The Five Fundamentals of the Faith (Part 5: Scripture) (2)

Introduction:

Attention:

How many of y’all like to read?

I like to read; its hard for me to start, but once I do I usually really get into it.

For example, during my senior year of High School, I got hooked on The Hunger Games

I legit skipped a few days of school so that I could keep reading these books (I’m not sure why my mom allowed me to do this)

Needless to say, this series became somewhat of a big deal in my life;

I began skipping other things so that I could focus on that thing

But the book that should be the biggest deal to all of us is the Bible

The Bible should captivate us like nothing else.

Need:

If the main thing that we do in church is open up the Bible and listen to what it has to say, we better understand exactly what it is that we believe about the Bible.

Our generation needs more Christians who take the Word of God seriously; who anchor their life on the Bible and dive into it every single day

You need to devote your life to reading, studying and sharing this book.

So let’s do that today

A lot of what I am sharing today comes from one of my favorite college text books called Grasping God’s Word, which is a book that I read in college (multiple times).

What are our fundamental beliefs about Scripture?

Inspiration

2 Timothy 3:16 ESV

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

The most important word in this verse is “inspired.”

The most literal translation of the Greek here reads “God-breathed”

So the idea of inspiration has to do with the fact that Scripture is literally breathed out by God

But what is included in what Paul calls “Scripture” here?

It definitely includes all of the Old Testament, and it also probably included some of the NT works that had already been completed and were spreading out.

It is also important to note that it’s the Scriptures that are inspired; not the authors

But God did use people to write these books!

So how exactly does that work?

This is where 2 Peter 1:20-21 becomes key

2 Peter 1:20–21 ESV

20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

So God guides the process and writes through human authors through the Holy Spirit!

The word “moved” here actually refers to the moving of a ship’s sails by the wind

So when it comes to Scripture, God is charting the direction!

That’s what inspiration is all about.

What are the fundamental beliefs about Scripture?

Inspiration

Inerrant

Matthew 5:18 ESV

18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

Before we talk about this verse, let’s define what we even mean by 'inerrant”

Here is the definition that is used in Grasping God’s Word: “

“The Bible (in the original autographs) says exactly what God wants it to say and has not been corrupted by human mistakes.”

Duvall and Hays, Grasping God’s Word

So the general idea with inerrancy is that the Bible is “without error.”

And this verse supports this.

It says that God’s law will come to pass down to the smallest details

Obviously, this is specifically referring to the Law in the OT, but what about the NT?

PRAY