Synopsis "Defending Your Sword: Responding to Attacks on the Bible (in English)"
In Ephesians 6, Paul paints a picture of a Christian in the complete armor needed to engage in battle against Satan and his cohorts. Most of the pieces that Paul describes are defensive in nature. One, however, is to be used to advance against the foe - the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. This weapon is so powerful that it can divide the soul and spirit, pierce the joints and marrow, and discern the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). Why, then, would a Christian think to defend the Word rather than allowing it to defend him and enable him to fight against those who would oppose the Gospel? After all, the Spirit of God uses the Word of God to change hearts and transform minds. Why, then, write a book defending the Bible? We need to meet people where they are. The arguments of those who reject Christ may not be logical, nor may they sound convincing to us, but they are convincing to those who make them. They must therefore be addressed, both with sound reasoning and with kindness and gentleness. Too many unbelievers reject Christianity because they think believers are ignorant fools who refuse to think. Our task, therefore, is not only to demonstrate the weakness of the arguments for unbelief, but also to give a reason for the hope within us (I Peter 3:15). The book is divided into three major sections. The first deals with fundamental underlying issues apart from which no discussion of the validity of the Scriptures (or any other source of knowledge) can take place. Unbelievers too often assume the answers to these questions, grounding their concepts of knowledge in some form of human experience without realizing the assumptions they are making or, more importantly, the inadequacy of those assumptions. The first section also deals with the nature and limitations of science, since so many in our world believe that only that which is scientific is worthy of belief. The main body of the book then addresses specific questions often raised by unbelieving critics of the Scriptures, incorporating in the process historical and empirical evidence to support the answers to those questions. Matters such as the manuscript evidence for the Bible, questions of authorship and the formation of the canon, and arguments relating to the accuracy, consistency, and ultimately the inspiration of God's Word are addressed here, along with the essential role of faith in any person's system of belief. The final section attempts to do what Jesus did in His encounters with people such as Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman, and the Rich Young Ruler. In each case, Jesus began by addressing the presentation problem, but then moved on to the real heart issues behind the questions each person raised. Most critics of the Bible, especially those who have been raised in the faith and turned away from it as they got older, do not desert Christianity because they are convinced that it fails any number of logical tests, but because they have had some kind of negative experience, either with individual Christians or the church in general. Unbelief is not basically a logical problem, but a moral one - those apart from Christ simply want to live the way they want to live and reject the idea of submitting to any outside authority, most of all the authority of God as represented by His Word. Arguments against Scripture thus become justifications after the fact; "I don't want to submit to God, but in order to avoid sounding selfish I must have some reasonable basis for rejecting Him." By the grace of God, I trust that defending your sword will open the door for many opportunities to use that sword to advance the Kingdom of God.
