Truth Magazine

By L. Gaussen

Every Christian should be vitally concerned with the verbal or plenary inspiration of the Bible. On this issue the truthfulness of Christianity stands or falls. If the Bible, for example, is not totally inspired, the Christian must elevate himself to the position of a judge to determine which parts are and which parts are not inspired. After he has made that human judgment, he must them humble himself to the status of a believer, thus relegating his trust to his own wisdom. His faith, as a result, rests in himself rather than in God.

So argues L. Gaussen in Divine Inspiration of the Bible, a Kregel Publications reprint of the book originally entitled Theopneustia: The Plenary Inspiration of the Holy Scriptures. First published in French and later translated into English in 1841, this classic work was written to answer the unbelieving rationalists who sought in the 17th and 18th Centuries to reduce the Bible in the minds of men to a human production. Gaussen’s objective was “to set forth, establish, and defend the Christian doctrine of Divine Inspiration.” That doctrine, to him, is that the Bible is fully inspired. He therefore wrote “to establish by the word of God that the Scripture is from God, that the Scripture is throughout from God, and that the Scripture throughout is entirely from God.”

Gaussen lived in Geneva, Switzerland at the beginning of the 19th Century when the influence of German and French rationalism began to effect the National Church of Switzerland. Along with Robert Haldane, Merle D’Aubigne and others, Gaussen led the opposition to this infidelity. They fought it with such uncompromising conviction that the Evangelical Dissenting Church had to be established to receive all who were dissatisfied with the National Church. They also started a school of theology in which Gaussen served as “Professor of Systematic Theology.” Theopneustia, an outgrowth of his opposition to rationalism and of his work as a professor, became the classic answer to objections to verbal inspiration.

The professor’s approach to the subject is twofold. The first part of the book is positive. He begins with a clear and minute definition of the Bible doctrine of verbal inspiration and then follows with a careful and detailed analysis of scriptures which demonstrate the truth of his definition. The remainder of the work, constituting more than half of the book, is negative and contains a forthright consideration of the objections which rationalists offer.

Gaussen’s book is not an antique, of value only for display in a museum of ancient history. The objections he answers are essentially the same ones still bandied about by today’s rationalistic counterparts, the modernists. Gaussen deals, for example, with the variations in the Gospel accounts, devoting special attention to the reports of the resurrection. He also considers alleged historical and scientific inaccuracies, supposed loss of inspiration through manuscript variations and translations and proposed contradictions. Readers who have been favorably impressed with the incomparable value of Warfield’s The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible and have returned again and again to reread it will be similary affected by Gaussen’s Theopneustia.

Serious Bible students live at an extremely opportune time when so many of the classic works are being republished by Kregel, Zondervan and College Press. Such students will want Gaussen’s work in their library and will likely refer to it often as they face objections to the verbal inspiration of the Bible.

L. A. Stauffer, Route 7, Box 105, Indianapolis, Indiana 46240

Truth Magazine, XX:14, p. 2
April 1, 1976

By L. Bruce Taylor

Two of God’s commandments that surely epitomize the entire scope of the Gospel and the Plan of Salvation are appearing to plague the church universal and the local congregation. It is a tragic scene to see the wisdom of God shunned and cast aside as immaterial by what is undoubtedly human wisdom and self-discernment.

The words of Jesus in Matt. 6:33 ring out loud and clear – “But seek first His (God’s, lbt) kingdom, and His righteousness and all these things shall be added to you.’.’ Are we not able to understand such plain language? Have we not the capacity to realize that the point being emphasized is that NOTHING can come ahead of our service to God if we would be pleasing to Him? We cannot change God’s priorities by our personal whims and fancies and be justified in His sight.

Consider the teaching set forth in Luke 14:16-24. Jesus relates a story concerning a man who prepared a feast and invited many to attend. Each one invited came up with some trivial excuse. One must look at a piece of land he has already bought-? One must “try out” five yoke of oxen that he has already bought-? And another said, “I’ve just gotten married. . . .” (no explanation necessary, lbt)! The Master answered, “. . . none of these men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.” When we by our actions say, “Lord, I’ll get to you when I feel like it after I do what I want to do …… we deny the wisdom of God, and it matters not what we say with our lips. Jesus recalling the words of Isaiah in Matt. 15:8 called those “hypocrites” who “. . . honor with their lips while their heart is far away from Him.” “Human” reasoning leads us down the path to destruction, dear friend, not up to the gates of glory.

Again the inspired words of the Apostle Paul written to the young Christian Timothy in 2 Tim. 2:15, “Be diligent (KJV-study, lbt) to present yourself approved of God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.” A major point of consideration here is that if you cannot “handle accurately” (use with knowledge and application, lbt) the word of God, you are not to pass it off lightly but rather are to be ashamed! There is only one way to get to heaven and that is to obey the Word of God which by studying, one knows. It is not adequate to simply accept what someone tells you is God’s command but rather you must do a “labor-of-love” and search the scriptures daily. “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night,” (Psalms 1:1-2).

The admonition of Paul in Hebrews10:25 to “. . . forsake not our assembling together” and the example of New Testament Christians in Acts 2:42 of “. . . continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship (v. 46-daily)” seems to fall upon deafened ears. Instead of being interested in how often we can be getting together and studying God’s Word, to be prepared for better service, we are inventing excuses to get out of those efforts already planned both by the congregation and individual members. Brethren this ought not to be! Why is it so? Are our priorities out of harmony with God’s? Do we feel that we know so much there is no need for us to attend such services? God help us all to realize our inadequacies and search His Word for strength and guidance.

The attitudes of “indifference” and “slothfulness” that we put forth shall in the day of judgment condemn us to eternal punishment if we persist therein. God does not want our excuses but rather our complete obedience by . . . presenting our bodies as living sacrifices” (emphasis mine, lbt) (Rom. 12:1). Anything else is not acceptable!

Truth Magazine, XX:13, p. 13
March 25, 1976

By Luther Blackmon

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 Jn. 2:15). The Bible refers to the world in three ways. One of these worlds is “a spiritual dominion and Satan is its ruler. Passages such as Heb. 1:2; Heb. 11:2; and Acts 17:24 refer to the physical universe as the “world.” In Jn. 3:16 “the world” means the people who inhabit the earth. I am sure that the prohibition of 1 Jn. 2:15 does not apply to the beauties of the world in which we live or the people who live here. The “world” of 1 Jn. 2:15 is the dominion of Satan.

Two Kingdoms

Christ is King of kings (1 Tim. 6:15). He has a kingdom and he sits on his throne, now. Satan also has a kingdom. Jesus said, “Hereafter I will not talk much with you, for the prince of the world cometh and hath nothing in me” (Jn. 14:30). Again, ” . . . the prince of this world is judged” (Jn. 16:8-11). Paul said…… the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not . . .” (2 Cor. 4:4). Other scriptures could be given but these should be enough to show that Satan is the ruler of a spiritual dominion. This dominion is called “the world.”

Contrast and Conflict

Between Christ and Satan there can be no peace or compromise. We either fight in the army of the Lord or we fight against him and with his enemies. There is no middle ground-no man’s land-and the fellow who thinks he can be neutral will discover at the judgment that he has merely been a cowardly pacifist in the army of Satan. He is not even a “dedicated” sinner. James said, “ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God” (Jas. 4:4). Jesus said, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you” (In. 15:18-19).

The Nature of Satan’s Kingdom

The kingdom of Satan, like that of Christ, is not territorial. It is not a place. It is a condition, a relationship. A child of the devil and a child of God may share the same roof. They may be married to each other, and as far as the marriage relationship is concerned, they are one. But spiritually they are an eternity apart, serve different masters, and bear allegiance to different governments and kings.

Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is within you” (Lk.17:21). Paul said, “that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith” (Eph. 3:17). The kingdom of Christ is composed of those in whose hearts he rules. To that extent his kingdom is within his subjects-this throne within their hearts. The dominion of Satan is likewise -composed of those who do his will. Paul said, “Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey (Rom. 6:17). The world of Satan is a matter of service rather than location.

Misconceptions

I was given a gentle rebuke by a very sincere lady for playing golf. She said, “it is of the world.” Some, like her, seem to think that everything we do is either a part of our Christian duty or it is “of the world.” I am not trying to defend my golf game. I am not real sure that there should not be some kind of punishment for a fellow who plays as lousy as I do, but not on the grounds that it is worldly. A thing is not worldly simply because it is not a Christian duty, or because it is in the world. It is worldly when it violates the law of God, either by act or association. Under given circumstances this could be true of any form of recreation, even pitching horseshoes. But pitching horseshoes is not worldly, per se.

Worldliness Defined

John defines the world as (1) Lust of the flesh; (2) Lust of the eyes: (3) Pride (vain glory) of life. And we would remind the reader that John says, “all that is in the world.” Therefore anything that is of the “world” is embraced in these things. Let us look at them.

“The Lust of the Flesh”

What is meant by “the flesh?” The answer to this question is not as simple as appears at first glance. Sometimes “the flesh” means only the physical body. But we make a mistake if we assume that it never means more than that.

Body is translated from the Greek soma; flesh from the word sarx. Paul speaks of the marks which he bore in his body (Gal. 6:17); he speaks of Abraham’s body as being as good as dead (Rom. 4:19); he urges us to present our bodies a living sacrifice (Rom. 12:2). In all these, body is a translation of soma.

The word flesh (sarx) is also used sometimes to denote simply the physical body. For example, Paul speaks of circumcision of the flesh in contrast with circumcision in the heart (Rom. 2:28). He speaks of his “thorn in the flesh” which undoubtedly means a physical, bodily affliction. But sarx often means more than flesh and blood and bones. Sometimes it seems to mean a disposition acquired by giving too much rein to the fleshly appetites. A notable example of this, it seems to me, is found in Romans, chapters 7 and 8. “So then, with the mind, I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin” (Rom. 7:25). Again, “For to be carnally minded (carnal also is from sari LB) is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace: Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then, they that are in the flesh cannot please God” (Rom. 8:6-8). In his little book, Flesh and Spirit, William Barclay points out that “when Paul lists the works of the flesh in Gal. 5:19-21 he certainly begins with immorality, impurity and licentiousness, but he goes on from there to enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, the party spirit which are not sins of the body at all” (p. 18). The body standing alone is neither good nor bad. It is possible, however, for one to give place to the appetites of the body to such extent that he develops a disposition to be controlled by these bodily appetites. Then he is “Carnally (fleshly) minded.” In this condition he cannot please God.

Although the fleshly body is neither good nor bad of itself, it is, nevertheless, a bundle of appetites and desires. These appetites are not wrong. They were given us by our Creator. For every natural desire God has provided legitimate satisfaction. Even so, these God given propensities provide a door of access through which Satan many, if we are not careful, enter our lives and make us his slaves – a part of his “world.”

“The Lust of the Eyes”

The “lust of the eyes” means inordinate desire for things. In this category would fall covetousness, greed and like sins. The pursuit of things has caused many people to lose their perspective and their sense of values. Such became easy victims of Satan’s wiles. It may be a fine house, an address in an exclusive part of the city. It may be the desires to be rich-to make and hold money-just plain sordid money. Whatever it is, remember that unrestrained desire for material things is an open invitation to Satan to move in and take over. Such a one is his legitimate prey.

“The Pride of Life”

This includes a lot of things. But if I had to say it in one sentence, I would say that it is the inordinate desire to curry the flavor of our fellows, to be popular, to have the praise and approval of men. Popularity is not wrong unless it costs too much, but it nearly always does. Experience and observation, as well as the scripture, have proven that popularity often exacts a heavy toll.

Go to the homes for un-wed mothers and ask those girls about it. Most of them are there because they wanted to be accepted by a certain segment of our society. Ask them if they think it was worth it. Go to the penal institutions and ask those young men (and women) if they did not start the life of crime partly because they wanted to be popular with certain people. So they allowed themselves to be bullyragged by some social misfits with an inferiority complex, or sweet talked by some friends (?) who convinced them that an easy life as a big shot with lots of money-somebody that everyone would know-was their cup of tea-fruit just ready to be picked. Ask them if it was worth it.

Preachers too numerous to mention, and who once stood for the truth, have cast their lot with the degressive movement in the church. Some of them no doubt, did it for financial reasons. Others, because they like things nice and quiet. They would rather “switch than fight.” But I am persuaded that the majority did it because they began to feel the pressure from some schools, papers, big churches and big (?) preachers. They did not want to be “cast out of the synagogue.” I say this because I have not heard of one of them that gave a scriptural reason for his change. I must conclude, therefore, that they did it for other reasons.

Conclusion

Of all that we have said, this is the sum. Satan is the ruler of a spiritual empire which is called the “world.” It is not a place but a relationship. His subjects are those who do his will. His appeal is through the flesh, the outer man. By this means he is able, more often than not, to bring into captivity the inner man, the heart.

Man is a dual creature. He is composed of flesh and spirit. Paul describes this dual nature in these words. “For I delight in the law of God after the inward man; but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my- mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members” (Rom. 7:22-23). Christ and Satan work from different directions. Satan works through the flesh to gain control of the spirit. Christ works on the spirit (heart-inner man) to control the actions of the flesh. This he does by the word of God. There is no other way by which he could do it, consistent with His plan. He created man a free agent, a creature of choice. Man can serve God or refuse to serve him, just as he likes. Therefore God will not exert a power over man that disregards his right to choose. The “direct operation of the Holy Spirit” fellows need to learn this lesson.

Where is your spiritual citizenship? Which country do you call home? The church of the world? The kingdom of Christ or the kingdom of Satan? You may say, “I don’t care.” But you will care. And there are others who care now. The Lord cares. Every faithful Christian cares.

The glitter of the world has blinded many millions. Satan sees to that. But you will see a day when you would gladly give all the pleasure you had in a lifetime for just one hour of relief from the consequences of your unfaithful life.

Truth Magazine, XX:13, p. 11-12
March 25, 1976

By Mike Willis

One of the most common titles ascribed to Christians is “believers” (cf. Acts 2:44; 4:32; 5:14). The word “believer” is translated from the Greek word pisteuo which is defined as follows: “to believe, also to be persuaded of, and hence, to place confidence in, to trust, signifies, in this sense of the word, reliance upon, not mere credence” (W. E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, Vol. I, p. 116). The object in which one believes is not inherent in the word; it must be picked up from the context. Some were said to be believers in Moses (Jn. 5:46), the Scriptures (Jn. 2:22), Jesus (Jn. 3:36), and the Gospel (Mk. 1:15). The word pisteuo and its cognates occur so many times in the New Testament that one can by no means cover all of them in one lesson.

The Basis of Faith: The Revealed Will of God

Paul asserted the connection between faith which leads to salvation and the revealed word of God in the following passage:

“. . . for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed. For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord Is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon Him; for Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved. How then shall they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring glad tidings of good things!’ However, they did not all heed the glad tidings; for Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed our report?’ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Rom. 10:10-17).

From the above, one can see that faith is soundly rooted in the revealed Scriptures. Faith is not a “leap in the dark,” as some infidel theologians assert. Asserting that the claims of Jesus and the existence of God cannot be proved conclusively, they believe that true faith is the leap beyond what the available evidence actually warrants. Such a faith is ignoble. It might be caused by personal preference, prejudice, or whatever, but it has no characteristics which commend themselves to us. If faith is nothing more than a “leap in the dark,” what makes the “leap” of the Christian any better than or different from the “leap in the dark” of the atheist, Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, etc.? There is no virtue in the act of believing; virtue lies in what is believed. Saul surely acted on the basis of belief when he persecuted Christians; pagan idolators offered worship to false gods on the basis of belief. Both are examples of the act of believing but neither exhibited acceptable faith before God. The basis of faith is important!

Jesus asserted that one must accept as factual a revealed body of truth before he can be saved. He said, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (Jn. 8:31-32). Statements which intimate that salvation is not conditional upon one’s knowledge and acceptance of a certain body of facts are diametrically opposed to what Jesus said. Such statements posit the virtue of faith in a religious emotion (i.e. the act of believing) instead of in what is believed.

The faith of Jesus Christ rests firmly and squarely upon the revealed word of God. One is exercising faith when he is walking in the path revealed in the Scriptures. When he is not in that path he is in darkness, regardless of how pure his intentions might be.

The Object of Faith

Jesus Himself gave the objects of faith when He said, “Believe in God, believe also in Me” (Jn. 14:1). The author of Hebrews said, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him” (Heb. 11:6). The person who does not believe that “he is” is an atheist and, therefore, will not serve God. To believe that “He is a rewarder of those who seek Him” is to believe something about the character of God. No one would serve God unless he believed that service to God would render God favorably disposed toward him. One of the things which one must believe about God is that He is favorably disposed toward His creation (Jn. 3:16). To this must be added the innumerable aspects of God worthy of our praise, including His omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, and holiness. The believer is one who accepts the right body of facts about God; the one who accepts the wrong body of facts about God is either an atheist or an idolater.

Faith must not only be exercised toward God but also toward Jesus. What one must believe about Jesus can be very well summarized in the following words: “The Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior of the World.” He is the Lord who possesses all authority (Mt. 28:18); He is the Christ-the Messiah of the Old Testament (Mt. 16:16). His humanity is recognized by the word Jesus; His deity is acknowledged by the phrase Son of God. His work of redemption is recognized by the confession that He is the Savior of the world. The man who disbelieves these facts about Jesus is not a “believer” and, therefore, not a Christian. Many denominational preachers call themselves “Christians” but deny everything except the humanity of Jesus. Such men are infidels and not Christians!

The Activity of Faith

(1) Trust. Faith not only involves mental assent to a certain body of facts, it also means “to place confidence in, to trust.” That the cognates of pisteuo, pistis and pistos, convey the ideas of “trust,” “trusty, faithful, trustworthy” is not to be overlooked. This shows another aspect of faith which is sadly overlooked today. Most of quickly admit that mental assent will not suffice to please God and would cite the example of the devils “believing and trembling” (Jas. 2:19) and the example of the Jews who believed in Jesus but did not confess Him (Jn. 12:42,43) as proof of it. Yet, in our zeal to add that one must obey Jesus (a perfectly legitimate activity of faith to be examined next), we have neglected the idea of trust which resides in the word “believe.”

The one who truly believes in God and Christ is one who repudiates every method, aside from Christ, which claims to be able to save him and appeals to Jesus for salvation. The believer is truly relying upon Jesus for salvation. Paul said, “For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day” (2 Tim. 1:12). The salvation rests, therefore, upon Jesus’ willingness and ability to forgive and not upon my ability to perfectly obey Him. The man who believes in Jesus is one who has repudiated his ability to save himself and trusts in Jesus for salvation. (In this connection, notice that, in 1 Pet. 3:21, baptism is said to be an appeal to God for a good conscience.) The man who truly trusts Jesus should not have anxiety. The things about which most men are anxious are things which he casts upon the Lord and “`the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7). The believer can have a Christianity without ulcers, without denying the faith!

(2) Obedience. Obedience is as closely tied to faith as is trust. Since the sinner is utterly relying upon Jesus for salvation (and not upon one’s own intelligence), he submits to the instructions of the One upon Whom he is relying for salvation. (Note the expression “obedience of faith” in Rom. 1:5; 16:26.) The true faith is the faith which takes. God at His word and does what He says! That involves obedience. Where man does not take God at His word and obey Him, he is not exercising faith. Because of this aspect of faith, the word “faith” or “believe” can be used to refer to the sum total of one’s commitment to Jesus. Thus, one can be said to be saved by “faith,” not meaning “faith only,” but a “faith” which takes God at His word and does what He says.

Conclusion

To be a believer implies that one has studied the revelation of God and has reached the conclusion that the facts asserted therein are true. Accepting them to be true, the believer gives up every other foundation for acceptance before God and trusts altogether in Jesus for salvation. Trusting in Jesus, the sinner obeys Jesus Christ in order to be saved. As an expression of his faith, he repents of his sins and is baptized for the forgiveness of them. All who have done this can be properly described as “believers.” Are you a believer?

Truth Magazine, XX:13, p. 9-10
March 25, 1976