Decoding
DaVinci
May 17, 2006
The symbol for conflict in one Chinese
dialect is a combination of the symbols for danger and
opportunity. There is within every conflict the possibility for
trouble or progress. Such is the potential faced by Christians
today in regard to the popularity of Dan Browns book and movie,
“The DaVinci Code.”
The work is fiction, but the author argues
both in the book and in his numerous interviews that the
historical background behind “The DaVinci
Code” is entirely true. This has fueled great interest in this
book. Many readers have accepted the author’s premise that
information regarding the origins of Christianity
have been suppressed for centuries.
A secret society of Knights Templar have
protected history’s deepest conspiracy. Namely, that Jesus and
Mary Magdalene were secret lovers, that the gospels were chosen
to advance the agenda of emperor Constantine, and that a blood
line still exists that is traced back Mary Magdalene and Jesus.
All this is woven into a thrilling story with intrigue, well
crafted characters and fascinating historical sites throughout
Europe.
Most who have an
understanding of church history and the story of how we got our
Bible are either entertained or annoyed at the silly ideas
behind Dan Brown’s best seller. Those who believe everything
they read may take some of his historical fabrications
seriously, causing them to doubt the authenticity of the New
Testament and the unique appeal of the gospel message.
“The DaVinci
Code” presents five historical distortions as fact. Following
is a brief summary of these key points:
FALSE ASSERTIONS of “THE
DaVINCI CODE”
Jesus was only human. The miracles,
the resurrection, his virgin birth, all that we believe about
Jesus were fabricated by his followers after his death. In the
book, Jesus is presented as an important historical figure, but
He was not God. This violates the words of Jesus, and the
writings of the apostles and church fathers. Jesus himself
said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). You
cannot uphold Jesus as a noble historical figure and ignore His
claim that He was God. If the things He said about Himself are
not true, He would be a liar and unworthy of the worship
billions have given Him throughout the past two millennia.
Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married
and had children. Without any historical facts to support
this claim, Dan Brown lowers Jesus to the level of a common
man. He claims that Christ’s physical passions could not be
restrained and that Jesus succumbed to temptation just like
every other human being. This denial of the deity of Christ
dates back to the teaching of Ebionism
in the 2nd century, and
Arianism in the 4th
century. The deity of Christ is an essential teaching of the
Christian faith. Think of the consequences. If Christ is only
a man and not truly God, then He is no better than me. I don’t
need redemption. I don’t need God. I can continue to live as I
please and believe what I please. There is no accountability,
and ultimately no judgement. It is
the perfect notion for those who want to live an unaccountable
life and live by their own set of rules instead of God’s law.
Of course, all of us are free and perfectly able to choose our
own belief system. But demoting Jesus to a mere man does not
change who He was nor the claims He
made. It does not change the coming
judgement. It removes accountability only in one’s
mind. God is God whether you choose to acknowledge Him or not.
The Bible presents Jesus as Lord, Savior and coming King.
Regardless of what one may think of Jesus here on earth, there
is coming a day when every person will stand before Him and
confess that He is Lord: “Therefore God exalted him to the
highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and
on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father”
(Philippians 2:9‑11).
Other books about the life of Jesus are
as equally valid as the four gospels. Brown presents
through his characters that the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and
John were chosen because they minimized the role of women and
advanced the myths associated with the birth of Jesus. But
anyone who has studied the New Testament knows that the gospels
and the rest of the New Testament books were carefully selected
and agreed upon by the leaders of the early church. With almost
complete unanimity, Christians have recognized the 26 books of
the New Testament for the past 2000 years.
Christianity advanced the subjugation
and subordination of women. The fact is that women, as well
as slaves, minorities and all Gentiles were freed and elevated
through the gospel message. Paul writes “There is neither
Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all
one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). This idea was
revolutionary to the Roman world. Christian principles
promote freedom, which is ultimately based in an understanding
of our uniqueness as individuals created and loved by God.
Finally, readers of “The
DaVinci Code” are left with another
false concept: Secret knowledge is necessary to have a true
religious experience. This idea is not new. A false sect
known as Gnosticism emerged in the second century
promoting the same philosophy. A new Gnosticism emerges in “The
DaVinci Code.” According to Brown,
secrets about the Jesus and the Church are hidden in art,
architecture and obscure historic documents. This is where the
fiction of “The DaVinci Code” blends
with the author’s intention to discredit Christian theology.
Brown claims in his introduction that “all descriptions of
artwork, architecture, documents and secret rituals in this
novel are accurate.”
Unlike the hidden codes and secret messages
of “The DaVinci Code,” God does not
hide himself from His creation! He is a revealing God and has
communicated to His creation in the clearest of terms. His
truth is contained for us in the Bible. All that we must do is
read it, believe it and obey it. When we do, we will discover
truth and life. Jesus said: “I tell you the truth, whoever
hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and
will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life”
(John 5:24). He also stated, “The thief comes
only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may
have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10).
“The DaVinci
Code” has caused quite a stir. Some have suggested that this
work will “rock the foundations of Christianity.” I can assure
you that God is still on His throne, unaltered by the attempts
made to demote Jesus, destroy the Bible and distract people’s
attention away from obeying and learning the truth.
The Christian faith is based on important
and observable truth. That’s why the apostles were required to
have been eyewitnesses of Jesus and His resurrection. (Read
Acts 1:21-22; 1 Corinthians 15:3; 1 John 1:2-5). The Bible is
the most authentic, referenced, reliable ancient document we
have. Over 5,000 manuscripts exist of the New Testament alone,
far more than any other ancient text. No book has been
scrutinized more closely than the Bible,
and that with good reason. In the Bible we find the claim that
God loves us and has provided His Son as our Savior. This is a
serious claim, worthy of investigation. It is the greatest news
that has ever been given on planet earth.
The Scripture declares to us God’s desire
to be known. From beginning to end, the
Bible details God’s plan of revealing Himself to man and
providing the plan for redemption. Jesus clearly taught
that He was the long awaited Messiah. He made numerous claims
to His deity and backed them up with numerous public miracles -
events that only God could perform, including the resurrection
of people from the dead!
The apostles boldly communicated the gospel
message, openly and plainly. Note the clarity of the following
verses:
Acts 17:23
"For as I walked around and
looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an
altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you
worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you."
Acts 20:20 "You know
that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be
helpful to you, but have taught you publicly and from house to
house."
Acts 20:27
"For I have not hesitated to
proclaim to you the whole will of God."
1 Corinthians 15:3
"For what I received
I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for
our sins according to the Scriptures,"
1 John 1:2‑5
"The life appeared; we have
seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal
life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We
proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also
may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the
Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We write this to make our
joy complete. This is the message we have heard from him and
declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at
all."
2 Corinthians 4:3"And even if our gospel
is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing."
The message of Christianity has not been
kept in hidden codes or secret vaults. On the contrary, it has
been clearly and boldly proclaimed for 2000 years. Why then
this new attack on the person of Christ and the written Word of
God, the Bible?
To me it seems
consistend with Satan’s scheme to discredit God’s Word.
Satan knows that salvation comes through the Word of God.
Romans 10:17 says "Consequently, faith comes from hearing the
message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ."
If we are saved by hearing and responding to the Word of God,
Satan will do all that he can to discredit the Word so that
people ignore it. Note these passages that emphasize that
salvation comes through hearing the Word of God:
1 Corinthians 15:2
"By this gospel you
are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you.
Otherwise, you have believed in vain."
1 Peter 1:23‑25
"For you have been born
again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the
living and enduring word of God. For, “All men are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass
withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands
forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you."
John 5:24
“I tell you the truth, whoever
hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and
will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life."
This latest attack on the Bible and the
claims of Christ is nothing new. In fact, “The
DaVinci Code” presents a great
opportunity to point people to the claims of the Bible. If you
would have told me while I was in Bible College studying Greek
manuscripts that one day there would be widespread interest in
this kind of study, I would not have believed it. I have always
refrained from preaching about the technical details of how we
got our Bible, thinking it was too academic and that most people
simply accepted the Bible of God’s Word to us. We should
welcome the opportunity to talk about these things. The
interest in the Bible and the person of Christ opens a door for
witnessing with many who might not ordinarily be interested in
spiritual things. God has nothing to hide. In fact, He
delights when we seek Him and He reveals Himself to those who
fear Him.
"The Lord confides in those who fear
him; he makes his covenant known to them."
Psalm 25:14
