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That Jesus is an extraordinary fellow! Just think of
the remarkably different ways He was portrayed in Mel
Gibson’s "The Passion of the Christ," and ABC’s "Judas."
One reporter admitted he was far more comfortable
with the Jesus portrayed in "Judas"—the flawed, human
Jesus—than he was with the Jesus of "The Passion." This
is hardly surprising. The flogged, bloody, crucified
Jesus of "The Passion" seems to demand something of
us—something most of us are simply unable, or more
correctly unwilling, to give.
Considering the sources he used, it should come as no
surprise that the Jesus of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci
Code is far more like the Jesus of "Judas." What is
surprising is that so many Christians are wondering if
there might just be some truth to his story!
Dr. Erwin Lutzer, a frequent guest on The John
Ankerberg Show, has just released a book entitled The
Da Vinci Deception (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 2004), in
which he comments that "some people reading The Da
Vinci Code were confusing legends with facts and
superstitions with sober history" (Dedication, p. viii).
Dr. Lutzer says:
Readers should know that the basic plot of this
book has existed for centuries and can be found in
esoteric and New Age literature such as Holy Blood,
Holy Grail by Michael Baigent (1983), which is
referenced in the novel. The difference is that Brown
takes these legends and wraps them in a
quasi-historical story that is being read by millions.
Many who read the book are wondering if all, or at
least some, of its claims might be true. (p. xix)
But The Da Vinci Code also attacks the Bible,
the deity of Jesus and the origin of Christianity. How
concerned should Christians be when they read this book?
How much truth is there to what Brown claims? Let’s look
at four examples:
1. Were some important books kept out of the Bible?
In The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown says:
More than 80 gospels were eliminated from the New
Testament that were unfavorable to "male rule" by
Constantine and his delegates at the Council of Nicaea.
Dr. Lutzer responds:
This assertion is bogus. It’s a reminder that
legends are often confused with facts in such a way
that the legends actually appear to replace the facts.
ATRI responds:
In his Baker’s Encyclopedia of Christian
Apologetics (Baker, 1999), Dr. Norman Geisler
gives principles for determining which books should
and should not be considered inspired scripture
(canonicity). He lists first:
Inadequate Criteria for Canonicity.
Five
mistaken methods have particularly troubled the
church:
1. failure to distinguish a book that was "known"
from a book that carried God’s authority;
2. failure to distinguish disagreement about the
canon between different parties from uncertainty about
the canon within those parties;
3. failure to distinguish between the adding of
books to the canon and the removal of books from it;
4. failure to distinguish between the canon that
the community recognized and eccentric views of
individuals;
5. failure to properly use Jewish evidence about
the canon transmitted through Christian hands, either
by denying the Jewish origins or by ignoring the
Christian medium through which it has come (Beckwith,
7-8).
Geisler then proceeds to give five "Principles of
Canonicity":
1. Was the book written by a prophet of God?
2. Was the writer confirmed by acts of God?
3. Does the message tell the truth about God?
4. Did it come with the power of God?
5. Was it accepted by the people of God?
Further study:
Read his entire article at www.johnankerberg.org
(Theological Dictionary archives:
The Canonicity
of the Bible)
April, 2002
 The Canonicity of the Bible—Part One (Dr. Norman Geisler)
“Canonicity” refers to the authoritative books inspired by God for inclusion in Holy Scripture. Canonicity is determined by God—not by antiquity, or by any religious community. Dr. Geisler describes the process by which the Early Church Fathers discovered which books should be included in our Bible.
April, 2002
The Canonicity of the Bible—Part Two (Dr. Norman Geisler)
We continue looking at the criteria the early church used to help them sort out what books were inspired, and which were not.
May, 2002
The Canonicity of the Bible—Part Three (Dr. Norman Geisler)
Dr. Geisler concludes this discussion with the reminder that tests for canonicity were not mechanical means to measure the amount of inspired literature. Instead the Holy Spirit providentially guided the examination process.
2. Do the Gnostic Gospels provide important
historical information? Was Jesus married to Mary
Magdalene?
In The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown says:
The Gnostic Gospels provide a historical basis for
the alleged marriage of Jesus to Mary Magdalene, as
referred to in The Gospel of Philip, as well as
Jesus’ intention that she become the head of the
church. In concealing the truth about Jesus’ marriage
to Mary, the church has engaged in "the greatest
cover-up in human history."
Regarding the Gnostic Gospels, Dr. Lutzer responds:
The Gnostic Gospels contain speculative ideas.
These ideas are contradicted by dozens of verifiable
early documents. Mary no doubt had a deep love for
Jesus, but there is no hint of romance between them.
ATRI responds:
Many of these Gnostic gospels have been carefully
studied, and found to be wanting in many ways. For
example, Dr. Norman Geisler concludes his critique of
The Gospel of Thomas with this statement:
The evidence for the authenticity of the Gospel of
Thomas does not even compare with that for the New
Testament. The New Testament dates from the first
century; the Gospel of Thomas, the second. The New
Testament is verified by many lines of evidence,
including self-references, early canonical lists,
thousands of citations by the early Fathers, and the
well-established dates for the Synoptic Gospels.
Further study:
Read more of this article on
The Gospel of
Thomas, as well as Dr. Geisler’s critique of
The Gospel of Barnabas and his explanation of
Gnosticism at (www.johnankerberg.org,
Theological Dictionary archives)
January, 2002
What
Is the “Gospel of Thomas”? (Dr. Norman Geisler)
January, 2002
Is There a “Gospel of Barnabas”? (Dr. Norman
Geisler)
Muslims often cite “The Gospel of Barnabas” in defense of Islamic teachings. What is the evidence for this work? Is it authentic? Dr. Geisler examines the evidence.
March, 2000
Gnosticism (Dr. Norman Geisler)
What is gnosticism? What do they believe? Are there modern day gnostics, or was this only a first-century problem? Dr. Geisler explains.
Regarding Jesus alleged marriage to Mary, Dr. Lutzer
says:
Of course, someday Jesus will be married. We all
anticipate his future wedding. Jesus is now engaged to
us, the church—his bride. He would not have been
married on earth, knowing that his coming marriage is
in heaven.
ATRI responds:
Dr. Zola Levitt and Dr. Renald Showers gave a
marvelous description of the Marriage of the Lamb in
our series Does the Church Still Believe in the
Rapture?
Further Study:
Read an excerpt from this series at
www.johnankerberg.org (Bible Prophecy):
The
Marriage of the Lamb
May, 2004
The
Marriage of the Lamb (Dr. John Ankerberg with Dr. Randall Price, Dr. Zola Levitt and Dr. Renald Showers)
Was Jesus married to Mary Magdalene? In his critique of The Da Vinci Code, Dr. Lutzer suggests that one of the biggest reasons to doubt that is the fact that Jesus is already engaged—to the Church! Read the description of the Marriage of the Lamb in this excerpt from a television transcript.
3. Has the Church suppressed thousands of documents
that could disprove Christianity?
In The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown says:
Thousands of secret documents exist that would
disprove Christianity.
Dr. Lutzer responds:
Let’s call his bluff and insist that he find them
and present them to the world! How desperate one must
be to build a case for unbelief on imaginary
documents.
ATRI responds:
The honest search for truth is one of the most
noble philosophical endeavors of life. Plato declared,
"Truth is the beginning of every good thing, both in
Heaven and on earth; and he who would be blessed and
happy should be from the first a partaker of the
truth."
Any religion or philosophy that makes convincing
claims to having absolute truth is worth consideration
because only a few do. More to the point, any religion
that claims and produces solid evidence on behalf of
an assertion that it alone is fully true is
worth serious consideration for that reason alone.
Only Christianity does this.
Further study:
See the article
Why Christianity? (www.johnankerberg.org:
Apologetic archives).
June, 1999
Why Christianity? (Dr. John Ankerberg, Dr. John Weldon)
With all the religious claims in the world, each one suggesting they are "the only way," what is it about Christianity that makes it unique? Are there reasons why you can and should believe the claims of Christianity above all others? Drs. Ankerberg and Weldon explain.
4. Was the "deity" of Jesus invented for political
purposes?
In The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown says:
Constantine invented the deity of Jesus in order to
consolidate his power.
Dr. Lutzer responds:
There is not a single shred of historical evidence
for such a notion. Not only was Christ’s deity the
consensus of the delegates [to the Council of Nicaea],
but as can easily be show, this doctrine was held by
the church centuries before the council met.
ATRI responds:
Here is one example showing the truth of what Dr.
Lutzer said:
Ignatius of Antioch (30-107 A.D.). He was born
before Christ died and consistently spoke of the deity
of Jesus Christ. Consider a few examples: In his
writings To the Ephesians, To the Romans,
To the Magnesians and other letters, we find
references such as the following: "Jesus Christ our
God"; "who is God and man"; "received knowledge of
God, that is, Jesus Christ"; "for our God, Jesus the
Christ"; "for God was manifest as man"; "Christ, who
was from eternity with the Father"; "from God, from
Jesus Christ"; "from Jesus Christ, our God"; "Our God,
Jesus Christ"; "suffer me to follow the example of the
passion of my God"; "Jesus Christ the God" and "Our
God Jesus Christ." The fact that Ignatius was not
rebuked, nor branded as teaching heresy by any of the
churches or Christian leaders he sent such letters to
proves that the early church, long before 107 A.D.,
accepted the deity of Christ.
Further study:
Read the testimony of other church leaders, as well
as Jesus’ own teaching concerning His deity in the
article:
The Deity of Jesus Christ ( www.johnankerberg.org:
Editor’s Choice archives).
December, 2002
The Deity of Jesus Christ (Dr. John Ankerberg, Dr. John Weldon)
Does Jesus make statements only God would make? Does Jesus have the attributes of deity? Are names, titles and designations of God ascribed to Jesus? Does Jesus do things only God can do? Does the Bible clearly and unequivocally declare that Jesus is God? What did Christian writers in the first four centuries think of Jesus?
Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because
of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the
children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore
partakers with them. For ye were sometimes darkness,
but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of
light:… (Eph. 5:6-8)
Obtain a copy of Erwin Lutzer’s The Da Vinci
Deception at your local Christian book store, or you
may buy it online at the Moody Church website:
Click Here to the Moody Church Website:
You may also wish to request a copy of The Facts
on False Views of Jesus by Dr. John Ankerberg and
Dr. John Weldon by calling our office (1-423-892-7722)
or visit our online catalog. | 
