Truth 1: Inspired
Introduction
Our belief as Christians is that the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative, rule of faith and conduct. In this truth course, we'll find out what this statement of faith means and how this works out in our lives daily.
Section 1 - The Authoritative Rule
THE SCRIPTURES INSPIRED
The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative, rule of faith and conduct
1 Thess. 2:13 - And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
2 Tim. 3:15–17 - and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Pet. 1:21 - For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
SECTION 1: The Authoritative Rule (Measure)
What’s the big idea: The Bible is God’s Final Authority on issues of faith and life.
Why does it matter: Those who accept God’s Word as from God Himself will use it as a standard to live by, no matter what other people say.
How do I live it out: Consult God’s Word on all issues of your life (faith, friends, family, and your future)
How can I know which is the true religion? is an important question frequently asked. It is deserving of an answer, since one’s eternal welfare is at stake. The real issue is the matter of authority. There are three basic kinds of religious authority: (1) human reason, (2) the Church, and (3) God’s Word. ß This will be our outline for the night
Human Reason
- Belief that the highest form of authority is you
- Judges 17:6 - In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
- Judges 21:25 - In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
- Human reason and scientism go hand in hand
- It fails to explain qualities of something (use illustration of sound and color)
The Church
- Belief that Christ gave authority to Peter who gave authority to other bishops and apostles and that has been passed down to us today
- Hebrews 9:15-17 - For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. 16 In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, 17 because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living.
God’s Word
- This view is based squarely on the conviction that God by nature is self-disclosing. He is a speaking God; He wishes to communicate with His creatures.
- The key difference between other religions and Christianity is that other religions see humanity in the dark seeking for something within themselves or beyond themselves. Christianity reveals God bringing light into the darkness as He comes down into the stream of human life and history and reaches out in love for fallen human beings.
- Hebrews 1:1-2 - In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
- Romans 10:8-15 - But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9 That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” 14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
We need to have the belief that God’s Word is final in our lives. My life has to line up with the Bible. We cannot choose what we want to line up with.
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Section 2 - Revelation of God to Man
THE SCRIPTURES INSPIRED
The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative, rule of faith and conduct
1 Thess. 2:13 - And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
2 Tim. 3:15–17 - and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Pet. 1:21 - For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
SECTION 2: The Revelation of God to Mankind (Reveal)
What’s the big idea: The Bible is how God revealed Himself to mankind.
Why does it matter: The Bible is God’s way of speaking to mankind about faith, life, and eternity.
How do I live it out: Make time to allow God to speak to you through His Word.
If one grants that God does speak, is the Bible the only medium of His speaking?
How does God reveal Himself?
Natural Revelation
- Through Creation: Romans 1-2, Psalm 19
- Check out this video about our universe: CLICK HERE
- Through Conscience: Romans 2:14-15
- The very fact that people everywhere have a conscience, an idea of right and wrong that is in line with the Bible, shows that there is authority beyond the individual and the circumstances.
- God has spoken externally in the universe He created, and internally in the conscience of every individual.
- Therefore, natural revelation is inadequate by itself if fallen human beings are to be helped.
Special Revelation
- a message carried only in the Bible
- The Old Testament points ahead to the coming Redeemer; the New Testament tells of His coming and interprets its meaning
Section 3 - Verbally Inspired
THE SCRIPTURES INSPIRED
The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative, rule of faith and conduct
1 Thess. 2:13 - And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
2 Tim. 3:15–17 - and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Pet. 1:21 - For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
SECTION 3: Verbally Inspired (Inspire)
What’s the big idea: The Bible is God-breathed.
Why does it matter: We can have confidence that what we have as our Bible is from God for us. We can know who He is, what His plan is, and what our part is.
How do I live it out: Need to share what God is speaking to us from the Bible to others.
There are 3 common ways people look at the word theopneustos (God-breathed)
Mechanical Dictation
- God spoke and did not care about the individual personalities
- Robot-like or in some trance
- Authors were icked at random
Dynamic Inspiration
- Doesn’t say anything about who God is, just how we out to live our lives
- God is unknowable
- Deny the supernatural
- Bible stories are folklore or like urban legends: Paul Bunyan, New Jersey Devil
- Ethics override doctrine
- Variation: Salvation History - God is at work throughout history, but the accounts are subject to human error
Verbally Inspired
- Jeremiah 20:9
- “This is what the Lord says” shows up 3,808 times
- You can know someone by what they say
- Inspiration necessary to protect the truth
Section 4 - Infallible Rule
THE SCRIPTURES INSPIRED
The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative, rule of faith and conduct
1 Thess. 2:13 - And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
2 Tim. 3:15–17 - and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Pet. 1:21 - For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
SECTION 4: The Infallible Rule (Trust)
What’s the big idea: The Bible is incapable of error and therefore not capable of misleading, deceiving, or disappointing us.
Why does it matter: We can have confidence that that what we read in the Bible will never lead us away from God.
How do I live it out: Need to use God’s Word as the first and final truth for every aspect of our lives.
Alleged discrepancies and found they arose from several causes:
The text from which our English Bible was translated.
- Example: John 5:4 (use Youversion Bible app)
Inaccurate translations.
- Example: Matthew 12:40
False interpretations of the Bible.
- Example: Does Genesis 1 contain all scientific truth
A wrong conception of the Bible.
- Example: Notice who is talking
- So in studying our Bible, if God is the speaker we must believe what He says. If an inspired man is the speaker we must believe what he says. If an uninspired man is the speaker we must judge for ourselves—it is perhaps true, perhaps false. If it is the devil who is speaking, we do well to remember that he was a liar from the beginning; but even the devil may tell the truth sometimes.
The language in which the Bible was written.
- Would someone 50 years from now understand text message language?
Our defective knowledge of the history, geography and usages of Bible times.
- Check out: http://www.biblearchaeology.org/
The ignorance of conditions under which books were written and commands given.
- What was the culture like? Example: extermination of the Canaanites
The many-sidedness of the Bible.
- Example: Free Will or Predestination
The fact that the Bible has to do with the infinite, and our minds are finite.
- Example: Can you put the entire ocean into a cup?
The dullness of our spiritual perception.
As we look back over the ten classes of difficulties, we see they all arise from our imperfection, and not from the imperfection of the Bible.
Section 5 - The Canon and Later Translations
THE SCRIPTURES INSPIRED
The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative, rule of faith and conduct
1 Thess. 2:13 - And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
2 Tim. 3:15–17 - and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Pet. 1:21 - For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
SECTION 5: The Canon and Later Translations
What’s the big idea: We can trust the Bible today because of the canon history and transmission of the Bible throughout 1000s of years.
Why does it matter: We can have confidence to know that what we have in our Bible is faithful to the original documents.
How do I live it out: No matter what anyone can say about the Bible, continue to live it out as words from God.
The word “canon” means “a rule, a standard, a measuring rod.” Therefore, a book considered canonical is a book that has met certain criteria, or standards.
4 Criteria that they used:
- Apostolicity: Was the book the product of an apostle or a close associate of an apostle?
- Universality: was the book widely accepted and used in the churches?
- Contents: Did the subject matter of the book appear to be on a plan with known Scripture?
- Inspiration: Did the book bear the special quality that speaks of divine inspiration?
List of books that they had to figure out: http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/