#4.02 ALL SCRIPTURE IS GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD

JOHN 8:26-28, 38 (Jesus)
26 I have many things to say and to Judge of you: but he who sent me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him.
27 They did not understand that he spoke to them of the Father.
28 Then Jesus said to them, When you have lifted up the Son of man, then shall you know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father has taught me, I speak these things.
38 I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and you do that which you have seen with your father.

JOHN 12:50 (Jesus)
50 I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatever I speak therefore, even as the Father said to me, so I speak.

JOHN 14:10 (Jesus)
10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak to you I do not speak of myself: but the Father that dwells in me, he does the works.

ACTS 1:16 (Peter)
16 Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit by the mouth of David spoke before concerning Judas, who was guide to those who took Jesus.

2 TIMOTHY 3:16 (Paul)
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

HEBREWS 1:1-2 (Paul)
1 God, who in many parts and in many ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,
2 Has in these last days spoken to us by his Son, whom he has appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

2 PETER 1:21 (Peter)
21 For prophecy did not come in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

Note 1: If God has spoken to us by his Son (Hebrews 1:1-2), Jesus spoke only the words which the Father gave him (John 8:26; 12:50; 14:10), the Holy Spirit spoke through the mouth of David (Acts 1:16), and God spoke by the Old Testament holy prophets (Hebrews 1:1), who "spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:21), then truly the writing of Paul, "All scripture is given by inspiration of God" (2 Timothy 3:16), is verified by the other scriptures. Thus the original scripture must be just as if God wrote it himself, and must therefore be true because God cannot lie (Numbers 23:19; Titus 1:2). If we accept this, then having chosen the best manuscripts available, we must ask the question, are there any errors in the manuscripts because of mistakes by the copyists? This is suggested by the variety of manuscripts which are now available, and is answered in Note 2. Also further differences have crept in through translation errors, which again is verified by the many different versions which we now have. We have no evidence that the copyists or the translators were under the same inspiration of God that the original writers were; if they had been they would not have made mistakes, and there would be no differences between them. The problem of translation errors can be fully compensated for by knowing the Hebrew and the Greek (See #4.18 and #4.20).

Note 2: Does that then leave us with a bible which we cannot trust? The answer is no, for the following reasons: Firstly, Jesus said, "I am ... the truth" (John 14:6), and, "your word is truth" (John 17:17), showing that he is the word of God. Other scriptures confirm this, "the word was made flesh, and dwelt among us" (John 1:14), and "his name is called The Word of God" (Revelation 19:13). He also said, "I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20), and, "I will never leave you, nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5). So we can rest assured that the truth of God's word is available for us today, just as the psalmist said, "his truth endures to all generations" (Psalm 100:5). Secondly, Jesus said, "the scripture cannot be broken" (John 10:35), so even if small errors do occur in the scriptures, that will not hide God's truth from us. This is because of the way God has written his word, and instructed us to interpret it (See #4.06 for an example). Thirdly, the truth of God's word does not come from the letter of the word of God, it comes through the spiritual discernment given to us by the Holy Spirit (See #2.6), "he will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13). So God himself will give us enlightenment to discern error provided that we commit our works to him, because he has said, "Commit your works to the LORD, and your thoughts shall be established" (Proverbs 16:3). Fourthly, if we refuse to accept that the truth of God's word is still available to us today, then we have to accuse God of being unable to preserve his word intact, and this again contradicts scripture (Psalm 119:144; 119:152; 119:160; Isaiah 40:8); "the word of the Lord endures for ever" (1 Peter 1:25).

Note 3: We can conclude then, that whatever anyone may argue, God has preserved the truth of his word for us today in the form of the inspired scriptures, because he has said, "All scripture is given by inspiration of God" (2 Timothy 3:16). Having accepted this fact, we can now go forward with confidence to investigate how God has instructed us to study and interpret his word. The way to know that it is inspired by God is to make it work for us. Many Christians have cast demons out of people, worked miracles, received the baptism of the Holy Spirit with speaking in tongues, laid hands on the sick and seen them recover, operated with spiritual gifts, and raised the dead, simply because they have believed the word of God and put it to work in their lives. For those with any doubts, Jesus pointed the way forward when he said, "If any man will do his (God's) will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself" (John 7:17). If an unbeliever studied God's word, and began to put it into practice in his life, belief would certainly come.

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#4.02 ALL SCRIPTURE IS GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD

Introduction 4.02

#4.02 ALL SCRIPTURE IS GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD