Sermon Tone Analysis

IV.

The authority of the holy scripture, for which it ought to be believed and obeyed, dependeth not upon the testimony of any man or church, but wholly upon God, (who is truth itself,) the author thereof: and therefore it is to be received, because it is the word of God.i

IX.

The infallible rule of interpretation of scripture is the scripture itself; and therefore, when there is a question about the true and full sense of any scripture, (which is not manifold, but one,) it must be searched and known by other places that speak more clearly.y

Harold Lindsell affirms similarly that inerrancy is not solely a presuppositional deduction from the doctrine that God is the author of Scripture, but is expressly “taught in Scripture, just as the deity of Christ, the virgin birth of Jesus, and the bodily resurrection of our Lord from the dead are taught in Scripture” (The Battle for the Bible, pp.

162, 188).

The biblical teaching includes an affirmation of scriptural inerrancy, he stresses, so that the doctrine of inerrancy must be considered an induction from the textual phenomena 1 as well as an advance verdict on so-called discrepancies in the texts.

Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Bible Doctrine (1.

God Cannot Lie or Speak Falsely)

1. God Cannot Lie or Speak Falsely.

The essence of the authority of Scripture is its ability to compel us to believe and to obey it and to make such belief and obedience equivalent to believing and obeying God himself.

Because this is so, it is needful to consider the truthfulness of Scripture, since to believe all the words of Scripture implies confidence in the complete truthfulness of the Scripture that we believe.

Since the biblical writers repeatedly affirm that the words of the Bible, though human, are God’s own words, it is appropriate to look at biblical texts that talk about the character of God’s words and to apply these to the character of the words of Scripture.

Specifically, there are a number of biblical passages that talk about the truthfulness of God’s speech.

Titus 1:2 speaks of “God, who never lies,” or (more literally translated), “the unlying God.”

Because God is a God who cannot speak a “lie,” his words can always be trusted.

Since all of Scripture is spoken by God, all of Scripture must be “unlying,” just as God himself is: there can be no untruthfulness in Scripture.13Hebrews

6:18 mentions two unchangeable things (God’s oath and his promise) “in which it is impossible for God to lie (author’s translation).”

Here the author says not merely that God does not lie, but that it is not possible for him to lie.

Although the immediate reference is only to oaths and promises, if it is impossible for God to lie in these utterances, then certainly it is impossible for him ever to lie (for Jesus harshly rebukes those who tell the truth only when under oath: Matt.

5:33–37; 23:16–22).

Similarly, David says to God, “You are God, and your words are true” (2 Sam.

7:28).2.

Therefore All the Words in Scripture Are Completely True and Without Error in Any Part.

Since the words of the Bible are God’s words, and since God cannot lie or speak falsely, it is correct to conclude that there is no untruthfulness or error in any part of the words of Scripture.

We find this affirmed several places in the Bible.

“The words of the LORD are words that are pure silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times” (Ps.

12:6, author’s translation).

Here the psalmist uses vivid imagery to speak of the undiluted purity of God’s words: there is no imperfection in them.

Also in Proverbs 30:5, we read, “Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.”

It is not just some of the words of Scripture that are true, but every word.

In fact, God’s Word is fixed in heaven for all eternity: “For ever, O LORD, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens” (Ps.

119:89).

Jesus can speak of the eternal nature of his own words: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Matt.

24:35).

God’s speech is placed in marked contrast to all human speech, for “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should repent” (Num.

23:19).

These verses affirm explicitly what was implicit in the requirement that we believe all of the words of Scripture, namely, that there is no untruthfulness or falsehood affirmed in any of the statements of the Bible.3.

God’s Words Are the Ultimate Standard of Truth.

In John 17 Jesus prays to the Father, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).

This verse is interesting because Jesus does not use the adjectives ἀληθινός (G240) or ἀληθής (G239, “true”), which we might have expected, to say, “Your word is true.”

Rather, he uses a noun, ἀλήθεια (G237, “truth”), to say that God’s Word is not simply “true,” but it is truth itself.The difference is significant, for this statement encourages us to think of the Bible not simply as being “true” in the sense that it conforms to some higher standard of truth, but rather to think of the Bible as being itself the final standard of truth.

The Bible is God’s Word, and God’s Word is the ultimate definition of what is true and what is not true: God’s Word is itself truth.

Thus we are to think of the Bible as the ultimate standard of truth, the reference point by which every other claim to truthfulness is to be measured.

Those assertions that conform with Scripture are “true” while those that do not conform with Scripture are not true.What then is truth?

Truth is what God says, and we have what God says (accurately but not exhaustively) in the Bible.4.

Might Some New Fact Ever Contradict the Bible?

Will any new scientific or historical fact ever be discovered that will contradict the Bible?

Here we can say with confidence that this will never happen—it is in fact impossible.

If any supposed “fact” is ever discovered that is said to contradict Scripture, then (if we have understood Scripture rightly) that “fact” must be false, because God, the author of Scripture, knows all true facts (past, present, and future).

No fact will ever turn up that God did not know about ages ago and take into account when he caused Scripture to be written.

Every true fact is something that God has known already from all eternity and is something that therefore cannot contradict God’s speech in Scripture.Nevertheless, it must be remembered that scientific or historical study (as well as other kinds of study of creation) can cause us to reexamine Scripture to see if it really teaches what we thought it taught.

the Bible does not teach that the sun goes around the earth, for it only uses descriptions of phenomena as we see them from our vantage point and does not purport to be describing the workings of the universe from some arbitrary “fixed” point somewhere out in space.

Yet until the study of astronomy advanced enough to demonstrate the rotation of the earth on its axis, people assumed that the Bible taught that the sun goes around the earth.

Then the study of scientific data prompted a reexamination of the appropriate biblical texts.

Thus, whenever confronted with some “fact” that is said to contradict Scripture, we must not only examine the data adduced to demonstrate the fact in question; we must also reexamine the appropriate biblical texts to see if the Bible really teaches what we thought it to teach.We should never fear but always welcome any new facts that may be discovered in any legitimate area of human research or study.

For example, discoveries by archaeologists working in Syria have brought to light the Ebla Tablets.

These extensive written records from the period around 2000 B.C. will eventually throw great light on our understanding of the world of the patriarchs and the events connected with the lives of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Should Christians entertain any lingering apprehension that the publication of such data will prove some fact in Genesis to be incorrect?

Certainly not!

We should eagerly anticipate the publication of all such data with the absolute confidence that if it is correctly understood it will all be consistent with Scripture and will all confirm the accuracy of Scripture.

No true fact will ever contradict the words of the God who knows all facts and who never lies.D. Written Scripture Is Our Final AuthorityIt is important to realize that the final form in which Scripture remains authoritative is its written form.

It was the words of God written on the tablets of stone that Moses deposited in the ark of the covenant.

Later, God commanded Moses and subsequent prophets to write their words in a book.

And it was written Scripture (γραφή, G1210) that Paul said was “God-breathed” (2 Tim.

3:16).

Similarly, it is Paul’s writings that are “a command of the Lord” (1 Cor.

14:37) and that could be classified with “the other scriptures” (2 Peter 3:16).This is important because people sometimes (intentionally or unintentionally) attempt to substitute some other final standard than the written words of Scripture.

For example, people will sometimes refer to “what Jesus really said” and claim that when we translate the Greek words of the Gospels back into the Aramaic language Jesus spoke, we can gain a better understanding of Jesus’ words than was given by the writers of the Gospels.

In fact, it is sometimes said that this work of reconstructing Jesus’ words in Aramaic enables us to correct the erroneous translations made by the gospel authors.In other cases, people have claimed to know “what Paul really thought” even when that is different from the meaning of the words he wrote.

Or they have spoken of “what Paul should have said if he had been consistent with the rest of his theology.”

Similarly, others have spoken of “the church situation to which Matthew was writing” and have attempted to give normative force either to that situation or to the solution they think Matthew was attempting to bring about in that situation.In all of these instances we must admit that asking about the words or situations that lie “behind” the text of Scripture may at times be helpful to us in understanding what the text means.

Nevertheless, our hypothetical reconstructions of these words or situations can never replace or compete with Scripture itself as the final authority, nor should we ever allow them to contradict or call into question the accuracy of any of the words of Scripture.

We must continually remember that we have in the Bible God’s very words, and we must not try to “improve” on them in some way, for this cannot be done.

Rather, we should seek to understand them and then trust them and obey them with our whole heart.

The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy

1978

Preface

The authority of Scripture is a key issue for the Christian Church in this and every age.

Those who profess faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior are called to show the reality of their discipleship by humbly and faithfully obeying God's written Word.

To stray from Scripture in faith or conduct is disloyalty to our Master.

Recognition of the total truth and trustworthiness of Holy Scripture is essential to a full grasp and adequate confession of its authority.

The following Statement affirms this inerrancy of Scripture afresh, making clear our understanding of it and warning against its denial.

We are persuaded that to deny it is to set aside the witness of Jesus Christ and of the Holy Spirit and to refuse that submission to the claims of God's own Word which marks true Christian faith.

We see it as our timely duty to make this affirmation in the face of current lapses from the truth of inerrancy among our fellow Christians and misunderstanding of this doctrine in the world at large.

This Statement consists of three parts: a Summary Statement, Articles of Affirmation and Denial, and an accompanying Exposition*.

It has been prepared in the course of a three- day consultation in Chicago.

Those who have signed the Summary Statement and the Articles wish to affirm their own conviction as to the inerrancy of Scripture and to encourage and challenge one another and all Christians to growing appreciation and understanding of this doctrine.

We acknowledge the limitations of a document prepared in a brief, intensive conference and do not propose that this Statement be given creedal weight.

Yet we rejoice in the deepening of our own convictions through our discussions together, and we pray that the Statement we have signed may be used to the glory of our God toward a new reformation of the Church in its faith, life, and mission.

We offer this Statement in a spirit, not of contention, but of humility and love, which we purpose by God's grace to maintain in any future dialogue arising out of what we have said.

We gladly acknowledge that many who deny the inerrancy of Scripture do not display the consequences of this denial in the rest of their belief and behavior, and we are conscious that we who confess this doctrine often deny it in life by failing to bring our thoughts and deeds, our traditions and habits, into true subjection to the divine Word.

We invite response to this statement from any who see reason to amend its affirmations about Scripture by the light of Scripture itself, under whose infallible authority we stand as we speak.

We claim no personal infallibility for the witness we bear, and for any help which enables us to strengthen this testimony to God's Word we shall be grateful.

* The Exposition is not printed here but can be obtained by contacting: ICBI / P.O.

Box 13261 / Oakland, CA 94661 / (415)-339-1064.

A SHORT STATEMENT

1. God, who is Himself Truth and speaks truth only, has inspired Holy Scripture in order thereby to reveal Himself to lost mankind through Jesus Christ as Creator and Lord, Redeemer and Judge.

Holy Scripture is God's witness to Himself.

2. Holy Scripture, being God's own Word, written by men prepared and superintended by His Spirit, is of infallible divine authority in all matters upon which it touches: it is to be believed, as God's instruction, in all that it affirms, obeyed, as God's command, in all that it requires; embraced, as God's pledge, in all that it promises.

3. The Holy Spirit, Scripture's divine Author, both authenticates it to us by His inward witness and opens our minds to understand its meaning.

4. Being wholly and verbally God-given, Scripture is without error or fault in all its teaching, no less in what it states about God's acts in creation, about the events of world history, and about its own literary origins under God, than in its witness to God's saving grace in individual lives.

5.

The authority of Scripture is inescapably impaired if this total divine inerrancy is in any way limited or disregarded, or made relative to a view of truth contrary to the Bible's own; and such lapses bring serious loss to both the individual and the Church.

ARTICLES OF AFFIRMATION AND DENIAL

Article I

We affirm that the Holy Scriptures are to be received as the authoritative Word of God.

We deny that the Scriptures receive their authority from the Church, tradition, or any other human source.

Article II