THE BIBLE, GOD’S WORD

By: Ralph A. Crawford

Scriptures: 2 Timothy 3: 16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:”

2 Peter 1:21 “For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit .”

1 Corinthians 10:11 “Now all these things happened. . . and are written for our admonition, . .”

1 Corinthians 2: 16 “For who hath known the mind of the Lord? . .We have the mind of Christ.”

Our World View stands or falls on the bases of God’s Word. If it is true, we stand firm, but if it is not true then we are no better than any of the many man made pagan religions in the world. So we must ask ourselves, “Do we believe the Bible is the true Word of God?” I am sure that most of us here believe it is the actual word of God. The big problem is, how do we prove it? While growing up in my family, my parents taught me that the Bible was God’s word. I accepted what they said, and they proved their strong belief by the way they lived.

When I started pastoring in1949 I realized that I needed more proof than just what my parents said. So in college and the seminary I began my search of the Bible to see why so many people believed it to be God’s Word, and to try to discover why the Bible has lasted so long against the efforts of so many who tried to destroy it. The word I found to describe the Bible was the word “Unique.” The dictionary says the word unique means, “being the only one of its kind.” That is exactly the way I would describe the Bible. It truly is one of a kind.

I want to present six unique areas of the Bible that I believe will convince us that it is not an ordinary human composed book. Those six unique descriptions are as follows:

1. The Bible is Unique in disclosures of Scientific Facts that were not discovered till many years later.

2. The Bible is Unique in its Origin.

3. The Bible is Unique in the Impartiality of its writers.

4. The Bible is Unique in its Teachings.

5. The Bible is Unique in its Survival.

6. The Bible is Unique in its Effect on people’s lives.

I. THE BIBLE IS UNIQUE IN ITS SCIENTIFIC DISCLOSURES

The first unique characteristic of the Bible is that many of the writers made mention of scientific facts that had not been discovered at the time the scriptures were written. Let me say at the outset, the Bible is not a book of science, but when it speaks scientifically, it is accurate.

It is very evident that God gave those who penned the scriptures the inspiration to write about things that were mysteries beyond their observable knowledge. For example Psalms 8:8 mentions the paths in the seas. An admiral of the American Navy explained how he rescued one of our sailing ships when it was caught in a calm. He had learned that the oceans have currents like paths, and you can catch these current and actually navigate without wind. Someone asked him how he knew about the paths in the sea, and he said: “I read it in Psalms 8: 8, The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the sea.” The paths in the sea have been scientifically confirmed by Matthew Maury, the father of Oceanography. This passage of God’s Word was the motivation for his discovery. We can be sure, that David, who wrote this Psalm, was not aware of what he was writing.

Then there is a strange passage in Job 26: 7 “He stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the earth on nothing.” The only direction of “north” we can define is the North Pole. The outer reaches of space have no up or down, no north, south, east or west. The Hebrew word for “empty space” (tohu) can also mean barren, waste or worthless space. Those who have lived at the North Pole region have described it as worthless and barren. We do not have as much trouble with the phrase, “hangs the earth on nothing.” Immediately it comes to our mind that God did not suspend the earth in space with a large rope. Dr. Henry Morris gives us this insight. “Not only was the earth rotating, but it also began orbiting in space, suspended from the sun by nothing except the mysterious force of gravity acting at a distance. This verse was written at least 3,500 years before Isaac Newton identified and described this force.” John Macarthur says, “A statement that is accurate, given in ancient time, before scientific verification. This indicates the divine authorship of Scripture.”

It would be well for us to mention some of the theories of ancient schools on how the world was supported. The Egyptians believed that five pillows supported the world. One at each corner and one in the middle. The Greeks believed that the great giant Atlas supported the world on his shoulder. And the Hindus believed that the world was supported on the back of a large elephant, and the elephant was standing on the back of a tremendous turtle and the turtle was swimming the cosmic sea. It would have been difficult to deny these theories until we were able to take pictures of the world from outer space. We can confidently say that God hung the earth on nothing.

Galileo declared as early as 1652 that the world was round, and traveled around the sun which was the center of our solar system, but the ruling church at that time threatened him with death, and he recanted.

To Dr. Henry Morris, editor of the Defender’s Study Bible gives us the following biblical description of the shape of the earth. In the book of Isaiah 40: 22, we read “It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, . .” The Hebrew word ( khug ) is the word for compass or circle. It is used in Isaiah 40: 22, Proverbs 8: 27, and Job 26: 10 all in reference to the roundness of the earth, especially to the spherical nature of sea level, defining, as it were, the global shape of the earth. The Bible never teaches a flat earth even though the charge has often been made. All these passages were written more than 2000 years ago, long before Galileo (1652) lived and tried to convince people that the world was round.

In the book of Job, one of the oldest books in the Bible, at chapter 38, and verse 14 we read these strange words. “It is turned as clay to the seal; . .” When documents were written on clay tablets, the author would use a round cylinder seal to roll over the clay to imprint his name. This action is used to describe the turning of the earth to the sun that produces our day and nights. John MacArthur in his study Bible says, “This speaks of the earth, rotating on its axis, an amazing statement that only God could reveal in ancient days.” Yes, scientific facts that man did not discover till relatively modern times. The only way that such a fact could be written as early as the book of Job was for God to have been the real author.

Another scientific fact is written in scripture, and I learned about in high school it is the “water cycle.” My science teacher Mr. Gunter gave us this illustration about the water cycle. He walked over to the side of the room and said, the sun draws the water up into the clouds over the Gulf of Mexico, and the wind carries the clouds over the state of Texas, across the Red River, up past Tulsa, and reaches Nowata. Thunder and lighting causes it to rain down on Nowata, and the water runs into Double Creek, and Double Creek runs into the Verdigris River, and the Verdigris runs into the Arkansas River, and the Arkansas Runs into the Mississippi River, and the Mississippi runs into the Gulf of Mexico. He did it the second time just to imprint the complete cycle in our minds. Did you know that this very same explanation is given in Ecclesiastes 1: 7, where it says. “All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.” Modern day meteorologists have proved the truth of this passage.

Because of these discoveries in scriptures, Sir William Herschel, an English Scientists had this to say, “All human discoveries seem to be made only for the purpose of confirming more and more strongly the truths contained in the sacred scriptures.” An American Scientists said, “Every Fact in every science that man has so far discovered adds luster and testimony to the value and integrity of God’s Word.”

II. THE BIBLE IS UNIQUE IN ITS ORGIN

The 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament were a long time coming. It took something like 1500 to 2000 years for all the books to be written. Over such a long period of time, the authors or penman were numerous. And during these more than sixteen centuries there would be more than one language used. In fact there were three major languages. Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. Some 40 different people were inspired to be writers. They represented a large variety of people, talents and skills. There were kings, prophets, fishermen, scholars, farmers, women, a tax collector, and a doctor. They were separated by many years, so they could not confer with one another, and yet their work was without contradiction. Such a unified document can only be explained by the presiding present of God’s guiding spirit. God used all this variety of culture and vocabulary skills to bring about a book that was truly divinely inspired. Paul a student of the Old Testament told young Timothy that “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be perfect (mature), thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Forty different writers could not have written the Bible as it is, if they had they not been moved along by the Holy Spirit. This makes the Word a powerful force. No wonder the scripture says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Romans 10: 17). From beginning to end, the Bible has one great theme: the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. All Scripture is rightly related initially to Him. Revelation 19: 10 reminds us of this when it states: “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” The predictive words of the Old and New Testaments have Jesus Christ as their focus: they are testimonies about Him. The constant quotations of the Old Testament by the New Testament writers attests to this fact. The Scofield Study Bible has given the Bible a five division outline that magnifies the unity of the Bible. Those divisions are:

PREPARATION > THE OLD TESTAMENT

MANIFESTATION > THE GOSPELS

PUBLICATION > ACTS

EXPLANATION > EPISTLES

CONSUMMATION > REVELATION

Your Bible is truly unique. When you pick it up to read, remember, God has prepared this book for you. Read it carefully and slowly, asking your Heavenly Father for understanding. Its origin is from God, and Jesus said His word will never pass away, (Matthew 24:35).

III. THE BIBLE IS UNIQUE BY ITS IMPARTIAL WRITERS

Most of the books written by human beings protect their heroes and heroines from exposure to sin and shame. I once had the desire to write a biography of my Crawford family, but in the process of writing I discovered that to be honest I would have to write some things that really wasn’t anybody’s business. When we write about our friends and relatives we are careful not to include all the embarrassing things they have said and done. Even in our blessed America, most of the books written about our forefathers such as Washington, Franklin, Jefferson and Lincoln have nothing but praise for their dedication and contributions to liberty and freedom. The Bible doesn’t treat its patriarchs with such guarded speech and partial commentary.

Our original family, Adam and Eve, who lived in the Garden of Eden, made some terrible choices and brought the whole human race under the shame and depravity of sin. That’s the way it was recorded. Abraham, who was called the “Friend of God,” told a lie about his wife Sarah, and he was forced to leave Egypt in shame. It’s recorded in Genesis 12. Then there was Noah, who “walked with God,” and by faith built an ark, trusted in Lord, came off the ark and got drunk. That is recorded in Genesis 9. Then there was Moses who led over two million people out of Egypt, he got angry (Numbers 20: 11- 12) and “struck a rock with his staff,” when God told him to only “speak to the rock.” Therefore, because he disobeyed he wasn’t allowed to accompany the children of Israel into the Promised Land.

Then there was Aaron, the first “High Priest,” encouraged the children of Israel in Exodus 32 to build and worship a golden calf. He encouraged the people to break the first two commandments that Moses was receiving on Mount Sinai. Those laws were, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me. And Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, . . Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them.” Aaron didn’t have a ticket for the Promised Land either. And then there was King David. A Man after God’s own heart. He sinned one of the BIG private sins and was caught red handed by the prophet Nathan, and it was all recorded, even his attempt to cover it up. ( 2 Samuel 11)

Isn’t it strange that the Thief on the Cross, whose life was not lived for the Lord, was not named, nor was the woman caught in adultery, and the “woman at the well” was not identified. Truly the writers of the scriptures were impartial. The little people were not singled out, but some of the Biblical Biggies received a full account.

IV. THE BIBLE IS ALSO UNIQUE IN ITS TEACHINGS

The Unique teaching of the Bible is to say that they do not reflect the nature and reasoning of man. In Proverbs 14:12 we read, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” And in Isaiah 55:8 we read, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.” There are several areas in the Bible where the teachings of God are far removed from the thoughts of mankind. Consider the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5,6,7) where Jesus explains Christian ethics and human relations. He says in (5:22) murder is bad, but being angry with your brother puts you in danger of judgment. In 5:28) adultery is a biggie, but so is looking with lustful eyes. And in (5:39) Jesus says “if someone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other also.” And in (5:41) Jesus says, “Love your enemies, bless them that cruse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you, and persecute you; that you may be the children of your Father which is in heaven.”

In Matthew 7: 1 Jesus also said, “Judge not that you be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” And I know you have heard this one in Matthew 7:12, “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.” You just don’t find this kind of teaching coming from the pen of human beings.

Consider the teachings of the Bible about salvation. The Bible says we are saved by an absolute “gift” from God. Its called “grace.” It cannot be paid for, or earned. We cannot deserve it on the merit of good deeds. If we had to earn salvation we would have to live a 100% perfect life from birth to death. But because in Adam all men died it is only in through the perfect sacrifice of Jesus that we can be saved. God set a perfect standard for entering heaven. Jesus fulfilled that standard for us. 1 Corinthians 15: 22 says: For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall be made alive.” But don’t you know, many church groups believe salvation is an accomplishment of living a good life. They are trying to make salvation fit human reasoning. To them the “free gift salvation” idea is simply not reasonable to the human way of thinking. This is another reason for believing that the Bible is a divine Book and not a human book.

The Bible also teaches that our salvation is eternal, forever, and everlasting. We cannot loose it, and no body can take it away from us. We are kept by the power of God. This idea is also beyond the capacity of the human mind. This is the perfecting dimension of salvation that bears the mark of an all-powerful unchanging God. God’s plan of salvation is perfect beyond the feeble improvements of the human mind.

And also the Bible is unique in its teachings of the life here after. There is something in us that tells us that this life is not all there is. When Jesus came into this world to die as a sacrifice for our sins, and when hear Him say to His disciples, (John 14:2-3) “I go to prepare a place for you, that where I am there ye may be also.” A light comes on in our mind that makes us realize this is it! Jesus a person who lived on this earth by proof of historical records tells us that we have an eternal life waiting for us. We just can’t imagine this life we are living will end in death, and that our total being body, soul, and spirit, is lost in the nether world never to be seen or heard again. This would mean that the ultimate purpose of life is lost in nothingness if that was true. The human mind could not have conjured up the life explained in scripture about our eternal future. The scripture itself says, (1 Corinthians 2: 9) “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things God hath prepared for them who love him. Paul quoted this from Isaiah 64: 4. This passage tells us that what we know about heaven is not from the mind of man. It is a divine revelation from God.

V. THE BIBLE IS UNIQUE IN ITS EFFECT ON PEOPLE’S LIVES

Saul of Tarsus was on his way to Damascus with papers of authorization to bring Christian believers back to Jerusalem for trial, prison or death. Luke says in Acts 9: 1 “Saul yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, and desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.” It is believed that many Christians had fled Jerusalem to Damascus after the stoning of Stephens, and Saul was authorized to capture them and bring them back to Jerusalem. I have heard some say that Saul’s heart was softened at the stoning of Stephen, but this passage does not support that view. He was still a very head strong Hebrew of the Hebrews, desiring to stamp out and stop the Christian movement.

But Saul was no match against the word of the Lord. Before he reached Damascus, he was a completely changed man. There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias who was told by the Lord to go and touch Saul that he might receive back his sight. But Ananias gave this answer to the Lord. “Lord I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.” But the Lord assured him that Saul was now a chosen vessel to preach to Gentiles, Kings and children of Israel. What a change took place in the life of one Saul of Tarsus because of the Word of the Lord.

Dr. Lowell Milburn, a long time pastor and Director of Child Care in Oklahoma, spoke to the Pastor’s Conference in Oklahoma City about the power of God’s word, and he told this story from a missionary in China. The missionary was giving out New Testaments to the people. One man known to be an atheist asked the missionary for one of the New Testaments. The missionary knew that he wanted the New Testament so he could roll his own cigarettes from the thin pages. So He told the atheist, “I will give you this New Testament if you promise me that you will read each page before you roll your cigarette. The man agreed. The missionary lost contact with him for many years. One day he discovered this man preaching about Jesus in a little church, and he wanted to know what caused him to change from being an atheist to a Christian. “Well, he said, “you remember that I promised to read every page of that New Testament before I rolled it into a cigarette?” “Well I smoked all the way through Matthew, Mark and Luke, then I came to John, and read about Jesus talking to Nicodemus about being born again, and when I came to John 3:16, and I quit smoking and trusted Jesus as my saviour.” The Bible is very unique in its effect on the lives of people.

However the best illustration of the Bible’s power happened in my own life. My wife Beverly was adopted by Mr. W.W. Huff in Hobart, Oklahoma, after she was left by her parents in a rooming house. Mr. Huff had to have a woman come to his house to take care of Beverly during her formative years. When Beverly was only eleven years old Mr. Huff died. He left money in Beverly’s estate to take care of all the expenses of the home, but if and when Beverly married the money would be cut off. Well Beverly went off to college and we met at O.B.U. and we fell in love. This was startling news to the woman acting as Beverly’s mother. At the very outset, she didn’t care for me at all. She made a special trip to Shawnee to try to persuade me to break it off with Beverly. This was a very testing time for both Beverly and me. Well, we married, and Beverly tried to hold on to her as well as holding on to me. When we went to Hobart, I sat in the front room, and Beverly’s mother sat in the back rooms. We didn’t visit or carry on any conversation. When she called us on the phone she would immediately tell me that she wanted to talk with Beverly. Five years later our first son was born. Beverly wanted to name him after me, Ralph A. Crawford Jr., which we did. But her mother didn’t like that; she called him “Butch.”

Then one day we got a call from her and I answered the phone. Hearing her voice, I told her I would call Beverly. She said, “No, I want to talk with you.” Then I worried about what I might have done to upset her. Then she said, “I bet you can’t guess what happen to me last night?” I was really worried now. I asked her if she was in the hospital? And she assured me it wasn’t anything bad. Then she told me that a Mrs. Brillhart came by and took her to the Revival meeting at the First Baptist Church and she went forward at the invitation and trusted Jesus as her saviour.

She was to be baptized on the following Sunday night, and was she was so excited about it? Then she said, “You know there are no words to explain the before and after.” From that time till she died I was the best thing to her in this world. She cooked Chicken and dumplings for me every time we went to Hobart. (And I planned as many trips as I could.) She bragged on me to her big family. And she tried in every way she could to do nice things for me. What made the difference? It was the message of the Bible. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5: 17)

VI. THE BIBLE IS UNIQUE IN ITS SURVIVAL

Why has the Bible lasted so long? History has proven that the Bible has been the most burned and destroyed book ever written. As early as 260 A.D. Eusebius, The Father of Church History reported that royal edicts were published everywhere commanding that the churches be leveled to the ground and the Scriptures destroyed by fire, and if the Christians persisted in their profession they were to be deprived of their freedom. Christians who possessed copies of the scriptures were force to surrender them on threat of death. Many of them did, but some died rather than give up their scriptures.

In 313 A.D. the Edict of Milan was issued by Constantine proclaiming liberty of conscience and showed partiality for Christianity. Copies of scriptures were now preserved, and were kept in the possession of the Church, but not allowed to be owned by the people. Translation of the scriptures in the languages of the people were stubbornly rejected and many translators who tried to break this restriction were burned at the stake. It is not surprising that the original documents are gone. The reformation which was led by Martin Luther, legalized the right of churches to exist other than the Roman Church. Luther himself spent three years in hiding from those who would kill him, writing the New Testament in the language of the German people. And the moveable press helped put the Bible in the hands of the people across the land.

Voltaire, the French atheist said 228 years ago, that “In 100 years the Bible will be extinct.” By his calculations, the Bible should have been completely lost forever in the year 1878. But if I’m not mistaken, Mardel's would say that of all the books they sell, the Bible is still the number one best seller. And there is in our country a Bishop John Shelby Spong who advocates in his book, “Why Christianity Must Change Or Die.” That we must revise our Bible and bring it up to date with the morals which we now accept in this twenty first century. He thinks the Bible is out of step with those whose life styles are called “an abomination to the Lord.” And he thinks we need to get rid of the masculine Father image of God.

But to all these suggestions by Bishop Spong, we must quote the Psalmist who wrote, “Forever, O Lord , thy word is settled in Heaven.” (Psalms 119: 89) And the words of Jesus make a perfect closing, Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” (Matthew 24: 35) “Sorry Mr. Spong, the word of God is unchangeable, and in no need of correction.”