17:6 KJV) I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of
the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
(John 17:8 KJV) For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and
they
have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have
believed that thou didst send me.
(John 17:17 KJV) Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
(John 17:20 KJV) Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe
on me through their word; (Christ's prayer was based upon God's words as passed
on by His disciples through the received text.)
Only the Received Text Can
Claim Inerrancy
Only the received text of Holy Scriptures passed down through centuries in the hands of
Bible believers can fulfill the claim of inerrancy in doctrine. All modern Bibles by their
own footnotes and side references question or deny any and all claims to inerrancy in the
transmission of their underlying original language texts.
A. Jesus Christ Practiced the infallible
authority of Holy Scripture in His works v. 17
B. Jesus Christ Proclaimed the inerrant
accuracy of Holy Scriptures in His words v. 18
MAT 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or
one
tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
JOH 10:35b "....and the scripture cannot be broken;
"And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to
judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my
words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in
the last day." (John 12:47, 48)
1. Jesus Christ, the second Adam,
pronounced word level preservation of scripture to silence Satan's personal attack:
(Mat 4:4 KJV) But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
(Luke 4:4 KJV) And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live
by bread alone, but by every word of God.
(Remember 3/4th of the Holy Scriptures were already written and the originals of the
Old Testament were probably all gone by the time Christ made the above defense.)
Contrast Satan's first words in Genesis 3:1: "Yea, Hath God said?"
2. Christ promised the scriptures would
be providentially preserved beyond the word of God in creation:
PSA 33:6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them
by the breath of his mouth.
PSA 33:8 Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in
awe of him.
PSA 33:9 For he spake, and it was [done]; he commanded, and it stood fast.
(Psalms 119:90-91) "Thy faithfulness is unto all generations: thou hast
established the earth, and it abideth. {91} They continue this day according to
thine ordinances: for all are thy servants."
(Luke 16:17 KJV) And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of
the law to fail.
The jot and tittle were the smallest markings in the Hebrew words, it would be
comparable to us talking about dotting the "i" and crossing the "t" in
English
(Mat 24:35 KJV) Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
(Mark 13:31 KJV) Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.
(Luke 21:33 KJV) Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.
Jesus Christ promised that His word in print will remain more stable than His word in
creation.
3. He empowered His disciples to teach
all things which His words commanded to all His future disciples.
(Mat 28:18 KJV) And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given
unto me in heaven and in earth.
(Mat 28:19 KJV) Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
(Mat 28:20 KJV) Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded
you:
and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
The power, purpose, and presence of Jesus Christ assure us of the providential
preservation of His Words in Holy Scripture until the end of the world.
4. Holy Scriptures are the
incorruptible seed of the sower producing all spiritual life and growth in Christ's
parable of the sower in Matthew 13:
(Mark 4:14 KJV) The sower soweth the word.
(Luke 8:11 KJV) Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
As Peter said, (1PE 1:23) Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of
incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
5. Scriptures provide the only sure
foundation upon which to build a life:
(Luke 6:47 KJV) Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them,
I will show you to whom he is like:
(Luke 6:48 KJV) He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the
foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that
house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.
(Luke 6:49 KJV) But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a
foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently,
and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.
6. The Holy Scripture obeyed is
sufficient for Jesus Christ to identify us as His family:
(Luke 8:21 KJV) And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are
these which hear the word of God, and do it.
(Luke 11:28 KJV) But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of
God, and keep it. (More blessed than honoring his mother Mary spoken of in the
context.)
Infallible Authority and
Inerrant Accuracy
A. Jesus Christ Practiced the infallible
authority of Holy Scripture in His works or ministry v. 17
B. Jesus Christ Proclaimed the inerrant
accuracy of Holy Scriptures in His words v. 18
C. Jesus Christ Promised us infinite accountability to
Holy Scriptures in His warning v. 19,20
1. Our heavenly reputation rests
upon our handling of God's words. v. 19
MAT 5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments,
and
shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but
whosoever shall do and teach [them], the same shall be called great in the kingdom
of heaven.
a. Christ warns those who break His commandments and teach others to
do so.
Jesus Christ clearly marks all who refuse to believe and practice Holy scripture:
1) Willful ignorance of God's scripture and power is the cause
of spiritual error:
(Mat 22:29 KJV) Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the
scriptures, nor the power of God.
(Mark 12:24 KJV) And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because
ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God?
2) Hating and Rejecting God's word is synonymous with hating
and rejecting God:
(John 5:38 KJV) And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him
ye believe not.
(John 8:37 KJV) I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because
my word hath no place in you.
(John 14:24 KJV) He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word
which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.
3) The world hates the disciples of Christ because of their
stand on God's word:
(John 17:14 KJV) I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because
they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
(John 10:26 KJV) But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said
unto you.
4) Remaining ashamed of Jesus Christ and His words is
unforgivable:
(Mark 8:38 KJV) Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this
adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he
cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.
(Luke 9:26 KJV) For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the
Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of
the holy angels.
5) All who reject Jesus Christ and His words will be divinely
judged by His words:
(John 12:47 KJV) And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I
came not to judge the world, but to save the world.
(John 12:48 KJV) He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that
judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.
6) Adding to or subtracting from God's words is the final
deadly sin condemned by Jesus Christ:
'For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book,
If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are
written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this
prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city,
and from the things which are written in this book. He which testifieth these things
saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus." ((Rev
22:18-20)
(Luke 6:46 KJV) And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
b. Jesus Christ characterizes those who really believe on Him and
continue to live by His Holy Scriptures:
1) They are confirmed as His disciples:
(John 8:31 KJV) Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue
in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
2) They are freed by His truth:
(John 8:32 KJV) And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
3) They hear, know, and follow His voice:
(John 10:3 KJV) To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth
his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
(John 10:4 KJV) And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and
the
sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
(John 18:37 KJV) Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered,
Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the
world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth
heareth my voice.
4) They possess eternal life and security:
(John 10:27 KJV) My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
(John 10:28 KJV) And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
(John 10:29 KJV) My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able
to pluck them out of my Father's hand.
5) They prove their love for Jesus Christ by keeping His words:
(John 14:23 KJV) Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my
words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
6) They are taught all things by the Spirit of Truth:
(John 14:26 KJV) But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will
send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance,
whatsoever I have said unto you.
(John 15:26 KJV) But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the
Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall
testify of me:
(John 16:13 KJV) Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you
into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that
shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.
EPH 6:17b "...the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:"
7) They are made clean through the word:
(John 15:3 KJV) Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
8) Their prayers are answered:
(John 15:7 KJV) If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye
will, and it shall be done unto you.
9) Their life has fulfilled one primary purpose for the Holy
Scriptures:
(John 20:30 KJV) And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples,
which are not written in this book:
(John 20:31 KJV) But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.
10) Their Churches are blessed for faithfulness to His word:
(Rev 3:8 KJV) I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man
can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not
denied my name.
(Rev 3:10 KJV) Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep
thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that
dwell upon the earth.
1. Our heavenly Reputation rests upon our
handling of God's words. v. 19
2. Our heavenly Righteousness must be in
Jesus Christ and His word alone. v. 20
MAT 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed
[the
righteousness] of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the
kingdom of heaven.
a. Our Lord Jesus Christ took our sin and gave us His righteousness:
2CO 5:21 For he hath made him [to be] sin for us, who knew no sin; that we
might
be made the righteousness of God in him.
1CO 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us
wisdom,
and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
b. Christ identified the False righteousness of the scribes and
Pharisees:
MAT 23:2 Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:
MAT 23:3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, [that] observe and
do;
but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
MAT 23:4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay [them] on men's
shoulders; but they [themselves] will not move them with one of their fingers.
MAT 23:5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad
their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,
MAT 23:23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and
anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier [matters] of the law,
judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other
undone.
MAT 23:24 [Ye] blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
MAT 23:25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the
outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
MAT 23:26 [Thou] blind Pharisee, cleanse first that [which is] within the cup and
platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
MAT 23:27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited
sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead [men's]
bones, and of all uncleanness.
MAT 23:28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye
are
full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
LUK 12:1 In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude
of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples
first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
LUK 16:15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but
God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the
sight of God.
c. The apostle Paul explained the two kinds of righteousness:
ROM 10:2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to
knowledge.
ROM 10:3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish
their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
PHI 3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law,
but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
GAL 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, [it is] evident:
for, The just shall live by faith.
GAL 3:12 And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.
GAL 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us:
for it is written, Cursed [is] every one that hangeth on a tree:
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