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Lyn
wrote:
And
where does it say that god's revelation to us ended when the last
book of the new testament was written????
Our Answer:
Hello Lyn:
Thank you for
writing. I'm happy to answer your question. First I'd like to recommend
an excellent book on this subject, "The Canon of Scripture"
by F. F. Bruce. It covers the complete history of the Bible.
The question
is: What in the Bible tells us that no more will be added to the
Bible?
The opening
sentence of Hebrews puts this question into proper historical perspective,
that of the history of redemption: "In
many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets;
but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed
the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world."
(Hebrews 1:1-2)
Theologian Wayne
Grudem writes:
"The exceptional
greatness of the revelation that comes from the Son, far exceeds
any revelation in the Old Testament, and this is emphasized again
and again throughout chapters 1 and 2 of Hebrews. These facts all
indicate that there is a finality to the revelation of God in Christ
and that once this revelation has been completed, no more is to
be expected."
A similar conclusion
may be drawn from Revelation 22:18-19
"I
warn every one who hears the words of the prophecy of this book:
if any one adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described
in this book, and if any one takes away from the words of the book
of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life
and in the holy city, which are described in this book."
It is clear
that these verses primarily refer to the Book of Revelation itself.
However, it is not accidental that these words come at the end of
the Bible. The Book of Revelation had to be placed as the last book.
For most books in the Bible it does not matter in what order they
are placed. But, just as Genisis must be first (it tells of creation),
so Revelation must be last (its focus is on the future and God's
new creation). Thus it is appropriate to understand this strong
wording at the end of Revelation as applying, in a secondary way,
to the entire Bible.
Another question
that might be asked is: how do we know that revelations from "new
prophets" are not new revelations that add to the Bible?
For example, what about the Book of Mormon or the Koran?
God has given
us very clear standards for recognizing His word, and how we can
tell whether someone claiming to be a prophet is truly a prophet.
For example,
Deuteronomy 18:22 tells that that a prophet, when speaking God's
word can NEVER be wrong (God does not make mistakes).
Also, whatever
the prophet says most be 100% in agreement with what God has given
us in the Bible. God does not change. For example, there is nothing
in the New Testament that contradicts or changes anything in the
Old Testament. No one claiming to be a "prophet" has met
these requirements since the first century. Nothing has been written
since the first century has met these requirements.
But, what
if someone finds a copy of Paul's second letter to the Corinthians?
This letter is referred to in 2 Corinthians, but we do not currently
have a copy of this letter. Should that letter be discovered, should
it be added to the Bible?
The Bible does
not prohibit such a letter, written by an Apostle, from being added
to the Bible. However, the answer from Biblical scholars is that
they don't know the answer to this question. Our wisest minds say
that we will have to figure out the answer to this question, should
the time come when we need it answered.
We do know,
however, that such a letter will not change any of the doctrines
of Christianity, nor will it contradict anything anywhere else in
the Bible.
I hope this
helps answer your question,
Yours in Christ,
Steve
Mission to America
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