If God were to reveal himself for the first time right this very second, he would still leave us with a book. Even in this technologically advanced age there would be no use of social media, no videos on YouTube to watch, not even an e-book, nothing but a physical, hard copy of his word. Through many dangers was the Bible eventually translated into the English language from the original Hebrew and Greek by the likes of William Tyndale and his contemporaries. This is something we; especially in the western world, have taken for granted but to have a copy of the Holy Bible in your native tongue is no small thing.
If you have ever seen the footage online of a group of christians in China receiving their very own copies of the Bible, it will not only move you close to tears but will convict you (as it did me) for every time you have picked up God’s word with an air of lacklustre. These believers were genuinely moved and not in an idolatrous way but simply because they had God’s word in their possession. It’s great to see that the hunger for the Bible is growing in China and I must say, I am always particularly pleased when someone from this long oppressed country has visited my site.
God’s Autobiography
The Bible can be seen as God’s autobiography, the self revelation of his nature. Throughout the many pages of this Holy book, God has spoken his mind and communicated his sovereign will for all creation. The entire canon is made up of 66 books, written over many hundreds of years by the hands of numerous different men, yet of a truth, it is God’s word to us all. How The Bible came to be is truly a great mystery but not one we should shrink away from.
It’s common in many autobiographical writings to use what are known as ‘Ghostwriters’. Many of the “stars” of this world employ them to write the story of their lives and reveal a more complete picture of who they are. These ghostwriters are the one’s who physically write the book but their names do not get to grace the front cover, nor is the overall work ever truly accredited to them.
The same can be said of how God has chosen to author the Bible but with one important distinction. When it came to writing his autobiography, God commissioned Holy Ghostwriters to perform the high honour of transcribing the sacred scriptures. Forget the rich and famous, they were employed by the Holy Ghost to write in the name that is above all names. They themselves were not perfect people and were subject to like passions as we all are, but the Holy Ghost worked mightily in them to produce the living word of God. John Calvin in his classic work: The Institutes of the Christian Religion, spoke about this amazing truth by saying – “It came to us, by the instrumentality of men, from the very mouth of God.”
Holy-Ghostwriters to perform this high honour of transcribing the sacred scriptures. Forget the rich and famous, they were employed by the Holy Ghost to write in the name that is above all names. They themselves were not Holy people and were subject to like passions as we all are but the Holy Ghost worked mightily in them to produce the living word of God. John Calvin in his classic work: The Institutes of the Christian religion, spoke about this amazing truth by saying – “It came to us, by the instrumentality of men, from the very mouth of God.”
The Word Of God
A key scripture to shine a light on this fact can be found in 2 Peter, chapter 1: “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture is of private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but Holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2Pet.1:20-21). These verses highlight for us that the true origin of the scriptures did not proceed from the will of man but from the influence of the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, man cannot interpret the truths of scripture without being aided by the same spirit who authored them, who’s words they actually are. Tyndale succinctly states it in this way “They may not be worldly understood, but ghostly and spiritually: yea, the Spirit of God only understandeth them; and where He is not, there is not the understanding of Scripture, but unfruitful disputing and brawling about words.”
The Holy Ghost superintended the writing of the Bible, possessing his chosen vessels and sufficiently preparing them for this great work. Autobiographies are often revelatory pieces of writing and as such, God’s Holy Ghostwriters were to declare mysteries hidden for generations, to utter things that had been concealed since the foundation of the world.
They were called to write the word of God and to give him all the glory, for without him they could do nothing. By his will, their finished work has proven to be the sure foundation for our faith, from which the house of God is still being built, with Christ as it’s cornerstone. They were not to receive any literary advances as the Father knew that the true fruit of their labours, would be in the advancement of his Son’s kingdom. All that was required was the special deposit and unction of the Holy Spirit in both their hearts and minds. All future spiritual royalties were to be rendered unto the Lord, with their true reward awaiting them in heaven, where they would cast their crowns before his throne and worship him as King.
Called To Write
For those of us who feel called by God to write, we too are Holy Ghost-Writers but in an entirely different sense. As Christian writers, we do not write in God’s name but rather for his name’s sake, as one’s who have been born of the Holy Ghost. Thus, we do not reveal anything new about God beyond that which is clearly evident in a true and thorough exposition of the scriptures. However, the Biblical authors, wrote faithfully the very oracles of God.
Nevertheless we should aim to be faithful stewards of the word in all of the works we produce and to seek for his name to be glorified by them. Words have power. We can’t touch them but they can certainly be used to touch others. We cannot feel them but they can evoke strong feelings within us. Our writings are to be shaped by the Bible and strictly edited by sound doctrine. The words we pour out must be saturated by the scriptures, to ensure that our final product will be like a strong drink, imbued with pure truth.
Revelation
The Bible records for us the various methods through which God has communicated to his chosen people in ages past. As testified to in the book of Hebrews, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” (Heb.1:1-2).
Theologians often define revelation under two specific headings: general revelation and special revelation. General, refers to how God makes plain his invisible attributes by having them woven into the fabric of his creation. Special revelation covers the use of prophets to deliver his word, which has ultimately culminated in the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Before the light of God’s son shone down upon us, the most high, at diverse times spoke directly from the natural world, whether it be from the whirlwind to Job or the burning bush to Moses. Now he has spoken to us in a medium we understand, from one who was bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh, yet without sin. The revelation of Jesus signified a real change, he was not just another prophet but was and is the express image of God’s person and the exact imprint of his nature (Heb1:3).
We witness the sheer power of Christ on many occasions in the Bible, none more so than when he stilled the storm and tamed the tempest with three small words saying “Peace, be still!” (Mark4:39). This miracle goes to show the utter supremacy of this revelation as compared to all those that proceeded it and even prompted his amazed disciples to ask “What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him” (Mat.8:27). It demonstrates for us, that Christ really is the final answer to the entire sum of scripture “Then I said, “Behold, I have come; in the scroll of the book it is written of me” (Psalm40:7).
A Unique Book
Jesus spoke only that which he had heard from the Father (John 3:32) and likewise his Holy Ghostwriters wrote only what they had seen and heard (1John1:3). The New Testament authors did not deceitfully come up with a “cleverly devised fable” (2Pet.1:16) but wrote solely under the power and influence of the Spirit of Truth.
The whole of the Bible is an unrivalled volume of writing. Composed of luminous lines of poetry, compelling narratives, reliable historical accounts, precise prophecies, practical proverbs and it’s permeated throughout with the precious truths of God. The feats and flaws of the people are all well documented, with select saints being given the honour of having one or more of the 66 books named after them. Some names have also been allowed to become synonymous with certain Godly virtues, such as Job and patience. God has left no stone unturned in authoring this great book, making his word perfect, inerrant and infallible- “able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2Tim.3:15).
The Author Of Life
We may feel like we’re in control of writing our own stories but God is the true author of life. People will gladly admit that life is a gift but the vast majority, do not give honour to the one who freely gave it to them. The unrepentant majority have crossed God’s name out of their books and have filled the pages of their live’s with whatever their deceitful hearts have desired. They refuse to recognise that they have been “fearfully and wonderfully made”(Psalm139:14) being bound together by the hands of Almighty God. Instead, the popular maxim of the day still prevails – ‘this is my life’, but the truth is that our lives are not our own. Like a library book they are merely loaned to us and God has left his official stamp of authority on every single copy, declaring ownership over us all by creating us in his image.
We have all departed and spoiled the original content of our books by sin and the sad truth is, there are still millions of overdue books out there which are in need of renewing and with every day that passes, the debt of sin just keeps on getting bigger and bigger. Yet the sinner does not seriously contemplate what he has written in the pages of his life. He scarcely cares about what he’s included, being blinded to the fact that God see’s everything and nothing is hidden from his sight.
All To Be Read and Returned
The Lord knows the entirety of our lives from cover to cover, our first word to our last and every jot and tittle in between. One day, the time will come for us all to slip out of our fleshly dust-jackets and lay open the pages of our lives before him. Everyone will have to give an account and not one book shall slip through the net when God takes stock on the day of judgment. He is a righteous judge and as such will not be deceived by any long lists of vain achievements or beguiled by any fancy front covers “For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” (1Sam.16:7).
The sinner has foolishly taken life into his own hands and remains either completely unaware or wholly unfazed of the fact, that it must one day be returned to the one who gave it out. He (just like us all) does not know the time or the hour. Tomorrow is not promised to him and at any given moment God could say “this very night thy soul is required of thee.” (Luke 12:20) and decide to cut his story short before he feels like it is halfway done. Job fully understood that God has our lives in his hands when he said “The Lord has given, the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job1:21).
I fear that many people conduct their lives in light of the existence of death, deciding to “live, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die”. They see no need to carefully consider what they have written because they do not believe it will ever be read and judged by God’s omniscient eyes. Instead, they persist in filling up the pages of what they regard, as a kind of one and only, final draft. They do not ponder nor do they perceive the light of life that shines from the face of God’s only begotten son, the only one who is able to save their soul from what scripture calls “the second death” (Rev.20:14).
Some naively suggest that they will leave the whole question of God until their deathbed, which I suppose is a kin to including him in the token acknowledgments section, found right at the very end, of their largely selfish book. I doubt many have come to saving faith in this way, I believe it to be uncommon and so the urgency of the Gospel should always be preached because “Today is the day of salvation”.
If there was one thing that we could write out of the story of life, then death would most likely be it, but the reality is, that it’s a fixed penalty due to our sins which was issued by a just and Holy God – “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Heb.9:27). A true author knows his characters inside out (as they are his creations) therefore he is the only one who can choose to completely rewrite them and alter the course of their lives. What really matters in this life is the condition and destiny of one’s soul. Only those souls that have been anchored to the vessel of Christ will be guaranteed safe passage from the present world to the eternal one in heaven. Only the names listed in the lambs book of life will embark on the blessed journey when “the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it” (Eccl.12:7)
The Best Story Ever
The Romans and Jewish authorities thought they had killed the author of life and written the end to the story but the true fate of the eternal protagonist was in the mind of the creator long before anything was made. The arc of the entire story decided before the world began. The disciples also presumed the end had come, when their long awaited messiah; who they’d hoped would free them from Roman rule was being hung upon a tree. They were completely unaware that behind closed spiritual doors, Satan was being put to a public shame, while at the same time an entrance to the Holy of holies was being declared fully open.
Three days later at the resurrection and the plot twist to end all plot twists was complete. The New Covenant wasn’t written in pen and ink but in the sprinkled blood of Christ, which now speaks a better word than the blood of Abel, namely the words of eternal life. This climactic event was something that could only have come from the master’s mind. As CS Lewis testifies to here: “Reality, in fact, is usually something you could not have guessed. That is one of the reasons I believe Christianity. It is a religion you could not have guessed. If it offered us just the kind of universe we had always expected, I should feel that were making it up. But, in fact, it is not the sort of thing anyone would have made up. It has just that queer twist about it that real things have.” (Mere Christianity).
Now all of the sinful scribblings of our hearts; which for so long tainted the pages of our live’s with what seemed to be a dark and indelible ink, have all been blotted out.
Breathe It All In
In John’s gospel, Christ; the incarnate word of God, breathed on his disciples and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John20:22). This symbolises that the God’s Word and the Holy Ghost go hand-in-hand, just like an author and his pen. All scripture is said to be breathed out by God (2Tim3:16) and just like every breath we take in, not one word has been written in vain.
The Holy Bible must continue to be our main source of inspiration as it’s how we are told to live “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Mat.4:4). It must be our daily consumption and just like Ezekiel, we are to tuck in and spiritually eat the entire scroll of the book. God’s word has no expiry date and thus will never grow old or die. Heaven and Earth shall pass away but the word of The Lord endures forever and the same is true of all those who are well fed by it, to those who it dwells richly within.
