The history which we have of the church through the ages gives us a clear picture of the warfare which is waged on earth between the Seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent, the warfare between the prince of darkness, and Christ and His kingdom. We read of the assaults of the devil against the church of God already in the time of the apostle Paul, where he tried to spread false doctrines and errors in the young church, such as antinomianism which is mentioned in Revelation 2:6, and the doctrine of Balaam of which we read in Revelation 2:14.

In the second century, heathen philosophies were interwoven with Christian teachings, and Gnosticism and Mani­cheism were prevalent. Later the struggle arose against Arius who had wrong views about the Trinity and the God­head of Christ. Still later on Pelagius tried to undermine the church with his errors. These false teachings reappeared in a more moderate, but no less dangerous, form as Semi-Pelagianism in the Roman Catholic Church with its system of good works and a helping Savior, rather than a complete Savior. Over against these false teachers God gave men unto the church who were champions of the truth such as Athanasius, Augustine, Luther, Calvin, and many others.

The battles against the church served as the crucible whereby doctrinal standards and creeds were adopted that spelled out the beliefs of the church – the three ecumenical creeds we know as the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. In the Netherlands the churches adopted the three forms of unity, viz:

1. the Heidelberg Catechism, given to instruct;
2. the Belgic Confession of Faith given to confess what we believe;
3. the Canons of Dort given to defend the truth

It is my intention to give an explanation of the Belgic Confession of Faith in a series of articles on this important document.

Not only in the Netherlands, but also in other countries where the Reformation blossomed, ecclesiastical assemblies adopted doctrinal statements and confessions. In Germany there was the Augsburg Confession, adopted in 1530; Switzerland adopted a confession in 1536; France in 1559; Scotland in 1560; and in England the Anglican Church adopted their thirty-nine articles.

In all these assemblies there was a wrestling to express in clear statements the pure doctrines of Scripture, for in­struction and unity in the faith. The Augsburg Confession expressed as its central theme the doctrine of justification, and begins with the question, "How shall man be saved?" That is called the anthropological approach. The Belgic Confession, however, follows the theological order; that is, it begins with the doctrine of God. Calvin in his catechism of 1545 already began with the question, "What is the chief purpose of our human life?" He answers with the state­ment, "To know God who has created us thus, and placed us in this world to be glorified in us." Therefore it is just and right that our life which He has created might be lived to His honor. We find this approach as well in the Shorter Catechism of the Westminster Assembly, with its first ques­tion, "What is the chief end of man?" The beautiful answer states, "To glorify and enjoy God forever." It can be seen from this answer that they also began with the glory of God as the goal of our life. How privileged are those who may say this also in truth!

That the Belgic Confession of Faith follows a theological order can be shown by the following outline:

1. Articles 1-13, Theology, about the doctrine of God
2. Articles 14-17, Anthropology, the doctrine concerning man and predestination
3. Articles 18-21, Christology, about the person of Christ
4. Articles 22-26, Soteriology, about the doctrine of redemption
5. Articles 27-36, Ecclesiology, the doctrine of the church and the sacraments and also the duties of the government
6. Article 37, Eschatology, the doctrine of the last things.

Article 1⤒🔗

This is a confession believed with the heart and confessed with the mouth, as we read in Romans 10:9. This confession is a free and voluntary confession, an acknowledgement of the truth. Our confession begins with God. There is no attempt made to prove that He exists, as we would perhaps expect. Our forefathers did not use the so-called proofs from creation (cosmological), perfection (ontological), purpose (teleological), moral (anthropological), or innate (ethnological), for they considered this absolutely unnecessary, since all creatures great and small are proofs in and of themselves. They do not try to convince the atheist who, as a fool, says within his heart, "There is no God."

It is true that the fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." God has however revealed Himself in His Word, and will be known by the enlightening work of the Spirit in His attributes. This confession must become a reality in our life. It is necessary that there comes a time in our life that we, who are practical atheists, learn to know God in His holiness, majesty, righteousness, goodness, and mercy. We must learn to know Him in His greatness and worthiness. What a blessing it is if that true love to Him may be given in our hearts, for then we will long for His fellowship, His love, and His favor! Then we will also know something of that hungering and thirsting for His nearness and the heartfelt desire to live to His glory.

There should not only be a believing with the heart, however, there should also be a confessing with the mouth; for the Lord has formed a people unto Himself who will show forth His praises. God's children should be the salt of the earth and a light upon the candlestick. They have to be witnesses for Him in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Our confession also states what they believe with the heart, namely, "that there is one only, simple, spiritual Being which we call God." Human words are too poor to express who God is. We can only say, "Who is a God like unto Thee?"

The Lord reveals Himself not only in His names, but also in His attributes. As we have been taught in catechism class, God has incommunicable and communicable attributes. He is a spiritual Being. The Lord Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman, "God is a Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth."

The incommunicable attributes of God belong only to Him, and never to man. These attributes are as follows:

1. Independence – God is self-sufficient, and does not derive strength or honor from anyone. Man is not independent for he needs God for everything. "In Him (God) we live, move and have our being''
2. Simplicity – Man is composed of several parts (soul/body), (flesh/spirit). God is not composed of parts, but God is One; in Him everything is one. "Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD" (Deut. 6:4). God is all mercy.
3. Eternal – Man has a beginning, but God is from everlast­ing to everlasting (Ps. 90:2c).
4. Omnipresence – God is everywhere, but man cannot be. "Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD" (Jer. 23:24).
5. Immutability – God is unchangeable.

The communicable attributes of God are perfections belonging to the essence of God. God does not share His attributes with man, but has placed some small likeness of them in man who was created in His image.

The communicable attributes can be further classified as belonging to God's knowledge, will, and power.

1. To the knowledge of God belong

• Omniscience
• Wisdom

2. To His will belong

• The goodness of God which He reveals in His love, grace, longsuffering, and lovingkindness
• The righteousness of God including demanding vengeance and executing vengeance
• The holiness of God

3. To God's power belongs His omnipotence

Our Belgic Confession of Faith tries to express the great­ness and majesty of God as follows: There is one only simple and spiritual Being which we call God.

He is Eternal – Psalm 90:2: "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God."

He is Incomprehensible – God is great and we know it not. Man cannot comprehend the depths, the height, and the love of God. Job 36:26: "Behold, God is great, and we know Him not."

He is Invisible – We cannot see God. 1 Tim. 1:17: "Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen."

He is Immutable – What a wonder for an unfaithful people! "For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed" (Mal. 3:6).

He is Infinite – There are no restrictions and no boundaries in God; He is unlimited in greatness and majesty.

He is Almighty – Our forefathers knew who this Almighty God was in their own lives. "Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?" (Jer. 32:27).

He is perfectly Wise – even if I often do not understand what He is doing, and His ways with me can be so full of riddles. We need eyes of faith in order to see His wis­dom in all of His dealings. "O LORD, how manifold are Thy works! in wisdom Thou hast made them all: the earth is full of Thy riches" (Ps. 104:24).

He is Just – Revelation 15:3: "And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, thou King of saints.''

He is Good – He does not only show goodness, but He is an overflowing fountain of all good. Psalm 145:9, "The LORD is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works."

An experiential knowledge of these attributes is necessary for all of us, for such a knowledge will humble us deeply be­fore Him. If we learn something of His wisdom, we will see our own foolishness. If we know something of His goodness, we will abhor ourselves because of our wretchedness. The more we learn to know of His greatness, holiness, justice, and mercy, by the revealing work of His Spirit, the lower we will bow before Him. What miserable creatures we are by nature – in our ignorance, blindness, enmity, and foolishness! May the Lord make Himself known to us in His glorious perfections, and may we learn to know ourselves in their light. May that blessed Mediator, in whom God has revealed His truth and mercy, His justice and kindness, His love and mercy, be glorified in our life. For to know Him is eternal life and outside of Him there is no real enjoyment. We may enjoy many things, but if we do not know what it is to glorify God, to enjoy Him, if we do not know what it means to tremble at His word, to fear His wrath and displeasure, but also to taste His love and nearness, then we really do not know anything essential. May the Lord teach us at His school of free grace in the knowledge of His attributes; teach us of ourselves, and of His dear Son, the Savior of lost sinners. Given that knowledge, we also would confess what we believe with our heart, and His Name would be glorified in our life.

Article 2←⤒🔗

We have seen in our introductory discussion about the Belgic Confession of Faith that the first article deals with the knowledge of God. In articles 1-13 we find explained the doctrine of God and His works. When we subdivide these articles further, we observe that articles 2-7 deal with the means whereby God can be known. That knowledge is indispensable, for we do not know God as He must be known as is expressed in article 1 of our precious Confession. We have lost the true knowledge of God through our deep fall in Paradise. God does however make Himself known to all mankind, even the heathen, by several means. These revelations of God to fallen mankind are:

1. General revelation and
2. Special revelation

In His general revelation God makes Himself known by the tes­timony of our conscience in a twofold way.

1. By an innate knowledge given to all men that there must be a God. Paul speaks of this knowledge in Romans 1:19-20. Because this knowledge is present in all men, even the Gen­tiles and heathen have that inward realization that there is such a supreme Being. Even though this knowledge is often confused and distorted because of our fallen state, we are still inexcusable before God.
2. There is also a general revelation of God in creation. The fir­mament, the heavens, even the smallest plants and animals are all His handiwork as the poet proclaims in Psalm 19. This knowledge of God from nature we call an acquired or external knowledge. Calvin says of this knowledge that "God has engraved in each work and creature some evidence of His majesty and glory, which are so clear and excellent that also the ignorant and unwise have no excuse."

There is also a special revelation of God. There are two parts to this revelation.

1. God provides a special revelation in His Word wherein He is pleased to reveal the truth of our perfect creation, our deep fall in Paradise, and the way of salvation which He has opened in the Son of His right hand, the Lord Jesus Christ. In that Word the Lord manifests Himself in His attributes, and therein He reveals the only Name given among men whereby those attributes are glorified and sinners will be saved in a way of justice and mercy. We are commanded to search the Scriptures for they testify of God. A historical knowledge alone is not sufficient for our salvation.
2. We need another special revelation, by Word and Spirit, applying these truths to our hearts.

There is such an essential difference between these two types of special revelation, that is, between the historical knowledge obtained from Scripture and the saving knowledge received when the Lord opens our heart like that of Lydia, so that we attend unto that Word read or spoken to us. We can increase our historical knowledge of God and His attributes, acquire a knowledge of all kinds of scriptural and dogmatic truths, yet this will leave us empty, cold, and dead, without love towards God. This type of knowledge is sometimes referred to as "a knowledge which is a foot too high." We may not despise the historical knowledge of God's truth; neither may we discourage the diligent search of God's testimony and the writings based upon it by young and old. We must never forget, however, that only the saving knowledge received by the application of the Holy Spirit will humble us deeply and make us realize what we really are, that is, hellworthy condemnable creatures. That knowledge will exalt God to the highest in all His virtues, and especially in the redeeming work of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Man is shown in general revelation that there is a God, even though the fool may say in his heart, "There is no God." Only God's Word, however, can tell us who He really is, how He must and can be worshipped, and how we can be restored into His blessed fellowship. The orderly and exact movement of the planets, sun, moon, and stars through the universe, more orderly than any man­made timepiece, shows us that there is an almighty and wise Creator, the God of heaven and earth. We need special revela­tion in order to know who this mighty Creator is. This special revelation by the application of the Spirit, is needed, above all, to really know, love, serve, and worship this almighty, wise, just; and merciful God.

Friends, what a wonder it is, that it has pleased the Lord to give such a special revelation to such foolish, rebellious creatures as we are, people who had no desire to know, serve, and love Him!

It has pleased this all-sufficient God, who does not need to be served by human hands, to form a people unto Himself who will show forth His praises. Therefore, He teaches sinners by means of His general as well as His special revelation. In this manner they will learn to understand what we have seen in our first article when we quoted from the Westminster Shorter Catechism which states that the chief and highest end of man is to "glorify God and enjoy Him forever." Scripture, as God's special revelation, testifies in John 17, "This is life eternal, that we know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent." Without this revelation, without this knowledge, we cannot glorify, love, respect, and serve God. Without this knowledge He is, just as in Athens, the unknown God unto us.

Our Confession speaks in Article 2 of the general revelation in nature as "the creation, preservation, and government of the universe," and they are manifestations of the "power and divinity" of God. Paul speaks of it in Romans 1:20. This manifestation is in nature before our eyes as a most elegant book, wherein all creatures, great and small, are as so many characters, leading us to contemplate the invisible things of God. Our forefathers compared nature with a Book having small and large letters, all testifying of the greatness, wisdom, and the power of its divine Creator. Calvin states, "Surely there is nothing so dark and despicable in the smallest most secret place of the earth, which does not show some evidence of the power and wisdom of God." In this we see that it is worthwhile to study nature – even the smallest animals and even the most insignificant things, for they all show something of the majesty and wisdom of God. It may be that we enjoy nature, that we like to take walks and explore quiet and beautiful places, but have we ever "read" this Maker's Book, with its large and small letters, with holy awe and adoration? How necessary it is, dear friends, that our blind eyes are opened and that we are enlightened by the work of the Holy Spirit to rightly read this Book! It is true that we also have a conscience and an innate knowledge of God in our hearts, but we need divine light and truth to really guide us and to bring us to the feet of the Master Builder.

Our conscience can err, we can silence its voice, we can have such unscriptural opinions of what is right and wrong due to an un­scriptural upbringing, that we cannot ultimately rely on our con­science, even though it may at times speak loudly unto us. We hear it frequently when ethical matters are discussed, even in church life: "You must leave this to the person's conscience, and leave the decision up to him/her." What a dangerous, subjective ground is that of which the conscience testifies! The conscience is a gift indeed, especially when it still speaks clearly unto us; not our conscience however, but God's Word should be the final authority and rule for our lives.

This Book, with the small and large letters, speaks of God's preservation and government of the universe, that is, His providence. What a blessing it is if we may view God's hand, His providential leading, in nature! He, the Creator, upholds, preserves, and governs this world. He worketh all things after the pleasure of His own will. All things work together for good. All things, all which occurs in and upon this world, even if we do not understand His dealings, are directed by Him for a glorious and gracious purpose.

Rome, the Socinians, and even the Arminians deny general revelation. On the other hand, Pelagius overestimated the natural revelation by teaching that man by his own free will could use the light of nature to acquire a saving knowledge of God. Many modern theologians have similar ideas. The pantheists even iden­tify God with nature and see the creature as a manifestation of its Maker. They say that God is present in the trees, plants, and ani­mals. Others have idolized nature to such an extent that they be­lieved that living a life close to nature, away from corrupt society, would be the remedy for all evil and lead to a better and more pure society. Hitler with his vision of a master race, wanted to ad­vance a stronger, more vital and powerful people by establishing youth organizations which had to live in harmony with "forest, pasture, and water." This healthier and superior race would serve his purpose by leading his nation to world supremacy. We have seen in the last world war what such idolatry leads to, viz., the destruction of so-called inferior races and weaker individuals.

We can also, however, underestimate the general revelation of God. The Anabaptists, a radical movement founded at the time of the Reformation, viewed nature as being of a lower order, and that material things were all polluted by sin. They stated that only the spiritual things were important – the matters of the soul and the testimony of the Spirit, the inner light in the hearts of men. They not only undervalued God's general revelation, but also the special revelation of God as given in the Scriptures. "No," the Anabap­tists said, "that word is but a dead letter. We only hear God's Word when the Spirit speaks, and then we receive light and life in our hearts." They forgot however, that the Spirit always uses God's own revelation as given in His testimony. The Anabaptists say that God's children must withdraw themselves from the world as much as possible. They should not be involved in politics, govern­ment service, or the military, for this is the dominion of the devil and the powers of the prince of darkness rule over material things. The Lord Jesus gives a different testimony in Matthew 5:14, 15, and in His prayer for the church in John 17:15. He testified of the place of a true believer when He asked the Father not to take them out of the world. No, they should be the light upon the candlestick and the salt of the earth. It is true that in order to speak with liberty about God and His service they need the Spirit to give them love and boldness. How sad it is that in our days that our fellow travelers to a never ending eternity, especially our young people, hear so seldom of God being witnessed by those whom the Lord has called out of darkness by His marvelous light! Let not those keep silence who make mention of the Lord as it stated in Isaiah 62. The Anabaptists make an unscriptural separation between material and spiritual things. God's Word speaks of the grace of God as a leaven which should penetrate all areas of life, both social and political, both private as well as public.

Our conscience testifies and nature shows that there is a God, "all which things are sufficient to convince men and leave them without excuse." No heathen will ever be able to say, "I did not know there was a God," for He will answer, "I have shown My greatness, wisdom, power, and divine majesty in nature and your own conscience has witnessed it." How much less will we have an excuse, who have been brought up under special revelation in His holy and divine Word wherein He makes Himself "more clearly and fully known" to us! What an inestimable gift is that Word which reveals to us all "that is necessary to know in this life to His glory and our salvation"! Young friends, there is much knowledge which you have to acquire and learn today to be qualified for positions in life, but none of it is as great as that knowledge which is absolutely necessary in order to glorify God and to be saved. Scripture so clearly speaks unto us of what the goal of our life should be and what was the purpose of our creation, viz., to glorify God and to serve Him.

We have seen that there is an undervaluing of general revelation among some heretics. How much undervaluing of God's Word is there among us, my friends? We have heard of Christians in China traveling for forty-eight hours in order to obtain a Bible, listening for seven hours to a sermon or exposition of that

Word, and being disappointed when the speaker wished to conclude his address. In some parts of the world there is great hunger for the Word of God, and where congregations of three hundred people must share two Bibles because there are no more available. How many privileges we have, both individually and collectively! We can see and read this precious Book, while others are blind. We have been taught in these precious doctrines which are revela­tions which testify of an almighty God whom we should glorify.

Calvin states that "there will come a time for us, if we do not give heed to His revelation, also in nature, that even the dumb animals which cannot speak, will judge us." This strong language means that animals which have never sinned are evidences of our foolishness. We have sunk lower than the animals of the field. The crown has fallen from our head and our glory has turned into shame. May we learn to accept that fact. Many people speak of accepting Christ while they have never accepted what God's Word testifies of them in Romans 3, where our state is pictured.

May the Lord open our blind eyes to read those two books which He has given us, the book of nature, and that most precious Book of which we hope to read in articles 3-7 of our Confes­sion. May the Lord make such fools as we are wise unto salvation, for the Lord will be glorified in His own work and sovereign grace, freely given.

The Lord reveals Himself in two ways. He has two books of instruction:

1. the book of nature which reveals something of the majesty, the greatness, the glory, the power of God, and
2. His Holy Word. But we said that the Lord also has given us an innate knowledge that there is a God. That first book, however, is not sufficient in order to make us wise unto salvation. We need something more in order to read that book of nature in the right way, to understand ourselves, to understand our place in the world, to understand why we are here and where we are traveling to.

To that end the Lord gave us His special revelation, His Word, which tells us three things which the first book does not tell us:

1. Nature tells us there is a God, but God's special revelation tells us who God is;
2. nature can give us an impression that God is great and we are small, but it does not tell us how this God has to be served, what His will is, how He wants to be worshipped;
3. that book of nature doesn't tell us that we are lost, condemnable, in profound darkness. It doesn't tell us the way wherein we can escape the darkness and punishment and be restored into God's favor, the way of salvation. These things the Lord revealed in His special revelation, His Word.

There has been a time that there was not a written Word. Then the Lord spoke by dreams, by visions, by appearances. Sometimes by an angel, sometimes God appeared Himself. He also revealed His will by casting lots and by the Urim and Thummim. These means were sufficient at that time because the people lived much longer. The number of people living on earth was much less than now. We also know that later the Lord commanded Moses to write the Scriptures and several of God's servants became instru­mental in the composition of God's Word. This written Word of God was not sent nor delivered by the will of man but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, as the apostle Peter said.

I don't doubt for a moment that all of you believe that this Word of God is the inspired, infallible, eternal, reliable, unchangeable Word of God. But can we also prove that? We live in a world which shows much disrespect and disregard for God's Word, but also in the theological world there are many other opinions about the truthfulness of this Word. Some theologians will say that God comes to you with His message in this Word. They will say that God's word is in the Bible, but they will not accept that the Bible is God's Word from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21. How do we prove that God has inspired His Word? That it is not a human word, but that it is theopneustos, that means that God has breathed that Word into the writers by His Spirit? When we speak about God's Word being inspired, we must know what is the meaning of that word "inspired." What is the characteristic of it?

Secondly, we must know the extent of this inspiration:

1. the nature of it. There is an opinion that this inspiration is mechanical;
2. that it is dynamical;
3. that it is an organic inspiration.

Mechanical inspiration implies that the Lord has used the human authors as secondary authors, like we use, for instance, the typewriter. That typewriter doesn't feel, doesn't think; it is just a dead instrument. It doesn't do any investigating; it just types letter after letter as com­manded. So, some say, the Lord has used authors as mere instruments who did not think of what they were writing but just wrote down what the Lord spoke to them, word by word. But this is not scriptural. The Lord did not use these authors as dead instruments, putting aside their feelings, their emotions, and their characters.

The second opinion is that the nature of inspiration is dynamical. That means the Lord came, through the Spirit, down upon a certain author (for instance, Jeremiah) so that this prophet, from that time until the very end of his life, was filled with the Spirit and whatever he spoke and whatever he wrote was divinely inspired. We don't believe that. The Lord used Jeremiah to write His revelation, but this prophet as well as the other authors have also spoken many other words which were not inspired. We believe that at certain moments the Lord inspired them with His Spirit, but that this was not the case for their entire life.

We believe in organic inspiration. That means that the Lord has used His servants as human beings, not as dead instruments, but that He used them with their talents, with their education, with their character, with their family, social or political background, with their training – as Paul, for instance, had received at the feet of Gamaliel and as Moses was educated in Egypt. Although the Lord kept them from error, from writing anything down which would be unreliable or untrue, yet you see in the prophecy of Isaiah, in his style, that he is a man with much education and of a good upbringing. If you compare him with Amos, then you see clearly that this man also had an entirely different training – on the field as a farmer or guarding the cattle. Therefore, we believe the Lord used His servants as organs, as instruments, but with their own characters, even with investigation of some matters, as we read that Luke had investigated the matter before he began to write. Scripture teaches us organic inspiration.

The extent of the inspiration, that is, how far does the inspiration of Scripture go? There are three opinions:

1. There are those who say the thoughts expressed in Scripture, the ideas, are inspired, but the way wherein they are expressed is very human.
2. Others believe that God's Word is in the Bible, not the complete Bible. If you have a package and you open it, then you will find the contents of it which is the present. You have just to open the package (the Bible); it is given to you in this written Word and then you have to find the divine message. They say, the Bible is partly inspired.
3. We believe that the Bible is verbally inspired verbal plenary inspiration. That means each word to its full extent, from the very beginning to the very end, is in­spired. That is the extent of inspiration. The nature is organic and the extent is verbal, from the beginning to the very end.

God's Word, however, already reveals that there are mockers, people who do not believe the truth. The Anabaptists in the time of the Reformation did not have much esteem for the Word of God. They said that the Word of God is just a dead letter. For you can read in 2 Corinthians 3:6, "the letter killeth but the Spirit giveth life." Surely, it is necessary that the Holy Spirit applies the Word, but that does not mean that otherwise it is but a dead letter. The Anabaptists believe that the inward word is only of importance, the inward light, by the Spirit. Thus they make a separation between Word and Spirit. They seem to have a high esteem for God and for His Spirit, but they do not really have much respect for the God of this Word when they despise His written Word.

When this text says, "the letter killeth," it means the let­ter which is written in stony tables, the administration of the law of God. When the Lord comes in our life and opens our eyes and places us before His holy law, God's holiness becomes reality and we see we have transgressed that law, then that letter begins to kill us. Has this already happened to you? There can never be any form nor com­eliness in the Lord Jesus Christ and we can never be mar­ried with Him, with this Bridegroom, if we have not died to the first husband, the law (Rom. 7:3). That happens when the Lord begins to erect that law as a mirror before us and we try to find life by the law, but the law, instead of giving us life, puts us down and says: You are not perfect and all your works are not sufficient. When the Lord opens the eyes for the spiritual meaning of the law, we see that what­ever we do, we are transgressing the law. Hence, this text does not teach that the Word of God is but a dead letter.

Then in the time of the Reformation there were the so-called Libertines, the liberals. They believed that the Word of God had just a symbolical meaning. Our Reformers waged hard battle against the Anabaptists but also against these Libertines. The Roman Catholic Church officially believed the inspiration of God's Word. The Council of Trent and also the Council of the Vatican which came together in the 1880s again affirmed that. They teach that this inspired Word comes to us under papal authority and with his explanation, so in the way the pope and the bishops of the church explain that word, so only is it the Word of God. We believe that the Lord reveals the truth of His Word by His Spirit unto His children. The Lord also uses instruments. We have our expositors and our books which can shed much light upon this Word, but they don't have divine authority.

Then many theologians today, as we have said, teach that the Bible is partially inspired and that God's Word is in the Bible. It sounds good but it is subtle; it is a trick of Satan. For this takes away all its certainty and reliability. How do I know when, for instance, I read Paul's opinion about the offices in the church, about the place of women in the church, what God's meaning is? God's Word is just in the Bible? How do I know, when Paul speaks about Christian lifestyle, about homosexuality, that this is God's opinion?

We also want to mention the vision of Karl Barth, a Swiss theologian whose theology is quite influential also in Reformed and Protestant circles all over the world. Barth's theology seemed to be so spiritual, for he said that it is so necessary that God speaks to us by means of His Spirit and it is not enough that you read or preach the Word of God. But then he said: We must not believe that the Bible is only inspired at the moment they wrote it down, otherwise you make a pope of it. He believes that the prophets or the apostles have spoken in truth, sometimes with errors. They have brought a very important message for us, but only when the Spirit comes down and uses that Word, then, like lightning, it strikes in your life. Just as a tree is hit by the lightning and it is cut open, so it is when God comes with His Spirit and uses that human word, the Bible. We would say this is not so superficial – as many people who say, just read the Bible, take it, and believe it. Karl Barth emphasizes that God's Spirit must use and must apply that word, and then it becomes God's Word. But that means, as long as the Spirit is not involved, I can do with that Word what I please, for it is just a human word. But when the Spirit comes, God lifts up that human word and makes it to be a divine word which strikes at our hardness, opens the rock of our existence, and makes us tremble before the majesty of the Word – then only it becomes God's Word. But friends, no, when we speak about the Word, then we speak about the Holy Bible, about the holy inspired Scriptures.

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What do we believe about this Word of God? We be­lieve, as we saw already, in an organic, verbal inspiration. But we have to know why we believe in a divinely inspired Word of God. We need proofs of inspiration. I will divide them into two groups.

1. God's Word testifies that the organs, the instruments, the human authors, were inspired. We read in Exodus 7:1, "And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh." He calls Moses a god. Why? The word he would speak to Pharaoh would have to be considered not as Moses' word but as God's Word. And therefore the Lord said, "I make you a god to Pharaoh." We read also in other parts of the Word that the Lord uses His servants as instruments. We read, "the Spirit of the Lord fell upon him," "the hand of the Lord was strong upon him," or "he received the Word of God." Think of Ezekiel. I mention Isaiah 8:11; Jeremiah 15:19; Ezekiel 1:3; 3:22; 37:1 – that what these prophets are speaking or writing has first been received from God. These instruments, the prophets, were aware of it themselves too. They say, "thus saith the Lord"; "hear ye the Word of the Lord"; "thus has the Lord God shown unto me"; or, "the word of the Lord came unto me." They were aware that the Lord spoke to them and that the words they spoke were received from God. Sometimes they even go so far that when they are speaking to the people, they speak in the third person, "the Lord says," or "He said to you." Then suddenly they make a transition to the first person and say, "I say unto you"; then by "I" they mean God. They suddenly change from, "saith the Lord" to "I say unto you." Then it does not mean "I, Isaiah," but it means "I the Lord." We also read that Christ promised His disciples the Holy Spirit and to teach them all things and to bring to their remembrance, whatsoever I have taught you (John 14:16,26). He says as it were, "I will give my Spirit so that years after it happened you will remember it as if it happened today." The prophets and the apostles could say, "Ye received the word of God which ye heard of us" (1 Thess. 2:13). So, the word they brought was the Word of God. They knew it was the testimony of God.
2. The Bible speaks not just about persons, but also about the written Word as being inspired. There are many texts which prove this. In Hebrews 1:5-13 we find seven quota­tions from the Old Testament as being God's Word. In these few verses we find quotations from Psalm 2:7; 2 Samuel 7:14; Psalm 97:7; Psalm 104:4; Psalm 45:6,7; Psalm 102:24­27, and the well-known Psalm 110:1. Thus what Scripture says is ascribed to God. In 2 Timothy 3:16 we read, "All Scripture (not part of it, but all Scripture) is given by inspiration of God." Not: all Scripture, given by inspiration, is of God. As if it could be that there are also parts which are not given by inspiration, say parts of Paul or of Jeremiah. No, God's Word says, "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God."
3. 2 Peter 1:19-21, "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the daystar arise in your hearts." That more sure word of God is God's Word. That Word, Peter says, came not by the will of man, but the holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. Therefore, I am even more sure than if I had heard it with my ears, as the three men on the mount who heard the voice of God.

Maybe, people of God, you would like to hear the Lord say with an audible voice, "You are My child." You say, "If I heard such an audible voice, then I could believe." Peter however says as it were, No, we have something which is more sure, for your ears can deceive you, but the Word cannot deceive you. That Word is not brought forth by the will of man but by the will of God.

4. In 1 Corinthians 2:13 the apostle speaks not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth but which the Holy Ghost teacheth. So, the Holy Ghost teaches words and each word is the Spirit's word. The inspiration of Scripture is verbal.

The Lord says to the prophet, "Behold, I have put My words in thy mouth" (Jer. 1:9), not My thoughts in your heart, but "My words in your mouth." When the Jews said of the Lord Jesus in John 10:33 that He was making Himself God, then the Lord Jesus appealed to that which was written in the law; He referred to Psalm 82:6 where judges are called "gods." He quotes that text literally and doesn't say, this is "the thought" of that text, but He says that you read that literally, verbally, in your law, in the Word of God. In Galatians 3:16 Paul bases his whole argument on the use of one word from Scripture. If the Word of God had been only inspired in thought, he could never have built his argument on the use of that one word. Therefore, we see that the word of God is inspired verbally.

But does that mean that there is no human aspect in the Word of God? Oh, there surely is. We read about the authors of the Kings and Chronicles that they refer to their sources. They have made use of some other books. They have studied before, and the Lord also used their studying to write down His Word. Writers also gave expression to their own experiences. You can see they are not merely a cold typewriter; you hear their feelings, their fear or gladness. Moses, Luke, and the poets of the Psalms clearly give expression to their own feelings of joy and sorrow. There is a human aspect.

That human aspect is also evident in their style. If you compare Isaiah and Daniel with Amos or with Joel, then you can see these books are written by different human authors. But all have spoken the full truth of God. Sometimes they have not suppressed their own feelings. If you read God's Word, friends, from the beginning to the end, there is no word of which you would say, "Moses, you should have left this out," or "Paul, you should not have boasted that much." No, the Spirit gave them to speak according to their own character but did not permit their sinful nature to express itself. The sinful inclinations of the heart were not creeping in. We see human aspects in their writings, but no sinful­ness or errors.

• Dear friends, this Word of God which we have discussed is infallible, reliable, and trustworthy. We read in 1 Timothy 1:15, "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation." How many faithful sayings did we hear already in our life? How many things worthy of our acceptation? What did we do with that faithful Word? Did we treat it like a human word which you can doubt, can put aside, can neglect, can trample upon? Or did we ever fall under that Word? Friends, God's Word is a book which can make us wise unto salvation. The Lord says of this book, "Search the Scriptures."
• They testify of the majesty, greatness, holiness of the Author.
• The Scriptures reveal the way of salvation.
• They are the only instrument by which the Holy Spirit works faith in the heart.
• It was said to the rich man in Luke 16, "They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them." Did we already hear?
• Do we live by this Word? Is it a lamp to our feet and a light on our paths? May this Word be more precious to us than gold or silver. May it be our food and drink, our guide, teaching us the way we should go. Then we will not go astray, as God has promised in this Word.