What Is Clear Biblical Teaching? Part 5

by John C. Whitcomb, Th.D.

Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.
The amazing revelation in Holy Scripture concerning the relationship of Christ, our heavenly High Priest, to Melchizedek, the mysterious king-priest in ancient Jerusalem, demonstrates our special need for the Holy Spirit’s help in understanding His precious written Word. God expects His people to dig deeply into the Bible—the only Book God has ever written—to discover clear teachings which we have not previously seen.

At first glance, some biblical doctrines may seem to be more clear than others. But they are all important. For example, the Sadducees denied the resurrection of the dead because they could not “see” this concept in the first five books of the Bible (these being the only books they thought were inspired). But our Lord “astonished” the Jewish multitudes and “put the Sadducees to silence” (Matt. 22:23-34, KJV) by showing (through the precise use of theological inferences) that they should have seen bodily resurrection taught in Exodus 3:6.

Now what does Exodus 3:6 say about bodily resurrection? When Moses approached the burning bush at Horeb (i.e., Sinai), God spoke to him: “I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” These patriarchs had died hundreds of years earlier; but with them He had made an everlasting covenant, confirmed by an oath: “By Myself have I sworn, saith the LORD … In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice” (Gen. 22:16-18). Did Abraham believe in bodily resurrection? Yes! He believed that his son Isaac would come back to life after being killed, and that both of them would come back to the servants at the foot of Mt. Moriah (Gen. 22:5; cf. Heb. 11:17-19).

The Sadducees should have known that about Abraham and that God’s covenant to Abraham was confirmed to Isaac (Gen. 26:2-5) and to Jacob (Gen. 28:13-15).

But now comes Christ’s powerful argument: these patriarchs cannot be permanently dead, for God told Moses, “I am [not once was] the God of … Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And since God sees the future as if it were present, these patriarchs must some day rise from the dead and thus be fully human again, and in a far more glorious state.

Some might think that Exodus 3:6 does not clearly teach bodily resurrection. But the Jews did see it clearly, for “when the multitude heard this, they were astonished at His doctrine,” and the Pharisees (who hated Jesus and certainly did not rejoice in His teachings) agreed “that He had put the Sadducees to silence” (Matt. 22:33, 34) when He showed, by clear implication, that bodily resurrection is taught in the Pentateuch.

Thus, the Sadducees were completely accountable to God for their misinterpretation of the Bible: “Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God” (Matt. 22:29).

Yes, when we search the Scriptures daily to see whether these things are so (cf. Acts 17:11), relatively obscure things become more clear. Paul explained that God has not written “in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual” (1 Cor. 2:13). With God’s help, every Christian can be enlightened progressively in the Word. “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day” (Prov. 4:18).

Thus, to the person who demands “Show me where the Bible teaches that!” God’s servant may humbly reply, “Join us in searching the Scriptures to discover God’s precious truth!” May God equip us in His love, patience, and wisdom to encourage His people in that search and discovery!

Praise God for clear biblical teaching!

Dr. John C. Whitcomb has been a professor of Old Testament and theology for more than 50 years and is widely recognized as a leading biblical scholar. He taught at Grace Theological Seminary (Winona Lake, IN) from 1951-1990 and gained much recognition for his work on The Genesis Flood (Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company), which he co-authored with Dr. Henry Morris in 1961. That book has been credited as one of the major catalysts for the modern Biblical creationism movement. His ministry homepage is Whitcomb Ministries, and his sermons are available at SermonAudio.com.