I have always been fascinated by cannons. I am amazed at how accurate artillery men can be with them and the sheer power they possess. I can't imagine the full extent of the intensity that is an artillery shelling. I probably also like cannons because I'm a math guy and using cannons correctly requires math.Cannons are just cool and are a great asset to any army if used correctly. As Christians we have the most powerful cannon in the world...actually CANON...with 1 "n".
The Bible with it's collection of books is called the "canon" of Scripture. These are the 66 books accepted as inspired special revelation from God. A canon is a rule or standard, in this case for authoritative scripture.
But, who got to decide which books were a part of the canon of Scripture? Did man really determine which books of the Bible would be accepted? If so, how did these people determine which ones would be accepted as inspired and which ones wouldn't? Why were some writing accepted while others were left out?
As in previous discussions this topic has received exhaustive treatment from a number of scholars. The information that follows is brief and is only meant to give you a basic understanding of canonization. For a more thorough study on canonicity see A General Introduction to the Bible by Norman Geisler and William Nix, pp203-317.
Clearing up some misconceptions:
As men we often mistakenly set ourselves, or other men, as the ultimate determining authority. Often it is assumed that men determined the canon of scripture. It is important to distinguish between man's determining the canon and discovering the canon.
"Canonicity is determined by God. A book is not inspired because men made it canonical; it is canonical because God inspired it. It is not antiquity, authenticity, or religious community that makes a book canonical or authoritative. On the contrary, a book is valuable because it is canonical, and not canonical because it is or was considered valuable...Canonicity is determined or established authoritatively by God; it is merely discovered by man."
(A General Introduction to the Bible, p221)
If we get this mixed up then we will find ourselves incorrectly thinking that the church stands
above Scripture. We may even consider the church the regulator, judge and master of scripture instead of recognizer, witness and servant of the canon.But if man only discovered the canon of scripture, how did it happen? The books of the Bible mention other writings like the Book of Jasher and the Book of the Wars of the Lord. There are other books such as the Gospel of Thomas and the Shepherd of Hermas and the Gospel of Judas. Why weren't these books included in the 66 accepted books we now have in the Bible? What about the books defined as the apocrypha in many catholic Bibles?
It is important to realize that someone didn't just show up one day and say, "here they are...the
books of the New Testament. Enjoy!" There was much discussion, much prayer, must testing of the books and must truth in the Holy Spirit over four centuries of church history to find us with the collection of books we have today.23 of the 27 books of the New Testament were accepted as canonical within 100 years of the original autographs because of their reference to each other. Disputes over books such as James and 1-3 John were settled by the 4th century. But how did these men test these books leading to their recognition as canonical?
Here are several test used: (from A Theology for the Church, p168)
1. Was the book authored or sanctioned by an apostle or a prophet?
2. Was the book widely circulated?
3. Was the book Christologically centered?
4. Was the book orthodox, that is, faithful to the teachings of the apostles?
5. Did the book give internal evidence of its unique character as inspired and authoritative?
The Bible as we know it today was not settled on lightly and writings were not selected "willy-nilly". In fact, man did not select or determine which books were inspired scripture. That was predetermined by God and communicated to man through the Holy Spirit and through intelligent theological study.
God has revealed himself to us through nature and through Scripture. He protected the writers from error and directed the collection of that revelation into the Bible we know today. Praise God for preserving his revelation for us. May we be faithful to study it and hide it in our hearts, spreading it's Truth in this generation and passing it on to the next.
When I get back we're starting our next doctrine: The Doctrine of God
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