In This Issue

• ATTACKS ON THE TRUTH

• THE DA VINCI DRAMA DISCOUNTED

• TOP TEN THINGS YOUR CHILDREN SHOULD SEE IN THEIR PARENTS

• MORE INFORMATION...

ATTACKS ON THE TRUTH

In recent years we have seen assault after assault on the faith of all who believe that the Bible is the infallible and inspired word of God. Back in April of 2004 Peter Jennings of ABC television had a "documentary?” on “Jesus and Paul, the Word and the Witness.” In the show, which was noticeably slanted toward liberal “scholarship”, so-called “scholars” questioned, denied; and then attempted to re-write biblical history. One wrote about this “documentary”: “The content…was formed based on what is religiously and politically correct; what is marketable and what is demeaning of Christianity.” In May of 2004 there was a movie called SAVED! It starred? Mandy Moore and Macaulay Culkin in a story about self-righteous Christian youths set in an uptight Christian school. The one character who tries to preach the Gospel in the movie is made out to be the villain, and the heroine is told in a vision by Jesus to commit sin with the school hunk in order to save him from homosexuality. It was a vile, blasphemous work that denigrated Christianity and all things virtuous.

And just last month (April, 2006), The Gospel of Judas was bally-hooed by the National Geographic Magazine as being a “new revelation” that would turn the religious world on its head. Supposedly it showed Judas was maligned and made a scapegoat by the other apostles and early church leaders when in “reality?” Jesus told him to “betray” Him. As in all such attacks we see that the enemies of God’s word try to destroy the faith of believers with either outright fabrications (lies), twisting of facts, or else by speculations that appeal to the wild imaginations of many. Paul wrote of this when he told Timothy “But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness” (2 Timothy 2:16), and “O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babble and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge—“ (1 Timothy 6:20).

Now we are faced with another such attack with a movie that is to be released this coming week called The Da Vinci Code. It is based on a novel by Dan Brown that was first published in 2003. He says that Jesus was only a man, married Mary Magdalene and had a daughter, and that their lineage can be traced even today.

Enough of the sacrilegious details of the novel and movie have been revealed so that we personally do not intend to either buy the novel or watch the movie. With that said we commend the following article to you, “The Da Vinci Drama Discounted”.

– Ron Lehde, Wonsley Worker, 5/14/06

THE DA VINCI DRAMA DISCOUNTED

BY BRAD HARRUB, Ph.D.

How many times have modern-day Christians chastised the Jews of Jesus’ day—claiming that they should have known He was the Son of God? After all, He was performing miracles literally right before their eyes. He shared with them wisdom in parables and lessons that could only have come from God. Years earlier the Jews had been warned, “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes” (Genesis 49:10). This prophecy had reference to the Messiah (“Shiloh”) arriving before the Jews lost their national sovereignty and the judicial power that gave them the right to exercise capital punishment—an event that was recorded during the time Christ walked among them (John 18:31) [see Thompson, 1997]. Everything from His lineage to His actions and behavior kept reinforcing the same thing—this was truly the Son of God. And yet the Jews seemed determined to overlook both Him and His teaching.

As we quietly shake our heads in wonder at how they could have looked beyond Christ, one wonders if the same thing is not happening again today. Individuals are desperately searching. They realize their lives are missing something, and so their personal quests begin. Having worked in a bookstore for a couple of years, I know how quickly “self-help” books move off the shelves. Individuals constantly are trying to fill a void in their lives, and so they seek “expert” advice on how to fill it. And, truth be told, the one thing that would fill the void and resolve most of their problems is completely overlooked—God’s Word. It is literally right in front of their eyes, and yet they continue searching for something else. As a testimony to that fact, consider that in 2003, 5.5 million copies of Dan Brown’s fictional novel, The Da Vinci Code, were sold (Bernstein, 2004). Brown’s work offers murder, ancient secret rituals, secret biblical codes, and an evil church—all of which made it a page turning international bestseller. The novel suggests that there is “something else out there”—a hidden truth—that will change the world. And sadly, many individuals have bought into this fiction. The book focuses on characters who are on a quest to locate the “Holy Grail” that will allow them to uncover religious documents and secrets that have been strategically kept from the public eye.

This furor over the so-called “lost gospels,” and the role of Mary Magdalene, even landed on the front covers of Time (“The Lost Gospels” by David Van Biema) and Newsweek (“The Bible’s Lost Stories” by Barbara Kantrowitz and Anne Underwood). Dan Brown is a master at mixing fact and fantasy. He describes real organizations such as Opus Dei and the Priory of Sion in a way that causes one to wonder if there really is some mysterious “history” to which we do not have access? But we need to keep in mind that Brown’s job was to write a “hot-selling” book, and thus many of the pages contain statements that are meant to shock the average person. While The Da Vinci Code tells an adventurous story of mystique and betrayal, the underlying message is clear: The Bible is not accurate and it is incomplete. True, this book is fictional. But given the amount of attention it has received in the media over the past couple of years—as experts are interviewed about possible lost books in the Bible—you can understand why many of the sentences contained within the book cause confusion (and even disgust). For instance, one of the characters in the book observes: “The Bible is a product of man, my dear, not of God. The Bible did not fall magically from the clouds. Man created it as a historical record of tumultuous times, and it has evolved through countless translations, additions, and revisions. History has never had a definitive version of the book” (Brown, 2003, p. 231, emp. in orig.). It then undercuts the authority of Christ as two of the characters in the book discuss His divinity: —“Jesus’ establishment as the ‘Son of God’ was officially proposed and voted on by the Council of Nicaea.” —“Hold on. You’re saying Jesus’ divinity was the result of a vote?” —“A relatively close vote at that,” Teabing added (p.233). The main “expert historian” sums it up this way: “What I mean,” Teabing countered, “is that almost everything our fathers taught us about Christ is false” (p. 235).

The “shocker” contained within the book is that Jesus married Mary Magdalene. In referring to her, one of the characters noted: “More specifically, her marriage to Jesus Christ.... It’s a matter of historical record” (p. 244). The suggestion is made that she is pictured in Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” (sitting at the right hand of Jesus), and that they were married. The dialogue continues: “So He [Jesus—BH] gives Mary Magdalene instruction on how to carry on His Church after He is gone” (pp. 247-248). Brown then weaves in the final shocker, that Jesus and Mary had a child together. And in fact, this “royal bloodline” is still in existence today. As all of this is being unfolded, one of the characters observes: “...it was not Peter to whom Christ gave directions with which to establish the Christian Church. It was Mary Magdalene” (p. 248, emp. in orig.). The point of all this is that Brown is reacting (read that as over-reacting!), not to Christianity, but to corrupt Christianity (i.e., Catholicism).

Yes, the book is fiction. But sadly, in their efforts to “fill that missing void,” individuals are clinging to this type of material, in the hope that maybe there really are “lost gospels” out there somewhere. How many of those 5.5 million readers have opened this book because they are searching for something, and yet the Bible sits quietly collecting dust on a nearby coffee table? Or, how many have perused The Da Vinci Code, only then to ask themselves, “I wonder what else the Bible left out?” They then question what the Bible says about worship, marriage, and numerous other things.

Make no mistake about it—the Bible is complete, and it will stand the test of time (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:3,20-21,23-25). It is the inspired Word of God that furnishes us “unto every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). In John’s revelation, he informed us that we have everything we need: “For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book” (Revelation 22:18-19). Long after The Da Vinci Code falls off the bestseller list, the Bible still will hold the eternal truths that can save men’s souls. The prophet Isaiah proclaimed: “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever” (Isaiah 40:8). The question that remains is: Will we be able to convince ourselves to stop searching elsewhere, and instead begin to accept the life-changing truths contained within the inspired Word of God?

One of the sad truths that Brown weaves into this novel can be found near the end, as a one of the “religious” characters discusses why people are leaving the church. He notes: “People have lost respect. The rigors of faith are gone. The doctrine has become a buffet line. Abstinence, confession, communion, baptism, mass—take your pick—choose whatever combination pleases you and ignore the rest. What kind of spiritual guidance is the Church offering?” (p. 416, emp. added). 

There is little doubt that in today’s religiously confused world, there is indeed a “buffet line” approach to religion. But that is exactly the point. It is not about what men want to believe. It is about what God says! Through God’s Word, Jesus speaks to us, even today. But how many of us are like those Jews of old—still searching for something else, all the while overlooking the obvious?

- Brad Harrub, Wonsley Worker, Austin, TX, May 14, 2006

TOP TEN THINGS YOUR CHILDREN SHOULD SEE IN THEIR PARENTS

1. Parents Who Love And Respect Authority. This means they obey those in authority and respect what rules accomplish.

2. Parents Who love To Study The Bible. Children should see their parents studying God’s Word in places other then church. Parents should be studying with their children.

3. Parents Who Love To Sing And Pray. Again this should be accomplished in church as well as at home. Children should see Dad praying on his knees.

4. Parents Who Don’t Murmur. Some parents complain about church regularly on the way home from the assembly. Little ears in the backseat hear this.

5. Parents Who Don’t Gossip Or Backbite. Children should never see Dad shake a brothers hand at church then speak bad about him to Mom on the way home.

6. Parents Who Seek Mercy For Others. Children should never see vindictive parents.

7. Parents Who Regularly Attend Church. This is huge. In my lifetime I have rarely seen children grow up to be faithful when their parents did not emphasize attending services as a priority.

8. Parents Who Love Their Children. You can say it. You can feel it. But your actions better show it.

9. Parents Who Love Each Other. Children need to see your love for your mate.

10. Parents Who Love God And Keep His Commandments.

- Richard Dodson via Bible Studies web page

MORE INFORMATION...