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4. The Bible is the Christian’s Armory.

The Christian’s calling in the world is that of a soldier. He must fight the good fight of faith. (1 Timothy 6:12; 2 Timothy 4:7). Sinners are to be won from the power of the devil to God. Their intelligence, their wills, and their affections, are to be stormed and carried for Him; they are to be turned from the power of darkness to light; their prison-houses of sin are to be broken into; their chains knocked off and the captives set free (Acts 26:16-18). We also, in our own Christian life and pilgrimage, are set upon by the powers of darkness; by the fiery darts of the devil. Doubts, infidelity, temptations, evil imaginations, unclean, unholy, and vain thoughts assail us, poured in upon our souls by Satan, the lusts of the flesh being thus set on fire of hell, if by this means the child of God may be overtaken in a fault or overcome by sin. But this warfare is not carnal, or after the manner of the flesh.

"For though we walk in the flesh [have our lives as other men do in fleshly bodies] we do not war after the flesh: (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds); casting down imaginations [reasonings] and every high thing [lofty edifice] which is being raised against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought in obedience to Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

Just as Joshua went up against Jericho, and took its strongholds and high towers, and cast them down and made captive the city, not with carnal weapons, but with trumpets of rams’ horns (Joshua 6), so we, proceeding against the strongholds, imaginations, and infidel arguments of men, are to take the Gospel trump. The sword we are to wield is the "Word of God, the sword of the Spirit" (Ephesians 6:17) which makes him who wields it invincible. The Bible itself must be brought out, not only as the best defense against all the assaults of infidelity from the lofty towers of human reasonings, but also as the mighty weapon to overcome and bring the enemies of God into captivity to Christ.

"They overcame by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony" (Revelation 12:11).

"Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God; having your loins girt about with truth; and having on the breastplate of righteousness, and your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace; and above all, taking the shield of faith, whereby ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked; and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" (Ephesians 6:13-17).

We have only to recall how our Saviour overcame the devil with the all prevailing weapon, "It is written," in order that we may be furnished with the secret of successful warfare for Him.

Very often Christians, young and old, come to us in the "inquiry room" and say, "Won’t you come and talk with this friend of mine?" "Why don’t you talk with him (or her) yourself?" we reply. "Because I don’t know what to say to him, and, besides, you know more of the Bible." "Well, why don’t you know more of the Bible?" To this, various answers are given. At any rate we meet here one grave mistake. An ignorance of the Bible, which not only furnishes us with our spiritual weapons, but "thoroughly furnishes us unto all good works" (2 Timothy 3:17), leads many earnest Christians to the doubtful use of their own argumentation in dealing with their own and others’ souls. It is a hopeless task to pull down the strongholds of the unregenerate mind and heart with anything less than these Divine weapons. But all may equip themselves from this great armory. The Bible contains ideas which no philosophy or human theory can furnish, and therefore puts us in possession of weapons which the enemy cannot withstand when hard pushed by them, re-enforced as they are by the invisible and mighty presence of the Holy Spirit, and which renders us impregnable to the assaults of the adversary. Of this mighty power of the Word and Spirit of God we have a splendid example in the case of Stephen, and other early disciples, whose words, drawn from the Scripture, the Jews could not withstand. We have never yet met an infidel or atheist whose arguments we could not turn aside when depending simply on the Word of God. Nay, more, we have never yet met one in the "inquiry rooms" who has been able to withstand God’s Word and the mighty facts of the Bible, when, in humble, dependence upon God we have set them in array before him. If you know God’s thoughts and seek to be guided by the Holy Spirit, He will say out of your mouth the right word at the right time, both to ward off an assault and to strike a telling blow for the truth. And amidst all this warfare, the light and love and gentleness of Jesus Christ will so shine out in your bearing and manner that they will be convinced of your sincerity, and God will give you the victory.

5. The Bible is a Perfect Map and Chart to the Christian on Pilgrimage Through the World.

With God’s Word in hand and heart you may tread your way with perfect safety and confidence through all the labyrinths of this world. The straight and narrow way is so clearly and sharply marked that he who runs may read. It is a highway (unseen, it may be, by the worldly) in which a wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err (Isaiah 35:8), for it is everywhere marked by His commandments. More than that, we have an unseen Guide, even the Spirit of Truth, who leads us, and says to us, in places of doubt or uncertainty, "This is the way, walk ye in it" (Isaiah 30:21). Thus, a pilgrim and a stranger, you may keep your onward way to the city of God in safety and confidence, following in the light of the Word, which is "a lamp to your feet, and a light unto your path" (Psalm 119:105), the path that no one knoweth save He that leadeth thee. Yea, and you will find that the way, over hills and through valleys, shines more and more unto the perfect day. (Proverbs 4:18). The Word of God is a chart that marks all the rocks and reefs in the sea of life; if we heed, and sail our frail bark by it, we shall come safely into the haven of rest at last.

But if we are heedless and proud, and self-sufficient in our own conceits, we shall make shipwreck of our faith. A young lieutenant in the English navy discovered a small but dangerous rock in the Mediterranean, never before known, and reported it to the admiralty. It was telegraphed to all the stations, and ordered to be put down on all the charts. The first ship to sail over the spot was under command of an old captain, who, noting the warning newly placed on his chart, desired to know by whom the rock was reported. On being informed he replied: "There is no such rock there. I have sailed over this sea for twenty years, and if such a rock had been there I would have found it." And then in his pride and conceit he gave orders to his sailing-master to steer directly over the spot indicated. The gallant ship was driven over the danger spot under full sail. There was a tremendous crash, and the noble vessel went down with all hands. Many a Christian suffers shipwreck through unheeding conceit or neglect of his infallible chart. May the Holy Spirit incline us to study diligently our Divine chart, and sail closely by it!

6. The Bible Reveals Things to Come. It contains not only the history of the past, of God’s dealings with nations, but it also contains much unfulfilled prophecy. Revelation is a book devoted to things that "must shortly come to pass." Prophecy has been called unacted history, and history is but fulfilled prophecy. It is a mistake to suppose that God’s hand in history has been limited to those nations mentioned in the Bible. Could we have the story of God in history, it would be seen that His providence has been in and over all the great and small events of all nations. Daniel in his great prophecy has given a rapid and graphic sketch of the course of history from the golden-headed Babylonian Empire down to the end of time, when the "Son of man shall come with the clouds of heaven" … when there "shall be given Him dominion and glory, and a kingdom, that all nations and languages should serve Him." When He comes, "His dominion will be an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away, and His kingdom one which shall not be destroyed" (Daniel 2:44; 7:13-27).

Meantime God among nations will be overturning, and "overturning, and overturning until He comes whose right it is" (Ezekiel 21:27). The Book of Revelation is a detailed exposition of the second and seventh chapters of Daniel, and the two books should be read together. Emperors and kings and cabinets are rapidly bringing to pass things that God has marked out in prophecy ages ago. But they know not what they do. There are "signs in the heavens," and on the earth there is "distress of nations with perplexity; and the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth; for the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud, with power and great glory" (Luke 21:25- 27).

Of the day and hour when the flaming heavens shall reveal the "appearing and kingdom" of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 4:1), no man knoweth; but we are bidden to wait and be ready, lest we be surprised by the great and notable day of the Lord. To this end the Scriptures are also written, that the loving Student of them may live in advance of history, and be overtaken by no untoward event. If His prophetic Word dwell richly in our hearts and minds, there will be no great surprise for us as time goes on.

We shall discern through the prophetic telescope, dimly, it may be, the approaches of those things out of which history is made. Should it be our blessed lot to be "alive, and remain Unto the coming of the Lord" (1 Thessalonians 4:15) we shall see the sign of Him in the heavens (Matthew 24:30) before the startled and amazed world, lying in sin and mocking unbelief (2 Peter 3:3; Luke 18:8), are overwhelmed in that "everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power" (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9).

We know that there is a growing disposition on the part of many excellent Christians to make light (they know not what they do) of all prophetic study; but our risen Lord, in His last revelation to John concerning things to come, caused him to write, at the very outset: "Blessed is he that readeth and they that hear the words of this prophecy; and keep those things which are written therein; for the time is at hand;" and at the close of the book to add:  "These sayings are faithful and true; and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show unto His servants the things which must shortly be done. Behold I come quickly; blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book" (Revelation 22:6,7).