he accounted for the mutilated Bible. The weakened response was, “I sat under the ministry of a pastor who didn’t believe this was all the Word of God. He felt there were parts inspired to be sure. But others were questionable.” With a deep sigh, he explained, “What you hold in your hand is the result of the ministry of a pastor who destroyed my confidence in Scripture.” What a terrible thing for which to be held accountable! The godly, visiting minister was able to restore the needy man’s faith in the infallibility of the Word of God. The Bible isn’t an encyclopedia which needs to be brought up to date with man’s later scientific dis coveries. Scripture explains itself as becoming one single Book. It’s unified message must be accepted or reject ed only in its entirety. There is a very helpful passage which stands as a hallmark on the subject. Read for yourself I Peter 1:9-12. Here we see a picture of how verbal inspiration has miracu lously occurred. While the heavens declare the glory of God, the Scrip tures declare His love. The heavens reveal His hand, while the Scriptures reveal His heart. After His resurrection, the Lord met two grieving disciples. Accord ing to Luke 24:27, “He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” Perhaps it was in the upper-room when He appeared to the eleven disciples that Jesus refers to in verse 44: “I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.” The Bible has but one subject: God’s love and man’s redemption. The resurrection for Peter was the final great evidence of Scriptural au thority and the reality of Jesus Christ as the Son of God. This was the truth upon which Christianity was to be built. 15
THE UNITY OF THE WORD OF GOD
by Ll oyd T. A n d e r so n , Biola Hour teacher and pastor of Bethany Baptist Church, West Covina, Cal.
C hapter O ne O NE OP THE irrefutable evidences of scriptural inspiration is the unity of the Word of God. Perhaps you’ve heard the illustration of the pastor who called on a certain man who was dying. His attention was drawn to a copy of the Bible on the night-stand by the bed. Thumbing through it, the minister found that most of Genesis had been cut out; pieces of Leviticus and Deuteronomy also were missing, along with some parts of the Psalms and prophetical books. All of these sections had been heavily clipped. In the New Testa ment, Revelation was gone complete ly. In portions of the Gospels and epistles not only certain verses, but actually entire chapters had been re moved. He asked the sick man how
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