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The Da Vinci Code (Part II)
Bible study on The DA Vinci Code.

In the previous article, we reviewed some of the distinct features of The DA Vinci Code. Today I want to focus on Gnosticism, from which some of the myths in The DA Vinci Code originated.

Gnosticism
Gnostic roots predate Christ. As the gospel spread throughout the world, Gnosticism quickly grew and developed into a variety of sects. One of the most well-known doctrines of Gnosticism is that Christ was divine but not human -- He did not come to earth in the flesh (1 Jn. 2:18-22; 4:3; 2 Jn. 1:7).

In the first century, Gnostics began mixing their man-made religious doctrines with the doctrine of Christ. They taught that salvation came through an occult knowledge only available to Gnostics. (The English word "Gnostic" is from the Greek word gnosis, meaning knowledge.)

Gnostic Gospels of Philip and Mary Magdalene
In modern time, the Gnostic gospels were lost until 1945 when Muhammad 'Ali al-Samman, an Arabian peasant, discovered them in Egypt. He found fifty-two texts in thirteen leather bound books. Until this discovery, our knowledge of Gnostic gospels came from the writings of early Christians, as they fought against the heretical doctrines of Gnosticism.

In The DA Vinci Code, myths from the gospels of Philip and Mary Magdalene are employed. Namely, that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married and had at least one child, allegedly resulting on a royal bloodline on earth that continues to this day. And, that Jesus intended for Mary Magdalene to be the leader of His church, not the apostles.

Today, we must decide whether to believe God's word or Gnostic gospels.

Gnostic Gospels Cannot Be God's Word
We know that Gnostic gospels are not God's word by apply two basic principles.

First, we know the Gnostic gospels are not God's word because none of them were written before the late second century. The Gnostic gospels were written by people pretending to be an apostle or someone else living while Christ walked the earth. They are fake gospels.

Secondly, God promises that His word will live forever (1 Pet. 1:24-25). Since the Gnostic gospels were lost for hundreds and hundreds of years, they cannot be God's word. They were dead gospels, lost in Egypt for many hundreds of years; they are not the living word of God.

The Apostles Fought Gnostic Doctrines
Gnostics believe that the heavenly pleroma (Greek word translated "fullness") was the center of divine life. Jesus, they believe, was an intermediary eternal being (or aeon), sent from the pleroma to restore the lost knowledge of humanity's divine origin (The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05). Thus, they do not believe that Jesus was human -- that He came to earth in the flesh.

John: Jesus Came in the Flesh
God, through the apostle John, tells us that Jesus came in the flesh.

  • In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God" (Jn. 1:1-2). "And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth" (Jn. 1:14).

The apostle John also tells us that anyone who does not confess that Jesus came in the flesh is an antichrist (1 Jn. 4:2-3; 2 Jn. 1:7). Antichrists do not abide in the teaching of Christ, and do not have God (2 Jn. 1:9).

Paul: Jesus is the Pleroma
Peter tells us that some of Paul's teachings are hard to understand, because of the wisdom God gave him (2 Pet. 3:15-16). Paul's refutation of Gnosticism has to be some of the most difficult teachings to understand, but I'll do my best to summarize it in the following paragraphs.

Paul tells us that Jesus was the pleroma (fullness of God) in bodily form, saying, "For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form" (Col. 2:9).

The Gnostics believed Jesus was an intermediary being sent from the pleroma, who did not come in the flesh. They try to make Jesus into a hired servant rather than acknowledge His deity. Paul refutes their doctrine, giving Jesus the honor He deserves (Col. 2:9-10):

  • Jesus came in bodily form -- flesh.
  • Jesus is the pleroma. He was also the pleroma when on earth in the flesh.
  • As the pleroma, we are complete in Jesus.
  • As the pleroma, Jesus is the head over all rule and authority.

To take this one step further, Paul tells us that the church (Christ's body) is the pleroma (fullness of God). He says, "And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all" (Eph. 1:22-23).

Then to take this another step, Paul tells us that Jesus is the Savior of the body, which is His church. He says, "For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body" (Eph. 5:23). As members of Christ's body we are in the pleroma, and saved.

To summarize, Paul refutes Gnostic doctrines by setting forth these truths:

  • Jesus is the pleroma, fullness of God. Therefore, we are complete in Him.
  • Since Jesus is the pleroma, His body (the church) is the pleroma. Therefore as Christians, we are saved because we are members of Christ's body.

Avoid Gnosticism
There are other truths revealed in the New Testament that refute Gnostic doctrines, which we cannot examine in this brief article. But let's determine to obey God's command, "avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called 'knowledge'" (1 Tim. 6:20). The Greek word translated "knowledge" in 1 Timothy 6:20 is gnosis, the word from which the Gnostics derive their name.

Man-made religious doctrines are opposed to God, His word, and His doctrine. We must examine them in light of the truth revealed in God's word, and reject them. This includes what is falsely called knowledge, namely Gnosticism.