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The new pragmatic philosophy says the ultimate question for every man is: "What shall I do to be saved?" The testimony of the Christian is: "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation; old things are passed away; behold all things are become new." If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine." "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." A blind man came to Jesus. Christ said to him: "Let me anoint your eyes with clay, and you go wash in the pool of Siloam." "And he went and washed and came seeing." And this was his testimony: "One thing I know: that whereas I was blind, now I see." "And he worshipped Him." This is the

testimony of the Christian.

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in thee,

Let the water, and the blood,
From thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure,

Save me from its guilt and power."

CHAPTER VIII

IS THE BIBLE THE WORD OF GOD? "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God."

This is ever a question of deepest interest to man. For the Bible message is a wonderful story, on a theme sublime, treating matters of vital importance to every individual, and to the entire race.

And if its record may be trusted, then man may know who created him, and why; what shall be his destiny, and whither he is bound; for here life and death, and immortality, and human responsibility to Deity are set before us.

Is the Bible the Word of God? Has God spoken here? Has Deity uncovered reality here? If so, then you and I may learn, and know, and live.

I. THE MEANING OF INSPIRATION

May we ask first: What do we mean by inspiration?

And in answer we may say, first of all, we do not mean revelation. Revelation is divine communication. Inspiration is divine direc

tion.

Neither is inspiration illumination. For the mind of every child of God is enlightened when the Holy Spirit takes up His abode there. But every child of God is not inspired to write the oracles of the Most High.

Neither is it human genius. Human genius is natural. Inspiration, as applied to the writing of the Scriptures, is supernatural. It is an enduement of power, coming upon the authors of the books of the Bible, enabling them to write the Word of God. We discern the difference when we try to think of a human genius prefacing his writings with the words: Thus saith

the Lord."

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We do not know how the Holy Spirit moved upon men, but we know the results. Neither do we know how the spirit recreates a bad man, and makes him a good man, but we see the effects.

Neither do we mean that the men who wrote the Scriptures were always and everywhere inspired, infallible, inerrant men. They were not. They made mistakes. They fell into errors of conduct. But we do mean that when they wrote the Scriptures they were moved upon and guided by the Spirit of God. But the meaning of inspiration is this: According to the Scriptures themselves, inspiration is an extraordinary, divine agency upon teachers, while giving instruction, by which they were taught what

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and how they should write. This is not unto the obliteration of personality. As Dr. Henry B. Smith says: "God speaks through the personality as well as through the lips of His messengers." Wayland Hoyt says: Inspiration is not a mechanical, crass, bald compulsion of the sacred writers, but rather a dynamic, divine influence over their freely acting faculties." What may be called the interior process of the Spirit's action upon the minds of the speakers was of course inscrutable, even to themselves. That they were conscious, however, of such an influence, is manifest from the authority with which they put forth their words: yet, when they sat down to write, the divine and the human elements in their mental action were perfectly harmonious and inseparable.

As to the outward method, the Spirit acted on the minds of inspired men in a variety of ways, sometimes by audible words, sometimes by direct inward suggestions, sometimes by outward, visible signs, sometimes by visions and dreams.

Inspiration was further concerned, also, in giving to the sacred writers divine direction. Here too, there was diversity of mode. For sometimes men were moved of the Spirit to write of things which otherwise they could not know, as in prophecy. Sometimes they were guided

to write a summary record of history. Sometimes they were moved to write divine teaching through philosophy, or reason, or experience. Sometimes they were influenced to write parables. Sometimes to record visions.

II. THE INSPIRATION OF THE SCRIPTURES

How do we know the Scriptures are inspired? The answer covers a wide range. For to prove that the Scriptures are inspired we might, with propriety, refer to the excellence of the doctrines, precepts, and promises, and other instructions which they contain; to the simplicity and majesty of their style; to the agreement of the different parts, and the scope of the whole; especially to the discovery they make of man's fallen and ruined estate, and the way of salvation through a Redeemer; together with their power to enlighten and sanctify the heart, and the accompanying witness of the Spirit in believers.

But there is another ground of appeal. The Saviour applied the old law that life is known by what it brings forth. He said: "A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit." And again: "Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"

Now, according to this principle, if the Bible is a fraud and a falsehood, if it is a cheat and