Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Part V – The Inspiration and Inerrancy of the Bible
Though many churches today no longer teach that the Holy Scriptures, as originally written are inerrant (without error). The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod, the Southern Baptist Church, the Assemblies of God, and other conservative Churches still hold to this very important teaching of the Bible. In this article we explore both why this teaching is critical for the church, and the mystery of how the Bible can, at one and the same time, be the work of its many authors, and the very voice of God.
There are three ways people view the Bible. Unbelievers generally see it as an important piece of historical literature that can be of some moral guidance as we seek to live out our lives on this earth. However, they deny that this work is anything other than a book, written by many men and compiled into one volume. It is no more true than any other book written in ancient times and contains many errors, both historically and scientifically. For this group, it is not the word of God at all, simply opinions of man.
The second group are people who believe in God. They believe that God inspired different men, throughout Biblical times, to write and speak for God. However, being fallible men, sometimes they got the message right and sometimes they got the message wrong. For people in this group, it is up to the reader or someone the reader trusts to glean the wheat from the chaff, to pick out what God would teach us from these words written by fallible men and what are those men’s own pious opinions. These are, according to this group, often false. Indeed, some in this group reject very clear teachings in the Bible, that are found in multiple places by multiple writers. One example of this would be the prohibition of homosexuality. Even as they say the bible is God’s word, they reject this teaching as being unloving and ungodly. I would summarize this group as teaching that to a greater or lesser degree, the Bible contains the word of God, but also contains error.
This brings us to the third group, those that hold that the Bible IS the word of God. Every word is the word God wanted the writer to write. Every word is true. Such believers point to scriptures themselves, such as 2 Timothy 3:16-17. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Why is this, the teaching that the Bible IS the inerrant word of God so critical. If it is truly God’s word, it comes from God. It becomes the standard by which all other things are weighed and measured. Our opinion does not matter. We are bound by what our God tells us. By following the Bible, we have a sure and certain guide in life and know that we are saved because the word assures us that those who trust in Jesus for their salvation are saved, period! If the Bible only contains the word of God, it is uncertain and unclear. It would no longer be the word of God, but the word of man.
This leads us to the mystery. How could books written by men over many centuries, and gathered together, first as the Torah, Navi’im and Ketuvim in the Tanakh, designated by Christians as the Old Testament, and the Gospels, Epistles, and other writings included in the New Testament be the true and certain word of God?
What is the answer to this question? It is unanswerable! It is a mystery! The only answer I can give is because God, Who Himself is a mystery, and is surrounded by mysteries made it be so. But by studying what both the Old and New Testaments tell us about themselves, we can teach various truths about this mystery.
Every word of Scripture are the words the individual authors chose to use, using their own way of writing (in the case of St. John, containing Greek grammatical mistakes), their own research, their own words and yet, every word is God-breathed, the very words God would have us read, learn, and inwardly digest.
Where does this understanding come from? It comes from the Bible itself. Let’s look at several of these passages. We begin with the text of scripture I quoted before. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. The Greek word translated as inspiration is very interesting. The word transliterated as theopneustos, means God-breathed. If the words are to be profitable for us for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction, they must be reliable and true.
2 Peter 1:19-21 - And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. The word is confirmed, made more sure in the hearts of believers. When heeded, it is a light that shines into our sin-darkened hearts until the light of faith dawns in our hearts, working faith in us so that we trust that word. Again, the word clearly says that what has been written is not simply the personal thoughts of the prophets and writers of the Scriptures, but rather, they were carried along by the Holy Spirit to write what they wrote.
Matthew 5:17-18 - “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.” Jesus here makes it clear, that no part of the law, including laws against homosexuality, or fornication shall pass away. But He had come to fulfill the law in our place, since we have failed to keep it perfectly. By the way, this means that a homosexual, a sexually promiscuous person that renounces their sin, and trusts in Jesus, is covered by the righteousness of Christ.
Psalm 19:7-10 - The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Notice the words perfect, sure, right, pure and clean. These words could not be used for words that might not be from God. It is clear that the writers of Scripture believed that the words they wrote, were also God’s word, and were reliable for guiding us in all aspects of life.
I would also here speak a bit about the interpretation of Scripture. The Bible is the written word. That means that reason must be used to understand the words, considering the style (poetry, apocalyptic, historical) of the writing. Similes and metaphors must be understood. Parables interpreted. This all takes human reason. However, our reason must always be used to seek the intended sense of the author. It must not lord it over, and override what the writer is clearly saying. To do this is to deny what is written, and replace it with our own thoughts. Is the teaching that the Bible is inerrant reasonable? Not according to human reason. It is a matter of faith, a mystery. As we seek to understand the Bible, the Holy Spirit will aid us so that we might understand all that we need to know in this life.
All passages quoted are from the New King James Version of the Bible. I pray that this is helpful to you. If you have any questions, objections, or thoughts about what I have written, I would love to hear from you. Please contact me, Pastor Schnack, at 307 343-2314 and I would be happy to explain everything written in greater detail. This is a very condensed summary of this topic.
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