Is There One Word of God?

A dear friend posted a couple of profound questions on Facebook today. These questions have vexed countless believers over the centuries. I hope he finds this response useful.

Question 1: “It is boggling to me that the people can say that the Bible *alone* is the authoritative word of God but yet there is absolutely no consensus among those that claim that the Bible alone is the authoritative word of God.”

It depends on what you mean be “consensus.” Do all Christians agree about every matter of doctrine large or small?  Of course not. Is it necessary for all Christians to agree about everything? God tells us in Romans 14 that it is not.

There, God tells us he is OK with a diversity of viewpoints on so called disputable matters. Disputable matters are doctrines, beliefs and practices that are not at the very non-negotiable core of what it means to be a Christian. Disagreement about such matters is permitted. What is not permitted is quarrelling and a harsh judgmental attitude about those who disagree with us. Discourse must be conducted in love. To me, Romans 14:4 is one of the most powerful and comforting verses in the whole Bible. To the believer who would harshly judge his brother’s stance on a secondary or tertiary matter of doctrine, Paul writes: “Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.”

“and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” Thank you Lord.

All of that said, some doctrines are at the non-negotiable core of what it means to be a Christian. It may surprise many to hear this because of the ocean of ink that has been spilt over Christian doctrine, but the core essence of Christianity rests on very few non-negotiables. Anyone who has ever recited the Apostles’ Creed has actually spoken all or most of them. The essence of Christianity is so simple that even a child can understand it. God, who exists in the person of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, created the universe. God became incarnate in the person of Jesus Christ. He was crucified and buried and rose again to save us from our sins. He is at the right hand of the father and will return one day to judge the living and the dead.

The foundation of Christianity is that simple, and it is not true that there is no consensus regarding these core beliefs. Just the opposite is true. For 2,000 years all Christians everywhere and at all times have agreed on these core matters. Yes, there is a bewildering array of doctrines, beliefs, practices and attitudes about various secondary issues. But there has been remarkable unanimity about the core beliefs, the beliefs that C.S. Lewis called “Mere Christianity.”

So what are we to do in the face of all of the debate? There is a famous aphorism often attributed to Rupertus Meldenius: “In essentials, unity: in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” I think this captures Romans 14 quite nicely.

Question 2: “Unless God is a God of contradictions, this makes zero sense. It’s as if there are multiple Christs and multiple doctrines.”

This is not true. First, as discussed above, the fact that there are multiple secondary or tertiary Christian doctrines should not surprise us because God told us there would be and He also told us how to conduct ourselves when discussing them.

But you might respond, what about the core Christian beliefs? There is disagreement about those. For example, some people who call themselves Christians dispute that Jesus was literally resurrected from the dead.

It is true that some people who call themselves Christians deny the essential doctrines of the faith. But “Christian” and “person who denies the resurrection” are mutually exclusive categories. Sure, a person can call himself a Christian while denying the fundamental tenants of the Faith, but he is deluding himself.

Some people have divergent viewpoints about core non-negotiable doctrines. But it is not because the doctrines are ambiguous or contradictory. It is because they are confused. That confusion does not come from God, for “God is not the author of confusion, but of peace” 1 Corinthians 14:33.

No, the confusion is sown in the hearts of many by Satan. John 8:44 states: “He [the Devil] was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies.”

Yes, the cacophony of dissention about even core doctrines can make it seem like there are multiple contradictory beliefs. That is not because there actually are multiple contradictory beliefs about the fundamental core doctrines. It is because Satan is very good at sowing confusion.

Question 3: “How can one ever have assurance of salvation?”

Romans 10:8-11 says:

But what does it say? [“it” refers to Deuteronomy 30:14] “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame.”

To be saved requires two and only two things: (1) confess that Jesus is Lord; and (2) believe in your heart that that God raised Him from the dead.

So can we have “assurance” of salvation? Well, it depends on what you mean be “assurance.” The Bible says that if we confess and believe, our salvation is assured. But can we prove that when the Bible speaks that is speaks the truth? Here again, it depends on what you mean by “prove.” As a lawyer, I have an advantage in understanding the concept of proof. And it turns out proof is not a binary matter (i.e., yes/no). Rather, proof false on a spectrum.

In civil cases, the jury is instructed that the plaintiff must prove his case by a “preponderance of the evidence” The just must decide if the plaintiff produced evidence that establishes that it is more probable than not that his case is valid. In criminal cases, the jury is instructed that the prosecutor must prove his case “beyond a reasonable doubt.” It is a much higher standard of proof.

There is a third level of proof that is not used in the law: Apodictic proof. This is proof that is self-evident and indisputable. 2+2=4. No one has to “prove” that because it is apodictic. If you deny it, you have denied reason itself.

So what does all of this mean with respect to belief in Jesus Christ? It means you must evaluate the evidence and come to your own conclusion. I have been studying the evidence for 50 years now. And I have concluded that the Bible’s claims about Jesus are true beyond a reasonable doubt.

But the Bible’s claims are not apodictic. There is room for doubt. Again, God expected this. Indeed, He insists on it. Hebrews 11:6: “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

God does not compel belief. He does just the opposite. He allows doubt. How do we know? Because he insists that we come to him in faith. And if doubt is not possible, then neither is faith, because doubt is what we have faith about.

So if you are asking for “assurance” to an apodictic certainty, you will be disappointed. But if you evaluate the evidence, you may, like me, come to the conclusion that it has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Jesus died and was resurrected. But doubt is possible and we must all contend with that and sometimes that is not easy. I will leave you with one of my favorite quotations from Dostoyevsky — “It is not as a child that I believe and confess Jesus Christ. My hosanna is born of a furnace of doubt.”