TITLE: Is the Bible True? (Part 1) Tyndale's Last Hour 12/5/14 By Richard McCaw 12/05/14 |
![]() ![]() |
Is the Bible true? (Part 1)
Tyndale’s Last Hour
You are a newspaper reporter. It is Friday, October 6, 1536. William Tyndale sits in the cold dungeon of the castle of Vilverde in England. You are there to interview him before his execution.
YOU: And why are you here, Mr. Tyndale?
TYNDALE: Because I believe in the Bible.
YOU: What do you believe about this book that caused the Church to have you thrown into prison?
TYNDALE: Sir. I am challenged by its very history.
YOU: What about its history challenged you?
TYNDALE: No other book took so long to be written!
YOU: How long did it take?
TYNDALE: Over sixteen hundred years!
YOU: Sixteen hundred years! That’s a very long time, Mr. Tyndale! Hmmm…It must have been written by several men. I’ve never really examined it.
TYNDALE: Over forty authors, sir. Kings, peasants, philosophers, poets, a doctor…some were scholars and statesmen and believe it or not, some were just humble fishermen
YOU: Did they all come from the same town or country?
TYNDALE: No! They never met or consulted with each other. They were separated by time and place.
YOU: One hardly meets someone willing to be imprisoned for what he believes! What did they write that has so profoundly influenced you?
TYNDALE: A variety of literature, really...history, religious and lyric poetry. I love history and poetry.
YOU: You’re a very intellectual man, Mr. Tyndale.
TYNDALE: People say that.
YOU: Did they write anything else.
TYNDALE: Oh, yes! They wrote parable and allegory. They wrote all kinds of law: civil, original, ethical, ritual and sanitary laws. Then there are the didactic treatises, biographic, personal correspondences, personal memoirs and diaries, not to mention the prophetic and apocalyptic literature.
YOU: With so many different authors and conflicting points of view, Mr. Tyndale, surely there is tremendous confusion and contradiction in the Bible.
TYNDALE: On the contrary, right throughout the entire book I’ve found tremendous unity.
YOU: And what do you think causes that?
TYNDALE: You see, all the authors follow one central theme.
YOU: What’s that?
TYNDALE: The book begins with man’s basic problem of SIN. Then it traces the decline of the human race as it continued to go astray. But God is compassionate and promised a Deliverer. It recounts God’s plan to bring the race back to Himself through one man, Jesus Christ.
YOU: You’re saying that those men wrote about this?
TYNDALE: Yes! Every single one of them!
YOU: You think they were inspired?
TYNDALE: I know they were inspired... I feel it in my very bones!
YOU: Mr. Tyndale, philosophers have said that if a man cannot die for what he says he believes, then he really does not believe. Would you die for this?
TYNDALE: (he smiles) If I would die for it?
Just then, the guard to his cell turns the key in the lock of the door. A black robed priest of the Church enters with a black book in his hand and behind him two armored soldiers.
PRIEST: Tyndale, you still have a chance. You may recant all that you believe. Renounce all your writings and go free this very moment.
TYNDALE: If I reject the Bible, I would be in bondage.
PRIEST: You are a very stubborn, insubordinate man, Tyndale. It is so easy to submit to the Church!
TYNDALE: The Bible is the very Word of God, priest! And Jesus Christ said, “Thy Word is truth, and ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” How then could I be free if I denied the truth?
PRIEST: You still hold to your heretical beliefs?
TYNDALE: I believe that the Bible is the Word of God!
PRIEST: Then, you’ll die for it.
TYNDALE: God is my judge! I am willing, like Paul, not only to be bound, but also to die for the truth!
PRIEST: (makes the sign of the cross) St. Joseph pray for us!
William Tyndale is at perfect peace as he is taken to his martyrdom in the town square. You observe the quiet look of peace upon his face. He has hidden the Word of God in his heart. His mind is fixed on Christ!
E-Mail: [email protected]
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.