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Tuesday, December 27, 2022

The Doctrine Of Scripture Series: Why 1 Enoch Fails The Tests For Divine Inspiration And Canonicity



Introduction:

In our last post http://www.growingchristianresources.com/2022/12/the-doctrine-of-scripture-series-marks.html, we mentioned five "tests" or criteria gleaned from Jewish and early Christian authors that pertained to how the books of the Old and New Testament canons were recognized as being inspired from God. For sake of review, I'll list those tests below.

*Miraculous Test. Was the writer confirmed by acts of God? 

*Salvation Test. Can the book bring someone to saving faith? 

*Prophetic or Apostolic Test (Apostolicity). Was the book written by a prophet or Apostle of God, or an associate?

*Recognition Test. (Catholicity). When I use the term "catholicity", I mean not the Roman Catholic church. Instead, "catholicity" refers to "what was believed upon by all Christians, everywhere and at all times" (the term "catholic" derives from a Greek term meaning "universal"). In this test, we ask: was it recognized by the people of God?

*Truth Test (Orthodoxy). Did the message tell the truth about God, the human condition, and the world?

    We know from our previous studies that there were certain other books written by the Jews in the 400 years between Malachi and Matthew that contained historical information and which reflected what they believed. When we study this sort of Jewish literature (sometimes referred to as "Second Temple Literature" or "Intertestamental books"), we can subdivide these writings into two broad groupings. 

    The first involve a group of fifteen writings called "Apocrypha" by Protestants, and "Deuterocanonical" by Roman Catholics. The term "Apocrypha" itself means "hidden". We have explored the Apocrypha at length, showing that they did not belong in the canon, and thus cannot be deemed inspired by God. Readers may review here http://www.growingchristianresources.com/2022/10/the-doctrine-of-scripture-identifying.html. 

    A second group of "Second Temple Jewish literature", written between the close of the Old Testament and into the days of Jesus are what are termed "pseudepigrapha". Below I'll introduce these books and focus on one in particular, 1 Enoch. 

Introducing the Pseudepigraphical book of Enoch.

    In addition to the Apocrypha, there were nearly seventy or so books written between the Old and New Testaments that became known as “pseudepigrapha” (falsely ascribed writings). They are designated by this word because they are passed off as having been composed by a famous Biblical character. The Pseudepigrapha, much like their Apocrypha counterparts, mimicked the Old Testament canon. There are examples of Pseudepigrapha that read like Genesis and Exodus (the Book of Jubiliees). There are other Pseudepigrapha that are "apocalyptic" or prophetic, such as the Apocalypse of Baruch. There are pseudepigrapha that imitate the style of the Biblical Psalms (such as the Pseudepigrphical "Psalms 151"). 

    Popular level publishers will mistakenly call these books "the lost books of the Bible". However, as we have learned in our studies of the canonization of the Biblical books, no books were "lost". The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha were well known in their day, however they were never recognized as "inspired" or "canonical". One only need read the writings of the Jewish philosopher Philo or the Jewish historian Josephus to see this point. Philo quoted extensively from the book of Genesis, yet never once did he quote the Apocrypha or Pseudepigrapha. Josephus' writings will quote the canonical Old Testament books, yet we never see a citation of the Apocrypha or Pseudepigrapha. 

    To be fair, they make for interesting reading, and do tell us about what the Jews talked about prior to the days of Jesus. Mostly, the Pseudepigrapha will speculate on details not mentioned in the canonical Old Testament. 

    The most prominent example of this type of literature is the book of “1 Enoch” (sometimes called simply "The Book of Enoch). As we assess whether the Book of 1 Enoch was inspired or not, we need to realize that the relevance of this question lies in how the book of Jude utilized it. 

    As one considers Jude’s citation of Enoch in Jude 1:14-15, the prophecy itself is not recorded within the book of Genesis or anywhere else in the canonical Old Testament. In my studies of the Book of Enoch, I found that Jude was likely alluding the opening chapter of 1 Enoch in 1 Enoch 1:9. Jude's choice to use 1 Enoch in making his point ought not be taken as his endorsing it as inspired and thus canonical. Paul for instance quoted pagan poets in his sermon on Mars Hill in Acts 17, yet he clearly did not conceive of those writings as inspired.

    The man Enoch in the Bible must be compared and included in how we assess the proported book of Enoch. Though there is no formal prophecy by Enoch in the Old Testament, we do find the man himself in Genesis 5:21-24 – 

“Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah.  22 Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters.  23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years.  24 Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.”

    Enoch, along with another prophetic figure, Elijah, were the only men in redemptive history who never tasted death. Enoch had been taken directly to heaven by God. 

    This fascinating fact prompted the Jews over the centuries to speculate and develop traditions around Enoch, especially in the period of time between the Old and New Testaments. As mentioned already, during this 400 year period of time, the Jews produced roughly seventy volumes of devotional, theological and apocalyptic literature (these being distinguished from the "Apocrypha") in an attempt to express their faith and anticipate their increasing desire for the coming Messiah.

    One of the traits of this literature era was to attach the name of a well-known biblical figure (such as Enoch) and claim the text to had derived from that author’s words, writing or actions. As mentioned above, such literary works are deemed by scholars as “pseudepigrapha”. 1 

     Peter J. Gentry, in a journal article: "Reassessing Jude’s Use Of Enochic Traditions (With Notes On Their Later Reception History)" appearing in the Tyndale Bulletin, Volume 68, Issue 2, evaluates the Book of Enoch in its contents and overall question of its canonicity. Readers can peer at his outline in the endnotes.2  In my own reading of 1 Enoch, I used an online version of the book found at https://book-ofenoch.com/. As I read through 1 Enoch, I utilized Gentry's outline in navigating its contents, which proved mighty helpful. What follows from here is testing 1 Enoch for marks of Divine inspiration by way of the five tests mentioned above in the beginning of this post.

Testing 1 Enoch for marks of Divine inspiration

1. Miraculous Test. Was the writer confirmed by acts of God? 

    The Biblical Enoch in Genesis 5:21-26 was no doubt a prophet. He is explained as possessing prophectic abilities in Jude 1:14-15. The Bible nowhere claims that Enoch ever performed any miracles that attested his prophethood. One of the attributes of the Biblical authors was that some sort of miraculous activity confirmed their identity and message. Moreover, in my reading of 1 Enoch, I see no evidence of fulfilled prophecy (with the exception of 1 Enoch 1:9, cited by Jude 1:14-15, which as explained already, was used because it contained a grain of truth, without endorsement of the book). As will be seen in the "Prophetic Test", the Enoch of 1 Enoch, which we could term "a literary Enoch", is not the author he claims to be, the "Biblical Enoch". 1 Enoch fails this first test, lacking the miraculous.

*Salvation Test. Can the book bring someone to saving faith? 

    In order for a book of the Bible to perform this act, it would have to teach the constant message of the Bible that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, apart from works - known as "the doctrine of justification by faith" (see Genesis 15:6; Romans 3:24-26; 4:1-3 Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:4-5). In my reading of 1 Enoch 97 and 103, I found that 1 Enoch taught works salvation. Readers can read a citation of 1 Enoch 97:9-10 in the endnotes below to see my point.3 

    1 Enoch reflects what had become a growing trend in intertestamental Judaism's growing body of traditions - the possibility of attaining favor with God by the way of faith plus works. Jesus had to deal with hypocrites that thought they could attain salvation by way of lawkeeping. As one studies either the Apocryphal books or pseudepigrpha, it becomes apparent what religious traditions had developed prior to our Lord's coming. Jesus only ever quoted the canonical Old Testament books (thus never anything from the Apocrypha nor Pseudepigrapha, including the Book of Enoch). Hence, 1 Enoch fails the salvation test. 

*Prophetic or Apostolic Test (Apostolicity). Was the book written by a prophet or Apostle of God, or an associate?

    As we evaluate the Book of 1 Enoch through this third test, we can confidently confirm that 1 Enoch was not written by its namesake. According to the late Biblical Scholar R.H Charles in his edited work “The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament in English – Volume II”, page 164, 1 Enoch was composed by a variety of authors from the pre-Maccabean period (pre-168 b.c) with the final portion being completed in (105-64b.c). Thus, the authenticity of the book is in doubt, due to it not being written by the Biblical Enoch. 

    As a final note on this test, scholars have shown that the production of pseudepigrapha in the intertestamental period was a sign that the Spirit of prophecy was not producing new inspired books. Books such as 1 Enoch relied on "namedropping" a famous Biblical character to produce its version of Enoch, whom I called earlier a "literary Enoch". This technique employed by pseudepigraphical writers bypassed making any explicit claims of Divine inspiration, and actually showed the lack of the Spirit's prophetic activity in that era.  As I read through 1 Enoch, I did not see the well known phrase "thus says the Lord". 

*Recognition Test. (Catholicity). In this test, we ask: was it recognized by the people of God?

       The only group that ever decided to recognize the Book of Enoch as Scripture was the Ethiopic Church. The otherwise universal rejection of 1 Enoch as part of the Old Testament canon demonstrates that early Jews and Christians believed it did not convey the words of God. 

*Truth Test (Orthodoxy). Did the message tell the truth about God, the human condition, and the world?

    In this final test, we can note that when reading through 1 Enoch, it develops a rather speculative and detailed doctrine of angels (i.e. angelology). In the first 36 chapters of Enoch, as section known as "the book of the Watchers", several places indicate that the fall came about because of certain fallen angels bringing sin into the world. Although Satan and a third of the angelic host did rebel against God shortly after the completion of our physical world (Isaiah 14; Ezekiel 28; Revelation 12), yet it is not they who were credited with direct causation of the fall.  1 Enoch bypasses and conflicts with the Biblical teaching that Adam and Eve were the ones responsible for sin befalling the human race and the creation (Genesis 3 and Romans 5:11-21). This point shows that 1 Enoch cannot be inspired, due to its failure to express accurately such an important truth as the Fall. 

Conclusion:

    In today's post we subjected the book of 1 Enoch to the five tests of inspiration and canonicity we explored in previous posts. We conluded that 1 Enoch did not pass any of the tests, and hence ought not be considered as part of the canon. If one were to read the other pseudepigrpha, they would reach similar conclusions. This post only shows that there are really no so called "Lost Books of the Bible". All the books that were inspired by God belonged in the canon. 

    As God's people would recognize and use the inspired books, the process of canonization would simply affirm the books already belonging in the canon. 1 Enoch never would enjoy the universal reognition among early Jews or even the later Christian church. Nevertheless, 1 Enoch is valuable in showing us what the Jews believed in the days leading up to Jesus. 

Endnotes:

Endnote 1. Dr. Craig Evans, Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament at Acadia Divinity College, quotes literary scholar James Charlesworth’s definition of pseudepigraphical literature in his book: “Ancient Texts for New Testament Studies”, page 28: 

“The present description of the Pseudepigrapha is as follows: Those writings 

1). that….are Jewish or Christian.
2). that are often attributed to ideal figures of Israel’s past.
3). that customarily claim to contain God’s word or message.
4). that frequently build upon ideas and narratives present in the OT.
5). and that almost always were composed either or during the period 200 B.C. to A.D. 200 or, though late, aparently preserve. albeit an edited form, Jewish traditions that date from that period.”

Endnote 2. In his article, on page 263, Gentry gives a helpful outline of the Book of Enoch, noting its portions in the chronological order of their composition.

1. Book of Heavenly Luminaries (chaps 72–82)
2. The Book of the Watchers (chaps 1–36)
3. Enoch’s Two Dream Visions (chaps 83–90)
4. Two Pieces of Testamentary Narrative (81:2–82:3; 91)
5. The Epistle of Enoch (chaps 92–105)
6. An Account of Noah’s Birth (chaps 106–107)
7. Another Book by Enoch (chap. 108)
8. The Book of Parable (chaps 37–71)
9. The Book of the Giants (not in Ethiopic book of Enoch)

Endnote 3: 1 Enoch 97:9-10 "But in those days blessed shall they be, to whom the word of wisdom is delivered; who point out and pursue the path of the Most High; who walk in the way of righteousness, and who act not impiously with the impious. 10. They shall be saved."

    As already noted, the Jews were fond of producing literature that claimed a famous biblical figure as it’s author. With regards to "The Book of Enoch", one influential example of this type of literature is entitled “1 Enoch”.  

    The Jews living in the days of Jude’s Epistle would had been familiar with 1 Enoch. Much like our modern day Christian novels and books, “1 Enoch” or sometimes simply called “Enoch”, shaped the thinking of many Jews living in the regions around Israel.
    
   











Sunday, December 25, 2022

A Theological And Biblical Meditation On The Meaning Of Christmas



Introduction:

    Merry Christmas to all who have decided to visit this site today. Today's post will theologically and Biblically draw together how Christ's incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection fit together. 

How Jesus' incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection theologically give us the true meaning of Christmas.

    To begin our theological meditations this Christmas day, as ws we celebrate, let us remember that one cannot make sense of the meaning of Christmas apart from three foundational Christian doctrines: incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection.

Incarnation explains the means of the Son of God's entry into our world.

    When we speak of Christ's incarnation, we refer to how the Son of God, being truly God by nature with the Father and the Holy Spirit as the blessed Trinity, came Himself into our world to assume a truly human nature in the virgin's womb (see Matthew 1:21;23; John 1:14; Colossians 2:9; 1 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 2:11-14). Christ's incarnation is the means of coming into our world. But then, why become incarnated as a man?

Crucifixion explains the mission for why the Son of God became incarnated.

    The mission of the incarnation was for sake of crucifixion. It has been well said that the shadow of the cross ever fell upon the cradle at Bethlehem. The curse of sin brought about by the first Adam needed broken by the second Adam (see Deuteronomy 21:22-23; Romans 5:12-21; Galatians 3:10-13; 1 Corinthians 15:45-47). The curse of sin, pronounced by God in the Garden of Eden, could only be undone by one being truly God by nature (see Genesis 3:1-7; Romans 8:21-25; Colossians 1:16-21). Christ, being God, came to be man to go to the cross to bear the curse as both second Adam and ever truly God. But did His efforts work?

Resurrection was how the Son of God would manifest His glory as truly God and truly man.

    This is where we come to the third truth - Christ's resurrection. The means of entry into our world - incarnation; and the mission for which He came - crucifixion; would lead to the manifest glory of His resurrection from the dead. Bethlehem and Calvary were proved effective on the morning of the empty tomb. Christ's physical resurrection from the dead meant He would forever hold the keys of death and hell (Revelation 1:12-21).

    With those thoughts in place, the aim now is to Biblically draw as many parallels as possible between the birth narratives of Matthew and Luke to the crucifixion and resurrection accounts of the Lord Jesus Christ. John 18, 19 and 20 will be our main text for the crucifixion and resurrection narratives, with connecting points being drawn from Matthew and Luke. Below I will list some main headings and associated verses to aid you, the reader, in connecting the Christmas event of the cradle at Bethlehem to the Mission of the Savior at the cross.

1. The Shepherds told about the Savior born, who would die for the people as the Good Sherpherd.

Luke 2:11 "for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."

John 18:14 "Now Caiaphas was he, which gave counsel to the Jews, that it was expedient that one man should die for the people."

What links these two passages together is the fact we see Jesus, our Good Shepherd.

2. He was Born and Died "The King of the Jews" because He is the True King.

Matthew 2:2 “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

John 19:19 "And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS."

What links these two passages together is the fact we see Jesus our True King.

3. The Roman Empire was included in His birth and death, since Christ is the Ultimate Ruler.

Luke 2:1 "Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth."

John 19:23 "Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout."

What links these two passages together is the fact we see Jesus the Ultimate Ruler.

4. The Prediction of Mary's agony at His death spoken after his birth, hence He came as the obedient Son.

Luke 2:35 "and a sword will pierce even your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

John 19:26-27 "When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! 27 Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home."

What links these two passages together is the fact we see Jesus the Obedient Son.

5. The presence of myrrh in the accounts of His birth and death meant He would satisfy God's wrath for our sakes.

Luke 2:11 "After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh."

John 19:39 "And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight."

What links these two passages together is the fact we see Jesus the Satisfaction of wrath.

6. Angels were present at His birth and resurrection, which heralded He being the victorious Savior.

Luke 2:13-14 "And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

John 20:12-14 "and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. 13 And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” 14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. "

What links these two passages together is the fact we see Jesus the Victorious Savior.

Closing Thoughts

    When one considers the linkage between the manger, the cross, and resurrection, the lines of connection are extraordinary. In the midst of this Christmas Day celebration, let us not ever separate the cradle and the cross. As we have journeyed theologically and Biblically in this post, we noted the following six truths about the Lord Jesus Christ.

1. Jesus, our Good Shepherd
2. Jesus, our True King
3. Jesus, our Ultimate Ruler
4. Jesus, the Obedient Son
5. Jesus, the Satisfaction of Wrath
6. Jesus, the Victorious Savior

    May everyone have a Merry Christmas!

Friday, December 16, 2022

The Doctrine of Scripture Series: Marks Of Divine Inspiration For The Old And New Testament Canons



Introduction:

    As we have taken time to survey the doctrine of Scripture, we have done so in what I would call three stages. The first few posts handled introducing the subject as it pertains to the characteristics of Scripture itself and explaining the doctrine of inspiration. 

    Then, in “stage two” of this series, we investigated the Old Testament canon. We explored how it was the early Jews and Christians who came to recognize the 39 books of the Old Testament as Divinely inspired. Along the way, we explored the so-called “Apocryphal books”, evaluating whether or not they belong in the Old Testament canon, having concluded that they did not. 

    The third stage of this series has explored the New Testament canon. So far, we have noted the formation and collection of the New Testament books. Thus far have we traveled in our journey. For interested readers, I have preached a series of messages on Sunday nights dealing with the above topics, which readers can access at our church's website here https://www.youtube.com/@NewHopeBaptistChurchWatertown.

    In this post I want us to look at what Bible scholars refer to as "marks of Divine inspiration" or what others sometimes refer to as "tests for Divine inspiration". When one reads the early church fathers, such as Irenaeus of Lyons work "Against Heresies" (2nd century) or Eusebius' work "Ecclesiastical History" (early 4th century), certain criteria are inferred from how the early Christians recognized, received, and began to use the books of the New Testament. Similarly, when one reads through Jewish authors such as Philo of Alexandria, or Josephus, or the writings of the various Rabbinical schools (found in such volumes as "The Talmud"), similar sorts of criteria are noticed.  In my own study over the years, scholarship on canonicity done by such men as Norman Geisler, Gleason Archer, Michael Kruger, R.C. Sproul, Ben Witherington III, and David Alan Black have sharpened my thinking. What I share below are gleanings on such "marks of Divine inspiration" that I have discovered over the years, notwithstanding of course the gifted insights of Godly individuals such as those I just mentioned.

1. Why it is important to know which books are the Word of God.

    This issue of knowing which books are inspired or “canonical” has never lost its importance. Paul already had to deal with false teachers posing with their false documents claiming Divine authority. We read in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, 2 that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.”

    Luke, Paul’s aide in the ministry, wrote his Gospel to ensure the accuracy of the Gospel being preached throughout the Mediterranean world. He writes in Luke 1:1-4

“Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, 3 it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; 4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.”

    Paul especially would urge his readers to have what he wrote read in the churches, that is, preached and taught, as we see in 1 Thessalonians 5:27 "I adjure you by the Lord to have this letter read to all the brethren." Having the right books is vital to establishing sound churches. One more example that demonstrates the importance of having the right books involves Peter’s words in 2 Peter 3:16-18

"as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen."

    The New Testament evidence overwhelmingly shows us the importance of having the right books. I could also take the time to rehearse how the early church in the centuries after the Apostles worked through affirming and defending the New Testament canon. 

2. How we know that the books we have are the Word of God.

    Since Christianity proceeds on the basis of God’s Word, knowing which books are the Word of God is of utmost practical, as well as theological importance. Below are a series of “tests” that theologians have drawn from reading the early church father’s writings about the early church, their practices, and what they had to say about the Scriptures.

A. Old Testament marks of Divine inspiration.

    We must realize that it was the inspired books as God’s canon that formed God’s people, rather than God’s people formulating the inspired books that belonged to the canon. As each Old Testament book was composed, its recognition as inspired (and thus canonical) was immediate. Just as Isaac Newton came to recognize the law of gravity already present in creation, God’s people would recognize certain books already revealed by their Creator. So what principles were used? Let me mention two principles for how God’s people recognized the inspired books of the Old Testament Canon from insights gained in reading Normal Geisler’s “A General Introduction to the Bible” and Gleason Archer’s “A Survey of the Old Testament”.

*Miraculous Test. Was the writer confirmed by acts of God? See Exod. 4:1-9; Num. 16-17;
1 Kings 18; Mark 2; Acts 2:22; Heb. 2:4.

*Salvation Test. Can the book bring someone to saving faith? See Is. 55:11; 2 Tim. 3:15-17; Hebrews 4:12; 1 Pet. 1:23

    The Canon’s use would be used of God to call the people of God back to Himself. 2 Kings 22:9-11 “Shaphan the scribe came to the king and brought back word to the king and said, “Your servants have emptied out the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the Lord.” 10 Moreover, Shaphan the scribe told the king saying, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it in the presence of the king. 11 When the king heard the words of the book of the law, he tore his clothes.“

B. New Testament marks of Divine inspiration.

    The “tests” we just looked at are similarly used in how God’s people came to recognize the New Testament books. When it comes to those, we can note three other such “tests”.

*Prophetic or Apostolic Test (Apostolicity). Was the book written by a prophet or Apostle of God, or an associate? In Exodus 24:4, we read of how Moses wrote down the words of God. Luke, and associate of Paul, writes in Luke 1:3-4 

“it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; 4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.”

*Recognition Test. (Catholicity). When I use the term "catholicity", I mean not the Roman Catholic church. Instead, "catholicity" refers to "what was believed upon by all Christians, everywhere and at all times" (the term "catholic" derives from a Greek term meaning "universal"). In this test, we ask: was it recognized by the people of God? The Old Testament’s books recognition is demonstrated by how quickly they went into use after their writing. This observation fits too with the New Testament books. When one reads 1 Timothy 5:18, Paul cites Deuteronomy and Luke's Gospel as sacred Scripture. The dating of 1 Timothy (62-66 A.D.) and Luke's Gospel (60-62 A.D.) indicates immediate reocognition, reception, and use by God's people. 

    For an Old Testament example, in Joshua 24:26, we read of Joshua’s book being included alongside the first five books of Moses or “The Law”. Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:27 “I adjure you by the Lord to have this letter read to all the brethren.” That phrase "read in all the churches" was Paul's way of saying "treat what I just wrote to you as auhthoritative Scripture". 

*Truth Test (Orthodoxy). Did the message tell the truth about God, the human condition, and the world? See Deut. 13:1-3; 18:21-22. For the New Testament, the preaching of the Apostles functioned as a standard while
the New Testament books were being written, recognized, and completed. 

    Daniel Wallace describes the three main doctrines comprising the orthodox Christian preaching (called “regula fide” or “rule of faith”): 

1. God as Creator with creation being good.
2. Jesus as truly human and truly God.
3. Creation needing redemption. 

    As the early church grew and confronted error and persecution, this “rule of faith” was a lens through which the early Christians understood the canonical books of the New Testament. Ultimately, the Old Testament Canon, Christ’s resurrection, and the completion of the New Testament canon provided the triple foundation for the
truth handed down to the saints. Jude 1:3 reminds us: 

“Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the
faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.”


Closing thoughts for today:

    We have then five “tests” or marks of Divine inspiration: 

1. The miraculous test.
2. The salvation test.
3. The prophetic or apostolic test. 
4. The recognition test.
5. The truth test. 

    These types of standards are how we can tell that we have the inspired books that comprise the Old and New Testament canons. But now, what of other books which claim Divine inspiration? For that, we will reserve for our next post.


Friday, December 2, 2022

The Doctrine Of Scripture Series: Why Knowing Which Books Belong In The Biblical Canon Is So Important



Introduction:

    As we have taken time to survey the doctrine of Scripture, we have done so in what I would call three stages. The first three posts introduced the characteristics of Scripture itself and explaining the doctrine of inspiration. Then, in “stage two” of this series, we investigated the Old Testament canon, exploring how it was the early Jews and Christians came to recognize the 39 books of the Old Testament as Divinely inspired. Along the way, we explored the so-called “Apocryphal books”, evaluating whether or not they belong in the Old Testament canon, having concluded that they did not. The third stage of this series has explored the New Testament canon. So far, we have noted the formation and collection of the New Testament books. Thus far have we traveled in our journey.

    In this post, I want us to understand why the question of the canon is so important to Christians today. This post and the next one will evaluate how we can know for sure we have the right books in the Bible, as well as examining claims of Divine inspiration by other religions for their literature. 

Why it is important to know which books are the Word of God.

    This issue of knowing which books are inspired or “canonical” has never lost its importance. Paul already had to deal with false teachers posing with their false documents, claiming Divine authority. When we turn to his second letter to the church at Thessolonica, we find the first reason why the topic of canonization is important.

1. Defending Christianity - The Apologetic task of the canon. 

    We read in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 

“Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, 2 that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.”

    There were those in Paul's day who were going around, claiming that the eschatological Day of the Lord and the end of the age had passed by, leaving those behind who were never really redeemed. Imagine how much disturbance this sent through the church at Thessalonica. One of the reasons for the canon, and the New Testament canon in particular, was to provide an "apologetic", that is, a defense of the claims of Jesus' death, resurrection, ascension, and soon return. 

    So, we see the apologetic value of having a canon of inspired books wherewith we can defend the faith. But now what about proclaiming the Christian faith to those who already believe the Gospel? This brings us to Luke's introductory remarks in his Gospel, and the second reason for a canon of Scripture.

2. The Preaching Task - The Expository Function Of The Canon.

    Luke, Paul’s aide in the ministry, wrote his Gospel to ensure the accuracy of the Gospel being preached throughout the Mediterranean world. He writes in Luke 1:1-4

“Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, 3 it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; 4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.”

    Paul especially would urge his readers to have what he wrote read in the churches, that is, preached and taught, as we see in 1 Thessalonians 5:27 

"I adjure you by the Lord to have this letter read to all the brethren. Having the right books is vital to establishing sound churches." 

    When Jesus ascended into Heaven, the early Christians had two foundations upon which they built their faith. They had the Old Testament canon. Then, they had the preaching of the Apostles that formed a body of doctrinal truth about the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. This body of truth would become codified in early creeds, some of which appear in the New Testament, and others of which appear in the second and third centuries of the early church (for example, the old Roman creed that would form the basis for the later "Apostle's Creed"). Such body of teaching came to be known as "the rule of faith" ("regula fide").

    However, as Jesus had indicated to His disciples, the Spirit was sent to make known to them all He had taught them. This meant that a third foundation for the Christian church would come along that functioned alongside those first two foundations - namely the canonical books of the New Testament canon ("regula canona").

    As the books of the New Testament were composed, the preaching of the early church became stronger, more stable, and more accurate. It was not the church that formed the New Testament. Instead, the New Testament would come to make the early church what it came to be. So, we have found that the canon of Scripture is vital for the apologetic task, the preaching task, and then one more. 

3. The Sanctification Task - The Discipleship Building Function Of The Canon.

    One more example that demonstrates the importance of having the right books involves Peter’s words in 2 Peter 3:16-18

"as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen."

    Peter alludes to what was an already completed collection of the Apostle Paul's writings. He connects the Old Testament canon and Paul's writings, representing the New Testament canon, to the imperative of discipleship. Note again what we says in 2 Peter 3:18 "
but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen."

    You and I cannont grow apart from the canonical Scriptures. In Romans 15:4, we are reminded of the need for the Old Testament in growing the Christian faith. Then of course, Peter's words reinforce the need for the New Testament canon. Unless we build Christianity upon the canonical Scriptures, our Christianity will die on the vine. 

Closing thoughts:

    Today we found three reasons for knowing which books belong in the Biblical canon.

1. The Apologetic Task - Defending the Faith.
2. The Expository Task - Preaching the Faith.
3. The Sanctification Task - Growing in the Faith.