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Views & Reviews: The MacArthur Bible Commentary

Those familiar with the individual books MacArthur has produced on various Bible books, or with the MacArthur Study Bible, will know what to expect. Dr. John MacArthur is both a pastor and a careful expositor of the Scriptures.

The MacArthur Bible Commentary (published in 2005 by Thomas Nelson Publishers) is a commentary over 2,000 pages in length. It covers every verse of Scripture, based on the text of the New King James Version. The subtitle, also described as MacArthur’s credo over more than 35 years of ministry is “unleashing God’s truth one verse at a time.” This is a good basic commentary. Recommended.

Premillennialism and Popular Theology

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Question: Glenn asks, “In his book, The Basis of the Premillennial Faith (1983, second printing), Charles Ryrie says theologians, who support the premillennial interpretation of prophesy, are in a minority. Is this true today? Is Modernism increasing in popularity?

Answer: Let’s take the latter part of your question first. Liberalism and Modernism, though not necessarily identical, both teach a salvation by works. Both reject the verbal inspiration (and infallibility) of Scripture, and its historical accuracy, including its record of supernatural events. Therefore, they usually reject the deity of Christ and deny His resurrection and bodily return to reign as “King of kings and Lord of lords.” If we are talking about Christendom (the professing church at large) this likely represents the majority view.

However, if we are speaking of the true church, the spiritual body of Christ holding to the fundamentals of the apostolic faith, premillennialism is either the majority position, or represents a strong minority. To my knowledge, all the major evangelical Bible schools founded at the end of the 1800’s and in the early 1900’s held this position when they started (e.g. Moody Bible Institute, Bob Jones, Prairie, Briercrest, and little Millar College of the Bible where I taught). Most of them still hold to premillennialism.

Add to this the influence of Dr. Scofield’s teaching, and that of Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer, at Dallas Seminary. Then, factor in the great popularity of Hal Lindsey’s book The Late, Great Planet Earth years ago, and now the best-selling “Left Behind” series, and I would say the premillennial faith is strong and growing stronger. Ryrie’s book came out in 1953, and the book by Hal Lindsey, mentioned above, in 1970. Things changed somewhat in that nearly 20 years, and have changed even more so today.

But having said all that, orthodox Christians will always be in the minority, and unbelief and error will increase as the day of Christ’s coming approaches (Matt. 7:13-14; I Tim. 4:1; II Tim. 3:1, 13). As to differing views true believers hold on the details of prophecy, keep in mind that a view is not true because it is held by the majority, but because it is taught in the Word of God.

God’s Deliverance

The psalmist says of the Lord, “You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from falling” (Psalm 116:8). This statement encompasses three aspects of deliverance mentioned in a number of other Scriptures. Through faith in God we find deliverance from:

  1. Destruction. In the past, God rescued those who put their faith in Christ from eternal death and ruination (cf. Ps. 56:13; 68:20).
  2. Disappointment. In place of tears of discouraged hopes for the future, God gives joyful anticipation to the sorrowing heart (cf. Isa. 25:8; Rev. 7:17).
  3. Disability. In the present, God bears us up and strengthens us to overcome times of stumbling, weakness and fallibility (cf. Mic. 4:6-7; 7:8; Jude 24).

It will be seen that these three can be related to the three tenses of salvation. Paul says God “delivered us from so great a death [past], and does deliver us [present]; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us [future]” (II Cor. 1:10.) Those who have trusted Christ as Saviour have: 1) Deliverance from sin’s penalty and from certain destruction (past); 2) Deliverance from sin’s presence and the sorrow it brings to look forward to (future); 3) Deliverance from sin’s power in their daily lives (present).

God Is Not Dead! (I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day)

Over a century ago philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote the famous words “God is dead.” But he did not mean what many suppose. He was not saying that somehow God had ceased to exist. Rather, he meant that God has ceased to matter to us. That the vast majority in society have little thought of God. He is dead to them. Sadly, that is even possible for Christians.

One day Martin Luther’s wife Katherine came down to breakfast dressed head to foot in black. Startled by her mourning attire, Luther asked her who had died. “Do you not know?” she said, “God in heaven is dead.” “How can you talk such nonsense, Katie! Luther responded. “God is immortal. He can never die.” But then Katherine pointed out that, by her husband’s persistent discouragement in recent days, he was certainly acting as though God had died. She helped him see the need to once more apply the truths he knew so well.

No, God is not dead. But the point is well taken. It is possible even for born again Christians to act like what we might call “practical atheists.” Perhaps it is because of personal failures or domestic problems. Perhaps it is because current events in the world are so discouraging. Sometimes life’s problems do loom large in our limited view and we bitterly turn our backs on God as a reaction to that.

Here we are at another Christmas season. In some ways it seems a hollow mockery to celebrate “peace on earth, good will toward men” when the world is in such turmoil. It is easy to be overwhelmed with pessimism. Wars and rumours of wars abound. Violence and unrest stalk the streets of our big cities. Famine and disease blight various third world countries. What has become of the Prince of Peace? At times we may be tempted to cry to the Lord like the storm-tossed disciples of old, “Do You not care that we are perishing?” (Mk. 4:37-38).

Such thoughts gripped the heart of a father, in the nineteenth century, as he sent his own son off to war–the American Civil War. A few years before, he had lost his wife in a tragic fire. Now the ongoing brutal strife of the war was decimating communities and dividing families. Would it ever end?

The father pondered the national scene with fear and dismay. But soon, as the Lord enlarged his view, he renewed his confidence in God, confessing with the psalmist that, “He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep” (Ps. 121:4).

That father was Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), one of the preeminent poets of his day. He has expressed his inner journey from discouragement to rekindled faith in the Christmas carol, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.”

Some verses now omitted make reference to the war, but the hymn has a wider message. The song begins, “I heard the bells on Christmas day / Their old familiar carols play, / And wild and sweet the words repeat / Of peace on earth, good will to men.” Even so Longfellow admits that “Hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth.”

But in the booming church bells on Christmas morning the poet fancies he hears a bold declaration: “Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: / “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; / The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, / With peace on earth, good will to men.”

We must be careful not to dwell on a short-ranged perception of the purposes of God. With an upraised finger, it is possible to blot out the sun from our view. But it is still there. It continues to shine. And similarly, though our problems at times obscure the face of God, He is still there, and still on the throne. God is not dead. “The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice” (Ps. 97:1).

A Humble Birth (Silent Night)

It was the humble birth of a son that led to the writing of one of our most beloved Christmas carols. There is some disagreement on the exact details, but it seems to have come about like this. The place where the events took place is a tiny village called Oberndorf in a region of the Austrian Alps known as the Tyrol.

The year was 1818, and it was the day before Christmas. Plans were well underway for a musical program that would take place the next evening. Joseph Mohr, the pastor of the village church, and his organist Franz Gruber, were both musicians, and they hoped the service they had planned would be a blessing to all.

But as often happens in pastoral ministry, work on the program was interrupted. Word came that a poor wood-chopper’s wife had just given birth to a child. They lived quite a distance from town, and Pastor Mohr went everywhere on foot. He immediately set his other tasks aside and made his way through the snow to their cottage, where he had prayer, asking God’s blessing on their newborn son. Having been invited to a Christmas Eve party at the home of a wealthy parishioner, Mohr then set off from the couple’s cottage up a nearby mountain to the palatial home.

It was late when he finally trudged through the snow back to Oberndorf. The night was clear and cold, and the stars sparkled brilliantly overhead. He thought about the humble birth of the wood-cutter’s son, and of course it reminded him of the coming of Christ.

He was overwhelmed by the scene before him and quickened his pace homeward, where he turned a sudden inspiration into the words of a song, finishing it at four in the morning. On Christmas Day he took the lines of verse to his friend Franz Gruber, who supplied a tune. The two of them sang it to the villagers for the first time that evening, assisted by a choir.

It is not surprising that the son of a poor labourer should be born in a modest cabin outside an obscure little town. What is astonishing is that the Son of God should choose to come to earth that way. The wise men came to Herod in Jerusalem, expecting “the King of the Jews” would be found there (Matt. 2:1-2). But instead He was born in Bethlehem. His nursery was a stable, and His cradle a manger of hay.

Why did it happen that way? The Bible tells us: “You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich” (II Cor. 8:9). He readily served the poorest and the weakest. No one is too lowly to receive His love.”He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8). The Lord Jesus willingly left heaven’s glory in order to provide salvation for you and me (Jn. 3:16).

Some accounts of our hymn’s origin speak of the breakdown of the church organ, but that did not likely happen until November of 1819–nearly two years afterward. It was, however, the organ repairman Fritz Mauracher, who came from a village over the mountains, heard the song, and shared it with the outside world.

In his town lived the Strasser family, who manufactured fine leather gloves. They had trained their four children to sing in front of their booth at fairs and festivals, in order to drum up sales. It was the Strasser Sisters Quartet that soon spread the lovely song to town after town. It did not even have a name, but was known simply as a “Tiroler Volkslied” (a Tyrolean Folk Song). It was first published in a German hymnal under the heading, “A Hymn of Unknown Origin.” Now we know it in English as “Silent Night.”

Life Out Of Death (O Little Town Of Bethlehem)

The scenes from the Middle East appearing on our television screens are repeatedly horrific and sickening. Soldiers firing on one another, and at civilians. Children with hate-filled faces hurling rocks and shouting defiance. Men and women weeping over the slain. Destruction, blood, and death. It is appalling. Because of that, the Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem during some years have been subdued, and attendance restricted. The site of a famous birth has become a scene of danger and of carnage.

It has not always been that way as, year by year, tourists have flocked to the town to commemorate Christ’s birth. In 1865, a pastor named Phillips Brooks (1835-1893) spent the season in the Holy Land. While there, he attended the Christmas Eve service in the Church of the Nativity, believed to be built over the site of Jesus’ birth. The quiet reverence of that sacred time made a deep impression on Brooks. And that striking difference, between a peaceful Bethlehem and today’s bloody battleground, might well cause us to ponder the broader contrast between life and death.

It is a contrast that is central to the Christian gospel. Why does the cross, an instrument of cruelty and death, decorate our churches, and often find use as a personal ornament? For many it is because there God reached down to save lost and fallen mankind. “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us….God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him” (I Jn. 3:16; 4:9). Calvary, the “Place of a Skull” (Jn. 19:17) became the arena where eternal life was purchased by the blood of Christ. There is life out of death.

Phillips Brooks (1835-1893) believed that, and taught it in his church. He was known in his day as the “Prince of the Pulpit.” One of America’s greatest preachers, his sermons are still read and studied today. At six foot six, his presence in the pulpit was impressive–as was his machine-gun delivery, at a rate of 250 words per minute! But Pastor Brooks was a man of deep devotion as well. He served his congregation for twenty-two years, and though a life-long bachelor, he had a great affection for the children.

When his church planned a Christmas program, in 1868, he thought back to the blessing he had received in that memorable service in Bethlehem. With that in mind, Brooks wrote a song for the children to sing. His Sunday School Superintendent (and church organist) Lewis Redner, provided the music. The resulting creation is the now familiar carol, “O Little Town of Bethlehem.”

It begins, “O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie! / Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by.” In contrast to the violence of the ongoing conflict, the song pictures a scene of tranquillity and peace. Even so, in the calm of that first Christmas night, something awesome and life-transforming occurred. The Saviour was born, the “everlasting Light” was given.

Our attitude toward Christmas is coloured by our response to the One whose name it bears. Consider the closing verse of the carol: “O holy Child of Bethlehem, / Descend to us, we pray; / Cast out our sin and enter in– / Be born in us today.” That is a prayer, and a poetic description of God’s plan of salvation.

It is by trusting in Christ’s Calvary work, we can be saved. Through personal faith in Him, we are born again, born into the family of God. The Bible says, “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born…of God” (Jn. 1:12-13). And the offer still stands. In the words of Phillips Brooks, “Where meek souls will receive Him still, / The dear Christ enters in.”

The Return of Christ

At this time of year when we celebrate the incarnation of the Son of God, it is helpful to look ahead and see, in Paul Harvey’s phrase, “the rest of the story.” The One who came the first time in humility, who laid as a Babe in Bethlehem’s manger, will return one day to reign as King of kings, and Lord of lords. The One first crowned with thorns will then wear a diadem of glory.

The book of First Thessalonians has much to say about the return of Christ. In this relatively brief letter, the Apostle Paul links the second coming of Christ with several important things:

  1. With Salvation. He commends the Thessalonian Christians because they “wait for His Son from heaven, whom He [God the Father] raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:10).
  2. With Service. Paul looks forward to meeting in heaven those who have responded to his ministry, through God’s grace. “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For you are our glory and joy” (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20).
  3. With Sanctification. The apostle’s desire for these believers is that they live holy lives (separated from those things that are displeasing to God) in preparation for Christ’s return– “So that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints” (1 Thessalonians 3:13).
  4. With Solace. The epistle describes the next dramatic event on God’s calendar, the rapture of the church, our catching away into the presence of Christ, where we will be reunited with Christians who have died previously (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17). This should bring comfort and encouragement in painful circumstances. “Therefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18).
  5. With Surety. We trust the Lord to fulfil His purpose, coming again at the precise time He has planned. And because of who He is, and because He has promised (“I will come again,” Jn. 1:3), we can be certain of it. “May your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).

The A-B-Cs of a Heretic

The Apostle Paul warned Timothy to be watchful for false teachers, mentioning two examples by name: “Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort” (II Tim. 2:17). These two men were apparently heretics known to Timothy. In two passages, I Tim. 1:19-20 (where only Hymenaeus is mentioned) and II Tim. 2:16-18, we are given what we might call the “A-B-Cs” of a heretic.

A) The Authority Rejected. They have rejected God and the authority of His Word. They have “strayed concerning the truth” (II Tim. 2:18), and replaced God’s inspired revelation with “profane and idle babblings” (II Tim. 2:16)–even going so far (in Paul’s example) as to say the resurrection is past (vs. 18).

B) The Behaviour Adopted. They have an ungodly lifestyle. They are profane and blasphemous, defaming the name of God and the things of God (I Tim. 1:20; II Tim. 2:16). They evidence a growing ungodliness in their lifestyle (II Tim. 2:16) and their conscience is seared–meaning they are reprobate and readily call white black, and black white (I Tim. 1:19; cf. Rom. 1:21, 32).

C) The Consequences Following. They lead others into error and on to destruction. Their message, finding a ready hearing in the hearts of some, “spreads like cancer” (II Tim. 2:17), and “they overthrow the faith of some” (II Tim. 2:18). (These who turn from the faith would seem to be those who have certain beliefs but have never experienced true saving faith, cf. Matt. 7:21-23; Lk. 8:6, 13; Jn. 8:31; I Jn. 2:19.)

Snares

A trap in which a bird is entangled and caught is called a “snare.” This word is given a spiritual application in the Bible. A number of “snares” or traps are mentioned in the New Testament. Studying the relevant passages will show that Satan has his destructive traps, also the temporal allure of the world can be a trap and, in certain circumstances, God has traps of righteous judgment which ensnare the wicked.

snare
  1. Reputation. Paul speaks concerning those who are fit to serve as leaders in the church: “He must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil” (I Tim. 3:7). What is this snare, or trap? Perhaps it is the danger that the one looked down upon by the unsaved will waste his energies in attempts at self-preservation and the self-justification of his character or conduct. In the end, his ministry becomes weak and ineffective because his message is evaluated in the light of his bad reputation.
  2. Worldly Values. The craving for wealth and material things is called a snare (I Tim. 6:9). Materialism and temporal values can be a trap, keeping the individual from preparing for eternity and laying up treasure in heaven (Matt. 6:19-21, 33). All that the world tries to achieve and build will be gone one day (II Pet. 3:10; I Jn. 2:17). The little couplet expresses a profound truth: “Only one life, ‘twill soon be past; / Only what’s done for Christ will last.”
  3. Wickedness. Sin itself is a snare. By dangling worldly pleasures before the individual and blinding him to the truth (II Cor. 4:3-4), Satan lures him into a trap. Sinners are said to be in the devil’s snare (II Tim. 2:24-26). He is “the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” (Eph. 2:2). They have “been taken captive by him to do his will” (II Tim. 2:26) and accomplish his evil purposes of opposing and hindering the work of God, and of keeping sinners from hearing and believing the gospel.
  4. Judicial Blindness. Judicial blindness from God is called a snare (Rom. 11:8-10). The Lord is gracious and longsuffering. He is withholding judgment because He desires all to repent and turn to Christ (II Pet. 3:9). But the day of grace will not last forever. When light is given and repeatedly rejected, there comes a time when God says, “If you refuse to see, I will not allow you to see any more. The prophet Isaiah was told this would happen (Isa. 6:9-12). Israel had been corrupted by unbelief and rampant idolatry. The prophets had warned them to repent again and again. But when they did not, judgment finally came in the form of the Babylonian Captivity.
  5. Divine Judgment. The prophesied seven-year Tribulation yet to come is called a snare (Lk. 21:34-35), because once the rapture of the church has taken place (I Thess. 4:16-18) those who are left behind (the unsaved) will be trapped in it (I Thess. 5:2-3). Though there will apparently be those who believe and are saved during the Tribulation (Rev. 7:13-14), it would seem these are ones who did not decisively reject Christ before the rapture (II Thess. 2:8-12). And declaring allegiance to Christ will cost them their lives (Rev. 13:15-17).

Heaven For Those Who Can’t Believe

One of the most painful trials for a father and mother is to experience the death of a child. Perhaps it is through illness, or an accident, or someone’s evil act, but the end result is that a young life, full of potential, is wrenched from the family circle. But then the question comes: where is the child now? If he or she was not yet old enough to understand the gospel, and receive Christ as Saviour, is the child saved? Christian parents need to be assured that the little one is with the Saviour–not merely by a sentimental wish or maybe, but on firm biblical grounds.

There is an excellent book on this theme called Heaven for Those Who Can’t Believe. The book, written by Dr. Robert Lightner, was published thirty years ago by the Regular Baptist Press. In it he provides a thorough examination of the Scriptures that have a bearing on this theme. He also deals with “related questions” such as: What is the age of accountability? What are infants like in heaven? What about infant baptism? and so on. This 64 page book will give a pastor or concerned friend much valuable information to comfort and encourage those who are sorrowing.

The only problem is, the book is no longer in print. (Those in ministry will recognize this frequent frustration!) At this time there are used copies available through Amazon. And I contacted Regular Baptist Press and they are giving serious consideration to reprinting this valuable work.

Editor’s Update: It appears that this book has been published with a new title – Safe in the Arms of Jesus: God’s Provision for the Death of Those Who Cannot Believe

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