"DEVELOPING A BIBLICAL CHURCH PART II"

Do you think that the Scriptures are important? Why?

Proposition - If we are going to be a biblical church then we will have a: 1) Have a High view of God, 2) A High view of Scripture, 3) Keep the focus on God, and 4) Keep the focus on the Scriptures.

Interrogative question -What are you doing with the Scriptures?

Interesting Facts About the Scriptures -

Written over 1500 years

Written on Three different continents

40 different authors

40 different life styles

3 different languages

Greek

Hebrew

Aramaic

On average, there are 100 million bibles printed each year. It’s projected that there are more than 6 billion Bibles currently in print – 140% more than the estimated 2.5 billion copies in print as of 1975.

The number of bibles sold on average has more than doubled in the US since 1950 with:

20 million bibles sold each year

1.66 million bibles sold each month

384,615 bibles sold per week

54,945 bibles sold every day

2,289 bibles sold per hour

38 bibles sold per minute

6.4 bibles sold every 10 seconds

In addition to the bibles sold, another 115,055 bibles are given away or distributed every day

The US accounts for a quarter of newly printed bible sales every year

Inspiration of the Scriptures -

Biblical inspiration can be defined as “God’s superintending human authors so that, using their own individual personalities, they composed and recorded without error His revelation to man in the words of the original autographs.” Enns, P. P. (1989). The Moody handbook of theology (p. 256). Moody Press.

Bible, inspiration of the. The act of the Holy Spirit upon biblical writers that ensured that what they wrote preserved divine revelation faithfully and made the Bible effectively the Word of God. MacArthur, J., & Mayhue, R., eds. (2017). Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (p. 925). Crossway.

1. The neo-orthodox view of inspiration

Neo-orthodox view of inspiration emphasizes the transcendence of God. Neo-orthodoxy teaches that God is so completely different from us that the only way we could ever know Him is through direct revelation. This view of the transcendence of God denies any concept of natural theology (i.e., that God can be known through His creation). Furthermore, neo-orthodoxy denies that the Bible is the Word of God. Rather, the Bible is a witness, or mediator, to the Word of God, Jesus. The neo-orthodox theory of inspiration is that the words in the Bible aren’t God’s words, but they are fallible words written by fallible men. The Bible is only “inspired” in that God can sometimes use the words to speak to individuals.

2. The dictation view of inspiration

Dictation theory of inspiration sees God as the author of Scripture and the individual human agents as secretaries or amanuenses taking dictation. God spoke, and man wrote it down. This view has some merit, since we know there are portions of Scripture in which God essentially says, “Write this down” (e.g., Jeremiah 30:2), but not all Scripture was created that way. The Pentateuch is essentially a chronicle of the Jewish people prior to settling in the Promised Land. While Moses is the primary author, much of the Pentateuch required editorial work on Moses’ part, as he undoubtedly compiled earlier records for some of the history. Luke states in the preamble to his gospel that he performed detailed research into the events of the life of Jesus before writing (Luke 1:1–4). Many of the prophetic books read like journals of the prophets’ lives. The bottom line is that the dictation theory only explains certain portions of Scripture, but not all of it or even most of it.

3. The view of limited inspiration

Limited inspiration sees Scripture as primarily man’s work with limited help from God. The theory of limited inspiration says that God guided the human authors but allowed them freedom to express themselves in their works, even to the point of allowing factual and historical errors. Fortunately, the Holy Spirit prevented doctrinal errors.

4. The view of plenary verbal inspiration

Plenary, verbal inspiration. The word plenary means “complete or full,” and verbal means “the very words of Scripture.” So plenary, verbal inspiration is the view that every single word in the Bible is the very word of God. It’s not just the ideas or thoughts that are inspired, but the words themselves. Second Timothy 3:16–17 uses a unique Greek word, theopneustos, which literally means “God-breathed.” Scripture is “breathed out” of the mouth of God. The Bible’s words are God’s words.

2 Timothy 3:16 (NASB95)

16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;

2 Peter 1:20–21 NASB95

20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

John 17:17 NASB95

17 “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.

Infallibility of the Scriptures -

The term infallibility has historically been largely synonymous with an evangelical view of inerrancy. Infallibility means unable to mislead or fail in accomplishing the divinely intended purpose. MacArthur, J., & Mayhue, R., eds. (2017). Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (p. 109). Crossway.

The word infallible refers to being incapable of error or wrong. When people speak of the Bible as infallible, they claim it is completely trustworthy, fully true, and without the ability to teach any error. Claims of the Bible’s infallibility have always been part of Christian belief.

Can such claims be proved? The Bible’s infallibility is taught -

2 Peter 1:19 NASB95

19 So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.

2 Peter 1:20–21 NASB95

20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

2 Timothy 3:16–17 NASB95

16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

The Bible’s own claims of infallibility, we can use inductive reasoning to provide evidence of the Bible’s accuracy. Evidence is gleaned from a study of the ancient manuscripts, archaeology, extra-biblical history, and other fields of study. Of special importance in the matter of biblical infallibility is the consistent transmission of the biblical manuscripts. Technically speaking, the inspiration of the Bible is limited to the original autographs. However, a study of the history of the Bible’s manuscripts (called textual criticism) reveals an extremely high degree of accuracy in the copying and preservation of the sacred text. The Dead Sea Scrolls include approximately 200 copies of Old Testament books dating from 2,000 years ago. These manuscripts prove the amazing consistency with which the Hebrew text was copied and its accuracy safeguarded through the centuries. For the New Testament, more than 5,000 manuscripts and manuscript fragments exist in the original Greek text. The earliest fragments are only one generation removed from the original copies.

Today’s scholars note that every original word of the New Testament text is either already in the text or in one of the alternative readings in the footnotes. The New Testament has more early copies to support its accuracy than any other ancient writing. There are both internal and external evidences of the Bible’s infallibility. The text itself can be shown to be extremely accurate, and the subject matter can be supported through a variety of fields of study. The external evidence supports the internal claim that the Bible is unlike any other book in history. The Bible is accurate, authoritative, and infallible. Its teachings are from God Himself and worthy of our devotion.

Psalm 1:1–3 (NASB95)

1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.

3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers.

Matthew 5:13–18 (NASB95)

13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. 17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.

18 “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

Inerrancy of the Scriptures -

Inerrancy means literally “without error.” When applied to Scripture, it means that the Bible is without error in the original copies. It is therefore free, when properly interpreted, from affirming anything that is untrue or contrary to fact. MacArthur, J., & Mayhue, R., eds. (2017). Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (p. 109). Crossway.

Historically, inerrancy and infallibility have been inseparably linked. However, dating back to the early 1960s, infallibility became a term used in a new way by those who believe in limited inerrancy. They commandeered it to mean that the Bible is infallible in that it teaches no false or misleading doctrine related to faith and practice.

However, in their view, that does not mean Scripture has to be factually accurate in all its words. The primary motivation behind the alteration in definition was tied to an effort to deny inerrancy yet maintain an identification with those of an orthodox faith.

But biblically speaking, it is not orthodox to affirm infallibility apart from inerrancy. Denial of inerrancy is motivated by an unwillingness to accept all that Scripture declares. Deniers seek to excuse sin and to affirm unbiblical behavior by such efforts. MacArthur, J., & Mayhue, R., eds. (2017). Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (p. 109). Crossway.

Textual Criticism -

At this point, the process of textual criticism comes to help. Textual criticism is best defined as the careful examination of the existing ancient copies of Scripture in order to determine the purest copies of the original text. MacArthur, J., & Mayhue, R., eds. (2017). Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (p. 128). Crossway.

A few fragments date to within twenty-five to fifty years of the original writing. New Testament textual scholars have generally concluded (1) that over 99 percent of the original writings have been reclaimed, and (2) that of the remaining potentially alternate readings, there are no variants substantially affecting any Christian doctrine. MacArthur, J., & Mayhue, R., eds. (2017). Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (p. 128). Crossway.

SO WHAT?

I would encourage each family to get alone for awhile this evening and discuss these questions -

Are the Scriptures reliable?

What are you doing with the Scriptures?

Does your family spend time reading Scripture together? Why or why not?