A Servant Saving a Servant

Observations From My Study (Isaiah 42:1-43:7)

This section of Isaiah talks a lot about the servant of God. But a close reading shows that there is more than one servant in view here.

First, read 42:1:

Behold my servant, whom I uphold,
     my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my Spirit upon him;
     he will bring forth justice to the nations

This servant sounds pretty great, huh? He is indwelled with the Spirit of God and will bring justice to all. What could be better?

But read later in the chapter:

Hear, you deaf,
     and look, you blind, that you may see!
Who is blind but my servant,
     or deaf as my messenger whom I send?
Who is blind as my dedicated one,
     or blind as the servant of the LORD? (Isaiah 42:18, 19)

This doesn't sound at all like the glorious servant from earlier in the chapter. He is blind and deaf; he can't follow the Lord. The two passages simply cannot be referring to the same servant.

The context reveals this for certain. We discover in later verses that this second servant needs redemption. In contrast, the first servant comes to bring redemption. This first servant, as the New Testament reveals (Matt. 12:28-30), is none other than Jesus himself. Jesus became a servant to save God's fallen servant, Israel. Jesus is really the ideal Israel who fulfilled that which Israel could not fulfill and obeyed the Father in her place that she may be redeemed.

I think the best way to end this is with Paul's passage to the Philippians addressing that very topic:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:5-11)

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q14: The Creation of Man

Q. 14. How did God create man?
A. God created man male and female, after His own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures. (Gen. 1:27; Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:24; Gen. 1:28)

Scripture Proofs

So God created man in his own image,
     in the image of God he created him;
     male and female he created them. (Gen. 1:27)

Put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. (Col. 3:10)

Put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. (Eph. 4:24)

And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." (Gen. 1:28)

I want to start by saying that, when I first read this question, I thought the answer would be something along the lines of "With dust." But then I realized that the question isn't asking what God did to create man. It's asking what God created man to be like. But that's still a bit of an inadequate explanation, because the idea isn't just what purpose or way God created man to be, as if he created man and said, "Now, attain to this;" it's how man actually was when God created him. When God created man, he "created man male and female, after His own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures." As with all of the questions we've covered so far, this answer is easily verifiable with Scripture. Like the last answer, I think the best way to go about this is to go one phrase at a time.

The first part says that "God created man male and female." Although several feminists would object, the answer is clear: humankind, both male and female, are, in fact, collectively referred to as "man." I'm not trying to make a massively significant point when I say that; I just think it's amusing, but I digress.

The big point here is that God created both man and woman. In the creation account, we can see that they were both created with specific purposes: man was to work, and woman was to help man. They have specific, differing, and complementary purposes. Now, along with this, they are both equals in terms of standing with God; that is - contrary to the popular mischaracterization of Christianity by the world - Biblically speaking, woman is not inferior to man. Paul says, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:28). Paul is not saying that men and women are exactly the same; we've already seen that they are not, and the verse also compares Jews with Greeks and slaves with freemen, each very different classes of people when compared to the other. What he is saying is that, in God's eyes, men and women are equals. Men are not more saved than women, nor are women more saved than man. Both men and women are created in the image of God; neither bears more of God's image than the other. Husbands are called to lead and love and women are called to submit, but that does not imply inferiority or superiority; it shows difference.

So what does it mean that God created man in his image? Paul answers when he speaks of God's plan for his elect: "those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers" (Rom. 8:29). In other words, God made man to be like him. When you think about it, you realize that Satan offered Adam something he already had; "you will be like God" (Gen. 3:5). This doesn't mean that Adam was perfect or omnipotent or eternal or anything like that, but he was, as the catechism states, knowledgeable, righteous, and holy. Man was made to be good and holy. Man was good and holy when he was initially created because he was made to be like God. Ultimately, that's what God plans for his elect; "we know that when [Jesus] appears we shall be like him" (1 John 3:2). I personally like the metaphor of the sun and the moon. The moon has no light in and of itself; it's just a floating hunk of space rock. But it reflects the light of the sun to the earth. That's what man was made to do: reflect the light of God on the earth.

The next phrase says that God created man "in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness." This refers specifically to man's knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, as the verses given demonstrate: "Put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness . . . . which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator" (Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:10). Interestingly, the passages these verses come from parallel each other; they both address this idea of the new self. The idea is that, presently, God is restoring redeemed man to the condition he was in before the fall, that state of knowledge, righteousness, and holiness. Before the fall, man was already there. Man was knowledgeable, man was righteous, man was holy. The knowledge is of particular interest to me because we don't often think about it. Every genuine Christian will acknowledge that man is radically corrupted morally. But if every part of a man's being is corrupted by sin, and his mind is part of his being, then his mind is also corrupted by sin! It is occupied and infested with sinful thoughts! We can still think and reason, but we are imperfect and fallible in such ventures. That is why Paul, when speaking of our sanctification, tells us to "be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect" (Rom. 12:2). I've heard it said that the two clearest thinkers in all of history were Adam (before he fell) and Jesus, because neither of them were corrupted by sin. Before the fall, when man was in the state God created him in, he could think clearly. He did righteously, and he could discern what was the will of God. When you think of that, however, you realize just how bad the fall was; Adam knew it was wrong and he did it anyway. He was knowledgeable and righteous and holy, but not enough to keep from sinning against God.

Lastly, God created man "with dominion over the creatures." That's an easy one; God rules the earth and has given it to us to rule over. His first command was for man to "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth" (Gen. 1:28). Man has a duty to fill the earth, which involves being fruitful and multiplying. Man has a duty to rule the ground and make it flourish. Man also has the right to use the ground and the resources of the world to make progress, such as building houses and roads and things to make life easier. Man is called to care for animals, but animals are not to take priority over man; if one is driving on a road and sees a human baby and a baby koala ahead, and there is no way to avoid hitting one of them, say goodbye to the bear and rejoice that a human baby is still alive. Then try to find the baby's parents, of course, because clearly someone wasn't paying attention.

This is not all the catechism has to say about man's creation and purpose; there is a lot more to come.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q13: The Work of Creation

Q. 13. What is the work of creation?
A. The work of creation is God's making all things of nothing, by the Word of His power, in the space of six days, and all very good. (Gen. 1:1; Heb. 11:3; Ex. 20:11; Gen. 1:31)

Scripture Proofs

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Gen. 1:1)

By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. (Heb. 11:3)

For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. (Ex. 20:11)

And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. (Gen 1:31)

In the last post, we covered that God's decrees are executed in his works of creation and providence. Today we'll discuss his work of creation. I think the answer given covers the topic more than adequately: "The work of creation is God's making all things of nothing, by the Word of His power, in the space of six days, and all very good." Each of these statements are easily backed up by Scripture.

God made all things out of nothing; well, when the Bible says "God created the heavens and the earth" (Gen. 1:1), it's easily implied that nothing existed before that moment except God. Note that the verse does not state that God himself was created in the beginning; he was already there. God has always been around. This is not illogical; a being with the power of being within himself does not need a cause. He, unlike us, does not need someone to grant him the ability to be. He has always been there. We can't grasp that; everything we can think of has some kind of beginning in time. But even time didn't exist until God created it, so how can he have a beginning in time?

The next phrase refers to his creating by "the Word of his power." The author of Hebrews says this very thing: "By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God" (11:3). Genesis also attests to this when it says, multiple times, that "God said" and what he said happened. (1:3, 6, 9 ,11, 14, 20, 24, 26). There is no mention of God taking some kind of pre-existing material and creating something with it except in the case of man, who was formed out of dust (2:7). No, God simply spoke and it came to be. What power!

The next phrase, "in the space of six days," is a hotly-contested issue for some reason or another. Some people say it means six literal days. Others claim it means six ages or indefinite spans of time, citing the fact that, since the sun and moon were not created until day four, there was no such thing as a literal, 24-hour day before then. I tend to fall in the first camp: the Bible affirms that "in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day" (Ex. 20:11). In fact, in context, that verse is the reason God instituted a six-day work week with a Sabbath; it is the last verse in the fifth commandment itself (20:8-11). The work week and Sabbath are intended to model God's work of creation! I don't really see why people argue against it or what the big deal is. However, this isn't a mountain I'd die on; if someone wants to argue with me about this, they won't get a response, as I don't think it's a live-or-die, you're-not-saved-if-you-don't-believe-this issue.

The last phrase, "and all very good," is not one that Christians argue about. It's very clear that God made creation good. "And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good" (Gen 1:31). Paul agrees: "For everything created by God is good" (1 Tim. 4:4). In fact, the only thing that was not good is that man was initially alone, and God quickly fixed that problem, making it good (Gen 2:18-25). It is only because of man that things went bad, but we'll get to that later.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q12: Executing His Decrees

Q. 12. How does God execute His decrees?
A. God executes His decrees in the works of creation and providence. (Gen. 1:1; Rev. 4:11; Matt. 6:26; Acts 14:17)

Scripture Proofs

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Gen. 1:1)

Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
     to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
     and by your will they existed and were created. (Rev. 4:11)

Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? (Matt. 6:26)

Yet he did not leave himself without witness, for he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness. (Acts 14:17)

Compared to the previous question, this one is a breeze. "God executes his decrees in the works of creation and providence." We talked a bit about providence in the last post. Today we'll discuss both providence and creation. To be honest, I don't see this being a very long post; I can't really discuss precisely what God's works of creation and providence are because those answers are covered later in the catechism.

So we learn from this answer that we can define anything that God commands to be a decree. "Well duh," you say. Of course, that makes sense. But I wonder if we often think about how God commanded creation itself to exist? When "God created the heavens and the earth" (Gen. 1:1), he used his words. He told creation to exist. He may as well have said, "Creation, exist now," and creation, which didn't exist before, came into existence out of obedience. It's a philosophical mind-twister, because something that doesn't exist can't obey or disobey anything. But then God, who has the very power of being within his nature, commanded that Creation be, and it had to be. "For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm" (Ps. 33:9). It's pretty crazy to think about, but there you go.

God's works of providence is another thing. This basically refers to God determining what will happen in time. Again, we covered that earlier and will cover it more later.

I think one thing that we should remember when we think of God's decrees is just how sovereign he truly is, and how protected we are as a result.. For one thing, the Bible frequently refers to Creation as a reason to listen to, obey, and praise God (see Job 38:4-7; Ps. 33:6; 136:5; Isa. 42:5; 45:18; Acts 14:15; 17:24; Col. 1:16-17; Heb. 1:10; 11:3; Rev. 4:11). We should praise him as well because he is our Creator. That simple thought ought to be overwhelming to us. As for our protection and provision, just read these two verses: "Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" (Matt. 6:26), and "he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness" (Acts 14:17). God has decreed that his people be provided for! Lastly, as an aside, these decrees testify to his existence and character; "he did not leave himself without witness." That affirms even more his sovereignty and faithfulness in provision.

In the next post, we'll consider God's work of creation.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q11: The Decrees of God

Q. 11. What are the decrees of God?
A. The decrees of God are His eternal purpose, according to the counsel of His will, whereby for His own glory, He has fore-ordained whatsoever comes to pass (Eph. 1:11; Rom. 11:36; Dan. 4:35)

Scripture Proofs

In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will. (Eph. 1:11)

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. (Rom. 11:36)

All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing,
     and he does according to his will among the host of heaven
     and among the inhabitants of the earth;
and none can stay his hand
     or say to him, “What have you done?” (Dan. 4:35)

The idea of God's decrees and fore-ordinance is a very interesting one. Philosophically speaking, the idea that God ordains everything that happens makes a lot of people very uncomfortable, especially when they witness the horrors of evil. (This is usually called the Problem of Evil.) But the idea is Biblical, so we as Christians must accept it to be true.

The answer given, that "the decrees of God are His eternal purpose, according to the counsel of His will, whereby for His own glory, He has fore-ordained whatsoever comes to pass" is somewhat of a direct quote of Ephesians 1:11, which says that God "works all things according to the counsel of his will." The key words for our purposes are "all things." God very literally brings about all things that come to pass.

The next Scripture proof given says that "From him and through him . . . are all things" (Rom. 11:36). All things are from him and through him. It couldn't be much clearer than that.

The Bible also flies in the face of anyone who would say that mankind can defeat, or even stall, God's purposes. "He does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him 'What have you done?'" (Dan. 4:35). This verse emphasizes God's total sovereignty over the whole universe; he works all things in heaven among the angels and on earth among man. Not only that, but God is so sovereign and great that man has no right or reason to question what he does. Paul echos this idea - with particular emphasis on God's sovereignty over man - when he says, "Who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, 'Why have you made me like this?' Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?" (Rom. 9:20, 21).

So, does this mean that God wills that which goes directly against his commands? In one sense, yes, but in another sense, no. Theologians have distinguished between God's precepts (his laws and commands) and his decrees (that which he causes to happen). In some way, despite the fact that God commanded Adam not to eat of the tree in the garden, he sovereignly ordained that he would do so. But we must remember that, while God does this, he does it in such a way that he is not the author of sin¹. "God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one" (James 1:13). God did not create sin. How this all works out is not fully explained in the Bible so far as I know; it remains in the hidden counsel of God. We must simply trust him in this.

Footnotes

¹ 2nd London Baptist Confession of Faith, 3.1. http://www.reformedreader.org/ccc/1689lbc/english/Chapter03.htm

To read the full catechism, click here.

March Debrief

Well, blog-wise, March was a very good month. Most of the time I had enough posts written and scheduled for a week by Wednesday the week before, which is a good feeling. It's nice to keep up so well. During the last week I started to trail a little in that, though; I think I scheduled the last two posts by last Tuesday, but I still managed. So all in all, it was a good month. Hopefully I can keep it up in the future.

Interestingly, I found myself with a lot more to write about outside of the catechism series. This doesn't mean I neglected it; I'm trying to write at least one post about the catechism a week, if not more. But I thought of other things to write about as well, which I really enjoy because it's much easier to write posts when I don't have to do intensive study while writing; the text just flows out a lot better. But I want to keep up the series and not lose interest, so I'm thinking of trying to focus on it more this month.

Personally, I have a massive life update: I got hired for a new job last week! I start in the middle of this month. It'll be a new location, new schedule, and new line of work for me. I'm not entirely sure how this will impact my blog output yet though; I've managed to get into somewhat of a decent rhythm with my current schedule, which has enabled me to keep a regular level of blog writing. I may have to change the days or frequency of my updates; we'll just have to see how it works out.

So, here comes April!

The Perfect Surrender

When Creator became creation
When Jesus came to earth
He humbled Himself in servant’s form
And naked human birth
Born to a girl and a carpenter
Crying and helpless He came
And that’s how He began the perfect surrender

When Jesus prayed to the Father
Facing the coming disgrace
He pleaded to God for another plan
As sweat and blood fell from His face
Submitted Himself to the Father
He said, “Thy will be done”
He gave Himself up to God in perfect surrender

When Jesus hung on the cross
When His blood spilled on the ground
He bore the sins of many
As mockers and revilers abound
He finally cried out, “It is finished”
And gave up His spirit to God
And that was how He fulfilled the perfect surrender

When Jesus came and died
And rose that triumphant morn
He shamed the powers of sin and death
And demons felt His scorn
The barrier broke on the day He died
The curtain between God and man
Now we are reconciled through His perfect surrender

I thought about writing a big Easter post, but then I thought of this song of mine. The lyrics are appropriate for Easter, no?

I wrote this song a while ago when looking for words for a title. While skimming through Mere Christianity, I came across the phrase "the perfect surrender." From there, the lyrics pretty much flowed out. The idea was to tell the story of Jesus' surrender and death and proclaim what he accomplished: redemption for his people. It doesn't mention how his life provided the perfect righteous he would give to us, but you can't do everything in one song, I suppose.

Here's an old, imperfect, acoustic demo version. I haven't gotten around to producing a better one yet.

Just Two Things About Our Music Need Fixing

The way I see it, there are two things that we need to fix about most Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) that comes out these days: the lyrics and the music.

The reason we need to fix the lyrics is obvious. Lyrics communicate exactly what idea the artist is trying to get across. The problem here is that most of the lyrics that one hears in CCM are overly simplistic, repetitive, vague, self-centered, and irreverent of the God the artist claims to be worshiping. The most important thing, says the CCM industry, isn't worship, or even God; it's "encouragement" and being "uplifting." Not that there's anything wrong with being uplifting or encouraging, but that should not be the ultimate point of Christian music.

I'm not saying that the lyrics have to be overly technical, using words like "propitiation" and "penal substitutionary atonement" to be good. But they should be truthful, Scripture-inspired, and God-centered. They don't even need to be direct quotes of Scripture, but they at least should communicate real Gospel truth. In my opinion, a vast majority of what passes for Christian music these days speaks very little about the Gospel, or has very little to actually do with the God of the Bible. So, yes, we need to fix the lyrics.

I would also say, however, that we need to fix the music as well. I got into a short discussion one time about what genres of music are more inherently worshipful. My friend said that what matters most is the heart of the worshiper, not the style of music. I agree with that. But after giving it some thought, I think the music still matters a lot.

What are we, as the church, called to do? We are called to take the message of the Gospel around the world. We are called to be God's ambassadors on the earth. In other words, we are called to represent him to others. We are to reflect the image of God to others so that they see his glory and turn to worship him. Now, think about that for a moment: we are called to reflect the image of the first and best of beings, as Keach's Catechism puts it. God, we agree, is the most greatest and most beautiful being in all the universe. So it seems, to me at least, to follow that the music we use to worship and represent him should be the greatest and most beautiful music we can possibly compose.

In contemporary Christian culture we hear a lot about "redeeming the culture," the idea that we should take things in our local culture and use them for God's glory. This includes the culture's music (along with brewing beer, but that's something else). One can hear this idea in the CCM industry, and the results are not always that good. It seems like what they do is take the same music that the culture listens to, subtract worldly lyrics, and add Christian lyrics. The result is that the songs are indistinguishable from the culture's songs, which is sort of the goal. It's either that or they decide that all that matters is the lyrics, so they write a few verses, throw in four chords and a three-note melody and hey! You have a song! Now let's sell it!

Neither is the right approach in my opinion.

When God created the world, he didn't just throw in a few trees, a lake, and a patch of grass and call it passable. He created a world so amazing that he called it "very good." He gave Adam and Eve a garden full of their choice of fruit, not just one tree that only produced enough to feed them one day at a time. God makes the most beautiful art ever, and he puts everything he has into it.

So it seems to me like, if we really want to redeem the culture, we shouldn't just take its music and Christianize it. We should take its music and make it a whole lot better. You want to write Christian rock music? Great. Take what you know about rock music and make it the best rock music that anyone has ever heard. Christian funk? Make it the best funk ever. And so on with blues, jazz, classical, pop, R&B, metal, and whatever else. If we're called to worship and represent the best of beings, shouldn't our music be the best of music? Shouldn't the church be producing music so great that the world takes a listen and thinks, "Wow, this is better than all that other stuff, this God must be real"?

Also, if God is the best of beings, doesn't he deserve our absolute best? Shouldn't we be producing the most beautiful music we can produce for him?

I should say that the point of all that I'm saying is not merely bringing in more numbers to the church. Of course our music should be used to evangelize, but that's not the only purpose of our music. It should be ultimately to worship and bring glory to God.

Of course, our music falls short of the beauty of God. It will always fall short. Everything we ever do for God will always fall short! But I fail to see why that's a reason we shouldn't still give it our all. Our music doesn't save us, but God deserves our all in all that we do. If you really believe that making the bare minimum of what might be considered a passable song is the best way to worship God, well, okay. But I heartily disagree with you. If that actually is the best song you can write, however, then great! It's still giving God your best. But I would encourage you to practice, practice, and practice and get better, because God always deserves better.

And before anyone asks, I don't know exactly what would constitute making music better or more beautiful. There are volumes of philosophy books out there dedicated to those questions. I just want to get people thinking.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q10: Persons in the Godhead

Q. 10. How many persons are there in the Godhead?
A. There are three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in essence, equal in power and glory. (1 Cor. 8:6; John 10:30; John 14:9; Acts 5:3,4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14)

Scripture Proofs

Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. (1 Cor. 8:6)

I and the Father are one. (John 10:30)

Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?" (John 14:9)

But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.” (Acts 5:3, 4)

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. (Matt 28:19)

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Cor. 13:14)

At the end of the last post, I asked the question of how both Jesus and the Father could be God if there is only one God. Well, we see in this question and answer that the dilemma is further complicated by a third person being in the mix: the Holy Spirit, who is apparently also God.

First, let's recall that the Bible is emphatically clear that there is only one God. "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one" (Deut. 6:4). No one doubts that Christianity is a monotheistic religion except those who gravely misunderstand this doctrine. However, the Bible is also clear that the Father is God (1 Cor. 8:6), Jesus is God (John 10:30), and the Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3, 4). Indeed, it also places the three in equal standing with one another (Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor 13:14). That seems to be a contradiction, doesn't it?

Well, if the Bible really is the Word of God, then it can't be. God is the God of truth. He cannot lie and he tells no lies. If he tells us there is one God, that settles it. If he also tells us that three people are God, that settles it, too.

But how on earth does that work? Let's look at the answer given: "There are three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in essence, equal in power and glory." All three of these people are one God. I've heard it explained like this: God is three in person and one in essence. He is not three in person and one in person, or three in essence and one in essence, for those would be contradictory. Rather, God has one essence and three persons who embody that essence. If that's hard to wrap your mind around, don't worry; it really, really is. We have no idea what that could possibly look like. How can three people be the same being at the same time? It's a mystery, but it's certainly not a contradiction.

I think one thing that sums this doctrine up very well is Chapter 2, paragraph 3 of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, which this catechism is based on:

In this divine and infinite Being there are three subsistences, the Father, the Word or Son, and Holy Spirit, of one substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence, yet the essence undivided: the Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son; all infinite, without beginning, therefore but one God, who is not to be divided in nature and being, but distinguished by several peculiar relative properties and personal relations; which doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of all our communion with God, and comfortable dependence on him.

Don't be boggled by the archaic language; it's not that hard to understand if you read it closely. "In this divine and infinite Being there are three subsistences (referring to the persons of the Trinity), the Father, the Word or Son, and Holy Spirit, of one substance, power, and eternity." In other words, each of these beings possess all the attributes of God we discussed a few weeks ago. Continuing from this, we must also remember that each of these beings have "the whole divine essence, yet the essence undivided," which means that each of these beings is fully God. They aren't each one-third of God, making one whole God together; each of them is fully and completely God. Someone - I don't remember who - once said that anything that can be stated about one person of the Trinity can be stated of the others. I wouldn't go quite that far; the Father didn't die on the Cross, for example. But when we say that Jesus is holy, or good, or loving, we can say the same about the Father and the Holy Spirit as well. Because they are all the same God, it's the same holiness, the same goodness, the same love.

It's important that we don't fall into the heresy of modalism; the heresy that teaches that God, who is one person only, manifests himself in three different ways at different times. The general belief, to my knowledge, is that God manifested himself as the Father in the Old Testament, Jesus during his earthly ministry, and now manifests himself as the Holy Spirit. Rather than being three distinct persons, God is one person who appears in three different ways. But that doesn't square with the Bible. Who exactly was Jesus praying to (Matt. 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; John 17)? What about John 1:1, which says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God"? If modalism is true, there's no way the Word can be both God and with God at the same time; the verse may as well read, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God." But it doesn't. And what about how Jesus says he will send the Helper (the Holy Spirit) in John 15:26 and 16:7? If Jesus simply became the Holy Spirit, he's not exactly sending the Spirit. And in 16:7 especially, Jesus says he is going away and will send the Helper. If modalism is true, he would be going away and then coming back, not going away and sending someone else. So modalism doesn't pass the test of Scripture, and must be avoided.

This is our God, the three-in-one: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all of whom are fully God, all of whom are one in essence. May we worship our true, trinitarian God.

To read the full catechism, click here.

The Gospel Will Succeed

Some of you may recall me talking not too long ago about the end times.

Or not. I haven’t dedicated much blog space to eschatology, to be honest. But that doesn’t mean I don’t think about it once in a while.

Truth be told, I don’t really know where I stand in terms of millennial position or interpretive philosophy when it comes to the book of Revelation. Most of the people I know personally who have actually told me their views believe in a future seven-year tribulation (with the rapture mixed in there somewhere) and a literal thousand-year kingdom before Jesus restores the world fully. That’s definitely the most popular view out there.

Amongst Reformed Christians, however, you find a whole lot of preterists, amillennialists, and postmillennialists. I’m not entirely sure why this is; probably something to do with covenant theology or something.

I’ve found the postmillennial position to be very interesting. It’s the view that, eventually (it doesn’t have to be right now, contrary to popular belief), the Church will succeed in spreading the Gospel to the point where the world will be, for the most part, Christian. I’m not fully convinced it’s the right view because I haven’t done enough research into it, but I find its language intriguing. They tout their view as the most optimistic view and criticize the other views as saying that they believe the Church and the Gospel will fail until Jesus comes to make it right.

Now, I fully agree that the Gospel will succeed, massively so. However, I take issue at this accusation that any Christian could believe the Church will fail because it’s simply not true. It’s another one of those great misrepresentations of views one doesn’t agree with. No Christian thinks the Gospel will fail. No one can possibly read and believe the Bible and come away thinking that the Gospel or the Church will fail.

What was it that God said about his Word? “My word . . . shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it” (Isa. 55:11). God’s Word shall succeed in the thing for which he sent it. Not only that, but Jesus sent out his apostles to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). I don’t know about you, but I hardly think that Jesus would send his Church on a mission that they would surely fail to accomplish.

Paul also demonstrates that the preaching of the Word of God is how people come to faith. “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? . . . So faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the word of Christ” (Rom. 10:14, 15, 17). So God has told us exactly how to reach people: preach. Preaching is how God sends out his Word, and remember that his Word will not return to him empty.

Jesus also added to the Great Commission, “I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 29:20). In other words, God himself is on this mission with us. The Holy Spirit dwells in us to enable us to accomplish the mission. So if anyone ever says the Church will fail in her mission, they must also say that God screwed up somehow, or even failed to equip his Church properly despite the fact that he gave us his fully-sufficient Word (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

I believe all of that. And yet I’m not a postmillennialist.

To this the postmillennialist might argue that I’m refusing to accept the implications of any position that is not postmillennialism. However, I would object that, no matter what view you hold, you must believe that each and every person whom God has elected will be saved, and that is God’s victory.

The problem with the postmillennial criticism of other views, it seems, is that it ultimately comes down to numbers. If more people die than are saved, it’s viewed as a failure. But that’s not true at all. The truth is, if God had decided to destroy all of humanity for his rebellion, it would still be God’s victory. If that were the case, it would mean that all God’s mockers got their comeuppance and justice was done. God wins.

But instead, God chose to save some. But we must remember that Jesus himself said, “For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Matt. 7:13, 14)? It seems to me like God doesn’t really care about numbers that much. It seems like, in the end, most people throughout history will have gone down into destruction. That doesn’t mean the Gospel will fail. It means that the people whom God elected to be saved will be saved, and the people who spit in God’s face will be punished. God wins.

Now, I’m not discounting the postmillennial position. Like I said, I haven’t done a whole lot of research into it or amillennialism, and I intend to do so at some point. I just find this criticism to be invalid. It’s a misrepresentation and misunderstanding of other views. That doesn’t mean we must see all views as equally valid; they contradict each other, so only one can be true (or perhaps none of them are true and we’ve all got it wrong). But at least have a proper understanding of the opposing viewpoints before you criticize them. That way you can at least make valid arguments.

Any Time the Ground Yields

Many of you probably know that I have a baby on the way. In fact, not only is she on the way, but she only has a couple months until she’s born! It’s hard to believe she’s arriving so soon, but it’s true, and I’m very excited about it.

Also, as I’m sure most young parents would, I find myself wondering and worrying about how we will be able to support her. Right now my wife and I both work full-time. Pretty soon my wife will be on maternity leave, meaning that we’ll only have my paycheck coming in, which doesn't seem like enough to provide for a family by itself. Now, some people I know would read that and instantly categorize me as a bad husband, as if income is the only measure of how well someone meets the standard of “husband material,” but that’s an issue that I think is worth its own post.

So, like I previously said, I keep wondering about, and even being anxious over, this question of where the money to support our child will come from. Mathematically, it makes no sense to me. I know how much I make a month. I have a general idea of how much we pay in bills per month. Add a baby onto that and we’re in the red. Right?

Well, not necessarily.

Doesn’t the Bible say that God will provide (Gen. 22:14)? Didn’t Jesus command us to pray for God to give us our daily bread (Matt. 6:11)? And didn’t Jesus feed thousands of people with only a few pieces of food on more than one occasion (Mark 6:30-44; 8:1-9)? Compare that with my salary providing for three people and suddenly I find that I have absolutely no excuse to be worried.

I also need to remember that, no matter how much money I make per month, our provision ultimately cannot and does not come from me. The ground is cursed because of the fall, and it will refuse to yield to me no matter how much I work it. But I know exactly who takes care of us. Any time the ground does yield, it is only because the Father who created it commands it to do so. It is only due to the blessing of God in the life of my family. I’m not saying I should just kick back and do nothing, for to do that would mean directly disobeying my Lord (2 Thess. 3:10; 1 Tim. 5:8). God provides through my work. God takes care of his people far more abundantly than they can imagine. And ultimately, no matter how much money or stuff we have, God works all things in order that we be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:28).

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matt 6:25-33)

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q9: More Gods?

Q. 9. Are there more gods than one?
A. There is but one only, the living and true God. (Deut. 6:4; Jeremiah 10:10)

Scripture Proofs

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. (Deut. 6:4)

But the LORD is the true God;
      he is the living God and the everlasting King.
At his wrath the earth quakes,
      and the nations cannot endure his indignation. (Jer. 10:10)

After the last question, question 9 of the Baptist Catechism is a very easy one to answer. "Are there more gods than one?" The simple answer is "no." So why does this catechism not just say "no" rather than give the answer it gives? One answer is that it's a catechism, so it must give longer, more detailed answers than just "no." But I think the better answer comes in the wording used: God is the living and true God, as opposed to a living and true God. Not only does this mean that God is the only God, but it flies directly in the face of all others who would make claims to deity: they are non-existent and false.

Paul makes this clear when he says to the Corinthians:

We know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”— yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. (1 Cor. 8:4-6)

Note the phrase "so-called gods." Paul is stating that they are not real gods, but that people treat them that way and call them gods. Despite this, though. they have no power, they have "no real existence." They "by nature are not gods" (Gal. 4:8; cf. 2 Chr. 13:9; Isa. 37:19; Jer. 2:11; 5:7; 16:20). In contrast, there is "one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all" (Eph. 4:6), "from whom are all things and for whom we exist" (1 Cor. 8:6), and "there is no other besides him" (Deut. 4:35).

The entirety of Scripture is very adamant about this. There are only two Scriptures given in the catechism as proof, but they are so clear and to the point that it hardly needs more. As Deuteronomy 6:4 says, "The LORD is one." I always thought that meant that God himself is one God, but this context makes sense to me; it refers to the fact that he really is the one God of all. Jeremiah affirms this when he says, "The LORD is the true God" (10:10). Note that he does not say "a true God" but "the true God." He is very specific that Yahweh is the only true God.

Now, one may wonder at this point how Paul can affirm that there is only one God, the Father, and also call Jesus Lord. Isn't there only one? Well, that's the next question, which directly addresses the doctrine of the Trinity.

May we worship our one true God and him only.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q8: God, Part 2

Q. 8. What is God?

A. God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth. (John 4:24; Ps. 147:5; Ps. 90:2; James 1:17; Rev. 4:8; Ps. 89:14; Exod. 34:6,7; 1 Tim. 1:17)

Scripture Proofs

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:24)

Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
      his understanding is beyond measure. (Ps. 147:5)

Before the mountains were brought forth,
      or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
      from everlasting to everlasting you are God. (Ps. 90:2)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (James 1:17)

And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say,

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,
      who was and is and is to come!” (Rev. 4:8)

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
      steadfast love and faithfulness go before you. (Ps. 89:14)

The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.” (Ex. 34:6, 7)

To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (1 Tim. 1:17)

Last time I talked about the fact that God is Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable. Today I plan to go over the remaining attributes: his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. The reason I chose to separate the question at this spot is because, from the way the answer is worded, it seems to me like Keach was trying to apply the attributes of eternality, infinitude, and unchangeability to the remaining attributes; that is to say, his being is an eternal, infinite, and unchangeable being. His holiness is an eternal, infinite, and unchangeable holiness. His justice . . . well, you get the idea.

Being

I feel like God's being has already been adequately covered, to be honest. All the attributes are part of his being. I mainly just included this header so people wouldn't say "Hey, wait a minute."

Wisdom

I think that Psalm 147:5 is a really good statement of just how wise God is: "His understanding is beyond measure." He is so wise that we literally cannot measure his wisdom. That seems to square pretty well with his infinitude, doesn't it? Paul also points out that "the foolishness of God is wiser than men" (1 Cor. 1:25). Not that God can ever been foolish; I think his point was that, even at his wisest, man cannot even begin to remotely compare to God.

Power

A while back I did some number-crunching about the universe that God created and was overwhelmed by just how awesome in power God truly is. God created all things. He "formed the earth and the world" (Ps. 147:5). I honestly think that the greatest statement of God's power is Genesis 1:1: "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." We often take that for granted, but think about it: God created everything. Can you even imagine how much power that takes? We cannot create anything from nothing; all our inventions are just that: inventions made from the palette of materials God created out of nothing. Isn't that incredible?

Holiness

I've said this before, but R.C. Sproul wrote an entire book on the subject of God's holiness, so I will not even be deluded into the idea that I can adequately cover it in a paragraph or two. I will say, however, that God's holiness is the only attribute of God that is repeated three times in succession, in more than one place in the Bible (Isa. 6:3; Rev. 4:8). In Hebrew, repetition was how they emphasized something. If we English speakers want to say something is really great, we say it's "really great," or we may compare it to something else by saying it's "greater." In Hebrew, to my understanding, they would say it's "great, great." But God's holiness is repeated not twice, but three times. That puts it in a category all its own. The Bible does not say that God is "love, love, love" (as our overemphasis on God's love in Contemporary American Christianity might lead you to believe). God's holiness is "great, great." It's far greater than that.

Justice

I don't think we think of God's justice a lot in our culture. We tend to see God as this big, loving guy who should never punish people when they sin. But the Bible says that God "will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation" (Ex. 34:7). God is very concerned with justice; he is the perfect judge of the world. This thought should cause us to tremble like Isaiah did when he beheld the Lord (Isa. 6:5), because we are all just as guilty before God as he was. But we must also remember that, in the same passage in Exodus God declares that he is "a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin" (Ex. 34:6, 7). God's justice and mercy may seem to be contradictory, but they are not. Rather than simply overlook sin, God has provided a substitute to pay for them. "so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus" (Rom. 3:26).

Goodness

Jesus makes this point in the Sermon on the Mount when he says, "Which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" (Matt. 7:9-11). The contrast is between people "who are evil" and "your Father who is in heaven." Jesus is comparing between evil man and good God. If evil man gives good gifts, then a good God will give even more. Jesus also bluntly says that God is good when he says, "No one is good except God alone" (Mark 10:18).

We often don't think of God as being good when he is being just. I don't understand why this would be. If an earthly judge punishes a bad person, we think of him as a good judge, and so we should. If he lets a criminal go despite compelling evidence that he committed the crime, we think of him as a bad judge, and so we should. But if God punishes a sinner, we think of him as cruel. And if God doesn't immediately punish someone we think of as bad, we call him a bad judge. We don't give God much credit, do we? But God is a good judge; his justice is as good as he is.

Truth

Even a cursory reading of Scripture should reveal that God is the God of truth. Paul is so concerned that God be shown true that he says, "Let God be true though every one were a liar" (Rom. 3:4). John says of the Holy Spirit, "The Spirit is the truth" (1 John 5:6). Jesus says of himself, "The one who seeks the glory of him who sent him [the Father] is true, and in him there is no falsehood" (John 7:18). As a result, God hates falsehood. He says of the land of Gilead, "Falsehood and not truth has grown strong in the land; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know me, declares the LORD" (Jeremiah 9:3). He also calls the enemy, Satan, "a liar and the father of lies" (John 8:44). As a result, "everyone who loves and practices falsehood" will be "outside" New Jerusalem in the end (Rev. 22:14, 15). God is a God of truth!

When I separate these attributes into a list, by no means am I trying to say they are mutually exclusive; God's attributes can be stated of each other. What I mean by that is that we can say that God's holiness is a good, true, and just holiness. His justice is a true, good, wise, holy justice. He has the power to execute his justice. He also has the power to be merciful and to provide atonement for sins. His Word, the truth, has power to save and to condemn. They are all interconnected.

These past two posts barely scratch the surface of the depths of God. If you want to know more about God, I know of a book you can read.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q8: God, Part 1

Q. 8. What is God?

A. God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth. (John 4:24; Ps. 147:5; Ps. 90:2; James 1:17; Rev. 4:8; Ps. 89:14; Exod. 34:6,7; 1 Tim. 1:17)

Scripture Proofs

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:24)

Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
      his understanding is beyond measure. (Ps. 147:5)

Before the mountains were brought forth,
      or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
      from everlasting to everlasting you are God. (Ps. 90:2)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (James 1:17)

And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say,

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,
      who was and is and is to come!” (Rev. 4:8)

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
      steadfast love and faithfulness go before you. (Ps. 89:14)

The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.” (Ex. 34:6, 7)

To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (1 Tim. 1:17)

I will admit I was a little reluctant to try to tackle this question. I have no idea why; I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that "What is God?" is a question that took over 1,500 years to answer so far as humanity can understand it, and I'm definitely sure it's not because God is infinite, meaning we as finite beings can never fully comprehend him anyway. And I'm sure that it has nothing to do with the fact that whole libraries of books have been written on the topic and my task is to compress it into one or two blog posts. Or, you know, it could be exactly because of those things.

That said, I think that this question gives about as adequate a summary as one could find in a single sentence. It's basically a list of God's attributes. I think I'll go through them one-by-one.

Spirit

"God is spirit" (John 4:24). I tried to find out what this means, and the best I could figure is that it means that God is not a physical being. Jesus said, "A spirit does not have flesh and bones" (Luke 24:39). Now, I suppose one could say that this means that Jesus cannot be God because he does have flesh and bones, but that argument doesn't stand up to Scripture, which clearly affirms that Jesus is both God and man (Col. 2:9).

Infinite

I don't think that we as finite humans can even comprehend infinitude. It seems to me that no matter how much of something we can think of, we can always think of more, and any amount of anything we think of will always have some limit. In contrast, God is infinite. Scripture repeatedly affirms that God's ways are unsearchable (Job 59; 9:10; Isa. 40:28). Psalm 147:5 says that God's "understanding is beyond measure." And as Zophar said to Job, "Can you find out the limit of the Almighty?" (Job 11:7). Our God is infinite. This doesn't mean we can't understand or comprehend him at all; it only means we can't do so fully.

Eternal

God is also eternal. The Biblical concept of this is that God had no beginning and has no end; that is, he has always been and always will be. There never was a time when God wasn't around. "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God" (Ps. 90:2, emphasis added). Job 36:26 says, "The number of his years is unsearchable." The Psalmist says to him, "Your years have no end" (Ps. 102:27). God also calls himself the first and the last (Isa. 41:4; 48:12). By implication, he has the power of being in and of himself, and was not caused by anything else; otherwise, whatever brought God into being, rather than God, would be the eternal thing. Just for information's sake, the theological/philosophical term for this is aseity. If all this is hard to wrap your mind around, then you know exactly what I was talking about in the last paragraph about God's infinitude.

Unchangeable

The theological term for this is immutability. We as humans change, we mutate. We are mutable. God, in contrast, does not change. He does not mutate. He is immutable. But I digress.

As the Bible puts it, with God "there is no variation or shadow due to change" (James 1:17). What James is saying is that we can trust God fully because he does not change. He doesn't say he's going to do something and then not do it. He doesn't make a promise he can't and won't fulfill. And all those other attributes we haven't even covered yet, his "being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth"? Those never change either. He doesn't become less holy, just, or good. He never becomes less wise. He never becomes more of those either, since he is also infinitely and eternally good, just, and so forth.

In the next post, we'll take a closer look at those attributes, his "being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth."

To read the full catechism, click here.

Dying in the Wilderness with Anyone to Blame But Yourself

Observations From My Study (Num. 14:21-23)

Most of you have probably heard of the story of Israel in the wilderness after God rescued them from Egypt. You may recall that they were always whining to Moses about how they were going to die and didn't have enough food. The big sin in this, however, wasn't whining; it was distrust in God despite his provision, power, and promises.

Eventually, Israel sent spies into the Promised Land, who observed that it was a very good land. The only problem was that it was filled with fierce and brutal people. Afraid, most of the spies made up a false story about how the land was not good and said that there was no way they could overcome the people who lived there. Predictably, Israel wails and moans, once again, that they would rather have been left to die in Egypt. Joshua and Caleb, the two spies who did not participate in the false story, plead with Israel not to fear and remind them that they could take the land because the Lord was with them. Israel didn't listen, however, and tried to stone them. For this final display of distrust, God judged them:

Truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it. (Num. 14:21-23)

God then led Israel through the wilderness for forty years until everyone of that generation twenty years and over died. That's not the crazy part.

The crazy part, if you ask me, is that Israel actually continued to blame Moses and God for leading them into the wilderness to die. Yes, God did exactly that. But it was entirely Israel's fault. Had they not grieved God so many times, that generation could have entered the Promised Land. They were close enough to send spies. Instead, though, they chose not to enter.

Oh wait, no, they tried...after God specifically commanded them not to. They paid dearly for that, too, when the people of the land, in fulfillment of their previous fears, came up and defeated them (14:39-45). Had they listened before, God would have been with them, and they would have been able to win. But, after God cursed them to die in the wilderness, they somehow got it in their minds that God was with them and they were suddenly able to take the land.

Stupid and foolish. It's such a picture of human depravity, doing exactly the opposite of what God commands, then blaming God when things don't go our way. How fallen are we?

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q7: Scripture's Principal Teaching

Q. 7. What do the Scriptures principally teach?

A. The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God and what duty God requires of man. (2 Tim. 3:16,17; John 20:31; Acts 24:14; 1 Cor. 10:11; Eccles. 12:13)

Scripture Proofs

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Tim. 3:16, 17)

But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:31)

But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets. (Acts 24:14)

Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. (1 Cor. 10:11)

The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (Eccl. 12:13)

Since we are called and commanded to make use of the Scriptures, it's important to know what the Bible teaches. The answer to today's question is obviously far from a full doctrinal statement; for that, we'd have to go to a book of systematic theology, or a confession of faith. This question only seeks to answer what the primary topics of the Bible are: "What man is to believe concerning God and what duty God requires of man."

So what is man to believe concerning God? We are to "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God," the reason being so that we "may have life in his name" (John 20:31). This idea of having life in Christ is prevalent throughout Scripture. John wrote 1 John "that you may know that you have eternal life" (5:13). That famous verse, John 3:16, says that "whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." Jesus "came that they may have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). This belief also results in other great blessing. Acts 10:43 says that "all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." 1 Corinthians 6:11 says, "You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." So ultimately, we are to believe that Jesus is Christ who died for us to redeem us. This is the Gospel, the most important thing, the news on which all of Scripture rests.

So what is the duty that God requires of man? The best summary I see right now is "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man" (Eccl. 12:13). That's it. Later on in the catechism we'll get to the Ten Commandments and what they teach, which I think will be very enlightening. But for now, let us remember that Jesus summed up all the commandments with these two: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets" (Matt. 22:37-40).

God has also given us examples of what happens to those who do not fear him and keep his commandments. The original people of Israel, those whom God has personally rescued out of slavery in Egypt, "desire[d] evil" (1 Cor. 10:6). As a result, "with most of them God was not pleased" (v. 5) and "they were destroyed by serpents" (v. 9) and "the Destroyer" (v. 10). Paul ends by saying, "Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come" (v. 11). Ultimately, those who disobey God will meet his justice at the end of the age, and the things that happened to Israel serve as a precursor and a warning to us today. So we should be very serious about keeping his commandments. Like Paul, we should "worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets" (Acts 24:14), for this is what Scripture commands of us.

Thankfully, though, God's Word also serves as a training manual for us so we can keep his commandments; the Bible is "profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work" (2 Tim. 3:16, 17). God has given us his commands and told us how to fulfill them. In addition, the Spirit of God works in us to sanctify us more and more so we can follow his commandments more and more. God has not left us to our own devices, and we should be thankful for that; on our own, we cannot follow him. The natural man is too evil. "For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed" (John 3:20). But thankfully, "he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil. 1:6) and we can be confident in the light.

This is Scripture's primary teaching: Jesus is God, and we must keep his commandments. It seems pretty simple, if you ask me.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q6: Making Use of Scripture

Q. 6. May all men make use of the Scriptures?

A. All men are not only permitted, but commanded and exhorted, to read, hear, and understand the Scriptures. (John 5:39; Luke 16:29; Acts 8:28-30; 17:11)

Scripture Proofs

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me. (John 5:39)

But Abraham said, "They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them." (Luke 16:29)

And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” (Acts 8:27-30)

Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. (Acts 17:11)

So now that we see that the Bible is the Word of God, it is important to know what to do with it. This answer makes it clear: "All men are not only permitted, but commanded and exhorted, to read, hear, and understand the Scriptures." Once again, if you know me, you know that I fully agree with that answer. I believe it is the duty of every Christian to be in his or her Bible, to learn it, and to apply it to his or her life. The Bible is how we know the will of God and how to follow it. To me it really is that simple. But let's see what the Bible itself says.

I find the first verse given to be very interesting. In context, Jesus is talking to the Pharisees: "You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life" (John 5:39, 40). At first glance it may seem like Jesus is condemning the Pharisees for spending too much time in the Word, but that isn't the case. He is condemning them for reading the Word and refusing to do what it says, as per the word "understand" in our catechism. Had they truly understood the Word, they would have turned to Jesus for life. Their sin wasn't searching the Scriptures too much; it was searching and not acting on what they read.

But how do we know that searching the Scriptures wasn't the sin? Well, for one, Jesus doesn't tell them to stop it. But in Acts 17:11, the Jews in Berea are called "noble" because, not only did they "receive . . . the word with all eagerness," but they also "examin[ed] the Scriptures daily to see if these things [Paul's teachings] were so." They are called noble because of their receptiveness to the Gospel and their examination of Scripture to see if the Gospel measured up to it. So what is important, I think, is not simply reading, but hearing and understanding. We should be reading with the right motives: to know truth, to know God and his will.

So then, we should read the Bible. Should we also look elsewhere for God's will? That is to say, should we be seeking a word from the Lord apart from Scripture? Scripture itself seems to say no. In Luke 16:19-31 we find the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. I won't quote the whole parable, but I'll summarize the part that is important for our purposes. The rich man is in hell and he pleads that Abraham send Lazarus, who is in heaven, to warn his family. Abraham replies, "They have Moses and the Prophets [the Old Testament]; let them hear them" (v. 29). "No, father Abraham," the rich man replies, "but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent" (v. 30). Abraham, however, ends the conversation when he says, "If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead" (v. 31). The point is that the Bible is sufficient, and if that does not soften the hearts of people, miracles won't either.

Again, however, this does not mean that we can't, or shouldn't, turn to Bible teachers to help us in understanding. The reason people came to faith in Jesus in the first place was because of people teaching the Gospel from the Scriptures and helping them understand! "How are they to hear without someone preaching?" (Rom. 10:14).

We have an example of this in Acts 8:27-40, which I will quote:

And [Philip] rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:

"Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter
     and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,
     so he opens not his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
     Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken away from the earth."

And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

Philip is led by the Spirit to help an Ethiopian eunuch understand the book of Isaiah. As a result, the eunuch is led to Christ and salvation. The eunuch was reading. He wanted to understand. He inquired of someone who did understand. He followed the command of God to read, hear, and understand the Scriptures.

So should we. Even if we are saved, the Bible is "profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work" (2 Tim. 3:16, 17). It changes us, it teaches us, it trains us, and it equips us to do God's will. How else can we know what God's will is but by his Word?

To read the full catechism, click here.

February Debrief

Before I begin, don't worry; I don't plan on doing monthly debriefs forever. But since I've been trying to be more serious about blogging, I want to do a debrief each month just to summarize what's happened and how I feel the month went.

So, this month I started my series on The Baptist Catechism, which so far is going pretty well I think. It definitely gives me more ideas of what to write and, if I finish it (remember, no promises), will take me through several core doctrines of Christianity. The difficulty about it, as compared to other posts, is that I have to do some serious study while I write, which takes longer. With most posts, I already know what I want to write about before I write them; not so with this series. I don't have all the questions memorized. I don't necessarily know where writing about and analyzing the questions and answers in light of the Bible will take me. But it's been good to get into some focused personal study. I haven't done that a lot lately, and I've missed it.

So far we've gone through five questions in the past month; there are 118 in the catechism, just to give you an idea of how long this will probably take, especially since I only update three times a week and thus far have only averaged two questions a week. Not to mention that I'm sure I'll have to split some questions into multiple posts again, like last week. But hey, there's no rush, right?

As for keeping my schedule, I've still managed to do it somehow. There were plenty of times when I felt like I simply wouldn't be able to, but somehow I managed to write enough posts to make it through February. I don't plan to do more than three posts a week anytime soon; trust me, I've considered it. I even thought at one point that, if I keep up my Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule through February, maybe I'd add in Saturdays as well. Yeah, that's not happening.

Speaking of scheduling, however, I should remind you (since you probably know me in real life anyway) that I have a baby on the way. When the baby is born, I'm planning to take a hiatus for a week or two, maybe more. Maybe I'll have enough posts stocked up to keep things going for a little while, and maybe by the time those have been published I'll have been able to write more and there will be little to no gap. But we'll see what happens. I have priorities, and as important as this blog is to me, a lot of other things (like babies, for instance) take precedence over it.

Also, this month I finally wrote an About page! I've been dying to write one for a while now and I'm happy to say that it's up. Right now it's really a doctrinal distinctives page, but that's important; people should know what they're in for when they read my blog.

As for the future, we'll see what happens content-wise. I've considered writing some posts about books I'm reading, and if I feel so inclined I probably will at some point or another. But who knows? The catechism has taken up a lot of my writing time and focus to be honest; that's usually what comes to mind first when I think of what to write next. But, considering how long it is, that should give me plenty to write about if I really can't think of anything else.

Well, I think that's about it for February. Let's begin March! Although, you know, this is the second post this month since I thought Friday's post went well with the other posts last week...but yeah! Let's go, March!

You Are Not of God

Observations From My Study (John 8:47)

A few weeks ago, Tabletalk Magazine's weekly verse was John 8:47:

Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.

I thought that, considering the two posts this week, it was an appropriate verse. It clearly states that only those who are of God hear his words - that is, understand and follow them. The Reformation Study Bible says about this verse: "Sin paralyzes our spiritual senses. Only an act of God’s grace enables a sinner to hear His voice."

This is a common theme throughout the book of John. In John 10:26 Jesus says to the Pharisees, "You do not believe because you are not among my sheep." In 18:37 he says to Pilate, "Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Then in 1 John 4:6 the apostle writes, "Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us." People often call John the Apostle of Love; I almost think he should be called the Apostle of Election, because I think the clearest case for election can be made from John 6.

It's so clear. Why don't we accept it?

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q5: Is the Bible God's Word? Part 2

Q. 5. How do we know that the Bible is the Word of God?

A. The Bible evidences itself to be God's Word by the heavenliness of its doctrine, the unity of its parts, its power to convert sinners and to edify saints; but the Spirit of God only, bearing witness by and with the Scriptures in our hearts, is able fully to persuade us that the Bible is the Word of God. (1 Cor. 2:6,7,13; Ps. 119:18, 129; Acts 10:43, 26:22; Acts 18:28; Heb 4:12; Ps. 19:7-9; Rom. 15:4; John 16:13,14; 1 John 2:20-27; 2 Cor. 3:14-17)

Scripture Proofs

Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory . . . . And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. (1 Cor. 2:6, 7, 13)

Open my eyes, that I may behold
     wondrous things out of your law. (Ps. 119:18)

Your testimonies are wonderful;
     therefore my soul keeps them. (Ps. 119:129)

To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name. (Acts 10:43)

To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass. (Acts 26:22)

For he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus. (Acts 18:28)

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Heb 4:12)

The law of the LORD is perfect,
     reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
     making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right,
     rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
     enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is clean,
     enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true,
     and righteous altogether. (Ps. 19:7-9)

For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. (Rom. 15:4)

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (John 16:13, 14)

But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life.

I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him. (1 John 2:20-27)

But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. (2 Cor. 3:14-17)

In the last post we covered the first part of this answer. Now, we come to the second part: "The Spirit of God only, bearing witness by and with the Scriptures in our hearts, is able fully to persuade us that the Bible is the Word of God." This is the reason why, despite the evidences given in the first part, people still disbelieve: because only God's Spirit can break through our inherent depravity and tendency to "suppress the truth in unrighteousness" (Rom. 1:18 NASB).

Again, the Bible itself testifies to the fact that God teaches people through it. Paul talks about how God's Word is "not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit" who "interpret[s] spiritual truths to those who are spiritual" (1 Cor. 2:13). God's Word cannot be fully and truly understood by flesh, but it requires the Spirit who came to "guide [us] into all the truth" and to "take what is [Christ's] and declare it to [us]" (John 16:13, 14). Not only that, but the Spirit only "interpret[s]" spiritual truths to those who are spiritual." Elsewhere Paul states that believers "are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you." Thus, those in whom the Holy Spirit dwells are those who are spiritual, and are those for whom the Holy Spirit interprets spiritual truths. Flesh - that is, those who don't have the Holy Spirit - read the Bible and see only intellectual truths. They are not persuaded of its truth and will not be unless the Spirit, through the Word, teaches them.

To expand on this a little bit, the apostle John even goes so far as to say in 1 John 2, "the anointing that you received from him [the Holy One, v. 20] abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you" (v. 27). We have no need that anyone should teach us. This doesn't mean we should never listen to pastors and theologians who have been studying for decades, or that we should ignore the great titans of church history. It only means that the Holy Spirit teaches us, so that we have no need to be taught by others. I think we should learn from others because they often have great insight. But we don't need to.

The Psalmist petitions to God: "Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law" (Ps. 119:18). He wants to behold those wondrous things, so he comes to God, knowing that he is the only one who can show him. Paul expands on this when he speaks of the Israelites, "To this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed" (2 Cor. 3:15-16). Not only does the Lord remove the veil, but Paul is very clear that "only through Christ is it taken away" (v. 14, emphasis added). God is the only one who can reveal the true meaning of Scripture.

However, he often chooses to do this through human teachers. These teachers, like all believers, ultimately learn from the Spirit. Paul said, "To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass" (Acts 26:22). Paul preached from God's Word, and he had God's help. Had not God used Paul, all of Paul's preaching would have resulted in nothing. Instead, however, God worked with his Word through him to reach many and change the face of the world.

So, despite all the evidence that the Bible is God's Word, we will never believe this unless God himself reveals it to us. God alone, through his Word, is able to work his mighty works. If that is true, we need to be in the Bible daily, earnestly desiring to know his will.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Benjamin Keach's Catechism, Q5: Is the Bible God's Word? Part 1

Q. 5. How do we know that the Bible is the Word of God?

A. The Bible evidences itself to be God's Word by the heavenliness of its doctrine, the unity of its parts, its power to convert sinners and to edify saints; but the Spirit of God only, bearing witness by and with the Scriptures in our hearts, is able fully to persuade us that the Bible is the Word of God. (1 Cor. 2:6,7,13; Ps. 119:18, 129; Acts 10:43, 26:22; Acts 18:28; Heb 4:12; Ps. 19:7-9; Rom. 15:4; John 16:13,14; 1 John 2:20-27; 2 Cor. 3:14-17)

Scripture Proofs

Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory . . . . And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. (1 Cor. 2:6, 7, 13)

Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. (Ps. 119:18)

Your testimonies are wonderful; therefore my soul keeps them. (Ps. 119:129)

To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name. (Acts 10:43)

To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass. (Acts 26:22)

For he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus. (Acts 18:28)

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Heb 4:12)

The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul;the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. (Ps. 19:7-9)

For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. (Rom. 15:4)

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (John 16:13, 14)

But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life.

I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him. (1 John 2:20-27)

But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. (2 Cor. 3:14-17)

There are a whole lot of Scripture proofs for this question! I generally try to touch on all of the proofs at least somewhat for each question, so I've decided to cover this question in two posts. Otherwise, the one post would be ridiculously long.

So, in the last post, we went through the question "What is the Word of God?" The answer given was "the Bible." The answer gave no reason why we should see that the Bible is God's Word, and we didn't try to find a reason; we simply established what we should expect from the Bible if it really is God's Word. Now we come to the evidence. Like I've previously stated, I'm not looking to make an apologetic case for the Bible. I'm just studying the catechism and learning from it.

Like the third answer, this answer comes in two parts: the evidence we all see and the work of the Holy Spirit in convincing us of the truth. We'll cover the first part today, which says, "The Bible evidences itself to be God's Word by the heavenliness of its doctrine, the unity of its parts, its power to convert sinners and to edify saints."

If we examine the Bible, we find that it itself testifies to all these evidences. The first one, the "heavenliness of its doctrine," is easily seen in the Psalms. The Psalmist calls God's Word "wonderful" (Ps 119:129) and says it is full of "wondrous things" (Ps 119:18)¹. In addition, another Psalm calls it "pefect," "sure," "right," "pure," "clean," "true," and "righteous altogether" (Ps. 19:7-9). That same Psalm refers to the fact that it is "enduring forever" (v. 9). Paul also compares the wisdom of God with the wisdom of Man; he has a low view of the "wisdom ... of the rulers of this age" because they "are doomed to pass away" (2 Cor. 2:6). They are temporal. In contrast, he testifies to "a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory" (v. 7). God's wisdom has existed since before time. God's wisdom is found in his words. Thus, the Bible has a very high opinion - indeed a "heavenly" opinion - of God's Word.

The next evidence, "the unity of its parts," is one that is often disputed. People claim that the Bible is full of contradictions. But if it really is God's Word, then it can't be; otherwise, God would be a liar who talks out of both sides of his mouth, and would not be worthy of our worship.

Peter said of Jesus that "all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name" (Acts 10:43). The keyword for our purpose at the moment is "all." Does Peter really mean that each and every one of the prophets testifies to Jesus? I think he does, but even if he didn't, "the prophets" was a term meant to be understood as referring to the Old Testament. He's claiming that they all agree that Jesus is the Messiah. Apollos proved this when "he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus" (Acts 18:28). Take note that all the New Testament church had as Scripture was the Old Testament.

I wish that Keach had included this next verse in his proofs, but I think it's another great testimony to the Bible's claim to unity: "And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, [Jesus] interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself" (Luke 24:27). Jesus went all the way back to Moss, which basically means "the first books of the Bible." The Bible agrees with itself about its teaching on Jesus. It also has unity in many other aspects of theology and doctrine, but I think the teaching on Jesus is the most important thing, don't you?

The last of the evidences (which is really in two parts, but I think they go hand-in-hand) is Scripture's "power to convert sinners and to edify saints." Even someone with very little knowledge of what the Bible says will know that it says this. The Bible "reviv[es] the soul," "mak[es] wise the simple," "rejoic[es] the heart," and "enlighten[s] the eyes" (Ps. 19:7-8). In other words, it is meant to transform our hearts, souls, minds, and even our bodies. Supporting that is Hebrews 4:12, which says, "The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (Heb 4:12). Paul also says that "whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope" (Rom. 15:4). It is encouraging and meant to give us hope for salvation and glorification. And if we go back to Acts 10:43, it says that "all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." The Scriptures testify to salvation! They are meant to save people!

All of these things are true of the Bible. You will find no true Christian who argues against what the Bible says; they may disagree on how to interpret it, but the Bible is the source of Christian doctrine. It is unified despite having been written over a period of about 1,600 years by multiple men in different cultures and with different backgrounds. And it is powerful to convert sinners and edify the saints. Thus, we cam be confident that the Bible itself is the Word of God it refers to. Now, if all of this is true, why don't people believe it? We'll cover that in the next post.

To read the full catechism, click here.

Footnotes

¹ Psalm 119 is full of praises for God's Word, and is the ideal chapter to read for anyone wondering what we should think of the Bible.