STRONGHOLD OF TRUTH
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now there is no question whatever about this great prin ciple of the planetary system. So, when we have come to the conclusion that the Bible is God's Word, we have to judge all difficulties in the light of that fact. Secondly, some difficulties are inherent in a revelation, otherwise it would not be a revelation. We cannot expect that which comes from God to finite man to be without difficulty. Revelation means to "draw back the veil," and if there was no veil to draw back, we should not have any revelation. Therefore, we are not sur prised, if as Butler taught us nearly two hundred years ago, there are difficulties in revelation, for there are diffi culties in nature though nature is from the same God. Difficulties are either scientific, historical, or ethical. Scientific difficulties for the most part turn upon differ ences of interpretation between man's views of the Bible and between man's views of science. Difficulties of his tory have to be tested one by one; and we have yet to find any real statement in the Bible in terms of history that has been found to be unhistorical. And with regard to ethical difficulties, what I have said about progressive revelation may be applied at this point. ·Take the case of Jae! who killed Sisera; that is no reason why we should commit murder. Because the Psalmist said, "Happy shall he l)e that taketh thy children and dasheth them against the stones," there is no reason why we should do likewise. There is such a thing as progress in the ethics of the Bible, but there is no progress beyond the ethics of Christ and His Apostles. Not a single new ethic has been given to the world since Jesus Christ and His Apostles lived on this earth. Then remember that none of these difficulties affect any fundamental Christian doctrine. Dean Farrar, who was no slave of conservatism, once said that no demon strable error has ever been discovered in the Bible. We are not called upon to answer every objection. It is quite sufficient for us to prove the truth of Christianity. Why should a man take leave of his common sense when he reads the Bible? There are scores of things in life
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