I recently had the opportunity to give Bibles to a group of
people who had never had one before. These individuals come from a religious
background in which written scripture is regarded very highly. According to their
customs, a copy of their scriptures can never touch the ground. It would be
highly offensive to their god for them to read their scriptures in certain
situations – for example, in the bathroom. No one would ever dare to write in
or fold down the corner of a page of these scriptures. They also have a belief
that their scriptures should not be left sitting open, for fear that evil
spirits will come along and corrupt them or read them and know what they say,
and therefore be able to distort them in the minds of the people. In that
culture, scripture is only scripture if it is written in one particular
language – a language that many adherents of their religion do not know how to
read. These beliefs and practices result in a superstitious regard for the object
of their written copies of scripture that outweighs their regard for the actual
content of those scriptures. So, as I
handed them their very first copies of the Bible, I told them that they needed
to understand something about how Christians view the Bible. First of all, they
need to understand that we believe that the Bible is God’s Word. It was written
down by human beings, but the words were inspired by God Himself. Second, they
need to understand that the contents of the Bible are what we hold sacred, not
the physical object of the Bible. That means that if we set our Bibles on the
ground, or read them in the bathroom, or underline words in them, or make notes
in them, God is not offended. It is not a sin to misplace or lose one’s Bible,
because we can get another copy of it if necessary. What is most important is
not how carefully we protect our Bibles, but how thoroughly we read and
understand them.
As I thought about my interaction with those people
afterward, I couldn’t help thinking that many Christians are just as confused
about the nature of Scripture as those of this other faith. There is a
superstitious – almost idolatrous – regard for the physical object of the Bible
that surpasses the regard for the verbal content of the Bible. The Bible is
viewed as something of an amulet or good luck charm by many who will go to
great lengths to protect their Bibles – including not reading or studying them. And this is the greatest disservice
we can do to the Word of God: to set it in a place of prominence and security
and otherwise disregard the truth that it contains. That Bible will never
change anyone’s life. It is only as it is handled, read, studied, and
interacted with that it becomes transformative within us.
In the closing words of his magnificent account of the words
and works of Jesus, the Apostle John makes a few remarks concerning what he has
written. These words are his personal testimony and commendation of this
Gospel. Moreover, according to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, these words
become for us a lesson in understanding the nature of all Scripture – the
entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation. As we study John’s words here, we find
several characteristics of what he has written, and by extension of the whole
Bible as well.
I. The Source of Scripture (v24)
I suppose everyone enjoys a good Christmas gathering, until
someone has the audacity to bring up Jesus. I mean, what does Jesus have to do
with Christmas anyway? I can remember one Christmas gathering when the subject
of the Bible came up, and one family member said to me, “You don’t believe
everything in the Bible do you?” When I responded that I did, the look on the
other person’s face was one of utter dismay! The reply came back quickly, “But
people wrote the Bible, not God!” I suppose that is how many people view the
Bible – the product only of human composition. So, was the Bible written by men
or by God? The answer is, “Yes!” It was written by men who were inspired by God
to write the words that they wrote.
Notice in verse 24 how John makes this point. He says, “This
is the disciple who is testifying to these things and wrote these things.” Now,
who is this disciple? This is the disciple who is referred to
in the preceding verses as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” In verse 20, he is
referred to as the one who also had leaned back on Jesus’ bosom at the supper.
He is the one who had asked, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” He is the
one whom Peter observed during his conversation with Jesus recorded in verses
18-23. He is the one of whom Jesus said to Peter, “If I want him to remain
until I come, what is that to you.” And he is the one who became the subject of
a rumor saying the he would not die. From these things, we can infer that this
disciple was an eyewitness of the life and ministry of Jesus, including His
resurrection appearances. We can also infer that this disciple must have lived
a very long time – long enough to give credence to the rumor that he would not
die. We know from church history that John outlived all the other apostles,
dying of natural causes at a very old age near the end of the first century AD.
We also know from careful study that this Gospel is the only one of our four
which does not mention the Apostle John by name, which is odd considering the
major role he plays in the other Gospels. It is also the only Gospel which
speaks of “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” Therefore, it is conclusive that
“the disciple whom Jesus loved” is how this Gospel refers to the Apostle John.
It is not a boastful statement, as though to say “I’m the one Jesus loved more
than, or instead of, the others.” Rather it is a humble confession of the
intimacy of his personal relationship with the Lord Jesus. John anchors his
identity in that relationship alone, as all followers of Jesus should! And this
is the disciple who has written these words.
So, this portion of Scripture, like all of the Bible, comes
from a human writer. John says here that it is his “testimony.” This is his
personal account of the things which he saw Jesus do and heard Jesus say. He
writes with eyewitness detail and reliability. But then John says something
rather strange at first glance. He says, “and we know that his testimony is
true.” This raises two questions. The first one is “Who are we?” This is something of a custom for
John in his writings, to speak from what is known in literature as an
“editorial ‘we’.” He uses this quite frequently in his epistles (1, 2, and 3
John), and even elsewhere in this Gospel. For example, in 1:14, he says
concerning Jesus, “we saw His glory.” In First John 1:1-2, he speaks of Jesus,
saying, “what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have
looked at and touched with our hands … we have seen and testify and proclaim to
you.” So, for John, to say “we” implies that the words he speaks are in unison
with those of all the Apostles of the Lord Jesus. As writings began to
circulate through the early church, one of the first tests of whether or not it
was credible and authoritative was the test of apostolicity. Does it come from
an apostle or someone who is a known close associate of an apostle? If so, then
it was accepted as genuine Scripture.
But, why is this apostolicity a guarantee of a writing’s
trustworthiness? That is related to the second question that John’s statement
in verse 24 raises. John says, “we know that his testimony is true.” That seems
a bit self-serving, does it not? If we were to say, “John, why should we
believe what you have written?”, he responds, “Because I am the one who has
written it.” Under most ordinary circumstances, this would be a preposterous
claim. But when an Apostle of Jesus Christ makes this claim it is not
preposterous. Why is that? Because these are men to whom Jesus made some very
specific promises, which are recorded for us in Chapters 14 and 16 of this
Gospel. To His Apostles, Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit, whom the Father
would send in His name, would teach them all things and bring to their
remembrance all that He said to them (14:26). He said that the Spirit would
guide them into all truth, and disclose to them what is to come (16:13). So,
when these men wrote, they were being led by the Spirit of God to write true
and trustworthy words. They were, in the words of Peter, “men moved by the Holy
Spirit” who “spoke from God” (2 Pet 1:21). Therefore it can be said of their
writings that they are actually the divinely inspired Word of God. Did men
write it? Sure. Did God write it? Yes. God wrote these words through the
process of inspiration, as the people of His choosing wrote the exact words of
His choosing. As 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and
profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in
righteousness.” Therefore, we can say not only of John’s Gospel but of all Scripture,
“We know that his testimony is true.”
Now, having considered the source of Scripture, we move on
to consider next …
II. The Selectivity of Scripture (v25)
There’s a hymn that is not sung much anymore that talks
about heaven and says essentially that of all that has been written about
heaven, “not half of that city’s bright glory to mortals has ever been told.”
In the final stanza, the hymnwriter turns his attention to the Lord Jesus and
says,
I have read of a
Christ so forgiving, that vile sinners may ask and receive
Peace and pardon for
every transgression, if when asking they only believe.
I have read how He’ll
guide and protect us, if for safety we enter His fold;
But not half of His
goodness and mercy to mortals has ever been told.
This is exactly what John is saying here in the final verse
of his Gospel. Of all that has been told about the Lord Jesus, not the half has
ever been told. He says, “And there are also many other things which Jesus did,
which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself
would not contain the books that would be written.” Now, people often ask me if
I interpret the Bible literally, and
I say, “I interpret the Bible literally unless the Bible tells me not to
interpret it literally.” In other words, we interpret the Bible using the same
sort of “ground rules” that we use instinctively as we read any other kind of
literature. Now, when I read this verse, I have to understand that John does
not have exhaustive knowledge of how many square inches of space there is in
the world, or how high books can be stacked before they escape the earth’s
atmosphere. I understand instinctively that John is using a literary device
known as hyperbole, in which a
statement is creatively exaggerated for emphasis. It is not that facts are
being misrepresented. Hyperbole is when a statement is made that is obviously
an exaggeration in order to express something in a figurative way. So, in daily
conversation, we might say, “I have tons of work to do.” Well, unless our job
is measured in pounds, it is not likely that tons are an accurate measurement
of the amount of work we have to do, and we understand that as we read it. A
man may say, “I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.” We do not expect that man to
walk out into a pasture and try it. And just as we instinctively get that in
every day conversation and as we read other literature, so we should
instinctively get it when the Bible uses hyperbole.
That said, let’s allow the hyperbole to have its full effect
here. John isn’t saying, “If we wrote it all down, we’d have written two or
three more books.” John is saying, “It would be impossible to write down
everything that Jesus has done.” And that is something that we can interpret
quite literally! It would be impossible! For
every miracle that is recorded from Jesus’ earthly life and ministry, there are
many more that are not recorded. In some cases, we find miracles of healing
recorded in great detail; in other cases, we are told something like, “They
brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and
pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them” (Mt 4:24). Each
of those stories would be just as fascinating as the ones we have in detail,
but their stories are not told for whatever reason, nor could they all be told!
And then we also have to remember what John says about this Jesus. In the first
verse, he asserts that Jesus, the Word of God which has been made flesh,
existed in the beginning – that is, He has existed from eternity past. And John
says in those opening verses that Jesus, the Word of God, created everything
that exists. So, would it ever be possible for anyone to write an exhaustive
record of everything that Jesus has
done? No! He was at work long before mankind came onto the scene of history,
and He is always at work, doing things that no human eye can behold or human
mind can fathom. If it all could be written
(and it can’t), then it is very likely that the whole world indeed could not
contain the books.
This brings us back to John’s statement, and what it teaches
us about the nature of Scripture. All Scripture, by necessity, is somewhat
selective in what it records. It has to be. Even if you were to journal every
day, you would pick and choose what details to include and what to omit, would
you not? But you would make sure you included the things that were most
important. And that is what the biblical writers have done. Unable to tell the
whole story, they told the most important elements of the story to make the
points that they set out to make. John tells us what that point is for him as
he writes this Gospel. In John 20:30-31, “Therefore many other signs Jesus also
performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;
but these have been written so that you
may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you
may have life in His name.” So John admits rather candidly, “Listen, I
didn’t and cannot tell you everything I saw, but I am going to tell you what
you need to know to make an informed decision on who Jesus is, and whether or
not He is the Christ, the Son of God, so that you may believe in Him and have
life in His name.”
Every writer of Scripture does the exact same thing. So,
Scripture is selective by necessity. Does it tell us everything there is to
tell or everything we may want to know? No, and it cannot. But does it tell us
enough? Yes it does, and that brings us to final characteristic of the nature
of Scripture.
III. The Sufficiency of Scripture
I believe that a thorough knowledge of the Bible is
essential for any and every pursuit in life. All wisdom is rooted in the truth
of Scripture, and I honestly do not know how I ever made it through a day of
life without leaning on the firm foundation of God’s Word. I think that a
thorough knowledge of Scripture would help one succeed in anything he or she
sets out to do. No set of information is complete without the illumination of
what the Bible says about those things setting the right framework and context
for it all. That said, we must be honest about what the Bible is not. Take, for
example, the field of science. The Bible makes reference to scientific things,
and where it does, it is true and trustworthy. But this does not make the Bible
a science book. If one wants to be a chemist and shows up to apply for a job in
the laboratory, he or she might be asked, “What qualifications do you have for
the job?” He or she may say, “Well, I’ve read the Bible.” Commendable as that
may be, the Bible is not sufficient by itself to make one a credible scientist.
The Bible can provide a framework for doing scientific work, but if one wants
to be a chemist, one must study more than just the Bible. This is but one
example of a realm in which the Bible does not tell us all we want to know or
need to know. There are other realms, however, in which the Bible may not tell
us all we want to know, but it definitely tells us all we need to know. It is
sufficient in what it reveals in order for us to know God, to have a
relationship with Him that is eternal beyond this life in this world, and for
us to live with and for Him here and now. And since these are the things which
are of surpassing importance to all others, the Christian can hold his or her
Bible close to heart and say of it, “It is enough.”
Wayne Grudem writes, “The sufficiency of Scripture means
that Scripture contained all the words of God he intended His people to have
each stage of redemptive history, and that it now contains all the words of God
we need for salvation, for trusting Him perfectly, and for obeying Him
perfectly.”[1] We are
born in sin, separated from God. That separation from God will be eternal if we
are not reconciled to Him at some point during our lives. So, how are we to
know the way of being reconciled to Him? He must reveal it to us, and He has
done so in the Bible. As John says in the previous chapter, “these have been written so that you may
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may
have life in His name.” In other words, “What I have written is enough for
you to believe upon Christ, and by believing in Him, you will have life.” This
is affirmed elsewhere in Scripture as well. Paul says in 2 Timothy 3:15, “the
sacred writings … are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation
through faith which is in Jesus Christ.” James 1:18 says that God has “brought
us forth by the word of truth.” 1 Peter 1:23 says that “we have been born again
… through the living and enduring word of God.”
Nowhere is it spelled out more clearly than in Romans
10:9-17. There Paul begins by saying that if you confess with your mouth Jesus
as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will
be saved (v9). He says, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved”
(v13). But then Paul raises a series of questions: “How then will they call on
Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have
not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?” (v14). So, in order to
call on Christ to be saved, they must believe in Him; and in order to believe
in Him, they must hear of Him; and in order to hear of Him, someone must tell
them. Therefore, Paul says in verse 17, “So faith comes from hearing, and
hearing by the word of Christ.” The Word of God is the means by which the Holy
Spirit moves upon the heart of an unbeliever and calls him or her forth to
believe upon the Lord Jesus and be saved.
Once a person becomes a believer in Christ, the journey is
not over. It is just beginning. Conversion marks the starting line of life, not
the finish line. So, how is a person to walk in faith and trust in relationship
with God? Again, the Word of God is sufficient for this. We cannot trust
someone we do not know, and in order to know God, we must turn to the truth He
has revealed about Himself. He has revealed Himself to us in the pages of His
Word. It is common to hear someone say, “I like to think of God as ….” My
response to that is, “Have you ever considered what God thinks of you thinking
of Him that way?” When we view God as whatever we imagine Him to be, we are not
relating to the God who made us in His own image, but rather we are creating a
god who is made in our image, and this is idolatry and blasphemy. God has made
Himself to known to us in the Bible. Do you want to know what God is like? Then
turn to the Bible. Here we find the God who is there, the God with whom we have
to do. Here we find Him revealed in the glory of His manifold attributes, and
as we come to know Him as the God who is revealed in Scripture, we come to
trust Him more and love Him more as we walk with Him.
This leads us to live in obedience to Him. We obey God
because we trust Him and love Him. But how are we to know what He requires of
us? What are we to obey? Again, this is spelled out for us in His Word. Again,
2 Timothy 3:16 – “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for
teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness,” and
verse 17 continues, “so that the man
of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” We are trained in
righteousness and equipped to live and serve God by immersing ourselves in the
Bible. The Psalmist asks, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it
according to Your word” (Psa 119:9). Jesus prayed that the Father would sanctify (that is, set apart as holy)
the followers of Christ. He prayed, “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is
truth” (Jn 17:17). So again we find that when it comes to obeying God, the Word
has told us all we need to know.
So, what we have seen as we have considered John’s closing
words is that the Scriptures come to us from men who wrote under the divine
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, so that the Bible is true and trustworthy. The
information we have in the Bible is selective by necessity, and therefore it
may not tell us all that could be told about a matter, or all we may want to
know. However, the Bible is sufficient – what it tells us is all we need to
know in order to know God, to trust and love Him, and to walk in obedient faith
with Him. Now, there are some practical applications that flow out of this for
us.
1. Because the Bible is sufficient in all matters of
Christian faith and practice, we should give it preeminence over all other
sources of information, and not add to or take away from it by ignoring its
plain teachings for other information which is not in harmony with it.
2. God does not require us to believe anything or do
anything that is not revealed in the Bible. If it is not commanded, explicitly
or implicitly, in Scripture, then it is not essential. Likewise, if it is not
forbidden, explicitly or implicitly in Scripture, then it is not sin. As we
wrestle with sin in our lives, we can expect the Holy Spirit to give us victory
over those sins which hinder our faith and obedience. However, the Holy Spirit
will not empower us to obey rules that are not contained in Scripture, nor will
He convict us to believe anything about God that is not revealed in Scripture.
3. The “secret” to discovering and experiencing the will of
God in our lives is no secret at all. It has been revealed to us clearly in
Scripture. The Bible has told us how God wants us to live in relationship with
Him. That means that He has given us a great deal of freedom to make decisions
on matters that are not clearly spelled out in Scripture. God is not hiding
Himself or His will from us. He wants us to know Him and to know His will and
do it! That is why He has made it known to us in the Bible.
4. Finally, when it comes to knowing God and living for Him,
we can hold our Bibles close to our hearts and give thanks to God that He has
given these words to us, and that they are true and trustworthy, and that they
are sufficient. We do not need more revelation. We need to grow deeper in our
understanding and application of what we have, as we seek to live in faith and
obedience to the Word we have as the Spirit of God empowers us.
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