The Bible is the Word of God

There are some who actually teach that the Bible is not the Word of God.  One such man teaches, “The WORD OF GOD is JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF, it is NOT A BOOK, it is not a physical Book, that is deception. The Book tells us about Jesus Christ, that which other people have experienced, their witness of God and Jesus Christ, but we must KNOW JESUS and HEAR FROM HIS SPIRIT…The Bible is not the WORD OF GOD, JESUS IS THE WORD OF GOD.”

Some of this is true and some is false.  It’s true that Jesus is the Word of God and that we must know Jesus and hear from His Spirit.  But it is false to say that the Bible is not the Word of God.  Let me show from Scripture why that is false.

Jesus is the Word of God
John records in his gospel, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  (Joh 1:1)  Then he says, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (Joh 1:14).  It is clear from the context of this passage that John is referring to Jesus Christ.  He taught that Jesus is the Word of God and that He is God.

Later in his account of the apocalypse, known as Revelation, John said of Jesus that “He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.” (Rev 19:13).  This is a basic truth that Christians widely agree upon.

Jesus said the Scripture is the Word of God
But in addition, we need to understand that the Scripture is also the Word of God.  Jesus said so Himself!  Jesus told the Pharisees and scribes, "But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever I have that would help you has been given to God," he is not to honor his father or his mother.' And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition.” (Mat 15:5-6)

The Pharisees and scribes taught people to follow traditions of men.  For example, they taught their disciples that when they devoted a gift to God, they were not under any obligation to share any of that money with their own parents.  So even if their parents had a need for financial help, they told their disciples that they could refuse to give help to their parents on the basis that the gift had been completely devoted to God, and could not be shared with anyone else. 

Jesus said that by doing this, they invalidated the Word of God.  They made the Word of God null and void.  They essentially taught their disciples not to be concerned with the fifth commandment to honor your mother and father.  They taught their disciples that this man-made tradition has a greater importance than the commandment of God – the Word of God.  In other words, it was like deleting a verse from the Scripture.

Many religious teachers do this today.  For example, they teach people to bow down to men and kiss the rings of men.  In doing so, they teach people that this man-made tradition is more important than God’s own Word in the second commandment, which says we must make no idols or bow down to them.  And they do many things like this today.  They teach men to call them by titles like “Father,” even though Jesus Himself warned us to call no man “father”.  He said, "But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. But the greatest among you shall be your servant.” (Mat 23:8-11). These examples are sufficient to prove that many today still invalidate the Word of God with their man-made traditions.

When Jesus told the Pharisees and scribes that they invalidated the Word of God with their traditions, he was speaking of the Law – the Scriptures.  He was not speaking of Himself as a person.  If that were so, then He would be teaching that it is possible to nullify Him or invalidate Him.  We know that cannot be done.  So it is clear from the context that Jesus referred to Scripture as the Word of God.

Another time when Jesus called the Scripture the Word of God was in the wilderness, when He was tempted by the devil.  Satan tempted Him to turn a stone into bread to satisfy His hunger, “But He answered and said, "It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.'" (Mat 4:4)  Jesus said must live on every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.  In this case, He was not speaking about Himself personally when He used the expression “every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God”.

On another occasion, Jesus used the expression “the Word of God.”  The Jews were preparing to stone Him for calling Almighty God His Father, thus making Himself out to be God’s Son.  “The Jews answered Him, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God." Jesus answered them, "Has it not been written in your Law, 'I SAID, YOU ARE GODS'? "If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?” (Joh 10:33-36)

Jesus responded by quoting the Psalm that quotes what the Lord says to the rulers when He judges them.  In that Psalm, the Lord says to the human rulers, “I said, ‘You are gods, And all of you are sons of the Most High. Nevertheless you will die like men And fall like any one of the princes.’" (Psa 82:6-7).  Jesus pointed out that the Word of God came to these human rulers.  If the Word of God came to them, then that proves they were mere men.  And Jesus showed that God calls the rulers “gods”. He even calls them “sons of the Most High” God. He used that to prove to his opponents that God even calls men gods and sons of God.  Therefore, Jesus proved that it should not be considered blasphemy for Him, the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, to be called the son of God.

Now in this passage, notice that Jesus said the Word of God came to these human rulers?  He was referring to the Scriptures, since the Jews He spoke to would all know that these rulers had received the Law, which they understood to be God’s Word.  So in these and other passages, Jesus taught that Scripture is the Word of God. Therefore, to say that the Bible is not the Word of God is to contradict what Jesus Himself said, as recorded in the Bible!

The Words of Jesus Recorded in the Bible are God’s Word
And we know that in the New Testament, particularly the gospels, much of what is recorded are the words of Jesus Himself.  Who could argue that this is not the Word of God? 

Jesus said, "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” (Joh 6:63)  His Words are Spirit and Life.  Wherever the Bible records the Words of Jesus, these are the Word of God.  These words have the power to give eternal life and save your soul! So to say that the Bible is not the Word of God is to say that Jesus’ words recorded in the Bible are not the Word of God.  That is blasphemous.

The apostles certainly agreed with Jesus’ teaching about His own words, and they regarded His words with the highest reverence.  “Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.’” (Joh 6:68)

The disciples spoke the Word of God
And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. (Act 4:31)

“So the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, ‘It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables.’” (Act 6:2)  The apostles were saying that they did not want to neglect the study and preaching of the Word of God.

As the apostles preached the Word of God, it spread.  “The word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.” (Act 6:7)

“When they reached Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; and they also had John as their helper.” (Act 13:5)

“Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, ‘It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.’” (Act 13:46)

There are many other passages of Scripture that show us the Word of God is preached and spoken, and is synonymous with Scripture.

Pauls’ Teachings and Writings Are God’s Word
Paul, Silas, and Timothy wrote to the Thessalonians and said, “For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.” (1Th 2:13).  The Thessalonians heard the Word of God from Paul and his companions.  And the Thessalonians accepted the message they heard as the very Word of God, which it really is!

Not only were the messages Paul preached the Word of God, but so were his writings.   Peter affirmed this when he wrote: “and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.” (2Pe 3:15-16)

Here Peter taught that Paul wrote in all his letters according to the wisdom given to him, and that some things Paul wrote are hard to understand.  Peter also said that ignorant and unstable men distorted the things Paul said in his writings, just as they do the rest of the Scriptures. 

If I say, “I am going to do to this person what I also do for the rest of the children,” then we know that the person I am writing about is a child.  If I say, “I am going to paint this one the same color I paint all the rest of the cars,” then we know this vehicle I speak of is a car.  And when Peter says these ignorant men distort Paul’s writings the way they do the rest of the Scriptures, we know that Paul’s writings are Scripture, according to Peter.   Paul’s writings make up half the New Testament.  So just as Jesus referred to the Old Testament as “Scripture” and the “Word of God,” Peter also referred to half the New Testament as "Scripture," which is the same as saying it is the Word of God.  This agrees with what Paul himself said to the Thessalonians that the word he proclaimed to them was the very Word of God.  Why should it surprise us that his letters that have become included in our New Testament Bible are also Scripture?

The Scripture Originated with God
The Scripture did not have its origin with man, but with God.  Peter wrote, “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” (2Pe 1:20-21).  The Scripture originated with God and through the agency of the Holy Spirit in the lives of men, it was both spoken and written.

Paul also taught this.  He wrote to Timothy, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2Ti 3:16-17).  He taught that God inspires all Scripture.  The Greek word that we translate as "inspired" is "theopneustos," which means “God-breathed.” All Scripture is God-breathed and proceeds from God’s mouth, including the Old Testament and the writings of Paul found in the New Testament.

The Word has the power to save your soul
Anyone who says the Bible cannot save you is lying.  This is a play on words that has no intrinsic value except shock value.

Paul wrote to Timothy, “You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” (2Ti 3:14-15).  He was saying that Timothy had known the sacred writings or Scriptures from childhood, and that the Scriptures gave Timothy wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

In his letter to the Romans, Paul said, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek." (Rom 1:16).  The gospel is the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ that we proclaim, and which is written in Scripture.  Paul said it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.

Of course, the only way to be saved is through faith in Jesus Christ, not through Bible reading. In other words, no one will go to heaven because they simply read the Bible.  But if we do what the Bible says and put our faith in Jesus Christ, we will be saved.  Jesus also said that we must be not only hearers but doers of his commands.

James wrote, “Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.” (Jam 1:21).  James taught that the word of God has the power to save your souls!  They point us to Christ, who alone can save us, and they teach us how to live righteous lives pleasing to God. Since the Scripture is the Word of God, and Paul’s writings are Scripture, then Paul’s writings have the power to save your soul, too.

Mixing the Word with Faith
It's absolutely essential to mix the Word of God with faith.  The writer of Hebrews said, "Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it. For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard." (Heb 4:1-2).

The Israelites whom God brought out of Egypt heard the good news just as we have.  It was preached to them.  But they failed to combine the Word of God they heard with faith inside their hearts.  As a result, they hardened their hearts and did not enter His rest.  The word did not profit them, and it will not profit you, if you don't combine it with faith.  True faith will do what the Word says, and not simply hear it.

Hearing from God
In my post, called Hearing the Lord's Voice, I point out the need to hear the Lord's voice.  Each one of us needs to hear from Jesus for ourselves. But when we do hear from the Lord, one way we can confirm that it really was the Word is that it will line up with the Word of God.  If it is contrary to the Word, then it is not the voice of the Lord.

Many people will say they heard from God, when in fact they did not.  This problem goes back thousands of years to the false prophets in the Old Testament, and it continues today with false prophets and false teachers of our generation.  There must be a standard by which we can judge a teaching or a prophecy.  Certainly the Holy Spirit within us can help us to discern whether a word is truly from God.  But if we have the Word of God in our hearts from studying the Scriptures, we will be able to test what we hear against what we know the Bible says.

There have been heretics and there will be until the end. Some false teachers came along in the past and taught a different gospel.  But Paul said to the Galatians that if anyone preaches another gospel besides the one they heard from him, that person would be eternally condemned.

The easiest way to know if someone's message is the true gospel is to compare it against Scripture.  This is what the Bereans did.  Luke wrote about the Berean disciples, "Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so." (Act 17:11)  It did not matter to the Bereans if it was Paul the apostle preaching, they wanted to check what he said against the Scriptures to see whether what he said was really so.  And this is how we should be as well.  Check what you hear by examining the Scriptures daily to see if what you hear aligns with God's Word.

Let me encourage you to study the Bible and know what it means, and apply it to your life.  "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth." (2Ti 2:15).  It's important that you know how to handle the Word correctly.

One of the ways the Lord speaks to us in through His Word.  Hearing from the Lord is not exclusively from the Holy Spirit without the Word.  And it is not exclusively from the Word without the Spirit.   In order to hear from the Lord, we must rely on both the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. When you read the Bible, ask the Lord to speak to you through His Word and to show you the whole truth.  Ask Him for understanding and expect to receive it.

Putting it All Together
So it is clear from Scripture that Jesus is the Word of God, the words of Jesus recorded in the Bible are God’s Word.  He Himself said the Scripture is the Word of God.  He referred to the Old Testament, including the psalms, as the Law, the Scripture, and the Word of God. 

We also know that the disciples spoke the Word of God.  The apostle Paul did this and the Thessalonians received his message as the Word of God, which it really is.  He also wrote letters, which were considered by Peter to be Scripture.  Since Scripture is synonymous with the Word of God, then Paul’s letters are the Word of God.  From this we can infer that the writings of the other apostles are also Scripture. 

All Scripture is inspired, in other words God-breathed.  No Scripture originated with man’s will, but with God.  All Scripture was communicated to man through the agency of the Holy Spirit.  And the word of God has the power to save your souls. 

It's very dangerous to tell people otherwise.  If people no longer accept the Bible as the Word of God as it really is, then they will certainly not obey what it says.  They will eventually get too busy to read what it says as well.  And after a while, these people will be so ignorant of what the Word says that they will be easily deceived by false teachers, who distort the Scriptures.

Therefore, anyone who teaches people that the Bible is not the Word of God is untaught and unstable, and is misleading others.  If we examine the Scriptures daily like the Bereans, we will find that what they are saying is not true. We should beware of such men, and correct them, if they are willing to receive it. The Scriptures teach that the Bible is the Word of God.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. 

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like the other posts in this blog available through the Home page, such as All Scripture must be fulfilled, The Uniqueness of God's Word, and The Bible Never Fails. You may also access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

Understanding the Gaps in Scripture

Grand Canyon from the South Rim, near the NPS Visitor Center

Back in 2003, my wife and I had an unexpected opportunity to visit the Grand Canyon in Arizona.  We never thought we could afford to go there.  But our Lord is an amazing God, and He provided.

One of my sisters and her husband graciously allowed us to stay in her time share condominium in the beautiful town of Sedona, Arizona.  Sedona is a fabulous Southwest vacation destination, also referred to as Red Rock Country.  And I used my sky miles from all the business travel I had been doing, so that we were able to get two free tickets round trip from Philadelphia.  I also had rewards points with Hertz rental car that enabled us to get a free car during our stay in Arizona.  Lastly, I had enough Marriott rewards points accumulated, so that we could stay at the very nice Courtyard Marriot in Phoenix on our first night there, before we traveled to the time share condominium in Sedona. I can't forget to mention that my wife's parents were gracious enough to watch our three girls for a week, while we took this fantastic get away.  All of this was unexpected.  The Lord provided it all free of charge as a wonderful surprise to us.

One of the things about the Grand Canyon is that when you stand next to it, you are overwhelmed with awe at the deep, vast expanse.  It's incredibly wide and deep.  I think the bottom of the canyon is about a mile down from where you stand on the rim.  Another thing about it is that when you look across the tops of some of the rock formations at certain angles, such as you see in the photo above, you cannot always tell that there is a huge gap between them.  It's not until you view them from a different angle that you see just how large a gap there is.

The Scriptures are like that, too.  There are some verses in the Bible that skip over large periods of time without any indication that they are doing so.  And when you read about the same events in other portions of Scripture, you get a view from a different angle, so to speak.  Sometimes you find out there was actually a large gap of time between two sentences. It’s important to be aware of this, so that when you read these passages and others like them, you can properly understand the meaning.

Here are some examples:

The First and Second Coming of Christ
The prophet Isaiah wrote: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners; To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance of our God…” (Isa 61:1-2)

About seven hundred years later, when Jesus began His public ministry, he began by reading this passage from Isaiah in the synagogue.  “And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, ‘THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.’ And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’"  (Luk 4:16-21)

Notice how Jesus stopped before reading the words “and the day of vengeance of our God.”  When He came the first time, it was not for the sake of vengeance, but to preach the gospel to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, to proclaim recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed, and to proclaims the year of the Lord’s favor.  As Paul later wrote, “Behold, now is ‘THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,’ behold, now is ‘THE DAY OF SALVATION.’” (2Co 6:2).  When Jesus came the first time, it was not to proclaim the day of vengeance of our God.  That will be when He comes the second time to execute judgment and punish His enemies.

So in Isaiah’s prophecy, there is a gap of at least two thousand years between two phrases in the same sentence: “the favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance of our God.”

The resurrection and the ascension
At the end of Luke’s gospel account of Jesus, He records the events that occurred from Jesus’ resurrection until the day He was taken up to heaven.

In the passage where he records Jesus’ appearance to His disciples in the locked room in Jerusalem, he states: “While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and *said to them, ‘Peace be to you.’"  (Luk 24:36).  From that point, the passage continues until the end of the book, where Luke states, “And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven.” (Luk 24:50-51).

In this passage, it all seems to be one continuous event, as though Jesus led the disciples from that locked upper room all the way to Bethany on the same day, and then ascended into heaven.

However, in Luke’s second account of these events in Acts, he expands on this further and reveals that there was a span of forty days between Jesus’ resurrection and His ascension.

His second account begins like this: “The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen. To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, ‘Which,’ He said, ‘you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’” (Act 1:1-5)

Following his description of some of what Jesus said that day, Luke states: “And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.’” (Act 1:9-11)

So it becomes clear that there were forty days and many detailed events that occurred between Jesus’ resurrection and His ascension, which Luke left out in His first account.  It was apparently for the sake of brevity that he did not expand on these events the first time.  As John states in His gospel, “Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” (Joh 20:30-31) The gospels are not an exhaustive record of everything that Jesus said and did.  So when you read the last chapter of Luke, you need to be aware that this gap exists.

The Ascension and post-Pentecost Events
In Luke’s gospel and Acts, he give two different accounts of what happened after the ascension.  In his gospel, he states, “And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising God.” (Luk 24:50-53).  So in this record, it appears that the disciples returned to Jerusalem after the ascension and were immediately took up the practice of praising God continually in the temple.

However, in Acts, he clarifies that there was a gap of ten days that occurred between the ascension and their time of continual praise and rejoicing in the temple.  Luke records that immediately following the ascension: “Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey away. When they had entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.” (Act 1:12-14).  Here it is obvious that they first returned to the upper room in Jerusalem where they devoted themselves to prayer until the day of Pentecost.

Jesus’ death on the cross occurred on Passover, and his ascension was forty days later, according to Luke’s account in Acts 1:3.  The Feast of Pentecost occurs fifty days after Passover, so by simple math, we can determine that there was a period of ten days between the ascension and Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out.

The disciples were obedient to wait for the gift of the Holy Spirit before they went into public to be witnesses for Jesus.  They knew they needed to first be endued with power in order to be His witnesses.  So it wasn’t until ten days after Jesus’ ascension that the disciples began to continually praise God in the temple courts.  This is another one of those gaps that occurs in Scripture. Luke’s first account leaves a period of ten days unaccounted for in Luke 24:52.  It was only later in his second account that Luke unpacked that further for us.

Paul’s first trips as a disciple to Damascus and Jerusalem
Luke leaves another gap in his record of events, and this time it is between Paul’s first visits to Damascus and Jerusalem as a Christian.

He records the events that occurred during Saul’s visit to Damascus immediately following his conversion to Christ: “But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ. When many days had elapsed, the Jews plotted together to do away with him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were also watching the gates day and night so that they might put him to death; but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a large basket. When he came to Jerusalem, he was trying to associate with the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took hold of him and brought him to the apostles and described to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had talked to him, and how at Damascus he had spoken out boldly in the name of Jesus. And he was with them, moving about freely in Jerusalem, speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord.” (Act 9:22-28)

In this passage, it seems like Paul went directly from Damascus to Jerusalem.  However, in Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he said his first trip to Jerusalem was three years after his Damascus road experience.  He wrote, “Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days. But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord's brother.” (Gal 1:18-19). This corresponds with Luke’s account, which says, “When he came to Jerusalem, he was trying to associate with the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple.” (Act 9:26).

So what seems like an immediate trip to Jerusalem in Luke's account did not occur until an period of three years had elapsed!

In the same epistle to the Galatians, Paul stated that the second time he went to Jerusalem was fourteen years after the first visit, and that Barnabas accompanied him on this second trip.  He wrote, “Then after an interval of fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along also.” (Gal 2:1).  This corresponds to Luke’s account, which states, “But Barnabas took hold of him and brought him to the apostles and described to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had talked to him, and how at Damascus he had spoken out boldly in the name of Jesus. And he was with them, moving about freely in Jerusalem, speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord.” (Act 9:27-28).  Barnabas did not go with Paul until his second trip to Jerusalem, and he was influential in helping Paul to obtain the right hand of fellowship with the apostles.

So what Luke covers in a couple sentences happened over a period of seventeen years total.  This included three years between Paul's trip to Damascus and later to Jerusalem, plus another fourteen years between Paul's first and second trips to Jerusalem.

Putting it All Together
These are just a few examples from Scripture that show how there are sometimes gaps in Scripture, where large periods of time exist between two sentences or two phrases in the same sentence.  These are not always further expanded elsewhere in Scripture, but when they are, it helps us to better understand what took place in the interim during the gap.

If we do not understand that these gaps exist, then we can become confused about the events of biblical history and arrive at wrong conclusions about what occurred.  This can sometimes lead to unbiblical theology, so we need to be careful and pray for a clear understanding of Scripture.

Paul’s instruction to Timothy applies to us with regard to this when he wrote, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” (2Ti 2:15).  We need to rightly divide the word of truth, and sometimes it requires us to divide phrases or sentences in Scripture.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. The photo source is Couleurs de la Terre / Colours of the Earth

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like the other posts in this blog available through the Home page, such as The Bible is the Word of God, Read the Bible for All Its Worth!, The Uniqueness of God's Word, All Scripture must be fulfilled and The Bible Never Fails. You may also access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.