First Baptist Church of Clifton, Tennessee

First Baptist Church of Clifton, Tennessee

Table of Contents

“What the Bible Teaches”

(Nine Week Introductory Discipleship Series)

Session One: “What the Bible Teaches About Itself”

1. Three words are paramount as we approach the study, they are:

A. Revelation

B. Inspiration

C. Interpretation

2. First, Let’s look at Revelation.[1]

How did God choose to reveal Himself?

1^st through creation – Romans 1:19-22

2^nd through conscience – Romans 2:15

3^rd through Christ – John 14:8-9

4^th through the Bible – II Timothy 3:16

3. Next Comes Inspiration.[2]

Six Theories of inspiration are:

I Verbal, Plenary – (full inspiration)

Infallible, inerrant – original autographs

O.T. written in Hebrew

N.T. written in Greek

II Dictation Theory

The writers were merely stenographers.

III Concept Theory

God supplied the concept but not the words.

IV Partial Theory

Part of the Bible inspired (Salvation truth, etc.)

V Neo-Orthodox Theory

True only as realized by the reader

VI Naturalistic Theory

An extreme view of unbelief. Bible no different than any other work of literature.

4. Now we look at Interpretation.[3]^, [4]

The principles that need to be followed in interpreting the Bible are:

A. The purpose of the Bible as a whole.

(Not a book of science or history, as such)

B. The particular message of each book of the Bible.

C. To whom addressed?

D. The context (verses before and after a particular verse).

E. Similar teachings elsewhere in the Bible.

F. Accurate exegesis of the words of a particular text.

G. Guard against prejudice.

5. The Evidence (or proof) that the Bible is inspired.

A. The evidence is twofold:

I Internal

II External

B. Internal Evidence

I Jesus declared it. (Matt. 5:17-18, Mark 13:31, Luke 16:17, John 2:22)

II Other N.T. scriptures declare it.

Acts 17:11, Romans 10:17, Revelation 1:2, II Timothy 3:15-17, II Peter 3:15-16

III Old Testament Prophecy (Deuteronomy 18:21-22)

(No other religious writing contains prophecy.)

C. External Evidence

I Manuscript Evidence

II Archaeology

[1] Revelation in its wider sense includes all modes in which God makes Himself known to men or passively, all knowledge concerning God however attained, inasmuch as it is conceived that all such knowledge is, in one way or another, wrought in time. – Benjamin B. Warfield, Revelation and Inspiration (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 2003) page 37

[2] By the inspiration of Scripture we mean that supernatural influence of the Holy Spirit upon the Scripture writers which rendered their writing an accurate record of the revelation of which resulted in what they wrote actually being the Word of God. – Millard Erickson, Introducing Christian Doctrine, 2^nd Edition (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Academic, 2007) page 61

[3] The task of Interpretation or “Hermeneutics” is to discover the meaning of the text in its proper setting: to draw meaning from Scripture rather than reading one’s presuppositions into it. – John MacArthur, Charismatic Chaos (Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan, 1992) page 103

[4] …We must ground our interpretations of Scripture in the original, intended meanings of the text and then must ground theological reflection, and the resulting application and communication, in sound interpretation. – David Dockery, The Holman Guide to Interpreting the Bible (Nashville, TN, Broadman & Holman Publisher, 2004) page 45

[5] It is important to remember, however, that “each member of the Godhead is equally God, each is eternally God, and each is fully God – not three Gods but three persons of the one Godhead.” He [Bruce Ware] emphasizes that each is equal in essence; in fact, “each possesses fully the identically same, eternal divine nature, yet each is also an eternal and distinct personal expression of the one undivided divine nature.” – Millard Erickson, Whose Tampering with the Trinity [Bruce A. Ware, (Father, Son and Holy Spirit: Relationships, Rules and Relevance)] (Wheaton, IL, Crossway, 2005) page 43

[6] The progressive character of divine revelation is recognized in relation to all the great doctrines of the Bible. One of the strongest arguments for the divine origin of the Scripture is the organic relation of its several parts. They comprise more than sixty books written by different men in different ages, and yet they form one whole. This unity is not a matter merely of external historical relations, nor of a general identity of subjects treated, but of internal organic development. All that is in the full-grown tree was potentially in the seed. All that we find unfolded in the fullness of the gospel lies in a rudimental form in the earliest books of the Bible. – Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology (Phillipsburg, NJ, P & R Publishing, 1997) page 168

[7] The visible creation makes the personality of God the Father somewhat easy to conceive, the incarnation makes it almost, if not altogether, impossible to disbelieve in the personality of Jesus Christ; but the acts and workings of the Holy Spirit are so secret and mystical, so much is said of His influence, graces, power and gifts, that we are prone to think of Him as an influence, a power, a manifestation or influence of the divine nature, an agent rather than a Person – William Evans, The Great Doctrines of the Bible (Chicago, IL, Moody Press, 1974) pages 107-108

[8] Trichotomy: The view that man is made of three parts (body, soul, spirit) is called trichotomy. According to many trichotomists, man’s soul includes his intellect, his emotions, and his will. – Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan, 1994) page 472

[9] *Alternate View* - Dichotomy: The view that man is made up of two parts (body and soul/spirit) is called dichotomy. Those who hold this view often agree that Scripture uses the word spirit (Heb. Rûach, and Gk. Pneuma) more frequently when referring to our relationship to God, but such usage (they say) is not uniform, and the word soul is also used in all the ways that spirit can be used. – Wayne Grudem, Ibid

[10] He [John] shows that enjoyment consists in faith; and not without reason, since by means of it we possess Christ, who brings along with him both righteousness and life, which is the fruit of righteousness. When faith in Christ is declared to be the cause of life, we learn from it that life is to be found in Christ alone, and that in no other way do we become partakers of it than by the grace of Christ himself. – John Calvin, Calvin’s Commentaries: Vol. XVII (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 2003) page 141

[11] It is a remarkable commendation of faith, that it freed us from everlasting destruction. For he intended expressly to state that, though we appear to have been born to death, undoubted deliverance is offered to us by the faith of Christ; and, therefore, that we ought not to fear death, which otherwise hangs over us.” “…we live, because God loves us freely by not imputing to us our sins.” – John Calvin, Ibid. pages 124-125

[12] Certain aspects of the doctrine of salvation relate to the matter of one’s standing with God. … The individual’s legal status must be changed from guilty to not guilty. … There also is a progressive alteration of the individual’s spiritual condition; one actually becomes holier. … Sanctification finally comes to completion in the life beyond death, when the spiritual nature of the believer will be perfected. – Millard Erickson, Introducing Christian Doctrine, 2^nd Edition (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Academic, 2007) pages 295-296

[13] When Jesus said, “It is finished,” he meant it. Nothing can be added to what he did. Many people believe they must supplement his work with good deeds of their own. They believe they must facilitate their own redemption through baptism, other sacraments and religious rituals, benevolent deeds, or whatever else they can accomplish through their own efforts. But no works of human righteousness can expand on what Jesus accomplished for us (Titus 3:5). The beginning and the end of our salvation was consummated by Jesus Christ, and we can contribute nothing. – John MacArthur, Jr., The Gospel According to Jesus (Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan, 1994) page 242

[14] Universalism: A belief which affirms that in the fullness of time all souls will be released from the penalties of sin and restored to God. Historically known as Apokatastasis, final salvation denies the biblical doctrine of eternal punishment and is based on a faulty reading of Acts 3:21; Romans 5:18-19; Ephesians 1:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:22 and other passages. - Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 1997) page 1128

[15] Christ gave a command perpetually binding on His Church to baptize men “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”…According to this formula, he who receives baptism as a Christian rite thereby professes to stand in that relation to the Father, Son, and Spirit which those who receive the religion of Christ sustain. – Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, page 483

[16] Baptism of Fire: This expression has been variously understood. Some have supposed that John refers to the afflictions and persecutions with which men would be tried under the Gospel; others, that word fire means judgment or wrath. . – Albert Barnes, Barnes Notes “The Gospels”, (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 2005) page 29

[17] Baptism of the Holy Spirit: The Scriptures make mention of only one Baptism of the Holy Spirit, while the infilling of the Spirit is not confined to a single experience, but may be repeated times without number. There need be no long searching before receiving this. It may occur at conversion, and it is to be sought afresh in each new emergency or act of service. – Emery H. Bancroft, Elemental Theology, (Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan, 1977) pages 221-222

[18] By looking backward into history, it is a celebration and reminder of His suffering and death. Because our memory is short, the memorial supper symbolizes His body broken for us by means of the bread, and as we sip of the fruit of the vine we partake of the blood shed for the establishment of a new covenant. But the supper looks forward as well as backward as a prophecy and promise of His coming as we “show forth the Lord’s death till He comes.” Lastly, Paul reminds us that in the present we participate in the memorial meal only after we “judge ourselves that we be not judged.” – Emery H. Bancroft, Elemental Theology (Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan, 1977) page 311

[19] Transubstantiation: The theory accepted by Rome as a dogma in 1215, in an attempt to explain the statements of Christ: This is my body and this is my blood (Mark 14:22) as applied to the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper. It is insisted that this must be taken with the strictest literalism. But to our senses the bread and wine seem to remain exactly as they were even when consecrated. ‑ Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology(Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 1997) page 1108

[20] Consubstantiation: While some have used the term consubstantiation to denote Luther’s concept that body and bread are concurrently present, that blood and wine coexist, it was not Luther’s term. While he rejected transubstantiation and the sacrifice of the Mass, he still believed that Christ is bodily present in the Lord’s Supper and that his body is received by all who partake of the elements. – Millard Erickson, Introducing Christian Doctrine, 2^nd Edition (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Academic, 2007) page 364

[21] …it is no good supposing that membership of the universal Church of Christ is enough; we must belong to some local branch of it. Nor is it sufficient to be a member of a Christian Union in a college or elsewhere (although I hope you will become active in yours). Every Christian’s place is in a local church, sharing in its worship, fellowship and witness. – John R.W. Stott, Basic Christianity (Downer’s Grove, IL, Inter Varsity Press, 1971) page 139

[22] The Great Commission is a command to bring unbelievers throughout the world to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and the term the Lord uses in this commissioning is make disciples. … Jesus’ supreme command, therefore, is for those who are His disciples to become His instruments for making disciples of all nations. … Those who become His disciples are themselves to become disciple makers. The mission of the early church was to make disciples (see Acts 2:47; 14:21), and that is still Christ’s mission for His Church. – John MacArthur Jr., The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Matthew 24-28 (Winona, IN, BMH Books, 1989) page 341

[23] The phrase “separation of church and state” does not appear anywhere in the Constitution. Thomas Jefferson wrote that the 1^st Amendment erected a “wall of separation” between the church and the state (James Madison said it “drew a line,” but it is Jefferson’s term that sticks with us today). The phrase is commonly thought to mean that the government should not establish, support, or otherwise involved itself in any religion. American Center for Law and Justice

[24] Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government fro a redress of grievances. – U.S Constitution, 1st Amendment

[25] Indian Creek Baptist Association was organized in 1837. At the time that the Indian Creek Association was organized there were seven churches located in Tennessee and several churches located in Alabama that came together to form the Association. The organization of the Association took place at the New Hope Baptist Church in what is now Lauderdale County, Alabama. Brother David E. Davis was one of the men that led out in the organization of the Association. Brother W.M. Corker is listed as the first clerk of the Association. The following churches have been in Indian Creek the longest: Green River – 1837, Philadelphia – 1845, Zion – 1848, Bethlehem – 1866, and Leatherwood – 1870. Indian Creek no longer reaches throughout four counties. It’s main ministry lies within Wayne County where 21 of its 22 churches reside. – Mitchell Bennett, History of the Indian Creek Baptist Association, not published, 1999

[26] The first effort to organize a state convention in Tennessee was at Mill Creek Baptist Church, near Nashville, October 23, 1833. … A constitution was adopted, and an executive committee of 30 members, 10 from each major division of the state, was appointed. The Tennessee convention was the sixth state convention to be organized. … The Convention hears the reports from all institutions, agencies, committees, and departments. After discussions and changes, if any, it adopts them with the recommendations for program guidance. – The Tennessee Baptist Convention Journal, 115^th Annual Session (Knoxville, TN, 1989) pages 42, 43

[27] The roots of the Southern Baptist denomination go back to the Reformation in England in the sixteenth century. Reformists of the time called for a return to the New Testament Christian example of purity. Likewise, they called for strict accountability in their covenant with God. One prominent reformer in the early seventeenth century, John Smyth, was a strong promoter of adult baptism. In 1609 he rebaptized himself and others. Smyth’s reforms birthed the first English Baptist Church. Smyth also held to the Arminian view that god’s saving grace is for everyone and not just predestined individuals.

By 1644, due to the efforts of Thomas Helwys and John Smyth, 50 Baptist churches were already established in England. Like many others, Roger Williams came to America to escape religious persecution, and in 1638 he established the First Baptist Church in America in Providence, Rhode Island.

By the mid eighteenth century the number of Baptists increased greatly as a result of the Great Awakening pioneered by Johathan Edwards. In 1755 Shubael Stearns began to spread his Baptist belief in North Carolina, leading to the establishment of 42 churches in the North Carolina area. He and his followers believed in emotional conversion, membership in a community, accountability and adult Baptist by immersion. The North Carolina Baptists or Shubael followers were referred to as Separate Baptists. The Regular Baptists resided primarily in the north.

In the late 1700’s and early 1800’s as Baptists began to organize and expand, they formed missionary societies to spread the Christian lifestyle to others These mission societies eventually led to other organizational structures that would define and make a denomination of Southern Baptists. By the 1830’s tension began to mount between the Northern and Southern Baptists. One issue that severely divided the Baptists was slavery. Northern Baptists believed God would not condone treating one race as superior to another while Southerners said that God intended for races to be separate. Southern state Baptists began complaining that they weren’t receiving money for mission work. The Home Mission Society declared that a person could not be a missionary and wish to keep his slaves as property. As a result of this division, Baptists in the south met in May of 1845 and organized the Southern Baptist Convention. – Mary Fairchild, A Brief History of the Southern Baptist Denomination, www.christianity.about.com/of/denominations/a/ baptisthistory.htm, September 17, 2010

[28] The major result of Christ’s second coming, from the standpoint of individual eschatology, is the resurrection. This is the basis for the believer’s hope in the face of death. Although death is inevitable, the believer anticipates being delivered from its power. – Millard Erickson, Introducing Christian Doctrine, 2^nd Edition (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Academic, 2007) page 388