We've been coming, we've been looking at God's revelation, his clear revelation of himself in creation, you remember, in the makeup of man, both his physical, mental, and moral makeup, that we see God, a revelation of God in those things. We see a revelation of God in ruling the world in history. You can't help but look at the history of the world and see God ruling in that area, in that circumstance. We see God's revelation in the advent of Christ coming to earth and in the scriptures. And so today, having looked at man's need in particular last week with regard to Revelation and God's desire to fill that need, we now come to something that I think is very important, and that is the Bible's own claims. regarding what it is and where it comes from. You will have some people that will try to make fun of this. They will try to say, oh, well, that's just the proof of something by itself. Yes, that's exactly right. It's the testimony of the very thing as to what it is and what it claims to be. You see this occasionally now in political things or just in world events, where somebody will say something to the effect of, Don't listen to what they say, watch what they do, okay? Politicians in particular are known for saying one thing and doing something else. Well, what are they really? What's their end game really? It's what they do. It's what they're setting out to do. And that's true of people in general, but we also can apply something like that as we come here. and look to the Bible, what does the Bible say about itself? What does it claim? And you'll see, I think why this is important in a few minutes when we get down to other explanations that men have offered over time. What are the Bible's own claims? First of all, We're gonna look at names used of the Bible. And at the beginning here, I probably have more scripture than usual, but because I want you to see what the Bible says. That's kind of the point of the lesson today. So the names used of the Bible in the Bible. First of all, it is known as the word of God. Isaiah 34 verse 16 is one example. It says, search from the book of the Lord and read. So the Bible itself calls itself the Word of God, the Book of the Lord. That's what it claims to be. The Bible itself says God is the author and the authority in it, Daniel 10, 21. But I will tell you what is noted in the scripture of truth. So again, the Bible says, this is what's in the scriptures. This is what is the truth of the scriptures. It's spoken with authority. There is no confusion. There is no contradiction. The word of God is without error. And I know you're gonna have to say, well, people say the Bible's full of errors. They're not, you're looking for it yourself, okay? Look and see what the Bible says. Most of the errors that I've heard over the years about, well, the Bible contradicts it, they're easily explained. Anyone who's paid any attention to biblical teaching at all can easily explain what's going on in the Bible, and especially comparing scripture with scripture. And remember the scriptures are a whole. They're meant to be looked at and taken together as a whole. And so there is no contradiction. There is no confusion in the word of God. It is without error. It is the scripture of truth. It is in fact, the very breath of God. Philippians 2.16 says, holding fast the word of life. That's the Bible's description of itself. It is the word of life. It is the very breath of God. We know another verse where it says, it is God breathed. It is the very breath of God. It is indestructible. It's not something that has faded away over the years. Both the Old Testament, which existed for many hundreds and hundreds of years, and now the New Testament, which has many hundreds and hundreds of years of history behind it. And it's just as relevant today as it was a thousand years ago. because it is the very breath of life, the very breath of God. It is indestructible. And it is that which God, in which God himself speaks. Romans 3, 2 says, to them were committed the oracles of God. That's the speaking of God. It is the writing, the gathering together of those things that God spoke. And so that's just a quick brief survey of the names that are used in the Bible about itself and how it describes itself. So make no doubt, don't lose sight of the fact that as we talk about the Bible, this is what the Bible says it is. So you may not believe it, you may not listen to it, you may argue with it, but it still is what it is. And that's important as both Christians and non-Christians look at the Bible to say, what does the Bible claim? And then the second part regarding the Bible's own claims is this, that God spoke what is contained in the Bible. It is the Holy Word of God. It is the very Word of God. It is a direct communication from the living God. Luke 1 verse 70 says, As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets. And right there we have the whole idea of inspiration of scripture. God speaking through or by the mouth of his holy prophets. They're the tool, there's the instrument. But it is God speaking. It's a direct communication from the living God. And by the way, if you look, that verse in Luke is a quotation from the Old Testament. So again, a testament to the New Testament's view of the Old Testament. There's no dichotomy there. There's no setting one up against the other and, well, this is okay, but that's not. You will see very consistently in the Word of God that the Bible and the authors of the New Testament in particular, including Jesus Christ, and we'll get to this, but including Jesus Christ, very much treat the Bible as the Word of God. And what it says is what is to be done. It is not only a direct communication from the living God, it is perfect and without blemish. Psalm 19 verse 7 says, The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. And I want to make sure I didn't get off track on that. But I mean, look at all that's packed in there in those three verses. all of the things that are contained in the word of God. And just, you know, you can pick out any one of them. The commandment of the Lord is pure. So God spoke the word of God and what he commanded is pure. It enlightens the eyes. Are you having trouble seeing? Are you having difficulty knowing what's going on? As I get a little older, I'm starting to have some trouble seeing, and they tell me it's a cataract coming. Okay, wow, can't wait. But every once in a while, things are a little fuzzy. And I've noticed it at night more now, that it's clear and then it's fuzzy, and it's clear and then it's fuzzy, and that might be the other thing that's floating around in my eye too, but whatever. But the point is, The words of God are clear. If you're not sure what to do or how to live or how to act, the word of God is clear and will give you that wisdom, will give you that direction. And so look to the word of God and see what God says there. It is instructive and it is discerning when it comes to us. The word of God instructs us and it helps us to discern ourselves and others. Now, why is that? Because God spoke it and he created us. Is there anybody that doesn't know more about the thing than the person that created it? You can learn something. Maybe computers, if that's your thing, sorry, I'm in there with you. Maybe it's medical things, maybe it's how to run machinery. You can learn that thing, and you can learn it really well. But there's a good chance that the guy that first built it knows it better than you do. He made it. He understands what he was thinking as he put it together. And so God understands us, and therefore the word of God is instructive concerning man. Hebrews 4.12 says, 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. Now, of course, there's a reference there that's very interesting. A lot of people always, oh, that's a cultural thing in the Bible. It only has to do with those people in those time. Well, interestingly enough, I think the reference to the two-edged sword probably has to do with what the Roman soldiers carried every day. So the people that were living in this time, they were very familiar with that two-edged sword, and you didn't want any part of it. But isn't it interesting how 2,000 years later, we all also know what the effect of a two-edged sword is, right? Okay, I thought about this. At least the guys do. I haven't met too many women that are fascinated with knives and pocket knives. But I know guys, in fact, you could do a knife check if you want. I know most of you guys have a pocket knife in your pocket, or you should. No, you have one. Or you have two. Or you have one at home. Or you have two or three at home, right? Because they're tools and they're useful and we use them all the time. And so it's interesting how this reference is made here to the Word of God is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword. And right away, we know what the purpose of the Word of God is. It's to cut, it's to pierce, it's to divine the intent, and to do that by separating and pushing apart what you're looking at and how you want to get to where you want to get. And that is the purpose of the Word of God. And it's timeless. It's as important to those persons in that day when Hebrews was, yeah, I think that was Hebrews, sorry. When the Hebrews, the book was written to Hebrews as it is to us today. So the analogy holds up over thousands of years. Isn't that coincidental? No, no, it's not. That's providential. I know that's his sermon a little bit, but the scriptures are full of the providences of God. And so we see things like this, where it's very clear and very easy that as you walk out of here, and probably the next time you use a knife, you're gonna think about the spirit of God, which is the word of God, the living and powerful word of God, and how you can use it to slice and to cut and to do the things that are necessary and that are applicable to us. And so Peter says in 1 Peter 1 25, but the word of the Lord endures forever. There are things that you wrestle with that are in the word of God, because pick any Old Testament character you like, because David wrestled with them. Because Adam wrestled with him. Because Job wrestled with him. Why? because men are the same. They were created in the image of God. Their nature is the same. When you look at the times in which we live and you say, why are men like this? Why do men act the way they act? Because they're just as sinful and fallen today as they were a hundred years ago or a thousand years ago or 5,000 years ago. And so the word of God is timeless. and applicable, the word of the Lord endures forever, because God spoke it. So it also, as God spoke it, is a holy and present salvation. 2 Timothy 3.15 says, and that from childhood you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. The scriptures spoken by God are a holy and present salvation. They will save you today as much as they saved someone hundreds of years ago, as much as they will save someone hundreds of years in the future if we tarry that long. but they are a present salvation. And so Paul tells Timothy, you have known the scriptures, the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. You see, there's a basic, fundamental, foundational teaching of the Christian church, faith in Christ. And it's contained right there in that verse. And it's because God spoke that and gave it to us. We also see these things were done, as we saw back in Luke a minute ago, by the mouth of his holy servants. Luke 1.70, if you don't remember a minute ago, he says, and he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets. Acts 1.16 says, men and brethren, this scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas. How specific is that? that there would be one numbered in the 12 apostles who would turn against Christ and commit sin and do what we would say is unthinkable, except we all understand how sinful we can be. And yet it was spoken by the mouth of David and it had to be fulfilled. Why? Because it couldn't be any other way. God spoke it. It must come to pass. And we see it referenced again. The scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke by the mouth of David. You see that the interweaving of these teachings here, the scripture is the same as the Holy Spirit speaking because God is speaking through David. You see how they're all woven together. And so the final thought here under God spoken is this, the Holy One is their author, the author of scriptures. And the scriptures treat of the holy things of God and call for holy hearts and lives from their readers. So we see this being spoken by God and laying a burden on us to act and to be what we should be in sight of what God's revelation to us is. And we come, you see, that comes back to this idea, this is the doctrine of revelation. It is God revealing himself and therefore ourselves as he goes through the scriptures, as he speaks through the scriptures. Now, we're going to deal with something for just a minute here, and this is one of the things I considered leaving out this morning and I couldn't. And that is, there is no other explanation feasible for the word of God, other than it is given by God as his revelation. And the reason I didn't leave it out is because Pink does a good job here. He says there's only three explanations for the source of the word of God. I had only thought of two. And the second one, the middle one, you'll see, I was like, hmm, hadn't really thought about that. But the first one I absolutely thought of because a long, long time ago when I was going to Bridgewater College, a supposedly Christian school at the time, I believe they've given that pretense up all completely 100%. But it was run by people that were religious. And I sat in a New Testament survey class. It was one of the required classes I had to take. And I sat there and listened to a man teaching New Testament surveys saying, the Bible isn't really the word of God. It's just a book written by good men. And I was like, what? Good men that lied? Well, Pink agrees with me, okay? Liars, that's the only one of three possible explanations for the word of God. It was written by liars. Wicked, deceitful men created a book that has done more to promote morality and produce holiness than any other book ever written. Yeah, isn't that weird to use the phrase of the day? That's ridiculous. That is utterly ridiculous, and yet that man who had a doctor's degree argued that that's what the Bible was. To which I responded, why bother? Why are we bothering studying it? Why don't you just give us all A's and let us take the rest of the semester off? He didn't, by the way, but it was worth a try. Why? Why would we read a book written by a liar? Well, it has good thoughts in it. Really? Based on liars? Based on deceit? That's ridiculous. And in fact, based on something that the scripture itself condemns, Revelation 21 and verse eight says, but the cowardly, the unbelieving, the abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. Now, if men with that character had written it, don't you think they would have maybe made it a little easier on themselves? What was their purpose in writing these things? So that's only one of three possible explanations that was written by liars, deceitful men. The second one, and this is one I hadn't considered, but I understand it, and I even understood Pink's kind of explanation of it after thinking about it a little bit, is that it was written by deluded men. In other words, those that were I can't think of another word for deluded. They were confused. They were poets. They were mystics. They were enthusiasts, religious enthusiasts. But really, it's no more than just a dream or a fantasy that they had. And Pink's argument against this one I thought was interesting. This is what I had to think about for a while. They created an unknowable God, because that's where it always leads. is, well, the Bible is men trying to reach God, because God, we admit there's a God. He created what we see, because you can't ignore that. But he's so far beyond us, we can't know him. I remember working with a lady years ago that flat out, and she even knew the terminology about it, said basically, no, I believe there's a God, but I don't believe we could possibly know anything about him. And so they've created what Pink calls a God greater than the God himself. He's not able to reveal himself to us. And that's ridiculous. God can do all things and God can do all his holy will. And God certainly can reveal himself to mankind. So either liars or deluded men or God himself. Those are your choices. God himself wrote the word of God. God himself revealed himself in the word of God. John 3.16, this is a good use of this verse that is often misused by the world. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. There is the revelation of God's salvation for man. One verse, one sentence. That is the revelation of God saying to man, do you know this? God so loved the creation that he had made that he gave his only begotten son. that we might live by faith in him. Whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. And he revealed this wonderful truth to us, not only in John 3, 16, but in other places where it speaks of Isaiah, where it speaks like this in Isaiah 55 and verse eight, for my thoughts are not your thoughts, "'Nor are your ways my ways,' says the Lord, "'for as the heavens are higher than the earth, "'so are my ways higher than your ways, "'and my thoughts than your thoughts.'" And that leads into what we were gonna close with this morning, and that is this idea that man couldn't have conceived of the things revealed to us in scripture. It is beyond our imagination that an infinite, eternal God whom we have sinned against, whom we have alienated ourselves from, would sacrifice his own begotten son for our salvation. That should not only give you great joy, that should strike fear into your hearts as to the seriousness of sin. If you think sin is something just to be laughed off and, oh, well, we all sin, we all do it. No, it required the Son of God incarnate to come and die for our sins on the cross, as we'll remember in just a little while with the Lord's table. And so we come here to this concluding part of this. And so, by the way, if you're following in the book, you'll notice I've skipped over an entire section called the Jewish experience with the Old Testament. I'm not, read it, it's useful. It just, there was no way I could fit all that in. But Pink's point is that the Jews themselves testified to God being the author of the word of God. And so it's a great section, but I've had to start skipping sections in order to have any hope of doing a chapter every week. So that brings us though to these thoughts. First of all, the hallmark of its genuineness. So these are some indications, hallmarks is the idea of some things that stand out as to the genuineness of the word of God. First of all, the design of the word of God. It imparts knowledge of the true God to us. Think about that. That's the purpose of the Word of God. I bought something recently, and I got it, and I started pushing buttons on it, because I'm a guy, and I don't need to read a book, and of course, I couldn't figure out how the two buttons pushed in the right way, and so what'd I do? I finally had to reach over and get the little manual out, and flip through it, and go, oh, you gotta push the first button for three seconds, and then you can push the other button, and things happen the right way, okay? Well, think of that. What's the purpose of the Word of God? It's so that we will know God. It's so that we will know how to act. It's so that we will know how to interact with one another. It imparts the knowledge of the true God to us. That's the design of the Word of God. Proverbs 16, four says, the Lord has made all for himself. Yes, even the wicked for the day of doom. And so we look around and we say to ourselves, why does God allow these things? Why are wicked men in charge? Why do they run countries, corporations, the world? Because God has made all things for himself. He will glorify himself even with the wicked. whom he has made for the day of doom. Again, a reminder, don't be in the crowd of the wicked. There's a day of doom coming if you are walking with the wicked. And so it is instruction that is showing us God's purpose and also suited to our needs. What do you need in life? The word of God can help you with that. First Corinthians 10, 31 says, therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do. Do all to the glory of God. Now, think about that. We're all going to go home this afternoon. We're going to have something to eat and something to drink. And we do that every day. And hopefully you give thanks to God for it before you partake and you offer up thanksgiving for what God has blessed you with. But think about the fact that as you perform what is a very basic, fundamental, nobody questions the need for you to eat or drink. you are to do it for the glory of God. You might say, how? Well, keep reading the scriptures and keep working at that, but for one thing, to be thankful. That's to the glory of God. But in a basic human need, You are to eat and drink to the glory of God. So that's one of the hallmarks of the genuineness of the word of God, it's design. It is designed to impart knowledge to us of the true and living God. It is also secondly addressed with authority. This is an interesting one that it makes sense when you stop and think about it. The word of God is addressed with authority. It is not the agreement or the persuasion of equals. but it is the command of our master. Now, boy, is that a concept that's not liked in this day and age. Nobody's gonna tell me what to do. And yet God says in the word of God, thou shalt and thou shalt not. We saw that at the very beginning with Adam and Eve, we see it carried throughout the scriptures. The word of God is addressed with authority. It's not a matter of I'm your equal, let's be buds. This is the holy sovereign God of heaven and earth telling you, this is how you are to act. And if you don't like it, tough. And there's a penalty to it. Because in fact, you have sinned against that God. And so God is directing you with authority. Now, I can't help but touch on this as, you know, we have young people and saw a couple new smiling faces join us there. We need to teach our children authority. Yes, it makes a difference when your kid says no. And everybody goes, oh, no. No, you need to teach them they're under authority, just like you're under authority, just like somebody else is under authority. And how do we end up with a society where New York City, they're shooting cops, they're beating up cops. The cops are saying, this is enough of this nonsense. Why? Because the guys that shot the cop recently, they were out on the street before the cop was out of the hospital. Why? No authority. Nobody's saying, you can't do that. I don't care what you did in your country. You're here now. This is the rules. Oh, no, it's OK. Don't worry about it. No, we are addressed with the authority of the word of God, and we better do our part, even if it's just in our homes with our children, to raise our children with authority, to understand who the boss is, because you're gonna find that when you get to work, you're gonna find that in the whatever situation you find yourself in. There are people that are in authority, you have to listen to them, you have to do what they say. The third hallmark of genuineness is this, and this is good, because it kind of ties in with the matter of authority. It is addressed to all. Think about the word of God. It is addressed to all classes of men, all mental abilities. My wife and I were trying to come up with another way to say that last night. I finally said, forget it. We'll go with all mental abilities. It doesn't matter whether you're an ignoramus or a genius. The word of God speaks to you. All stations in life. It doesn't matter whether you're a pauper, or we call that a homeless person maybe today, or the richest man in the world. The Word of God speaks to you. And you're under the authority of the Word of God. All nations and tribes. I don't care what your nation's religion has been for hundreds of years. If it's not Christianity and belief in the true and living God who created the heavens and earth, you are wrong. And you need to repent and turn and seek after the things of God. So all nations and tribes, the word of God is addressed to. I'm sorry, one of the few things I've watched about the Olympics, which I'm not that much interested in them anyway, but boy, did they get off on the wrong foot this year. Although I am gonna watch the finals for the women's boxing match. I love boxing and two guys duking it out. I mean, yeah, two guys duking it out, it's gonna be interesting. All right, I'll stop. There was a clip, and I don't remember the two nations, I think they were like small island nations or small African nations, but they're known as Christian nations, as in, in their constitutions, they say, we are Christian nations. And there was a small clip of them singing in the dormitories. It was amazing. I wish I could sing like that. And they were violating the Olympic Committee rules, because you're not supposed to have any religion or anything. And they said, you know what, we don't care. As a nation, we get together and sing. And what I noticed was, here was probably a couple hundred people singing a cappella, hymns, and none of them were using hymn books. They all knew the words. It's part of their national heritage. And I'm not saying that we need a nation like that. I'm just saying it's an example where they stood out as a nation because the word of God is addressed to everyone everywhere, including nations and tribes. All mankind is under the authority of the word of God. You will not meet anyone anywhere, anytime who can say to you, well, that doesn't apply to me. Yes, it does. Let me talk to you about it. Let me speak to you about these things. And finally, under the hallmarks of genuineness, number four, it fits the needs of all men. And I hinted to this a couple times, I know I have. It answers the ends for which it is made. Wisdom and counsel. Again, for individuals, do you need wisdom? Are you struggling in life? Are you questioning what your purpose is or why you're doing the things you're doing? And it doesn't mean you're young. I'm 63 years old and there are days I struggle with what is the purpose of this? It's usually work days. But why do I do this? Why do I put up with this? Individuals are spoken to by the wisdom and counsel of the word of God. Families. Do you wanna know how to live as a husband and wife? We have some new couples in our church, right? How do you live as husbands and wives? I know there's all kinds of great ideas, and you got those, right? Romance, all that, that's the world stuff. That stuff's gonna fade away. How do you live as a husband and wife? The Word of God speaks to that. How do you live as a family when the children come along, if God blesses you with them? The Word of God speaks to that. The Word of God, especially some books in particular, like Proverbs, teach you how you're to deal with the deceitfulness of the heart of your children. Oh no, not my children. That's what the Word of God says. So it addresses individuals, it addresses families, it addresses the state. How is the state to live? I've just started working on the book from one of the elders down there in Roanoke on Romans 13. And it's good, I'm really looking forward to moving along in it. But what are the guardrails for the state? How is the state to function and how are we to interact with the state as it functions? That's gonna become important to you as our society, our civilization in America degenerates. It's gonna become more and more important to you to know when do I stand up against the state? or when should I submit to the state? The word of God speaks to that. It speaks to the church. How are we to act as a church? We gather here, well, how do we know how to act? How do we know what to do? How do we know who, you know, what things we do in our service? All of those things are spoken to by the word of God. And you can go back, Andy had some sermons on this, and in your bulletin, now you can see the sections of why we're doing the things that we're doing. Because they're spoken of by the Word of God. They're outlined by the Word of God. This is how you worship me. Not however you feel like. Not whatever will bring young people in. Not whatever will bring rich people in. But how you are to worship me. That is a hallmark of the genuineness of the Word of God. That it teaches us wisdom and counsel. But most important, it teaches us salvation. that reconciles us to God. That is ultimately the need of all men. And the word of God addresses that. Luke chapter one and verse 79 says, to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. And again, that's a quote from the Old Testament. If I remember, that might be a prophecy. I'm sorry, I don't remember which one now. But it is addressing what is our need. It is to have light. We sit in darkness and the shadow of death, and the word of God is to give light and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Do you need peace? Of course you do. We all need peace. You may think for a while, oh, I don't need peace. I'm enjoying the raucous noise of the world and the things that I do. There'll come a time, and it's not too far down the road, that you'll say, I need peace. I'm not happy. I'm not really enjoying life. The word of God gives light to that. And then finally, and I realize, I'm sorry, I'm out of time. But finally, Christ in the scriptures, and I can't skip this one. Christ very clearly showed that he never had a doubt about the validity or the authenticity of the scriptures. When Christ was approached by Satan, for instance, in temptations, what did Christ do? He quoted scripture to him. And Christ also gave positive affirmation. Whenever he was assaulted or assailed, he turned to the sword of the spirit, the word of God. Luke 16 and verse 31, Jesus said to him, if they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded that one rise from the dead. and Christ's affirmation of the validity of scripture. So hear God in his word, hear it with reverence, hear it acknowledging its authority and its finality, because it is the word of God. It comes from God himself. It declares itself to be that. And there is no other option when we look at the word of God. Let's close with a word of prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the Word of God. Thank you for your revelation to us that gives us such clear and concise teaching regarding our own selves, our own nature, our own needs, our own sinfulness. And Father, much more so, we are thankful for your revelation of the means to address all of that in Jesus Christ by faith. Father, help us, each of us in this congregation, each who hear the word today, either here or on our broadcast, Father, help us to search our hearts and to know our relationship to the true and the living God as it's revealed in scripture. May we not make up things, but may we follow and live by the Word of God. We pray and ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.