It is the nature of a person to want to share what is in the heart. If one listens carefully to what another person is saying he or she will discover what an individual is determined to do. Specifically, some world leaders do not hesitate to share what their intentions are. In his book, Mein Kampf (My Struggle) Adolf Hitler informed the world he would destroy the Jewish race and intended to invade Russia. The world, however, refused to believe that someone would attempt to do something so audacious—and we learned a tragic lesson. Similarly, our current commander-in-chief campaigned on the promise that he would terminate jobs in the coal industry, raise taxes, and continue to kill babies by supporting legislation to fund the slaughter of the unborn. Millions applauded this perverse platform and elected him to high office—and he has subsequently kept his word much to the dismay of many Americans.

Another world leader has emerged on the international stage to inform the world openly and unabashedly that he is determined to destroy the nation of Israel, and thus, hasten the return of the twelfth Imam.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad believes in the twelfth Imam. In November, 2005 in a keynote speech to senior clerics, Ahmadinejad spoke of his strong belief in the second coming of Shi'ite Muslims' "hidden" 12th Imam. According to Shi'ite Muslim teaching, Abul-Qassem Mohammad, the 12th leader whom Shi'ites consider descended from the Prophet Mohammed, disappeared in AD 941 but will return at the end of time to usher in an era of Islamic justice. The 12th Imam's return will be hastened by the creation of chaos on earth. To that end the president of Iran is now working through the development and deployment of a military arsenal that shall soon—if not already—include nuclear weapons.

The great question is this: "Once Ahmadinejad has nuclear weapons will he use them against Israel?" It would not take much to destroy the population of Israel for the small nation occupies a land mass only three hundred miles long and one hundred and fifty miles wide. Ninety percent of the population is located around Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, cities just thirty miles apart. A single nuclear strike on either city would not only kill a large percent of the population, but would destroy the country’s industrial infrastructure. The radioactive fallout would render the landscape uninhabitable for years to come.

With his visceral hatred of the Jews, with his cult follower complex, and with his religious zeal, there is no doubt that Ahmadinejad will use weapons of mass destruction, not for peace, but to bring the return of the twelfth Imam. To this end the man has spoken from his heart. Perhaps it is time we start believing people when they inform us that they intend to do great evil. After all, the Bible records that "things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man…" (Matt 15:18–20).

Once a man reveals his heart and promises to bring chaos we need to take notice and understand that not only are such wicked machinations possible, they are likely—because of the radical depravity of man. Consider,

"There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known: There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Rom 3:10–18) .

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Just because the Bible says something, this does not make it true. We follow the Bible in what it teaches, but not everything it records is intended to be teaching in the proper sense. Our goal as Christians is to be good interpreters of the Bible, being able to discern when something is being taught or when something is being told...

» The Holy Spirit and Old Testament Believers
I often get questions about this topic of whether the activity and presence of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament age was the same or different than in our age. Some have worded it, “How has God’s activity among us really changed since Pentecost?” There are a number of ways to ask the same thing...

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Dozens of pastors around the nation are challenging an Internal Revenue Service rule that anti-Christian activists often invoke when they want to silence the message of churches, according to the Alliance Defense Fund...

Imagine for just a moment what your life would be like if you were bloodied and bruised for your beliefs, imprisoned, beaten with rods, stoned, shipwrecked, constantly in danger of being robbed, enduring persecution from people claiming to love you, suffering from hunger and thirst, sleeping without shelter, or exposed to the cold. Sound a bit too outrageous to be true? Perhaps so, especially in our modern-day culture and settings, but if you think this cannot happen, then think again—it has. The apostle Paul is just one of many Christians who suffered much affliction during his life and wrote his testimony explaining the hardships,

"But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches" (2 Cor 11:21–28, ESV).

So how did the apostle respond to these various and sundry trials? Did he react in a manner similar to that of so many today who would blame God for every uncomfortable situation encountered? Was Paul quick to murmur and complain to his friends regarding how bad his situation was? Did the apostle seek out an empathetic ear or feel sorry for himself? The answer, of course, is no. His response is the model for all Christians in any given situation. It generally happens, that, our reaction would be a far cry from that of the apostle's when he wrote,

"I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me" (Phil 4:11b–13).

The words that immediately come to mind when I read that passage are contentment and gratitude. That is to say, Paul was not concerned so much for his own well being as he was in seeking to thank God for what little he had. How often today do we hear professing Evangelicals tell us how God wants us to succeed and how much God wants to bless us? Do you find it curious that no one, then, appeals to the apostle Paul when propounding such beliefs? I would suggest to you that the answer is strikingly obvious. That is, there are too few people who want to hear that God wants them to be content with their current situation, regardless of how unpleasant it is. That sort of biblical teaching would not make it on the best-seller list nor would it pack the pews. Rather, it is much more appealing to think of God as a big Santa Claus in the sky who wants us to be successful and flourish in this world. But the biblical reality is something quite different.

Paul elsewhere tells us that God works all things together for His purpose (cf. Rom 8:28). This necessarily includes the trials and tribulations that we face. The reality is that the Lord calls us to share in His passion, but many evangelical Christians never hear this message. They do not realize that we are called to suffer for Christ. The reality, however, is that God calls us, molds us, shapes us, and conforms us to the image of His Son. All Christians will experience pain and persecution and when difficult times arrive, we must all remember the words of Paul when he wrote of his contentment. He possessed the confidence that the Lord had placed him in each of those circumstances for a specific reason and that the Lord would give him the strength to face every trial he encountered.

Some synergists have attempted to argue that the emotional language of Genesis 6:6 is proof that God did not ordain every event. That is, when Moses writes "the Lord was sorry that he made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart," it is sometimes suggested that the inhabitants in Noah’s day acted in a way that was outside of God’s will and knowledge, and because of the widespread human wickedness, God was sorry that He made man. The question, of course, that must be considered is, does the conclusion that God was surprised by man's actions naturally follow from the reading of Scripture as a whole? Or, is there a better—perhaps more biblical—way in which to interpret this passage? Let me offer just a few considerations.

A proper understanding of God’s attributes must preclude anyone from being able to accept the interpretation that God was somehow surprised by the actions of mankind. Specifically, if one truly believed that the antediluvians in Genesis 6 were acting outside of God’s ordained will, one must then deny God’s omniscience. Those who insist that God was somehow taken aback by the behavior of His creation must also concede that God’s foreknowledge is not exhaustive—a position taken by only those few who would dare tread into open theism (the belief that God only in time comes into knowledge—not that he ordains and controls it).

One must always keep in mind when interpreting Scripture a fundamental interpretive principle: men wrote the Bible for all of mankind. It is therefore reasonable to suggest that the words used to express ideas in the Bible be used in a way that men can understand. Meaning, humans use certain terms to convey ideas and concepts that are otherwise incomprehensible. That is to say, Scripture uses language that everyone can understand in order to convey truths that are hard to grasp.

Specifically, this is done when speaking about God. The Bible uses what is called anthropomorphisms, that is, representations of God using human forms. This way, God uses the language of men to convey a finite understanding of Him. For instance, the Bible declares that God is Spirit, yet such language is ambiguous to us. Therefore, Scripture describes God as having eyes, ears, and hands. This typification of language attributes human forms to God solely for our comprehension. God is unparalleled, yet we endeavor to capture a finite understanding of Him through humanizing language. Sometimes, however, the language we use for God should not to be taken in the literal sense as if we were relaying a story or event to each other. Words might have a slightly different meaning for God than it would otherwise have for humans. Consider several passages:

After six days of creating the world and all its inhabitants, God is said to have rested (Gen 2:2). We know, however, that God does not fatigue nor does He need rest. This is clearly humanizing language to convey a principle for us to follow.

In another passage we read that the Lord God walked in the garden in the cool of the day (Gen 2:8). Again, this is anthropomorphism—God using human language to communicate with us. God did not physically walk in the same manner as Adam walked, because God does not have legs, feet, toes, et cetera. Once more we see that human features and human passions are ascribed to God for a particular meaning and to convey a spiritual truth.

So with this in mind, it is in this light that we should interpret passages like Genesis 6:6. I would submit to you that this particular verse is not teaching that God was ultimately confronted with an unforeseen event that He had not anticipated, but rather, it represents an absolute detestation of sin by a righteous God. The Lord made mankind good and upright, but unfortunately they did not maintain their pure state. And because of their sin it brought about a miserable state for them and all of their posterity. The inevitable consequence of the actions in the garden resulted in the fall of our first parents and the subsequent bondage to sin for all mankind. It is with this reality of man’s condition in view that Moses wrote of the wickedness of the human race—not that God was surprised by His creation.

God knew from eternity past that mankind would need a Redeemer because we read in the Bible of Christ being slain before the foundation of the world (Rev 13:8). Why would the Son need to be slain if God was unaware of a fall or the need for redemption? The answer, of course, is that there were no surprises with God. Consider, "the Glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind" (1 Sam 15:29). And not only does He not change His mind, there is "no variation or shifting shadow (Jas 1:17). We serve a God who is all knowing and unchanging. The biblical authors rightly speak of God as being above man in that He does not change nor is He surprised with the course of human affairs for one simple reason—God is sovereign over all events and works all things out after the counsel of His own will (Eph 1:11).

Many years ago, there was an old man, in his eighties, who was sitting one afternoon beside his dying wife. She, too, was in her eighties. They had lived fruitful lives. Together, they had eight children, but the Lord had taken every one to Himself, some of them when they were small, some of them when they were older. This old couple had no grandchildren, and was alone in the world. The aged husband was seated on a chair beside the bed, and his wife was asleep. After a while she woke up and reached out to touch his hand.

"John," she said, "It is night, isn't it? It's dark."

He wanted to say, "Why darling, it's bright daylight," but he caught himself, for her sight was beginning to fail. So he said softly, "Yes, it is almost night." He meant the long night of the soul.

"Why don't you turn on the light?"

"I will."

He stood and turned on the light.

"The bulb must be bad," she said.

"Well, I guess it's worn out," he replied.

With her hand in his, she dozed off again. Once more she awoke. "John, aren't you almost ready for bed?"

"Yes, darling. Almost." He meant that long, narrow bed from which there is no arising until Jesus comes.

"Have you taken care of the house?"

"Yes, darling."

"The door locked?"

"Yes, darling." His voice was tender.

She drew a deep breath and asked, "John, are the children all in?"

Warm, heavy tears rolled down his cheeks as he whispered, "Yes, darling, they are all in." He meant that all were in heaven with Jesus.

I know that there are untold millions of children who are not all in. They are not in the Lord's house. They are not safe in the arms of Jesus. They have not been born again. They have not even heard the gospel. They are being kept away from Sunday school, church, God's Word, and hearing the purity of the gospel message. If I could make one simple reminder to each parent it would be this: In matchless grace, God has entrusted to you certain children. Make sure they are in church; make sure they are in Sunday school; make sure they are in Christ; and most importantly, make sure you are preparing them for heaven.

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up" (Deut 6:4–7, KJV).  

One of my favorite verses in all of Scripture is found in the fifth chapter of Paul’s epistle to the Romans where he writes about having peace with God. This peace is not some theoretical concept but a present reality for those who have been justified by Christ. The apostle wrote, "Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:1). John Calvin, writing in his Commentaries, observes:

"…Paul, however, now teaches us that our souls are quieted and pacified when we have obtained justification by faith—we have peace with God. This is the particular fruit of the righteousness of faith, and any desire to seek for security of conscience by works (which we see among irreligious and the ignorant) will be unsuccessful, for the heart is either lulled asleep by disregard or forgetfulness of the judgment of God, or else it is full of fear and trembling until it rests in Christ, who alone is our peace.

Peace, therefore, means serenity of conscience, which originates from the awareness of having God reconciled to oneself. This serenity is possessed neither by the Pharisee, who is inflated by a false confidence in his works, nor by the senseless sinner, who, since he is intoxicated with the pleasure of his vices, feels no lack of peace. Though neither of these seems to be in open conflict with God, unlike the man who is struck with a sense of sin, yet because they do not truly approach the judgment seat of God, they have no experience at all of harmony with him. A dulled conscience implies a departure from God. Peace with God is opposed to the drunken security of the flesh, because the rousing of oneself to give an account of one’s way of life is of first importance. No one will stand without fear before God, unless he relies on free reconciliation, for as long as God is judge, all men must be filled with fear and confusion. The strongest proof of this is that our opponents do nothing but idly bandy words when they lay claim to righteousness by works. Paul’s conclusion is based on the principle that wretched souls are always uneasy, unless they rest in the grace of Christ."

Indeed, how utterly sad it is for those who are caught in a vicious cycle of sacramentalism or attempted works of righteousness—always chasing after but never knowing the peace of which Paul wrote about. The individual who relies on his own goodness will never know such assurance, but the one who rightly understands that there is nothing we can do to merit, to earn, or to maintain our own justification will understand fully what the apostle taught. The believer who trusts wholly in Christ knows what it means to have confidence because his standing before God is not his own—it is an alien righteousness. That is to say, when God looks at us, He sees us cloaked in the righteousness of Christ. And in that, in the knowledge of that fundamental concept, is what brings about the peace spoken of in Romans 5.

Nearly every generation experiences at least one monumental event in which everyone remembers where he or she was for that historic occassion. For those old enough, they will remember what they were doing when news broke of the first moon landing, the assassination of President Kennedy, and the resignation of Richard Nixon. Today, we remember yet another event that is even more poignant, that is, today we remember with great sorrow the deadliest terrorist attack perpetrated on American soil. While many still mourn the loss of family members and friends, the Christian should be reminded of an answer to one question in particular: Where was God when America was attacked? The following is a portion of an article originally written in the wake of the September 11th attacks.

By now the sights and sounds of the terrorist attack on America are familiar. On Tuesday, September 11, 2001 two passenger airliners were hi-jacked and deliberately flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone onboard, while many others perished when the towers collapsed.

The nightmare continued when word was received that another plane was crashed into the Pentagon. And still more horror was reported when an airplane went down in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.

For many within the Christian community two questions arise: "What should be a biblical response to this terrorist activity?" and, "Where was God when America was attacked?"

Neither of these questions is easy to answer. Not all people will be united in their thoughts. Nevertheless, an attempt has to be made to address what is happening in the world.

First, what should be America’s response? The biblical answer can be summarized in one word—justice. Justice cries out that those who perpetrated these actions are pursed until they are caught and executed with swiftness. Psalm 82:3 declares that individuals have a responsibility to "defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy." Not punishing those who planned, participated, and protected the perpetrators—those who slaughtered the innocent—would be an evil equal to that of the initial act. The State has the right and the responsibility to wield the sword swiftly so that people of conscience can again sing:

"Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord:He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored; He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword:His truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps, They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps; I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps: His day is marching on.

I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel: "As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal; Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel, Since God is marching on."

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat; He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment-seat: Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him!" Be jubilant, my feet! Our God is marching on.

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea, With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me: As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free, While God is marching on."

(Julia Ward Howe, Atlantic Monthly, February 1862)

Beyond the question of what is to be a Christian response to this nightmare is the haunting question, "Where was God when America was attacked?" Let me suggest first of all that God was present prior to the planes striking their various targets. Had God so decreed the Arab plot could have been detected as easily as Queen Esther exposed the plans of Haman to the Persian king Ahasuerus, in the fifth century BC. The Prime Minister Haman hated Jews in general and the Jew Mordecai in particular. It was his plan to destroy all the Israelites in the Persian Empire in a single day, but God allowed His plans to be exposed and the Jews were allowed to defend themselves.

In His providence, God chose, in this instance, not to fully expose ahead of time the evil of men but to allow certain plans to proceed as was conceived in the wicked imaginations of their hearts.

This is not to suggest, however, that God was immediately responsible for the carnage that was conveyed. It is to say that God is sovereignly in control over all things including the evil which men do. Sin is a great mystery. It cannot be fully understood why God has allowed sin into the universe He created, but it is here in mystery form. In 2 Thessalonians 2:7 the apostle Paul wrote, "For the mystery of iniquity doth already work." But we do not understand fully why that is so. Perhaps God knows that higher ends will be accomplished by the admission of sin than by its exclusion.

What is more certain is that God, in His sovereignty, knows how to turn what is wrong into something that is wonderful. The place of suffering and shame can become a place of triumph and glory. The greatest illustration of this truth is Calvary.

The plans to crucify Christ were known to the mind of God prior to their implementation. Nevertheless, the Father allowed the death of His Son so that grace might abound. The place of evil was transformed into the place of redemption. The sovereignty of God over sin was manifested. So it was that God was present prior to the attack on America. Jesus said that a bird cannot fall to the ground without the Father being aware of the fall (Matt. 10:29). And yet the creature does fall according to divine sovereignty.

Second, God was present during the moments of murder, mayhem, and madness. Consider the evidence. While many lives were taken others were miraculously spared. Even after the buildings collapsed cell phones could be heard ringing. From under the rubble precious lives were rescued. Some of the most skeptical of news commentators have spoken of the "miracle" of the survival of some.

The collateral damage in the attack on America was not as severe as it might have been had all the plans of the terrorists been executed. Apparently, the White House was targeted for destruction as well as the Capitol Building not to mention Air Force One. In His mercy and providence God intervened. At strategic moments brave men and women gave their lives to bring a sky-jacked plane crashing into the ground in Pennsylvania rather than let it proceed to Washington, D.C. In many ways the restraining hand of God was present during the ordeal. God says to the evil that men do, "This far and no more."

Third, it can be affirmed that after the attack on America God was present. The truth of this is also reflected in specific ways.

Elected officials in the highest echelons of government began to pray and lead the nation in moments of silence to encourage others to cry out to the God of heaven for mercy and grace. What national leaders forbid legally they suddenly were doing without shame or protest. Voices were lifted on the Capitol steps in unison to sing God Bless America with the emphasis on God.

A day of mourning and prayer was set aside—from the East Coast to the West. In the North and in the South the country was asked to mourn and weep and to pray on Friday, the 14^th of September. Since the bombings churches have been sought out. People of all faiths have streamed into religious sanctuaries seeking peace and the face of the Lord afresh.

All across the country signs were erected: "Pray for the USA." Religious institutions hung out a simple notice: Open for Prayer. And millions have found themselves on their faces asking for grace and mercy.

Will any good come out of the attack on America? Is the statement of Romans 8:28 true? Does God really work all things together for the good? The answer is an emphatic, "Yes!"

Families have been drawn closer together. As the news of the bombings were reported many parents immediately went to the schools or day care centers to get their children. Phone calls were made. Emails were hastily sent. People reached out to touch others with care and compassion.

Money and resources have been made available to help the victims of the bombings in any way possible.

The nation has been humbled and reminded not to trust in the false security that wealth and a strong military defense seems to offer. Our hope is in the Lord. "Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God" (Psalm 20:7).

With all that said, once more Americans are standing proud. There are not enough flags in production that can meet the demand as countless millions want to fly the flag and sing the songs of patriotism. Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, one of Japan’s leaders said, "I am afraid we have awakened a sleeping giant."

If the terrorist wanted to frighten the country and divided it they have failed in their mission. The country is not frightened but ready to fight—and fight we will. The country is not divided but united more than it has been since 1991. A renewed sense of patriotism is part of the good that has come out of tragedy.

Perhaps the greatest good the Lord will work is an opportunity to share the gospel by reminding people to prepare to meet God. The men and women who walked into the Word Trade Towers, those who climbed on board the airplanes, or worked in the Pentagon did not suspect they would die before the day was done.

On a beautiful sunny September day death stalked unsuspecting victims. Bodies were suddenly crushed beneath glass and steel or torn apart with the impact of a crash landing. From the windows of the Twin Towers some people joined hands and then jumped to a certain death. "I saw people jumping out of windows, the building just blew up, people just kept jumping and jumping and jumping and you can see that they were alive because they were just flailing," one New York witness reported.

Because no one knows the day or the hour of their death people must learn afresh to live in light of eternity. We are all heading for the grave. It is appointed unto men once to die and after that the judgment. We need to ask ourselves: "Am I ready to die? Am I ready for the judgment? Am I prepared to meet God?" As Christians we have the opportunity to seize the moment and talk to others about the way of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. As Christians we have the promise of eternal life and the hope of the resurrection. Let us hasten to invite people to come to Christ upon gospel repentance. Let us go and tell the world our hope is in the Lord and so it is well, it is well with our souls.

In a previous blog, we addressed one of the most often-repeated mantras of Roman Catholic apologists when discussing the issue of sola Scriptura. That is to say, many attempt to argue that the Reformation principle serves as a blueprint for anarchy. Now while this remains a pet favorite of many opposers of the sufficiency of Scripture, this is just one of many canards with which Protestants should be familiar for obvious reasons. Provided below are some of the more popular attacks against sola Scriptura:

1. The Bible does not present a golden index. "Show me where in Scripture the Bible lists which books belong in the canon," I have heard more than one Roman Catholic apologist demand. Some apparently believe this is the dagger-through-the-heart, gotcha question that Protestants have never before considered. Now while many might find this question to be compelling, I believe it reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of the canon. That is to say, the canon is God’s revelation to mankind—that which is God-breathed. Canon would still exist whether or not anyone recognized the extent thereof. With that said, however, rest assured, the New Testament believer can have the same certainty the Old Testament man of God had in recognizing, for instance, that Isaiah was truly theopnuestos for one simple reason: God leads His people to recognize that which is inspired--apart from an infallible magisterium.

Josephus, the first century Jewish historian, recorded in his Against Apion that the Palestinian Jews possessed a completed canon (containing the same 39 books of the Protestant Bible) two centuries before the life of Christ. But how can this be? How could the canon of the Old Testament be closed apart from an infallible magisterium? I would submit to you the answer is obvious. That is, in the same way the New Testament canon was recognized: God led His people to understand that which was God-breathed. Remember, the same God who inspired the canon is the same God who can lead His elect saints into realizing that which is truly from God over against other non-inspired writings. I would love to hear a Roman Catholic who uses the "infallible magisterium" argument to answer one simple question: How did the man of God living fifty years prior to the life of Christ know with certainty that the book of Isaiah was God’s Word? The one who honestly answers that question will understand we do not need some infallible human authority to deliver a "golden index" in order for us to know the extent of the canon. Simply put, just as the Old Testament believer did not need an infallible magisterium to give him the OT Scriptures, the New Testament believer, likewise, does not require an infallible magisterium in order for him to know what the Scriptures are.  

2. Protestants cannot have any infallible certainty when interpreting Scripture. It is hard not to see the blatant double standard Roman apologists employ against sola Scriptura. One must wonder if those who use such argumentation truly do not understand the logical fallacy or if it is simply a case of deliberate malfeasance. Nevertheless, it is often asked, "How do you know your private interpretation as a (insert denomination here) of a singular passage of Scripture is correct over against some other interpretation?" Here, the Protestant could respond, "How do you know with any certainty that your private interpretation of Scripture and other Roman documents are correct over against that of any other Roman apologist?" That is, the Roman defender—out of necessity—must resort to private interpretation, because, if we are to believe RC apologist James Akin, the Roman Church has only infallibly defined 8 of the more than 31,000 verses in the 66 books of the Bible. (Let it here be noted that even this number is in dispute which only further proves my point.) What that means is that during the (purported) two millennia since the establishment of the papacy, Rome has only seen it fit to define dogmatically 0.000258% of the verses of Holy Scripture (but if one includes the number of verses in the Apocrypha then the percentage is lowered even more so.) So much for certainty, huh? Thus, as we can see, the "certainty" argument presented by defenders of Rome is in reality an illusion designed to bring comfort to those who have yet to think through the argument critically and realize it is ultimately a bankrupt position.

3. The eunuch needed Philip to interpret Scripture. Roman apologists love to cite Acts 8:31 as "proof" that an infallible interpreter is required in order for one to garner a correct understanding of Scripture. It must be pointed out, however, that this verse fails to support the Roman position as defined by her supporters. Consider the text:

"And the Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go over and join this chariot.’ So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ And he said, ‘How can I, unless someone guides me?’ And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him" (Acts 8:29–31).

Notice that the Roman Church takes the idea of a spiritual man explaining the Bible to an unbeliever, one who has no knowledge of the Christian religion, and then makes the gratuitous leap that this is proof of an infallible magisterium. No Protestant would deny that God uses the church and spiritual believers to communicate the truths found within the pages of Scripture—because He does. The Protestant has no problem with reading Acts 8 and understanding that one needs the Holy Spirit’s wisdom, the church, tradition, teachers, and so on in order to understand more fully that which is revealed in Sacred Scripture. It is when some make the unsubstantiated leap from a spiritual man (Philip) explaining to an unbeliever (the Eunuch) the meaning of God’s Word to alleging this verse proves the necessity of an infallible magisterium that exercises primacy and jurisdiction over the souls of all believers on earth that the Protestant will object and insist that such an interpretation goes well beyond the clear teaching of Scripture.

If Protestants do not truly understand the distinctives of the Reformation and what the differences truly are, beginning with the issue of the Bible and ultimate authority, then the believer will not be standing on a firm foundation and will have little basis why he should reject Roman claims. If one does not understand or believe the Scriptures alone constitutes and conveys all that is necessary for God’s glory, man’s salvation, faith and life, then he will inevitably be left susceptible to the false assurance an alleged infallible authority will provide him as found in the any number of religions and cults that offer that very thing.

Taking his title from the satire by Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam (published in 1515), David Lutzweiler’s, The Praise of Folly: The Enigmatic Life and Theology of C. I. Scofield is a meaningful book on the life and theology of one of 18th century’s most notable—and controversial—theologians. Lutzweiler’s main objective was to referee between previous biographers who were oftentimes hyper critical of Scofield because of his beliefs over against other authors who glossed over some troubling facts of his early life. Nevertheless, the reader must decide how successful Lutzweiler was in accomplishing his "unbiased" biography.

Some of the more shocking details Lutzweiler reveals includes the fact that Scofield was a "swindler" who spent time in prison for illicit behavior and who subsequently abandoned his first Roman Catholic wife and children. Scofield later attempted to seek reconciliation but his wife refused and filed for divorce on the grounds of desertion and for not providing for the welfare of their children. Other sordid details are brought to light covering his pre and post conversion experience.

In reviewing the theology of C. I. Scofield, Lutzeiler argues that Scofield was not always a serious scholar or faithful to the original intent of the Scripture in certain critical texts. After examining Scofield’s, Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth, Lutzweiler notes the misunderstanding of the word "dividing" in 2 Timothy 2:15. "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

Commenting on this text Scofield says, "The Word of Truth, then, has right divisions, and it must be evident that, as one cannot be ‘a workman that needed not to be ashamed’ without observing them, so any study of that Word which ignores those divisions must be in large measure profitless and confusing."

The problem, however, is that in context the apostle Paul did not have in mind various divisions of Scripture to be understood according to a sevenfold dispensational scheme (as Scofield later popularized through his writings), but rather, that a minister must properly handle God’s Word. That is, the text of Sacred Scripture must be understood properly in its immediate context and read through the author's original intent without imposing upon the words what one wants them to say for one compelling reason--it is, after all, the very words of God. Lutzeiler further notes, "The word’s emphasis is on the "straightness" of the cut – i.e., the competency of the workman – and not on the fact that the cutting results in separate pieces of material, or "divisions" in it…. no one in the entire history of the church ever understood the word in the sense that Scofield gave it in this booklet."

Though some have been blessed by the life and legacy of C. I. Scofield, many more have been confused and misled as to what constitutes the historic faith of the church and what the Scriptures actually teach regarding Israel, the Church, the great tribulation, the person and work of the Holy Spirit, and much more. Scofield and others have given to the Christian world a system of theology that is often at open variance to the historic faith that was once delivered to the saints. His life and teachings are worthy of reconsideration--and this book will help one make that start.