Tribute to Queen Elizabeth | What does the Bible say about Itself?

It's worth noting that none among the 40 contributors to the Bible ever imagined that their works will be compiled to form a unified book which would then be used by tens of millions for centuries to come and hence the unique challenge in presenting this subject.

I'm reminded of Paul's letter to Timothy, which exhorts Timothy to read the scriptures so that they will make him wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. It reads like this in 2 Timothy chapter 3, verses 15 to 17,

“and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

-- 2 Timothy 3:15-17 (NIV)

So the Bible claims to be useful for making us wise for salvation. It also claims to be God-breathed, meaning that it is a product of the very breath of God. And since it is from God, it is also useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.

Now, people spend a lifetime reading this book. They research about it and they write papers on it. But today, I'd like to put down what the Bible says about itself in four words that all begin with the letter S. The Bible says about itself that it is,

1. Supreme

2. Sufficient

3. Self-illuminating for the spiritually inclined

4. Saves by introducing the reader to the Savior

So it is Supreme, Sufficient, Self-illuminating for the spiritually inclined, and it Saves.

#1 - Supreme

Let's look at why the Bible calls itself Supreme. It's Supreme because we as Christians believe that it is the inspired word of God. Its inspiration is supernatural. There is no other way to describe it.

When a library of sixty-six books, which has 1,187 chapters and 31,173 verses written by 40 people in three different languages - Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic, covering a span of 1,500 years, yet weaving through its pages a unity in a theme that there is the salvation of the human race through the person of Jesus Christ, that itself is incredible! And for the discerning reader, this book is as relevant today as it was 2000 years ago. Its Supreme authority, by virtue of its origins that is, we know that it is God-breathed, is perhaps the reason why millions of people over the centuries have found it to be sufficient, which brings me to my second point that the Bible says about itself, that it is sufficient.

#2 - Sufficient

Why is the Bible sufficient?

Because it is not man's vision of God but God's vision for man. Hence it provides wisdom and solution for all ranges of human behaviour. As we just read in Paul's letter to Timothy, it corrects, rebukes, teaches, and trains a person for every good work.

It is a book which has spoken with the same intensity to Presidents and prisoners. Abraham Lincoln, the famous president of America, has often quoted this book on various important junctures in his life, both political and personal. We have live examples of many prisoners coming to Christ through prison ministry fellowships.

And because it's God's vision for man, its integrity is unquestionable. It doesn't whitewash any personality. For example, it portrays King David in all his valour and splendour. And at the same time, it exposes him for all his vulnerabilities. This integrity validates the Bible as an all-sufficient resource to mankind from the maker himself. The Bible calls itself a sufficient book. And as with any worthy resource, you get the most benefit out of it when you approach it with the right attitude and mindset.

#3 - Self-illuminating for the spiritually inclined

People can read the Bible for its signs. Some people say it is a book of poetries and you know, it has sixty-six books and it's got all genres in it, but at the end of the day, the Holy Bible is God unfolding his plan for mankind. There is a very deep spiritual message in it. And hence, the Bible says about itself that it's self-illuminating for the spiritually inclined.

In Deuteronomy, chapter 4 verse 7, there is this beautiful quote, which I like. It says,

“What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him?”

-- Deuteronomy 4:7 (NIV)

It's a very often repeated quote which says the Bible is the only book whose author is always present when one reads it. How true it is!

In the New Testament, apostle John records an interesting conversation that Jesus is having with his disciples. He was referring to what would eventually happen after his physical departure from Earth. Jesus said that he would send his Spirit on his behalf, which we call the Holy Spirit now, to reside on his believers as a source of Jesus' power and God's guarantee. We see that in John chapter 15 from verses 13 to 15. It goes like this,

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

-- John 16:13-15 (NIV)

You see, the Bible is a spiritually loaded book and it is self-illuminating for the spiritually inclined. So to just recap my previous points, the Bible is Supreme. The Bible is sufficient. The Bible says about itself that it's a self-illuminating book for the spiritually inclined. But finally, I would've missed out on the point completely if I don't mention the most important reason for the Bible's existence.

#4 - Saves

The Bible says about itself that it is able to save mankind because it would introduce the reader to the Saviour himself. So how does it do that?

It constantly empowers the believer to lead fulfilling lives. Not only during their time on earth but also after we have passed away. The Bible saves. The belief of a Christian and basically our Christian worldview is that we, as a race, have fallen from the maker's grace due to the initial disobedience. And Jesus came down to redeem us from the fallen state, by shedding his blood as a sacrifice to put us right with the Holy God. And we need to believe in the work of his Son in order for us to be saved. The message Bible has put this so eloquently, in John chapter 3, verses 16 to 18, it reads like this,

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.”

-- John 3:16-18 (MSG)

And that's what the message Bible says. We know the NIV version of it, which says,

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

-- John 3:16-18 (NIV) ---