standard of truth and life

"And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers." (1 Thessalonians 2:13 ESV)

"...and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God..." (Ephesians 6:17 ESV)

"And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth." (1 John 5:6 ESV)

Gresham Machen writes,

If we take the Bible as the Word of God, then the Bible becomes our standard of truth and of life. When we are asked whether we can support any kind of message or can engage in any course of conduct, what we do is simply to compare that message or that course of conduct with the Bible. If it agrees with the Bible, we can support it or follow it; if it does not agree with the Bible, we cannot support it or follow it no matter what we may be told by other authorities to do. ...

Our standard is not a flexible standard. Far from holding that what is true today becomes false tomorrow according to the shifting needs of human life, we find our standard both of truth and of conduct in the Bible, which we hold to be not a product of human experience but the Word of God. ...

The "witness of the Spirit" is not, as it is often quite falsely represented today, independent of the Bible; on the contrary it is a witness by the Holy Spirit, who is the author of the Bible, to the fact that the Bible is true.

-- J. Gresham Machen, from Selected Writings

clement quotes hebrews

Clement of Rome wrote to the church in Corinth around AD 90. This is perhaps the same Clement, companion of Paul, mentioned in Philippians 4:3. Many hold him to be the first bishop / pope in Rome, aka St. Clement I. Clement quotes from the letter to the Hebrews. Origin suggested that Clement was in fact the writer (as transcriber or amanuensis) of Hebrews. Perhaps this letter began as a "word of exhortation" given by Paul at the synagogue (Heb 13:22; cf Acts 13:15) which then became a circular letter for the churches. Other possible authors of Hebrews include Luke, Barnabas, or Apollos. The theology is Pauline, but the transcriber is obviously second-generation (Heb. 2:3-4). At any rate, this early church leader in Rome, is already quoting Hebrews in his letter in AD 90: CHAPTER 36 ALL BLESSINGS ARE GIVEN TO US THROUGH CHRIST This is the way, beloved, in which we find our Savior, even Jesus Christ, the High Prie...

Howard Hendricks on OT books chronology

When I was in seminary, Howard Hendricks (aka "Prof") gave us a little card with the books of the OT chronologically arranged. The scanned copy I have was a bit blurry and I wanted to make something like this available for our church class in OT theology ("Story of Redemption"). A few minor edits and here it is...

bible reading july 5-6

Bible reading for July 5 -- 6 July 5 -- Jeremiah 1 and Matthew 15 July 6 -- Jeremiah 2 and Matthew 16 ================ HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY, July 4! Throughout the years I have felt varying degrees of loyalty to this nation. The more I have studied history, however, and have observed God's working in it, the more deeply I have come to appreciate the founding principles of this country. In practice this nation has allowed a greater freedom for the gospel to go forth and for the church to flourish than any other nation. Along with the UK the US has been the sending base for thousands of missionaries around the world. The freedoms we have are not to be treated lightly. "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." ( The Declaration of Independence ) ================ "...my people have committed t...

my burg

Search This Blog