Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-05-18
BRIGGS ON THE BIBLE
The Subject of Rev. DR.. Sutherland'S s
Address Last Evening.
DOES NOT DEFEND THE PROFESSOR,
But Says He Has at Various Times Been
MiSrepresented.
EXTRACTS FROM INTERESTING SERMONS

Rev. J. r. Sutherland, D. D., pastor OF
the Second Presbyterian Church, took fol
his subject last evening, Briggs on the
Bible, or Christ-Which?'' This church
and pastor are growing in popularity, and
the attendance at the evening services is
usually quite large, as was the case last
evening. A synopsis of DR.. Sutherland s
address follows:
AT this day, when the claims made in be-
half of the Bible by those who accepted il as
the inspired and the infallible word of God,
are tested with keenness and scrutiny un-
precedented in biblical criticism, it is well
for us to pause and inquire what estimate
Jesus Christ put on this book. The unique
character Of Christ, his isincomparable purity,
his profound understanding and keen and
penetrating intellect, together with his fault
less Judgment should give more than
ordinary weight to his estimate of
the results of what is called the higher criti-
cisn," for the opinions of men like Prof.
Briggs, whose character and ability are uni
versally recognized and who have made
biblical theology a special study, VIC are not,
/ take it, prepared either as a church or as
individuals to accept their views or iudg-
ment in preference to the views or Judg
ment of Him who spake as never man spoke.
Many Have Been Unfair,
lam bound to say that in the heat of the
controversy awakened by Prof. Briggs in
augural address, many unwise and unfair
things have been said by those who are op-
posed to him. He has been charged with
holding views with regard to the Bible and
its teachings for which his public utterances
have furnished no just occasion. Prof.
Briggs is a scholarly, Christian man who
firmly and reverently holds to the great
fundamental articles of our Christian faith
and is entitled to fair treatment at our
hands What is clear is that be repudiates
the historic and commonly accepted view as
to the Bible infallibility rs a whole and in
all its parts
1t would be interesting. and 1 trust profit
able. therefore, to find out what Christ Him.
self thought of the Bible. Ii Jesus Christ
makes the Bible ont 10 be the word of the
living God, inspired by Him, and containing
nothing that would detract from its value
as an infallible guide, you and l may conf
IDENTIFY continue our faith in it. Bot, on the
other hand, if Jesus Christ is at all doubt
fulfil we can discover that He is of a waver-
ing mind about that book, or about any part
Of it. We should not hesitate to give it up or
abandon our views regarding it.
An Able Review of the Bible.
Christ's Judgment may be safely relied
upon. He is surely the best and ablest critic
and reviewer of this Book. And YOU will
bear in mind that He makes it the supreme
and ultimate standard of appeal in religious
things. He does not, like some of the critics |
of our day, merely rank it with the human |
reason anu the Church, which are admittedly |
fallible and liable to err.
How then did Jesus Christ regard this |
Book? First of all, he commended it as an |
object OF study, and this he did without |
one word of caution. His urgent, bold |
speech was: SEARCH the Scriptures" |
He did not say consult the reason, or the |
imagination, or the Church, but the book |
upon which the Church was founded. He |
does not warn you against possible errors, or |
against believing that Moses wrote the PEN
tateuch, or that Ezra wrote the books as
cribed to him, or that David wrote the |
Psalms, or that Solomon wrote the Proverbs
or Isaiah the book that bears his name 4
Whatever errors are in the Old Testament |
were in it when Christ said to the Jews in
His day, search the Scriptures" and he did !
not deem them serious enough to warn
against them.
The Scriptures Cannot Be Broken.
Again Jesus Christ declared the absolute
integrity of the Scriptures. Certain persons
came to Him with difficulty of their mind.
They stated their case to Him and in His
answer to them occur these words: "And
theS crlptures cannot be broken" He as |
sumes this. 1t never enters His mind that |
the word of God can be broken. His whole |
assumption broadens itself into an infinite
confidence in the absolute integrity of the
word of God. Here He had opportunity of
doing as DIR. Briggs and others are doing, |
that is making annotations and reservations.
He might have said: ''Of course / am now |
speaking of the moral and not of the histori-
cal parts of the Bible when / say the Scrip
tures cannot be broken
But He speaks of it in its completeness and
says OF it in so many expressed words, "The
Scriptures cannot be broken" Surely Christ
IS good witness. He cannot be convicted
of giving false testimony. This testimony
accept as final. His was the highest of all |
criticism in the best sense of the word.
know you can ask difficult things about |
the Bible. So you can about the commonest |
things around you-abOut matter and mind |
aS well as about the creations of the mind |
/ can ask difficult questions about the So |
called higher criticism and about Prof |
Briggs inaugural address and even about |
some of the productions of his critics But !
asking questions is only FOOLS play some
times. am aware that you can point me
places in the Bible and verses and
facts of which 1 have no com !
plete exposition. But my argument
tonight is this: 1 take Christ for my author |
lty in this matter. / know Him. believe in |
Him. have access to His chaIacter And |
because he, the Son of God, the Savior of the
world, believed the Bible.to be infallible 1
believe it too.