Message Notes
Decoding the Da Vinci Code, Part 2
Can I Trust the Bible?
From the Da Vinci Code: Jesus was revered as a human for the first 300
years of Christianity. In a close
vote at the council of Nicea in 325 AD they decided to declare him divine. The
emperor Constantine was mostly responsible for this. To that point almost 80
Gospels had been written about Jesus. 4 were picked by
What about the “Hidden
Books,” the so-called “Gnostic Gospels?”
1) They were generally written later than the books of the
Bible.
2) They seem that they are trying to sound like books of the
Bible.
Gospel of Thomas: These are the secret sayings that the living
Jesus spoke and Didymos Judas Thomas recorded. And he said, "Whoever
discovers the interpretation of these sayings will not taste death." Jesus said,
"Those who seek should not stop seeking until they find. When they find,
they will be disturbed. When they are disturbed, they will marvel, and will
reign over all. [And after they have reigned they will rest.]"
3) They are mostly collections of sayings. When they are in narrative form,
they usually lack historical context.
The Acts of Peter and the Twelve Apostles
We went down to the sea at an opportune moment, which came to us from the Lord.
We found a ship moored at the shore ready to embark, and we spoke with the
sailors of the ship about our coming aboard with them. They showed great
kindliness toward us as was ordained by the Lord. And after we had embarked, we
sailed a day and a night. After that, a wind came up behind the ship and
brought us to a small city in the midst of the sea.
And I, Peter,
inquired about the name of this city from residents who were standing on the
dock. A man among them answered, saying, "The name of this city is
Habitation, that is, Foundation [...] endurance." And the leader among
them holding the palm branch at the edge of the dock. And after we had gone
ashore with the baggage, I went into the city, to seek advice about lodging.
4) Their “apostolic” authorship is highly doubted even among
the most liberal of scholars.
5) They are based on a belief called “Gnosticism” that has some of the same
terms as Christianity, but a completely different world view.
Secret knowledge is given to the elect: The
Apocryphon of James Since you asked that I send you a secret book which was
revealed to me and Peter by the Lord, I could not turn you away or gainsay (?)
you; but I have written it in the Hebrew alphabet and sent it to you, and you
alone.
True reality is spirit, matter is inherently evil: Gospel of Thomas, v. 114 Simon Peter said to him, "Let Mary leave
us, for women are not worthy of life." Jesus said, "I myself shall
lead her in order to make her male, so that she too may become a living spirit
resembling you males. For every woman who will make herself male will enter the
kingdom of heaven."
Gospel of Mary of Magdala Then Mary stood up,
greeted them all, and said to her brethren, Do not weep and do not grieve nor
be irresolute, for His grace will be entirely with you and will protect you.
But rather, let us praise His greatness, for He has prepared us and made us
into Men.
6) They had a very limited usage. There are very few copies
available, usually just one or two.
Conclusion: We shouldn’t treat the Gnostic Gospels as lost
books of the Bible, but as writings of a religion that is different from
Christianity with a few similar terms.
Why can I trust the 27
books of the New Testament?
1) We know they claim to have an “Apostolic Origin” that is
they were written by those closest to Christ and his apostles. This can
verified historically speaking to a large degree.
2) They had a widespread usage in a relatively short time.
The canon was “selected” out in the open, over many years, over wide areas of
the Earth. One person or organization was not able to control this process.
3) They are mostly written from a practical, common sense, perspective
like you would expect from a “common person.”
4) They contain a huge amount of historical perspective,
especially Luke and Acts.
5) The Biblical accounts are the MOST DOCUMENTED of all
historical documents from any period of time in history. For historians, this
goes a long way to prove that the people who wrote the Bible believed what they
were writing was the truth.
Aristotle’s poetics were written around 340 BC, and the
earliest copy we have is dated around 1100 AD, nearly a 1400 year gap, yet few
doubt the historicity of the documents.
The Iliad has the second highest number of manuscripts of
any ancient document without 640 manuscripts from about 1000 years after the
original.
The New Testament has over 24,000 manuscripts known to date,
the highest number of any ancient document! The earliest fragment is from 75 to
120 years after the events recorded!
Geisler and Nix conclude “The New Testament, then, has not
only survived in more manuscripts than any other book from antiquity, but it
has survived in a purer form than any other great book – a form that is 99.5%
pure.” A General Introduction to the Bible, PG 367
“At the time they (Matthew, Mark and Luke) were written or
may be supposed to have been written, there were eyewitnesses and their
testimony was not completely disregarded…This means that the gospels MUST be
regarded as largely reliable witnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of
Jesus.” Robert Grant, NT Scholar,
6) The New Testament is supported by OUTSIDE SOURCES that
were contemporary to the Biblical times.
Josephus Antiquities 90 AD “About this time
there lived Jesus, a wise man… For he was one who wrought surprising feats and
was a teacher of such people as accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews
and many of the Greeks… When Pilate…had him condemned to be crucified, those
who had in the first place come to love him did not give up their affection for
him. (Quoted from The Case for Christ, pgs. 103-105)
Tacticus 115 AD “ Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the
most exquisite torture on a class hated for their abominations, called
Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origins,
suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one
of our procurators, Pontius Pilate, and a most mischievous superstition, thus
checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judea, the first source of
the evil, but even in Rome…Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who
pleaded guilty: then, upon their information, an immense multitude was
convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred of
mankind. (Quoted from The Case for Christ,
pgs 107-108)
Pliny the Younger 111 AD I have asked them if they are
Christians, and if they admit it, I repeat the question a second and third
time, with a warning of the punishment awaiting them. If they persist, I order
them to be led away for execution, I am convinced that their stubbornness and
unshakable obstinacy ought not to go unpunished. They also declared that the
sum total of their guilt or error amounted to no more than this: They had met
regularly before dawn on a fixed day to chant verses alternately amongst
themselves in honor of Christ as to a god, and also to bind themselves by oath,
not for any criminal purpose, but to abstain from theft, robbery, and
adultery…This made me decide it was all the more necessary to extract the truth
by torture from two slave-women, whom they call deaconesses. I found nothing
but a degenerate sort of cult carried to extravagant lengths. (Quoted from The
Case for Christ, pgs. 109-110)
Conclusion: The New Testament is a historically accurate
document. We can be sure that the people wrote down what they and many others
believed that they had witnessed about Christ!
2 Peter
2 Timothy 3:16a All
Scripture is God-breathed…
John 14:6 Jesus
answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through me.
Romans
John 1:12 Yet to all
who received Him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to
become children of God…
Prayer of Faith “Dear God, I want a real relationship with you. I realize that I have sinned against you and been my own boss. I turn from my sin to you, and ask you to forgive me. Jesus, I know that you died for me and rose again. So I ask you into my life, as my leader. I accept the forgiveness that you freely give. Thank you for dying for me. Help me now to live for you. Amen.