Which Books Belong in the Bible?

We've started in on our journey together "Walking in the Truth." And, first things first, last Sunday I was stressing that God's written revelation, the Bible, is our primary and necessary source of saving truth.

Now when it comes to the Bible, we cannot be nourished spiritually without truly feeding on the Word (i.e., God's truth doesn't get into our hearts and minds by osmosis).  We need to study Scripture--individually, and with others.

Bible study involves observation, interpreta­tion, and application.  The starting point is always what Scripture says, and from there we work outward:  our aim is to draw out the message God reveals, not to impose our will upon the text.

But an even more fundamental question is this:  Which texts belong in the Bible in the first place.  In recent years, various controversial and sensational proposals have been put forward both questioning the writings included and commending others that have been left out.

Bart Ehrman is a leading advocate, for example, in favor of demoting the Gospels we know (and that the church has regarded as Scripture for 2,000 years), and of elevating “apocryphal” works such as “the Gospel of Thomas.”  Of course, it’s all very exhilarating to discover “lost gospels” and displace the historic Scriptures (plus, it definitely stimulates book sales)!  But is there good reason to undo the Bible as we know it in favor of alternate writings?

New Testament scholar Michael Kruger provides some level-headed counsel about the revisionist proposals.  In his books on the “canon” (i.e., writings recognized as Scripture), and in his various papers and presentations, Kruger helps us get our bearings:

• Since our culture is enamored with “diversity,” it’s no surprise that long-standing, established beliefs are challenged, and that “alternative Christianities” are advanced.  But be wary when the love of diversity unravels the very notion of definite truth.
• The Canonical Gospels (i.e., Matthew, Mark, Luke, John) are the earliest accounts we have of Jesus’ life, they’re the only writ­ings with a credible connection to the Apostles, they lack the legend­ary, fictitious embellishments of later “gospels” (like 5-year-old Jesus striking other kids dead), and they were recognized as authoritative Scripture from a very early date.  No other so-called Gospel comes close to these standards of historical reputability.

For more info, I encourage you to explore the various resources provided by Kruger (for example, see here, and here, and here, and here).