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Thy Word is Truth Part 3 By John McCallum

 Our reading comes from Matthew chapter 4 verses 1 to 11.
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.
After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
The tempter came to him and said,
If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.
Jesus answered, It is written, Man does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple.
If you are the Son of God, he said, Throw yourself down, for it is written,
He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against the stones.
Jesus answered him, It is also written, You do not put the Lord your God to the test.
Again the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.
All this I will give you, he said, if you will bow down and worship me.
Jesus said to him, Away from me Satan, for it is written,
Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.
Then the devil left him and angels came and attended him. Amen.
Let's again to the Word of God in Matthew, in chapter 4, which we have read together.
And I want to draw our attention to three verses here, verses 4, 7 and 10.
Matthew chapter 4, verses 4, 7 and 10.
That he, that is Jesus, answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
And then at verse 7, Jesus said unto him, It is written again,
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
And at verse 10, Then said Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written,
Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
Now I'm sure the very familiarity with these words is in danger of leading us to a rather
complacent and superficial view of them.
And even in handling the Bible at times, I think it is true that familiarity can at times
breed a certain contempt.
But the Lord Jesus Christ here is replying to the temptations of Satan at the beginning
of his public ministry.
And we, I'm sure, are acquainted with the general background, the 40-day fasting in
the wilderness and then the three-fold assault by the evil one against him.
But what is of particular interest to us is the way that Jesus repulsed these temptations.
Three different temptations, three different repulses.
But there is something similar to all of them, the way that Jesus repels the devil.
And that is by resorting to the scripture.
In each of these verses, Christ begins by saying, It is written.
It is written again.
Get thee behind me, Satan, for it is written.
And three times he quotes out of the scripture.
Now, what is Christ doing here?
Well, we believe that Christ is not only our supreme teacher in all things, but that he
is also our supreme example in all things.
And that therefore, if Christ resists the overtures of the devil by returning to what
is actually written in the scripture, then it seems to me that this is where we also
must find our resources in Christian living, resisting temptation, overcoming difficulties,
and the general life of living by faith and not by sight.
And that I think is the general principle that surely Christ is working out here in
his own life as he speaks thus to rebut the insinuations to sin that come to him from
the devil.
And so what I want to do in this session is to derive from these verses our principle
of the authority of the Bible.
And I want to begin by making a general observation concerning the issues that are at stake here
as to where is our source of authority.
For the simple reason that this is no trifling matter that we're dealing with, the Bible
is unique.
I hope to speak tomorrow on the holiness of the Bible and part of the holiness of the
Bible.
The sanctity of the Bible is set apart and its inspiration and the purpose for which
it was given.
The Bible is unlike any other book.
It is unlike any other book in its origin, in its content, and in its purpose.
But ultimately the issue here with which the Bible deals is not only the issue of God and
his creatorhood and the sovereign rule over all things and his salvation, choosing to
save some and pass others by, but there is the issue for ourselves, the issue of man,
the issue of the meaning of our life, and the how did we begin, what's the origin, what's
the destiny of our life.
Where do we find the answers to the big questions?
Because the issues with which the Bible deals are not just temporal, worldly, human issues.
They are eternal issues.
The scripture as we shall see tomorrow, God willing, is given to make us wise unto salvation
through faith, which is in Christ Jesus.
And in order to be made wise we need information and the Bible is the source of information
whereby we can become wise in the way of salvation.
Now I suppose in a sense every religion attempts to answer the question of the destiny and
the meaning of human life and such like things.
But in the scripture we have unique answers given because the questions are raised.
As far as I know there is no religion but the religion that is revealed in the Bible,
which seriously faces the issue of human sin.
I don't know of any other religious book that I've ever read that answers the questions
and the problems of my heart that exposes me for the ungodly creature that I am by nature.
One of the reasons as I get older, one of the reasons why I believe the Bible and more
and more is because the Bible analyzes me, it is truthful concerning me.
I live and you live in a little universal being.
Now let me ask you this, is the Bible true concerning you?
You be honest with yourself, is the Bible true or is the Bible untrue?
Well I know from my own experience that when the Bible tells me that I am a selfish one,
each one going his own way, each one seeking his own will, that my heart is deceitful above all things
and desperately I know that is true.
No one has ever told me that, I would never have told myself that, but the Bible tells me it's true.
And I have to confess because I'm faced with the reality because God's Spirit comes and applies
the truth of the Bible and convicts me of sin and I can't argue with what the Bible says.
I might want to but I can't gain say the Bible's teaching.
And if the Bible is true concerning my little universal life, then I trust it because I look at history
and I look at other human life, I see politics, I see the influences of how the rich ones
and the great ones of the world rule and tyrannize over their fellows.
And all that the Bible comments on human life is actually true to fact.
If you read the Hindu scriptures, you'll find yourself in a world of fantasy.
If you read the Buddhist scriptures, you'll find yourself in a world of fantasy.
If you read the Koran, you will find statements in the Koran concerning the holy scriptures which are simply not true
because the Bible does not teach what the Koran teaches concerning the Trinity for example
or concerning Christ or the Virgin Mary. The Koran makes statements which anyone who reads the Bible will say
well that's not what the Bible teaches at all.
But when you come to the scripture and apply it to life, you'll find that it's true to life.
The message fits the facts in our little internal world and the world out there.
And therefore we are dealing with big issues because the issue that the Bible is dealing with
is not just the temporal affairs of kingdoms rising and kingdoms falling, economics and religious affairs.
It's dealing with the soul, it's dealing with sin, it's dealing with salvation, it is presenting to us the grim reality of sin.
I don't know of any other religion that deals with the real issue of sin.
There's no explanation as far as I'm aware given in any other religious writings as to how we can be just with God.
Take for example the Muslim faith recorded in the Koran.
It tells you that if you do the five pillars of Islam, you are going to go into paradise.
But that doesn't answer the question, well what about the guilt of sin?
What about sin being dealt with?
It's all very well to say that if from this time henceforth you obey the five pillars of Islam.
Supposing you and I from this time forth were to live a sinless life, good and well.
But what about the ungodly life that we've already lived?
What about all the accumulated multitudes of sins already recorded?
What then about those?
We have to come to terms with the reality that sin has to be dealt with and faced with.
It's not simply a matter of turning over annually.
There are great issues of justice.
There are great issues of inherent righteousness that have to be faced if we're going to enter into the kingdom of heaven.
And so we find the Bible is true.
Now here we have the issue.
The issue is the issue of authority.
And the issue is not simply something that is of temporal value.
It is of eternal consequences and if we get this wrong then we are going to reap the sad consequences in an everlasting disillusionment and discouragement.
There are some things in life that we get it wrong.
Supposing for example to be flippant some more.
Supposing for example that there are people in the world who actually believe that the earth is flat and there are people who do.
Well so what then? It doesn't matter.
There's no great issue at stake. They're wrong as far as we know.
As far as I know the world is wrong.
But I mean supposing they do believe that the earth is flat.
Well what is at stake ultimately?
There's no great issue there. There's no great principle.
They have made a simple mistake which doesn't really affect their everlasting peace.
And so it goes on.
We in fact can make mistakes in many areas.
But if we make mistakes in how can we be justified before God then we make an eternal mistake.
And there's no second options and no second chances.
And if we miss the truth of the Bible we miss everlasting truth.
And the scripture doesn't speak of a greater hope and of a second chance as some indeed would maintain that it seems to do.
Well we're dealing here with the issue of authority.
And the issue of authority applies to all of us.
Because the issue is not ultimately what is going to govern my life.
That's not the issue.
The issue ultimately is who is going to govern my life.
Because the great issue of what am I going to live by is the issue of whose words am I going to live by.
Every one of us lives according to something that someone has said.
Why do people today in their multitudes believe for example in evolution?
They believe it because there are men who are scientists and who have a name in the world of scientists who happen to teach evolution.
These people that believe evolution they have never proved evolution for themselves.
Some of them have perhaps never even read a book in their lives.
But all the experts they believe in evolution.
They say it therefore it must be true.
And it's the same with all of us.
We learn this right from our infancy.
Even our children unconsciously imbibe this principle.
Our children don't live their lives with great philosophies and great principles of rightness and wrongness.
They live their lives according to what their mothers and their fathers tell them.
And according to what their school teachers tell them.
And according to what the policemen with a gun on their head will tell them.
And it's a matter of doing according to someone's statement.
And if we often hear it in the playground for example little children arguing and the little boy will stand in defiance against and say well my daddy says.
And that's all he needs to live by. His daddy says it.
He doesn't know great philosophies and theories about the microcosm or the macrocosm.
He just knows that there is someone there and he believes what that someone has said.
Now it's the same with all of us.
Everything that you believe is something that you've been taught.
And you've been taught by someone.
And we have to get this principle clear.
Because there are multitudes of people who are under the impression that there are these great principles of teaching.
And that everything and indeed that they are self-evident.
The theory of evolution is not self-evident to my understanding.
Indeed I regard as an intellectual nonsense under the height of stupidity to imagine that the world made itself.
I mean could anything be more nonsensical than that?
But who says it? Well those men.
And those women who are supposed to have studied these things.
And so we believe what they say.
So the issue at stake really is not just a matter of what principles are we going to live by.
The issue is a matter of whose words are going to govern our life.
And we will live our lives according to what someone whom we respect and admire or even fear has told us.
And we will live our lives accordingly.
Now that is the issue of the authority of the Bible.
Because at the end of the day we are all faced with a choice.
We either believe what God says or we believe what men say.
That I don't know of any third alternative.
We either believe what men say and we imbibe it.
And in that way we reject the authority of the scripture.
Or we recognize the scripture as being God speaking.
And it's not just the scripture speaking.
It is God speaking through the scripture.
Now this is what our Lord Jesus Christ is emphasizing.
And indeed this is what he is implementing here when he answers the devil in this three-fold way.
We'll come to that later on.
But I want to emphasize as we come to try to understand and apply this principle of the authority of the Bible.
And the issue of eternity is at stake.
And the issue is who is going to rule in my life?
Is it going to be me? Is it going to be men? Or is it going to be God?
Forget about all these abstract and personal principles. They don't exist.
All that we have is the thoughts and the opinions of men, persons of the opinion of God.
In this great issue of how am I going to live my life?
And who is ultimately going to have the final say in all my thinking and in all my living?
And as far as I know there are three areas where down through the centuries
men have argued as to where is ultimately the source of authority.
And the first area is in the Christian circles.
There are many Christians who say first of all that the authority ultimately is in the church.
And by that they mean the church in council.
And I'm sure you've all been familiar with the church creams and church councils
and assemblies of cardinals and the Pope in the exquisite putting on his hat
and sitting in his chair and making those pronouncements
and something near one billion of our fellow human beings
upon the face of the earth are expected to believe and obey
because a man sitting on a certain chair with a certain hat on his head has said this is so.
Now that is something which to our way of thinking may seem foolish
but it is something which is deeply ingrained in the heart of man
because we all want some religious teacher to tell us what to believe
and how to live our lives. That's what heathenism is all about.
And that is why every religion as far as I know has its own kinds of special religious experts.
You will find there is a priest care.
We have a tremendous capacity to raise up for ourselves priests
who will deal with the issues of spiritual things.
We'll get on with our life and the priest, he's the specialist
as the doctor will cure our bodies and the lawyer will look after our legal interests
and the school teachers will look after our children's education
so the priest, he'll look after my soul and I can get on with my life and just live my little life my way.
Now that is the very essence of heathenism.
Religion is inbuilt into the heart of every man
for the simple reason that we are made in the image of God.
We are incurably religious and as you well know Stalin and the Soviet system in the 20s and the 30s
right through into the 50s, probably later on but certainly up to the 50s
they had to face the fact you just can't repress religion.
They passed laws and statutes and so did by the way communist China
in which they sought to obliterate religion.
It's the opiate of the people, it's foolishness, it keeps the people down
and they tried to obliterate religion, destroy religious buildings
destroy priests and religious organizations and they had to face the fact it can't be done.
You could multiply your armies and your big battalions and you can do what you like
but people demand religion. We are incurably religious, we are made to pray
we are made to feel God, we are made to think God's thoughts after him
we are made for God, we have an appetite for God
and if we don't have the true revelation of God then we'll invent doctrines for ourselves
but we must have religion and we either have the religion that God will give to us
or we have the religion that we will give to ourselves
but one way or the other, religion, we will have it
and the world today is clamoring for religion.
The experts who tell us today and there are experts so called
and they still tell us today, I would say indeed they not so very long ago
listening to a skeptic on television in a debate
and he was saying that one of the most alarming things in his understanding
was the rise of what he called fundamentalism
and by fundamentalism he meant Muslim fundamentalism
and he meant Christian fundamentalism and he couldn't explain it
he said we thought that when we found science and that when we found evolution
and the key to the genes and unraveled the mysteries of the little microcosm
that that was religion debunked once and for all
and this man was saying not so very long ago
he was saying religion seems to be alive and well and I don't understand
of course he doesn't understand it because he is viewing man simply as an animal
and he is viewing man as one who has nothing to do with divine things
we've just come from chemicals and that's all we are, materialism reigns
and when we die we just dissolve and feed the plants and so the cycle goes on
but that's not man according to the bible
we are created not only from the dust of the ground
but God has breathed into our nostrils the breath of life
and we must have religion and if we don't have God's word to enlighten us
then we'll ask for men who will stand up and be our religious teachers
but we will have them come what may
and so the source of authority down through the Christian centuries
and I'm just dealing with a Christian church with enough time to speak about
how Buddhism they have raised up their priest crafts
and so of all religions which doctors in primitive villages
it's all the same principle, there's the expert, the man with the bones
and the man who will make the smoke and make the incense
and he's the man and he'll deal with the mysteries of spiritual realities
but we find that even in the Christian church
that pernicious doctrine has entered in
and it has entered into the main strands of Christendom
perhaps I think Roman Catholicism is the biggest culprit in this regard
where they have this doctrine of the bible as the source of authority
but in addition they have the doctrines of the church
the traditions of the fathers, the statements say ex cathedra of creeds and councils
and they are on a par with the bible
because the bible is the sourcebook but the bible has to be explained
the bible has to be applied and interpreted
and we have to adapt the message of the bible to meet new circumstances
as times change in the world in which we live
and people are perfectly happy if those experts from the imagined though their bible
make those pronouncements ex cathedra
by the way I've never yet met a Roman Catholic priest that knows his bible
as I listen to the pope, as I sometimes do, as you do
I don't hear him quoting much scripture, he quotes this and that
but I don't hear him expounding the bible
I've never heard the pope preach a sermon expounding the bible
I've never heard of a cardinal do it
and I've never heard of a Roman priest who actually understands the bible
and I can remember discussing a Roman Catholic preacher
and I was quoting texts and he didn't
he indeed didn't know what I was talking about
so they don't know their bible, don't imagine for one moment
that all those men who dress up in clerical garb
that they are very knowledgeable about the word of God
they are not, they are ignorant of it
but they are very knowledgeable in canon law
and in pontifical statements
and they will bamboozle you and they will quote their authorities
and it all sounds so impressive that people say ah, ah, ah and they just love it
and so people imagine that authority lies in the church
now it's not only the Roman Catholic church, it's the biggest culprit
but it's not the only culprit
also those Protestant churches, high Anglicanism for example
has its own traditions, what they call the traditions of the church
and they have equated those traditions of the church
onto the same level in practical terms
they will present them to you in place of the scripture
in the same way as the Mormons for example
they won't take you to the bible, they'll take you to the book of Norman
and the same with the Jehovah's Witnesses
they won't take you to the bible, they'll take you to the watchtower
and they will say now here's what you've got to read
if you and I are speaking to someone, I'm sure
if we want them to become Christians, we'll give them a bible
and we'll say read the bible
because that's where you find the message of the bible
and the presentation of Christ
so where is our authority?
and there are many people in the professing Christian church
and they say that authority lies in the church itself
and we look to the church to tell us what to believe
and how to live our lives
and that is why indeed priestcraft and priestlycraft
has such a hold
and this is why, by the way, I mentioned earlier
the reformers in the 16th century
they cut right at the nerve of the Roman priestcraft
they demolished the priesthood practically
because they told the people, the common people, the laity
they said you already are a priest
there is one high priest revealed in the bible
and you are a priest, the priesthood of all believers
you can go straight to God
you don't need to go to that dirty old man
in the confessional
where he will listen to all your secrets
and drag them out of you
and I've read books about that too
and that's what goes on
and that's what goes on
but I won't go into that either
but the fact of the matter is
the reformers, they demolished the ground of priestcraft
by reminding the people that they had direct access to God
and they could come to the throne of God
for themselves in their own persons
and speak to God about their own concerns
and they demolished the power of the papal priesthood
in many lands in those days
but even the Anglican church has entered into this
the Eastern Orthodox church has it
and there is a danger I fear in some even reformed churches having it
because we too, you know, invent for ourselves
what we call acts of synod, acts of assembly
blue books, red books, decision books
minutes of synod
and sometimes at our church courts we find big debates
and acts such and such
class two, sub point C and all the rest
and we're bamboozled, I'm bamboozled
and I would love at times in our church courts
if men would stand up and hold up the scripture
sometimes we try to do it, sometimes we're shouted down
but sometimes we try to do it
but you see there's a danger always
always a danger of Christians
believing and indeed looking as the first resort of authority to the church
what does my church teach?
I belong to a presbyterian church
therefore what do presbyterian churches teach?
and I'm a presbyterian so the argument goes
because my church teaches
I'm not a presbyterian because I
I'm not a plug for the bible here
I'm not a presbyterian because I have been taught it by a presbyterian synod
I'm a presbyterian because I find rule by elders found in the bible
that's why I'm a presbyterian
we won't go into other issues
but so it goes on and so it goes on
but there's always the danger you see that we will have
as a source of authority something
other than the bible
we will put our hope in the church
in the pronouncements of the clergy
and these men are regarded by us as the ex-person
what they say we will do
now our confessional faith, the Westminster confessional faith
you still have it, you've got it in your Reformed Baptist church
we have it, indeed there are slight changes
but that doesn't matter in the name points
as far as I know it's the same
and one of the great statements of the Westminster Confession
is Christ alone is Lord of the Conscience
and he has not given that conscience over to any tyranny
of church censures or church councils
Christ alone
and that's one of the great Christian liberties
that the bible speaks about so freely
call no man your master
there is only one master
Christ alone is the master
and here is the master showing us where he found his authority
so first of all there is the area of authority
who is going to rule?
is it going to be the clergy?
well the clergy are worth listening to
if they are preaching what the bible preaches
and if they are not then they are not worth listening to
according to my understanding of the scriptures
so that's the first area where Christian people tend to look
for a source of authority
and the second area today largely
where men look for authority
is in reason
now a couple of centuries, two and a half centuries ago or so
probably before that
there was what was called the enlightenment
and it was called the age of reason
and I've got a series of history books at home
and different ages are called by different
indeed by sort of different titles
the age of antiquity
the age of superstition
the age of faith
and then from the 18th century
the age of reason
and we are now in the age of science of course
but the idea being that the age of faith
the faith of the bible
the faith of God's people
that's just part of the old hangover from the ancient world
the people in those days
they were superstitious people
they didn't know any better
but with the age of reason there came the use of the mind
that's what we are told
there came the use of the mind
and then instead of worshipping nature
they began to examine it
and began to discover that the sun and the moon weren't there to be worshipped
but they were just balls of gas on the one hand
and big rocks on the other hand
and we came to terms with the reality of how our world works and so on
and human reason
now that I put to you since about the 1850s
is what is governing the world today
we are no longer in the age that can be called the age of faith
we are no longer really in a sense the age of deism
because deism and the enlightenment went together
and they said that yes there is a God
who made everything
he wound up the machine and it just goes on
and its own mechanical inner workings
we have passed beyond that
we are now in the age where science reigns
and we are in the hands of the experts and the technocrats
that's the fact of the matter
and that man once again like he was to the ancient Greeks
has become the measure of all things
that's what Aristotle and these old philosophers of the classical world believe
we must judge everything
not by what the gods teach or the poets about the gods teach
but what do we find in our laboratories
and we will only believe what we can touch
and what we can see and smell
and if you can't see it, it's not there
and if it can't be analyzed either proved or disproved by the scientific method
then it's not to be part of our lives
because we must ultimately judge on realities as they speak
and so the source of authority for many people today
is the pronouncements of the scientists
and increasingly the scientists are saying that there is no god
we have not found any evidence of god
we have been up to the moon
we've sent our telescopes and our cameras into space
we don't find anything there that would make us believe
that there is such a being as god
and so god is not only not in all their thoughts
he's not in any of their thoughts
they don't even think of god now
and that is the source of authority
and we've got to face the fact
that our children increasingly are being brought up
in an environment where all around them there is this basic philosophy
undergirding everything
from economics to genetics to politics to making warfare or making religions even
there is no god
at least not the kind of god who is spoken of in the holy scripture
so first of all the church is looked to as a source of authority
and then secondly men are indeed looked to as a source of authority
but what does Christ do here in this passage
Matthew chapter 4 verses 4, 7 and 10
he is telling us that scripture is our authority
and to be a Christian means that we do not only believe in Christ for our salvation
it means that we believe in Christ for everything
and when we submit to him as lord
we submit our mind to him
as well as our affections and the way that we live
we submit everything to him
if he is going to be lord
then we must do what he says
and that's not only outwardly
we must think along the lines
in which he teaches us to think
those who follow after him will not walk in mental darkness
as well as in any other kind of darkness
but we will have the light of life
and where is Christ directing us to the source of authority
three times he says it is written
for Christ the scripture was the ultimate authority
and anything that was written in the scripture
is to take precedence over every other consideration
now here is Christ
in a great crisis you might see of his ministry
here is the second Adam
and he is being tempted
now Christ could have made the stones into bread
Christ could have done in a sense
what the devil is except falling down and worshipping him
but Christ could have leaped off the pinnacle of the temple
and Christ could well have displayed his divine sonship
because each time if you are the son of God
are you the son of God?
you, you hungry, lonely in a desert
you, Jesus, you think you are the son of God?
the devil, he may well have known who he was
I don't know if he did or not
but he certainly knew that Jesus had previously been described as the son of God
this is my beloved son
the Lord the father had said at the baptism
and the devil knew perfectly well that he was one with whom the father was well pleased
you the son of God?
Jesus could have done mighty miracles
but he made no use of his divine resources
he made use of the same resources that every one of his people has got to make use of
and that is he depended upon the spirit
and he depended upon the scriptures
Christ was in the desert
because the spirit of God had led him
indeed Mark says, had driven him into the desert
Christ was in the desert as God's man
as God's new man to give a new beginning
and he was not going to accomplish
for our salvation things that belonged ultimately to his divine nature
he was entering in as a man
the seed of the woman
and what was written in the Bible was going to be his source book
for strength and for directions as to which way he should go
in the face of these temptations of the devil
now this is not the only place by half
where Jesus refers to the scripture
in John chapter 10 which I have already quoted you in verse 35
the word of God has come
and the scripture cannot be broken
and you remember when Christ after his resurrection from the dead
when he would instruct his disciples
on the evening of his resurrection day
you remember how he met with the two on the road to Emmaus
and he opened up the scriptures to them
he took them to the scriptures
and then when he met with the eleven disciples
and the others who were gathered with him
what did he do?
now Christ would have had a right
to put the scriptures aside
and simply speak to those disciples
and explain to them the mysteries of his person
and the glories of his work
but he doesn't
he takes them to the scripture
he is saying to them now do you remember what is written in the scripture
and we are told at the end of Luke's Gospel 24
that he opened their minds
and in all the scriptures and the prophets
and in the Psalms
he led them through the scriptures
in all the things pertaining unto himself
now I don't know about you but I have often wondered
what text the Lord actually used
as he was explaining to these disciples
in all the scriptures the things belonging to them
are useless and yet it is easier to write
and we don't fully appreciate and understand
all that the Bible has to say
and it may be that they didn't
but they were using the scripture
as God directed them to use the scripture
but the point that I am making is this
that the Lord Jesus Christ
explained to his disciples out of the scripture
and he was seeing in the scripture
things belonging to himself
for example think of what Paul says
writing to the Corinthians
it is written
thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treads out the corn
and to funding the ministry of preachers
now you may say well the Bible doesn't say that
is that a misuse of this?
no
there is a principle
is it only of oxen
that God is thinking
when he wrote down there in Deuteronomy
that the ox that was treading out the corn
and leading round that grinding wheel
it was worthy
it had to eat as well
it was entitled to eat of the corn
and don't stop it eating
is God only thinking about oxen
or is there not a higher principle
are there not other ways in which you can look at the way
that God cares for oxen
but he cares more for men
and so this is the way you understand the scripture
Christ in applying the scripture
is applying the scripture robustly and directly
three times he quotes
out of the book of Deuteronomy
he quotes out of chapter 8
at verse 3 and 4
it is written man shall not live by bread alone
but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God
and he quotes twice again in Deuteronomy chapter 6 verses 16 and 13
in the other two occasions that he quotes
now he is quoting out of the law
perhaps one of the most mundane areas of biblical revelation
where God is giving to his people
a series of legislations and statutes
and these are the very places that Christ goes to
in the high point of spiritual conflict
because he sees principles there
whatever is written in the Bible
is to be taken and applied
for the Christian life
that's what he is saying
now Christ over and over again in his earthly ministry
referred to the scripture
I don't know
have you ever thought about it this way
I don't know of any new doctrine that Christ introduced
we have a tendency to think that the Old Testament
well that was Old Testament
but there is something new in the New Testament
well what is new in the New Testament
the doctrine of the Trinity is in the Old Testament
man's depravity, God's sovereignty, God's son
the need to be reborn is in the Old Testament as it is in the New
that's why Nicodemus ought to know it
when Jesus said you must be born again
Nicodemus you are a teacher of the Old Testament
do you not know that the Old Testament speaks
of a new heart being given
and a clean heart and a heart of flesh
replacing the stony heart
Nicodemus don't you understand reborn again
and over and over again Christ went back to the Old Testament
he went back to the actual writings of the scriptures
when he was in confrontation with the Jews for example
they were tempting him concerning marriage
now there were those divisions
there were three classes of opinion among the Jews
as to whether you should get married and divorced
on what grounds and could you get remarried
and so on the same kind of troubles
that trouble the church today
what does the Lord do in Matthew chapter 19
he goes back to the beginning
he says do you not remember what was written in the beginning
God made them male and female
he is going back to the beginning
and there are over and over in Christ's ministry
he is not introducing new doctrines
he is introducing simply new understanding
and new applications of old doctrines
all written in the scripture
the Sermon on the Mount
we are told by scholars, critical scholars today
that the Sermon on the Mount
is the charter of Christianity
the Sermon on the Mount is nothing
it is nothing of the like a charter for Christianity
the Sermon on the Mount is an exposition of the law of Moses
and how we ought to live in response to those laws
that God has already given
the Beatitudes, those things where Christ pronounced
blessed the poor in spirit
the Psalms speak of it
the meek shall inherit the earth
those who hunger and thirst after
there is no original Beatitude
they are all in the Old Testament
and when Christ speaks of himself coming not to
demolish the law but to fulfill it
that is prophesied in the Old Testament
he would uphold the law and make it honorable
and we could multiply examples
and the same with the Apostles
whom Christ raised up and chose to be writers of his scripture
and interpreters and founders of the Christian Church
the Christian Church is founded upon the Apostles
apostolic teaching
the very first Christian Church
that ever existed in Acts 2.42
the very first thing we were told was
they continued steadfastly in the Apostles doctrine
that is the mark for all true Christian churches
we listen to what the Apostles say
but what did the Apostles say?
they simply said what the scripture said
when Paul writes to the Corinthians
and reminds them of the gospel that he preached
that Christ should die for our sins
the gospel by which you are saved
how he died for our sins
according to the scriptures
Paul's not inventing or bringing some new doctrine
as if the death of Christ was some novelty
it was according to the scriptures
that Christ would suffer and die in such a way
and he was buried and he rose again
according to the scriptures
the Old Testament speaks
Psalm 16 for example
and you remember Job speaks about
I know that my redeemer lives
and at the last I'm going to see him standing upon the earth
and all these texts, the scriptures
are always the fountain head
for all the doctrines that the Apostles explained
and applied
and Christ didn't come with some new doctrine
he came with the old, old story
of that which was already written down
in the writings and the pages with pen and ink
in the Old Testament scriptures
and it's the same principle undiminished
Paul writes to the Romans, does he not?
in chapter 15
where he's speaking to encourage the saints of God
not to be simply looking out for their own things
but serving others also
because that way he says
the scriptures were written for our encouragement
that we through the scriptures might have hope
now that's a New Testament congregation
where are you going to have hope?
where are you going to imbibe the promises?
what voice are you going to listen to?
Paul says if you want to have Christian hope
then you've got to have that hope
through what is written in the scriptures
that we through the consolation and comfort of the scriptures
might have hope
and Paul writing to Romans, you remember?
again in chapter 4
speaking about justification by faith
he says, what does the scripture say?
what saith the scripture?
Abraham believed God
and it was counted unto him for righteousness
Galatians, James does the same
Peter does the same
in both his epistles
makes reference to the scriptures
2 Peter chapter 1, you remember
from verse 19
the more sure word of prophecy
which is the scriptures
and I could multiply examples
what am I saying?
well you know what I'm saying
but I'm going to say it again
the prophets wrote down scripture
Christ took up those same scriptures
and he said, here is the authority
here is the authority for my life
for his life
the apostles took up the same scriptures
and they said, here is the source of authority
for Christians
down through until the end of time
now I say all of that
because part of the big problem
facing the church today
I've touched on it
is especially in the charismatic movement
who cares for the creeds
when you've had the experience
do you ever read charismatic books
with all the nonsense that they record?
all those feelings
all those visions and dreams
and all those false miracles
that leave people still sick and even more disillusioned
charlatans, crooks, false prophets
they're ignoring the scriptures
and they're going into human reason
and human feelings
if it feels good, it is good
that's the philosophy
and if it seems right, if the chemistry is right
it's bound to be right
that's the philosophy
and I've heard a reformed preacher preaching that
if it seems right, if the chemistry is right
that is an abandonment
and a rejection of the scripture
our Lord Jesus Christ is not going to fight the devil on the devil's terms
he's not going to fight the devil on divine terms
he's going to fight the devil on the terms
where every true child of God has to fight the devil
it is written
and when there are those people who would come and solicit you to sin
say come along and we'll do you good
and you have a good time with us
you just remember
of what is written in the scriptures
and the danger of going astray with false company
and being led into temptations
and being led away from the things of God
how do we know that?
because the Bible warns us about it
we tend to think
and we tend to think this
the time has gone
we tend to think
I tend to think and you tend to think
that it was all right for the people of God
and so they did
occasionally
but Old Testament history covers a period of thousands of years
and they weren't always having revelations
there were periods of revelation
and revelation came in fits and starts in the Old Testament
there were sudden upsurges
and then there were long periods where the people of God did not
people largely had to do with what was written down by the prophets
whom God had sent
now finally
and on this I must tell you
in what areas of life
is the scripture to have its authority?
well as far as I am aware
the Bible doesn't limit the areas of life
and I say that because I have heard Christians
say well the Bible is for salvation
it doesn't speak about secular things and how unto live not
I will trust Christ
for salvation
but I'm not commanded to trust him for daily bread
and to look after my health and my family
but that's a misleading of the Bible
in all thy ways acknowledge him
lean not unto thine own understanding
but in all thy ways acknowledge him
and he shall direct thy paths
in all thy ways
the Bible tells us this word of authority
it tells us how husbands are to love their wives
and wives are to love and respect and submit to their husbands in a godly manner
and it tells us how fathers are responsible
remember those of you who are fathers here
the state is not responsible for your children
the church isn't, you are
and there's a big burden laid upon fathers
to bring up their children
in the nurture and admonition of the Lord
and when we try to bring up our children in the ways of the Lord
they may well say to us, oh you're making all these rules
and all these rules
and we have to say to them, these are not my rules
these are God's rules
because God's word does stoop to the level of how children are to behave themselves
it tells us how to deal honestly in business
it tells us how to be a faithful employer
and a faithful employee
doing all things ultimately
to God's glory, serving Christ
even as slaves in those days
there is no area of life that I've ever found
where the Bible says this is out of bounds
for its authority
and it is this terrible dilemma and dichotomy
that the church of our day has indeed invented for itself
where we say, well we'll leave those things of the Bible to the Lord
and to salvation and the soul
and the things of the church
but in the things of our daily life
we'll press on just like the walls
and we'll find our little place in the sun too
the Bible says no
all areas of life
come under the authority
and the grand authority, the winsome, loving, wooing authority
of the scriptures
because it is God who is interested in us
God interested in how we perform as families
as well as how we perform in the potent and in the pure
it is written
that was sufficient for Christ
that was the end of the argument
and the devil was rebuffed and rebuked
and on that occasion left him alone for a while
but the principle you see is, I hope, clearly made
who is it?
not just what, forget the what, that's intentional
who is going to have the say ultimately
in how I live my life
what I believe
and what I do privately as well as publicly
in the church and out of it
the scripture is our only and ultimate source of authority
as to how to glorify God
and to enjoy him forever and to be saved
I'd better stop there and tell you something
thank you, by the way, for listening
you've been patient with me
I appreciate your attendance and your attention
thank you very much