I. TO ESTABLISH AN ACCURATE ACCOUNT OF HIS LIFE, HIS DEATH, AND HIS RESURRECTION.
Luke 1:1
1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us,
Galatians 1:8-9
8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
A. Many “Gospels” Have Been Written.
1. Have taken in hand – NT:2021 – epecheireesan – A literal translation. The word carries the sense of a difficult undertaking (see Acts 19:13), and implies that previous attempts have not been successful. (From Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament, Electronic Database. Copyright © 1997, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)
2. Calvin, therefore, suggests that Luke wrote his gospel because he did not agree with the other writings that men had offered, stating, “…though he deals gently with those who had written before him, he does not altogether approve of their labors.” (From Calvin’s Commentaries, PC Study Bible formatted electronic database Copyright © 2005-2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)
3. British theologian and biblical scholar Adam Clarke agrees, noting that “…as most of these accounts were inaccurate, recording as facts things which had not happened; and through ignorance or design mistaking others, especially in the place where Luke wrote; it seemed good to the Holy Spirit to inspire this holy man with the most correct knowledge of the whole history of our Lord’s birth, preaching, miracles, sufferings, death, resurrection, and ascension, that the sincere, upright followers of God might have a sure foundation, on which they might safely build their faith.” (From Adam Clarke’s Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright © 1996, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)
4. We know historically that other gospels were written that were not accepted into the canon.
5. Generally these were not accepted due to:
a. doubt about authorship,
b. the time frame between the original writing and the events described, or
c. content that was at odds with accepted orthodoxy.
B. Examples Of “Other Gospels.”
1. The Gospel of Peter, for example, was rejected because it contained writings that could be used to support Docetism (a Gnostic belief that Jesus’ physical body and crucifixion was an illusion).
a. Docetism was rejected by the ecumenical councils and mainstream Christianity, all but died out during the first millennium A.D., and was ultimately declared heretical after the time of Eusebius (c. 275 – 339).
i. Modern Islam asserts that Jesus’ crucifixion was an illusion.
ii. The Qur’an states, “They did not kill him and they did not crucify him, but it was made to seem so to them…”
iii. Islam’s view is that the four canonical gospels have been corrupted over time.
b. The Gospel of Peter was also rejected because it claims the Apostle Peter as its author, yet the manuscript is widely believed to date after his death, and therefore is pseudepigraphal (bearing the name of an author who did not actually write the text).
c. The Gospel of Peter was also rejected because it contains accounts that are inconsistent with the descriptions given in the canonical gospels.
i. Jesus’ cry from the cross as given in Matthew (“My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”) is recorded as “My power, my power, thou hast forsaken me.”
ii. The Resurrection and the Ascension occur on the same day.
iii. The cross is described as speaking and moving around, revealing its obvious Gnostic sympathies.
2. The Gospel of Thomas is a collection of sayings of Jesus as recorded by Didymos Judas Thomas (believed to be the apostle Judas – as opposed to Judas Iscariot).
a. The work contains 114 sayings, many of which are at odds with sayings in the four canonical gospels.
b. In this account, Jesus is pictured as a spiritual role model who offers everyone the opportunity to become the anointed one as He is.
c. Its mystical overtones emphasize a direct experience of the Divine through becoming a Christ.
d. Salvation is personal and found through psychological contemplation of one’s own thoughts, feelings, and sensations.
e. In contrast to the Gospel of John where Jesus is portrayed as the Son of God, the Gospel of Thomas presents Him as the omnipresent vehicle of mystical inspiration and enlightenment.
f. Verse 77 records: “I am the light that shines over all things. I am everywhere. From me all came forth, and to me all return. Split a piece of wood, and I am there. Lift a stone, and you will find me there…”
g. While some argue that the Gospel of Thomas gives us a rare glimpse into the diversity of early Christian beliefs, the Church as a whole regards this document as an example of one of the early heresies that attacked the Church.
3. The Gospel of James introduces the concept of the Perpetual Virginity of Mary (the belief that Mary was ever-Virgin for the remainder of her life, making Jesus her only biological son).
Matthew 13:55-56a
55 Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? 56 And His sisters, are they not all with us?
a. It claims that Joseph was a widower, with children, at the time that Mary was entrusted to his care.
b. This book relates many miraculous incidents from the life of Mary and the childhood of Jesus that are not included in the canonical gospels.
c. It relates that Jesus was born in a cave, that John the Baptist’s father was martyred during the slaughter of the infants, and that Joseph was elderly when Jesus was born.
C. The Books of the Apocrypha.
Note: There were many other writings that claimed Apostolic authorship, many of which were considered authoritative by some ancient churches. Most of these writings, however, were not included in the New Testament canon. These books appear in the Apocrypha (a Gk. Word meaning “hidden” or “secret”), and are not generally regarded as inspired. They were included in the original KJV translation of 1611, but were placed in between the testaments. The apocryphal books were later removed from the KJV entirely. The word “apocrypha” has come to mean those writings that are spurious, heretical, and false. The Apocrypha includes:
1. Brief descriptions of the Apocryphal books.
a. 1 Esdras - This book is someone’s attempt to revise the canonical book of Ezra, supplementing it with material from the last two chapters of 2 Chronicles and the last two chapters of Nehemiah, and with an entertaining tale about three young courtiers who debate the question, "What is the strongest thing in the world?" The debate is held before the king of Persia, and the winner is to get a prize. The first maintains that it is wine; the second that it is the king himself; the third argues with some irony and humor that women are stronger than either wine or kings, but that "truth" and "the God of truth" are by far strongest. This last young man turns out to be none other than Zerubbabel, who for his prize receives generous help from the king in rebuilding Jerusalem. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
i. The author or compiler of 1 Esdras is unknown, and scholars disagree about its origin. (Tyndale Bible Dictionary)
a) Some think that 1 Esdras might be the original Septuagint version, and that canonical Ezra and Nehemiah reflect the translation and editing of Theodotion, a second-century AD reviser of the Septuagint.
b) Others speculate that 1 Esdras goes back to a now-lost Hebrew text outside the Masoretic Hebrew Text tradition.
c) Most scholars think that 1 Esdras is probably an edited compilation taken from the Septuagint tradition of 2 Chronicles
ii. Not included in the Jewish, Protestant, or Catholic canon.
iii. Regarded as canonical in the Septuagint, in Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy, in an appendix to the Vulgate.
iv. The majority of the content parallels Ezra, Nehemiah, and 2 Chronicles.
v. Its various discrepancies, however, lead many scholars to conclude that more than one author wrote it.
vi. There are problems with the sequence of events in the book.
b. 2 Esdras - Also called the Ezra Apocalypse. This is a typical Jewish apocalypse, probably first written in Greek about A.D. 100. Some hold that it was originally written in Hebrew. It appears to be a composite work, compiled of two or three sources. Around A.D. 120 it was edited by an unknown Christian, and then translated into Latin. The Christian editor added some introductory and closing chapters in which reference is made to Christ, but the original Jewish composition was not changed in any important respect. This book was not included in Septuagint manuscripts, and so the Greek text has been lost. The most important witness to the original text is the Latin version, which was included in medieval manuscripts of the Vulgate. The book consists mostly of dialogues between Ezra and angels sent to him to answer his urgent theological questions about the problem of evil, and in particular the failures and afflictions of Israel. All of this is presented as if written long before by Ezra and hidden away. The book was obviously written as an encouragement to the Jews, who had recently suffered the destruction of Jerusalem (A.D. 70). It also includes some symbolical prophecies concerning the Roman Empire, in which Rome is figured as a three-headed eagle that oppresses the world and is finally destroyed by a roaring lion (a figure of the Messiah). There is a fantastic story of how the Hebrew Scriptures were all destroyed in the Babylonian exile and then perfectly restored by the miraculous inspiration of Ezra as he dictated all of the books to five scribes over a period of forty days. Along with the canonical books, Ezra dictates 70 secret books that are to be reserved for the wise. Second Esdras is presented as being one of these secret books. Martin Luther omitted First and Second Esdras from the Apocrypha of his German Bible in 1534, and both books were also rejected by the Roman Catholics at the Council of Trent in 1546. Nevertheless, they were included in the Apocrypha of the King James version. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
c. Tobit - This is a didactic and romantic tale written in Aramaic probably around 200 B.C., and afterwards translated into Greek. Fragments of the Aramaic text were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. The story is of a Jewish family taken to Nineveh during the Babylonian captivity. Tobit, the blind father, sends his son Tobias on a journey to collect a debt. On his way Tobias is led by an angel in disguise (Raphael) to the house of a virgin who had been married seven times, but whose husbands were all slain by a demon on their wedding night. Tobias marries the girl and drives away the demon by burning the heart of a certain fish in the bedroom, and with the help of Raphael. He returns home with the money and his bride, and then heals his father’s eyes with the fish’s gall. The story is sprinkled with pious observations and exhortations, and concludes with Tobias’ departure from Nineveh, which, after the natural death of Tobit, is destroyed in judgment. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
d. Judith - Written in Hebrew about 150 B.C., and soon translated into Greek. The Hebrew text is lost. It is a story about a beautiful young widow named Judith (meaning "Jewess") who saves her city from a military siege. She goes out to the enemy commander’s camp, allures him, gets him drunk, and then cuts off his head while he sleeps in his tent. She returns with his head and shows it to her people, exhorting the men to go forth and rout the enemy, which they do. Throughout this story she is presented as a woman who is very keen to observe the Law of Moses. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
e. The rest of Esther - These consist of six long paragraphs inserted in the Septuagint version of Esther in several places, and are thought to be the work of an Egyptian Jew writing around 170 B.C. They are designed to provide the book with a more religious tone, and to make it clear that it was for the sake of their piety that the Jews were delivered from the evil designs of the Gentiles related in the canonical book. These additions were put at the end of the book by Jerome when he made his Latin translation because he accepted only the Hebrew text as canonical. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
f. The Wisdom of Solomon - Sometimes called simply Wisdom. This book is a collection of theological and devotional essays first written in Greek by an Alexandrian Jew about 100 B.C., but presented in such a way that they seem to be discourses of king Solomon. The author compares Jewish religion with Greek philosophy, and shows faith to be the highest form of wisdom. The book is edifying and worthy of much respect. It has often been quoted by Christian writers in the past. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
g. Ecclesiasticus - originally called The Wisdom of Jesus son of Sirach, or simply Sirach. Written first in Hebrew about 200 B.C. by a wisdom teacher named Joshua Ben Sirach, and translated into Greek by his grandson around 135 B.C. The book consists mainly of proverbs and other wise sayings about common life, strung together in short discourses or organized in topical sections. It also contains longer discourses about religious life and faith, which are well worth reading. It came to be called Ecclesiasticus (the "churchly" book) because in early times it was often read in church services, being the most highly regarded of the apocryphal books. This book should not be confused with the canonical book of Ecclesiastes. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
h. Baruch – A composite book of five chapters, in which there are exhortations against association with idolatry, celebration of the Law as God’s "wisdom," and encouragements and promises to faithful Jews, collected together and edited probably about 150 B.C. The material is presented as if by Baruch, the disciple of Jeremiah, during the time of the Babylonian exile. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
i. The Epistle of Jeremiah - Often printed as chapter 6 of Baruch, this short work purports to be a letter from Jeremiah to the Jews in exile in Babylon, but this is generally regarded as an imposture, or a mere literary device used by an author writing around 200 B.C. It is essentially a short tract against pagan idolatry, and makes much use of ridicule and sarcasm. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
j. The Song of the Three Holy Children - including The Prayer of Azariah). An embellishment of the ordeal of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego recorded in the canonical book of Daniel, designed to be added after verse 23 of the third chapter. It consists of prayers and hymns of the sort which might have been offered to God by the three while in the furnace. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
k. The History of Susanna - A short story about how two lecherous old men tried to compel a beautiful and pious young wife, Susanna, to lie with them, and then publicly accused her of adultery when she refused. At a trial they give false testimony and she is condemned by the council of elders. But Daniel the prophet is divinely inspired to know the facts of the case, and he exposes the two men in a second trial, after which they are put to death. This story was put at the beginning of Daniel in the Septuagint. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
l. Bel and the Dragon - This is a combination of two stories which were also attached to Daniel in the Septuagint, at the end of the book. The story of Bel concerns a Babylonian idol of that name, to which Daniel refused to give an offering. When he was challenged he told the Persian king that the vain idol had no need of offerings because it could not eat anything. The king then required the priests of Bel to prove otherwise or die. The priests tried to deceive the king by entering the temple of Bel at night through a secret entrance and eating the food-offerings themselves, but they were exposed by Daniel, who had spread ashes on the temple floor, revealing their footprints. The priests of Bel were then slain and their temple destroyed. In the story of the Dragon Daniel refuses to worship an actual living "dragon," and accepts a challenge to slay the dragon without sword or staff. He feeds the dragon a concoction of pitch, fat, and hair, which causes it to burst open and die. Daniel’s enemies then cause him to be thrown into the lion’s den again, but the hungry lions are fed with abundant food brought from Israel by the prophet Habakkuk, who is transported to Babylon with the food by angels. Both of these stories were evidently written around 150-100 B.C. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
m. The Prayer of Manasses - This is a psalm of repentance, composed to suit the situation of Manasseh, the king of Judah who was carried captive to Babylon (see 2 Chronicles 33:11-13, where the psalm was probably intended for insertion in the Septuagint). This book was rejected by the Roman Catholics at the Council of Trent in 1546. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
n. 1 Maccabees - This book was written in Hebrew about 100 B.C., and soon afterwards translated into Greek. The Hebrew text was seen by Jerome, but is now lost. It is a sober but stirring historical account of Jewish history from 175 B.C. to 135 B.C., during which time the Jews of Palestine fought for and gained national independence from their Greek overlords. It is highly regarded by historians as a source of accurate information. (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
o. 2 Maccabees - This is not a sequel to First Maccabees, but a different account of many of the same events related in that book down to 161 B.C., combined with many fanciful and legendary additions. The writer’s interests are religious rather than historical, and he uses the history as a backdrop for advancing religious ideas current among the Jews of Alexandria during the first century B.C. It is generally thought to be later than First Maccabees, but earlier than A.D. 70. Some statements in this book support the Roman Catholic teachings on purgatory, prayers for the dead, and the intercessory work of glorified "saints." (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
2. Statements on the Apocrypha from Reformation Days (http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon2.html)
a. Luther Bible (1534). Title to Apocrypha: "APOCRYPHA, that is, Books which are not to be esteemed like the Holy Scriptures, and yet which are useful and good to read."
b. Coverdale Bible (1535). Title to Apocrypha: "APOCRYPHA: The books and treatises which among the Fathers of old are not reckoned to be of like authority with the other books of the Bible, neither are they found in the Canon of Hebrew."
c. Geneva Bible (1560). Preface: "The books that follow in order after the Prophets unto the New Testament, are called Apocrypha, that is, books which were not received by a common consent to be read and expounded publicly in the Church, neither yet served to prove any point of Christian religion save in so much as they had the consent of the other scriptures called canonical to confirm the same, or rather whereon they were grounded: but as books proceeding from godly men they were received to be read for the advancement and furtherance of the knowledge of history and for the instruction of godly manners: which books declare that at all times God had an especial care of His Church, and left them not utterly destitute of teachers and means to confirm them in the hope of the promised Messiah, and also witness that those calamities that God sent to his Church were according to his providence, who had both so threatened by his prophets, and so brought it to pass, for the destruction of their enemies and for the trial of his children."
d. Decree of the Council of Trent (1546). "The holy ecumenical and general Council of Trent . . . following the example of the orthodox Fathers, receives and venerates all the books of the Old and New Testament . . . and also the traditions pertaining to faith and conduct . . . with an equal sense of devotion and reverence . . . If, however, any one receive not, as sacred and canonical, the said books entire with all their parts, as they have by custom been read in the Catholic Church, and as they are contained in the old Latin Vulgate, and knowingly and deliberately rejects the aforesaid traditions, let him be accursed."
e. Articles of Religion of the Church of England (1563). Sixth Article: "In the name of Holy Scripture we do understand those canonical books of the Old and New Testament, of whose authority was never any doubt in the Church. . . And the other books (as Jerome saith) the Church doth read for example of life and instruction of manners: but yet doth it not apply them to establish any doctrine."
f. Westminster Confession (1647). Chapter 1 § 3: "The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine inspiration, are no part of the Canon of Scripture; and therefore are of no authority in the Church of God, nor to be any otherwise approved, or made use of, than other human writings."
D. To Be A True Account Of The Gospel There Must Be 100% Accuracy.
1. No doubt, there were also many genuine accounts of the life and ministry of the Lord, both oral and written; but these may have been incomplete, assuming, and contradictory accounts that fell short of being the whole truth.
2. Since most information was relayed by word of mouth, it is reasonable to assume that inadvertent omissions and well-intentioned embellishments had skewed the accounts at best, and made them outright false at worst.
3. As for those that were written down, copying, poor penmanship, and simple human error may have introduced certain factual misrepresentations that skewed the presentation of the truth.
4. Obviously they were not the product of divine inspiration, and were therefore unreliable.
5. What was required was divine intervention that would testify to the veracity of the accounts, accurately presenting and preserving the truth so that every word was accurate and dependable.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
a. All Scripture is inspired.
2 Timothy 3:16a, CJB
All Scripture is God-breathed…
i. Definition of inspiration – The process by which the Holy Spirit, utilizing the vocabularies and personalities of chosen individuals, extraordinarily and supernaturally guided and superintended the communication of God’s revelation to man so that it is both inerrant (without error) and infallible (incapable of error).
a) Inerrancy conveys the idea that the Bible’s teaching is true on everything of which it speaks.
i) It is not just a collection of useful ideas.
ii) It reveals the mind of God in all matters of faith and practice.
iii) We can rely on the Scriptures as our ultimate authority everything we believe because everything it says is true.
b) Infallibility conveys the idea that the Bible is incapable of error.
i) It refers to the effectiveness of the teachings of the Bible.
ii) We can rely on the Scriptures to effectively work in us as we apply them to our daily lives.
1 Thessalonians 2:13
13 For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.
iii) When we follow its teachings precisely, we cannot fail.
ii. NT:2315 qeo/pneusto$ theopneustos (theh-op’-nyoo-stos); from NT:2316 and a presumed derivative of NT:4154; divinely breathed in. (Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)
a) graphe theopneustos
b) graphe = writing
c) theos – God
d) pneuma – breath
e) theopneustos = God breathed
f) Theopneustos does not indicate that God breathed His Word into men, but that He breathed out the Word itself.
i) Paul was not inspired; the Scripture he wrote was inspired.
ii) The Spirit transported the writers above and beyond their own wills so that God transmitted His revelation by the writer’s transcription of it.
iii) Rather than saying the writers were inspired, it is more accurate to say that they were moved, guided, or superintended by the Holy Spirit.
iii. The Word originated with God Who, from within Himself, issued it forth to man.
2 Peter 1:20-21
20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, 21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
iv. Inspiration is the means by which God conveyed His written Word to mankind.
v. Without inspiration, the evangelical message of the Bible is compromised.
vi. God Himself breathed out the Word.
a) It was written by men, but God is the author.
b) It uses the words of men, but it is the Word of God.
c) It was written from within particular cultures, but it is transcultural in application.
d) The penmen were finite, but they communicated the infinite wisdom of God.
e) It was written within time, but its perspective is eternal.
vii. Five inadequate theories of inspiration are:
a) Natural inspiration or the intuition theory.
i) This theory holds that inspiration is merely a superior insight on the part of natural man.
ii) It is merely the intensifying and elevating of the religious perceptions of the writer.
iii) This view, however, puts some of the church’s great hymns on the same level as the Bible.
iv) It confuses the Holy Spirit’s work of inspiration and His work of illumination.
b) The dynamic or partial-inspiration theory.
i) This theory holds that God supplied the ability needed for the trustworthy transmission of the truth that the writers of Scripture were commissioned to deliver.
ii) This made them infallible in matters of faith and practice, but not in things that are not of an immediately religious character.
iii) Thus the writer could be in error in things that relate to history or science.
c) The theory that the thoughts, not the words, are inspired.
i) According to this theory, God suggested the thoughts of the revelation, but left it up to man to put the revelation into words.
ii) But Scripture indicates that the words themselves are inspired.
d) The theory that the Bible contains the Word of God.
i) On this theory the Bible is a human book that God can make His Word at the moment of personal encounter.
ii) The interpreter’s job is to strip away all the mythical embellishments of the writers and seek to arrive at the spiritual truth God has for us.
iii) Scripture then becomes the Word of God at that moment when God breaks through to us and reveals Himself in His Word.
iv) The problem with this view is that it is a very subjective approach to Scripture.
v) The Bible could be made to say one thing to one person and something else to another.
vi) Given man’s demonstrated infallibility and untrustworthiness as it relates to theories of interpretation, it is better to accept Scripture as the revelation of God to man, inspired by the Spirit of God, and completely trustworthy and inerrant at every point.
e) The dictation theory.
i) The dictation theory holds that the authors of Scripture were mere pens, not beings whose individualities were preserved and somehow pressed into service in the act of inspiration.
ii) But this theory ignores the manifest differences in the style of each of the writers.
iii) As the Holy Spirit breathed out the inspired Word of God, He did not set aside human personality, but rather used the personality of the human authors in the recording of His revelation.
b. Inspired Scripture is profitable for doctrine.
i. The Gr. word for doctrine is didaskalia meaning instruction.
ii. It refers to the divine instruction of the content of the Bible.
iii. CJB renders is teaching the truth.
iv. For the believer, the truth contained in the Scriptures is the source of wisdom and understanding, the revelation of all that is good, the awareness of all that is evil, and the delight of everyone who loves God.
Psalms 119:97-105
97 Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.
98 You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; for they are ever with me.
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation.
100 I understand more than the ancients, because I keep Your precepts.
101 I have restrained my feet from every evil way, that I may keep Your word.
102 I have not departed from Your judgments, for You Yourself have taught me.
103 How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 Through Your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.
105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Job 23:12
12 I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.
Psalms 19:7-10
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold,
Yea, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
c. Inspired Scripture is profitable for reproof.
i. The Gr. word is elegchos (el’-eng-khos) meaning proof or conviction. (Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)
ii. It can be understood as conviction, refutation, or revelation (of the truth), for which God’s inspired Scripture is useful. (Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament © 1990 by William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. All rights reserved.)
iii. To reprove is to state that someone has done wrong, with the implication that there is adequate proof of such wrongdoing. (Greek-English Lexicon Based on Semantic Domain. Copyright © 1988 United Bible Societies, New York. Used by permission.)
iv. To be reproved is to be rebuked for wrong behavior or wrong belief based upon the authority of the Scriptures.
v. The Scripture exposes sin in the life of a believer as well for unbelievers.
Hebrews 4:12-13
12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
vi. Because of the Scriptures, and through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, no believer can ever feel comfortable in their sin.
John 16:7-11
7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
d. Inspired Scripture is profitable for correction.
e. Inspired Scripture is profitable for instruction in righteousness.
f. Inspired Scripture equips the man of God for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:17
17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
6. In the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John we have an accurate, detailed, and divinely inspired account of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
John 21:24
24 This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true.
