THE
INSPIRATION OF SCRIPTURE
Introduction
“What has
prevented me from joining some churches has been the requirement to declare
that I believe the Bible to be “The Inspired Word of God.” No satisfactory
definition of “inspired” has been given to me although I have always asked.” So
wrote a contributor recently to a daily newspaper. ‘My View’ by Ian Oliver. –
Press & Journal, Oct. 17th. 2001.
If one is
required to make such a declaration then the question asked does require an
answer. Whether or not the answer given is satisfactory to the questioner is
another matter. However, those who require the declaration should, at least,
state what they mean by ‘inspired’ and give a reason why they believe the Bible
to be so.
The meaning of inspiration
By inspiration I
understand Christians to mean that God has committed, in written form, free
from error, that which he wishes to communicate to mankind including
appropriate human history. The means was; that holy men were moved by the
Spirit of God to speak his word and commit it to writing, 2 Pet. 1: 20 – 21, and
while their literary style is used the words are in actual fact those of the
Holy Spirit. Questions relating to subsequent versions and translation are
another matter.
Questions arising from the claim of
inspiration
The claim that
God has committed to writing the information contained in sixty six books,
written by many different writers over a period of some sixteen hundred years,
will raise the question in the mind – has he and, if so, why? Is there a grand
overall purpose into which these scriptures harmoniously fit, and is it
necessary to believe all that is presented as historical fact in order to be a
Christian?
Christianity requires that the
history of Eden
is factual
Consider the
latter part of the second question first. – Is it necessary to believe all that
is presented as historical fact in order to be a Christian? In the First Epistle to The Corinthians Chapter 15
the Apostle Paul speaks about the first man Adam and the last Adam and contrasts
the first man with the second man. The first man Adam was the head of the human
race and likewise the second man as the last Adam, and as such will have no
successor, heads up a race of mankind.
In our chapter
we also see that scripture views all men as being either ‘in Adam’ or ‘in
Christ.’ Being ‘in Adam,’ which is our
lot by natural birth, all die. By the new birth (commonly referred to as being
born again) and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit the Christian is no longer
‘in Adam’ but ‘in Christ.’ This is his new standing and position before God; “If any one [be] in Christ, [there is] a new
creation.” 2 Cor. 5: 17.
All this basic
teaching of Christianity is based on Adam being a historical person, not a
fiction or a mere metaphor to explain something that the readers could
otherwise not understand. If he was not a historical person the teaching of
Christianity collapses.
Paul also speaks
of the God that commanded light to shine out of darkness shinning into men’s
hearts, an allusion to divine creatorial power in the book of Genesis, see 2 Cor. 4: 6, clearly indicating his
belief in the O.T. (Old Testament) scriptures.
Christ testified to the truth of the O.T. scriptures
Time and again
Christ uses the expression, “It is
written” with respect to the O.T. scriptures stamping his own authority on
them. e.g. “It is written, Man shall not
live by bread alone,” Mat. 4: 4,
then to two despondent disciples after the crucifixion he said. “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have
spoken! Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to have entered
into his glory? And beginning at Moses,
and all the prophets, he expounded
unto them in all the scriptures the
things concerning himself.” Luke 24:
25- 27.
The Apostle Peter refers to the O.T.
and to the New Testament writings as scripture
The Apostle
Peter refers to the prophetic word in this way, “For prophecy was not ever uttered by the will of man, but holy men of
God spake under the power of the Holy Ghost,” no doubt referring to the O.T.
scriptures. 2 Pet. 1: 21. With
respect to the N.T. (New Testament) writings from the hand of Paul he says
this, “As also in all his epistles,
speaking of them in these things; in which are some things hard to be
understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures,
to their own destruction.” 2 Pet. 3:
15 – 16.
The Apostles Paul and John both
claim divine revelation for what they wrote
The Gospel that
Paul preached, he claims to have received by revelation of Jesus Christ, Gal. 1: 11 – 12, and this teaching is
of course contained in his epistles.
Again Paul
writing to Timothy says, “Every scripture
[is] divinely inspired, and
profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness; that the man of God may be complete, fully fitted to every good
work.” 2 Tim 3: 16 -17. Here we
see a most important purpose for the scriptures.
With respect to
the book of Revelation the Apostle John tells us that he was commanded by the
risen Jesus to write the things that he had seen, and the things that are, and
the things that are about to be after these. Rev. 1.
Christianity is therefore seen to stand on the
veracity and importance of the O.T. and N.T. scriptures.
Has God given us his word and why?
Is there a grand overall purpose?
These things
hang together in considering the claim that God has given us his inspired word
– If he has then there must be a grand overall purpose? Scripture does tell us
what this purpose is in the Epistle to
The Ephesians Chapter 1, where we
read that, “The God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ --- [has] purposed
in himself for [the] administration
of the fullness of times; to head up all things in the Christ, the things in
the heavens and the things upon the earth.”
In the book of Genesis the first prophecy gives us an
indication as to how he is going to bring this about; it will be by, the seed
of the woman [Messiah] crushing the serpent’s [The devil’s] head. The
intermediate scriptures, while dealing with the moral history of man and God’s
dealings with him, speak of Christ and lead on to this grand conclusion fitting
perfectly into one harmonious whole. Therefore it is God’s intention to head up
the whole creation in a man and that
man is Christ. The Book of Revelation
Chapter 21 tells us that he will
dwell with men and will be their God but only when all sin has been removed
and the last enemy destroyed, which brings us to the question of - The moral
history of man?
The moral history of man
The book of Genesis
opens with the first man at a distance from God and the cherubim [the executers
of God’s judgment] with flaming sword guarding the way to the tree of life.
Wisdom personified in the book of Proverbs
speaking of the time when God laid the foundations of the earth says, “I was with him --- I was daily his delight,
rejoicing always before him; rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth and my delights were with the sons of men.”
Prov. 8: 30 - 31. What a chasm had
opened up between these thoughts of God in relation to men and what we find
here outside of Eden.
Man hid from God
in Eden;
demonstrating by his conscience that he is a moral being responsible to God.
With man now banished from his place of communion with God scripture from this
point onward deals with his moral history. God tested him in this way and that
until eventually, under a God given religion, [Judaism] he is demonstrably seen
to be no better than his first parents and crucifies the Son of God.
The conclusion
reached therefore, in the Epistle to The Romans, is that, “All have gone out of the way, they have together [Jew and Gentile] become
unprofitable; there is not one that practices goodness, there is not as much as
one.” Rom. 3: 12. Verse 19
continues, “That every mouth may be
stopped, and all the world be under judgment to God.” The universal verdict
on man therefore is - guilty.
Christianity contrasted with
religion
With man
declared ‘guilty’ where do we go from here, is all hopelessly lost? In the face
of inflexible righteousness can the glory of God be maintained and the blessing
of man still be secured? Here, Christianity in contrast with religion [e.g.
Judaism] is found to meet the need. Christianity is not to be confused with the
religious sacerdotal systems that prevail generally in Christendom. The
religious way is described by Paul as, “having
[his] own righteousness, which is of the
law.” Php. 3: 9. Christianity
stands in contrast with this and to see the difference between these would
remove the fog that surrounds many ecclesiastical minds in the present day,
allowing scripture to be seen in its proper context and the divine design to be
more appreciated. The words of the poet, which refer to the stars, have been
applied to the scriptures in this way – “Ever
singing as they shine the hand that made us is divine.” When it is all over
with guilty man, his case already proved hopeless, and he has nothing to offer
to satisfy God [which would be the religious way] then God brings in Christ,
his work, resurrection and ascension. Faith in this is Christianity. Christ did
a work, on the cross, which satisfies God in respect of our sins and because of
it God is declared to be just and the justifier of him that believes in Jesus. Rom. 3: 26. When Jesus died he declared
that the work to remove our sins was complete with the words “IT IS FINISHED”
and he then dismissed his spirit. John
19: 30. Faith looks to Christ and appropriates his work. When he dismissed
his spirit the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom,
Mat. 27: 51, indicating the opening
of the way into the presence of God and the setting aside of the current Jewish
system of approach. “For there is a
setting aside of the commandment going before for its weakness and
unprofitableness, [for the law
perfected nothing,] and the
introduction of a better hope by which we draw nigh to God.” Heb.7: 18 – 19.The scripture continues, “He
takes away the first that he may establish the second; by which will we have
been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands
daily ministering, and offering often the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But he having offered one
sacrifice for sins, sat down in perpetuity at the right hand of God, - - - For
by one offering he has perfected in
perpetuity the sanctified. Heb.
10: 9 – 14. Here, Christianity is contrasted with religion which, even when
God given, is unable to perfect a man, “because
the mind of the flesh - - - is not subject to the law of God; for neither indeed
can it be,” Rom 8: 7, but,
Christ when he had “made [by himself]
the purification for sins, set himself
down on the right hand of the greatness on high.” Heb.1: 3 – 4. The sitting down stamps finality on his work because,
“where there is remission of these
[i.e. sins] there is no more offering for
sins.” The earthly priest offering these regular sacrifices for sins is now
redundant.
These scriptures
furnish us, do they not, with a greater insight into the reason why God has
given us his word? Is it not that man might be brought acceptably into his
presence without fear, and that he might not be left, groping in the dark, to
find his own way? Jesus said, “And ye
know the way.” John 14: 4 – 6.
Man, following his own thoughts may say, “If there is a God then there must be
many ways to him.” This is to deny that God is capable of revealing himself and
those who do so will sadly find, in the end, that “there is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are
the ways of death.” Prov. 14: 12.
Christianity is distinct from
Judaism
The Lord having
been rejected by Israel spoke these words about Jerusalem and its future – “Behold your
house is left unto you; and I say
unto you, that ye shall not see me until
it come that ye say, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.” Luke 13: 35. This indicates a period of
time when Israel
(as a complete nation) will not be recognized as the people of God. The
question then arises – What defines the extent of this interim period?
If we refer to Psalm 110 we read these words, “Jehovah said unto my Lord, Sit at my right
hand, until I put thine enemies
[as] footstool of thy feet,”
anticipating the day, when in accordance with Psalm 2, Messiah asks for the heathen for his inheritance and the
uttermost parts of the earth for his possession. You ask me - When did he sit
at his right hand? The first three verses of the Epistle to Hebrews give the answer. It was when he had made
purification for sins; in other words he is sitting there now. It will end when
Messiah takes his kingdom and reigns. Psalm
24, also anticipates the great day with the words, “Lift up your heads, ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting
doors; and the king of glory shall come in.” This time it will not be on a
donkey, the foal of an ass, but as the king of glory and his enemies will be
put under his feet. It will then be a question of, “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered.” Psalm 68.
It is then
pertinent to ask - What, if anything, fills the present interim period on the
earth? It is the Christian era that fills this period. Christianity is not an extension of Judaism
but is something absolutely new and distinct. It began with Christ going up on
high and it will end when he returns in the manner that we read about in the First Epistle to the Thessalonians Chapter
4.
In the future
day Israel and the nations will have there place; In Christianity these
national distinctions disappear and God has brought believers together in one
body on the earth; namely the έκκλησία
[assembly or church] of God as indicated in the following scripture, Christ “might reconcile both [Jew and Gentile] in one body to God by the cross.” Eph.
2: 16. This was never the subject of O.T. prophecy; but something entirely
new; It had, as the apostle states, been a mystery previously hidden but now
revealed. He expresses it in these words, “ If
indeed ye have heard of the administration of the grace of God that has been
given to me towards you, that by revelation
the mystery has been made known to me, - - - which in other generations has not been made known to the sons of men,
as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets in [the power
of the] Spirit, that [they who are
of] the nations should be joint heirs,
and a joint body, and joint partakers of [his] promise in Christ Jesus by the glad tidings.” Eph. 3.
The Christian’s
hope is a heavenly one. Presently his life is hidden and certainly not understood
by the world. “If therefore you have been
raised with the Christ, seek the things [which are] above, where the Christ
is sitting at [the] right hand of
God: have your mind on the things [that are] above, not on the things [that
are] on the earth; for ye have died, and
your life is hid with the Christ in God. When the Christ is manifested who [is]
our life, then shall ye also be
manifested with him in glory.” Col.
3: 1- 4. The Christian’s business is therefore not with the things on
earth, its religion, politics, business, pleasures etc. in which people
indulge, generally without a thought of Christ or God. This is what scripture
calls ‘the world’; that is man’s vast world system built up away from God;
something that appears more unstable every day. e.g. The twin towers in New York on Sept. 11th.
when, over and above the sad loss of life and the sense of horror felt by every
person of feeling, the main pillars, financial, political and military of, what
is considered to be, the greatest power on earth could have collapsed. Messiah
being rejected, the government of the earth awaits another day when Christ will
appear and take up the reins of government. In that day we will be associated
with him; till then it is not our business. Our business is to present Christ,
as a saviour from coming judgment. He says that whoever comes to him he will
not turn away under any circumstances. The final invitation of scripture is
directed towards all and it is - ‘Come.’
The hope of the Christian and
subsequent events on earth.
Scripture then
proceeds to show the privileges of the Christian believer and the
responsibilities connected with the profession of Christianity. It also reveals
the bright prospect of the return of the Lord Jesus for his own, firstly in the
resurrection of them that sleep in Jesus, and secondly in the transformation of
both them and the living to be with him. 1Thes.
4.
The book of Revelation
brings before us, in considerable detail, God’s subsequent dealings with Israel
and the nations of the earth, the setting up of the world kingdom of Christ, Rev. 11, 12 etc. and the final judgment
at the close. Rev. 20. In chapter
21, God dwells with men; all mention of Israel and the nations are dropped
being distinctions that belong only to time and not to the eternal state. Rev 21. 1- 8. From verse 9 onwards into chapter 22 we
return to the time scene and see the relationship between the holy city and the
millennial earth. Here again we find mention of Israel and the nations and notice
that although the curse is removed the nations are still in need of healing.
The last verses of scripture close all with a promise and a blessing. How
different from the O.T. which closes with the threat of a curse.
The testimony of the O.T. scriptures
to Christ
The O.T. is full
of references to the coming Messiah, so I will only refer to a few.
- In Gen.3: 15, we read, “And
Jehovah Elohim said to the serpent - - - I will put enmity between thee
and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; he shall crush thy head,
and thou shalt crush his heel.” This prophecy found its fulfillment, I
believe, at Calvary when Satan had his
hour and all was arrayed against the Lord Jesus and answers to, “thou shalt crush his heel.” It was
there too that the blow was struck that will finally crush Satan’s Head.
- Psalm 2 speaks about the kings of
the earth setting themselves against Jehovah and his anointed. This they
did at Christ’s first coming and will no doubt do again at his second.
Jehovah laughs and has them in derision saying, “Yet have I set my king on my holy hill of Zion, I will declare the
decree: - - - Ask of me and I will give thee the nations for thine
inheritance and for thy possession the ends of the earth.” In spite of
what they did at his first coming the prophecy still stands.
- Psalm 22 brings before us,
prophetically, the sufferings of Christ bringing out the intensity of the
feelings of the one abandoned for our sins which fits perfectly with the
prophet Zechariah who says, “Awake O sword against my shepherd and
against the man that is my fellow.” And the words of the Psalm are
literally in the mouth of Jehovah’s rejected king, Mat. 27: 46, and suffering servant. Mark 15:34.
- Isaiah in chapter 53, again written
so long beforehand outlines the rejection of the Messiah and the reason
for and the manner of his death and also foretells his resurrection when
he raises the question, “Who shall
declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living.”
Back comes his immediate prophetic answer that not only would he prolong
his days but that he would see a seed. How could this be? Is it not rather
obvious to even a casual reader that this is a reference to his
resurrection and with respect to that resurrection the prophet goes on to
say, “He shall see [of the fruit
of] the travail of his soul, [and] shall be satisfied.” Compare John 12: 24. These texts
correspond to what we find in the Epistle
to The Hebrews where we read, “Behold
I and the children which God has given me,” which in turn answers to
Isaiah’s prophetic children.
i.e. the remnant of Israel
which, today, has its place within the church, the company of Christian
believers. However, I have no doubt that the expressions, “He shall see [of the fruit of] the travail of his soul,” and, “Behold I and the children which God has
given me,” are applicable to every Christian.
- Micah 5 speaks also of the coming
of the Messiah and identifies Bethlehem
as the place of his birth. His rejection – “They shall smite the judge of Israel
with a rod upon the cheek,” is foretold in verse 1 and, in verse 3 we
see the consequent setting aside of Israel
and the future return of the remnant of his brethren to the children of Israel.
The attempt to thwart the Genesis
prophecy
o
It should surprise no one that
Satan, hearing the prophecy that the seed of the woman would crush his head
sets out to attack; “Give me a man!”
is his cry, whether it be Job, or in Goliath’s case David, or ultimately, he
who is God, yet deigned to become man. The enmity is seen in the dragon waiting
for the birth of the man child in Rev.
12, but the child is caught up to God and his throne, and Israel delivered
of the man child, becomes Satan’s target.
o
Herod’s effort to destroy the
young child Jesus is only one of many attempts by Satan to thwart the promise
in Genesis. When Naomi, in the Book of
Ruth, her husband and two sons dead, and with all hope, naturally speaking,
of inheritance in Israel gone returns to Bethlehem with her daughter in law
Ruth the Moabitess, [A picture of the future returning remnant of Israel now
lost among the nations] finds favour with Boaz, [A picture of Christ] and is
able in association with him, to take up the inheritance. Boaz begets Obed of
Ruth; Obed, Jesse; and Jesse, David and so the Royal line to Christ is
preserved.
o
Take the case of Ahaz the king
of Judah, in Isaiah 7, afraid of the conspiracy
between Rezin king of Syria
and Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel. Isaiah says to Ahaz, “Fear not, [The threat was really to Judah’s royal
line] it shall not come to pass,” and
gives him a sign that a virgin will conceive and bring forth a son ‘Emmanuel.’
No conspiracy, not even energized by Satan, will thwart God’s purpose.
o
In the days of the ‘Jewish
Captivity,’ in the time of the Persian rule, God, working behind the scenes,
uses Esther for the preservation of the Jews.
o
Satan tries to take the Lord
off the path of dependence on God during the temptation in the wilderness.
o
But one effort comes from the
Lord’s inner circle of followers. When Jesus indicated that he must go to the
cross; Peter says, “Be it far from thee
Lord; this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee
behind me Satan; thou art an offence
unto me; for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of
men.” Mat. 16: 22 – 23. The cross was an absolute moral necessity.
In all these attempts we can trace the thread of continuity through
the scriptures until Messiah is introduced and cut off in accordance with the
prophecy of Daniel. Dan. 9: 26.
His ‘cutting off’ and present session at the right hand of God is
anticipated in Psalm110 where, “Jehovah said unto my Lord, Sit at my right
hand, until I put thine enemies [as] footstool
of thy feet.” His present session, in heaven, is paralleled by the
Christian era on earth when the church is being called out from the nations.
i.e. A company composed of all believers
on earth during the Christian era and styled the body of Christ which is linked
by the Spirit to its living head in heaven.
Indicators
pointing to the inspiration of the scriptures
1)
It should be noted that the
Bible immediately introduces us to God without providing us with an argument
for his existence; a passing reference in the Epistle to Romans shows that man
should have recognized his eternal power and divinity from creation.
2)
The Bible is concise, it does
not waste words, great historical events often being given only one or two
verses e.g. “That night was Belshazzar
king of the Chaldeans slain and Darius the Mede received the kingdom. Dan. 5: 30 – 31.
3)
The Gospels present the Lord
Jesus in four different aspects and are all required to give us a true
representation of the person of Christ. To attempt to blend them into one
complete narrative would be to negate the design of the inspiring Spirit of
God.
·
Mathew presents him as the Son of
Abraham the Son of David. i.e as the king and the genealogy is the official
line showing his title to the throne of David.
·
Mark shows him in the character of a
servant. Whoever would think of giving the genealogy of a servant? Of Christ we
read that, “He made himself of no
reputation and took upon him the form of a servant - - - and being found in
fashion as a man he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the
death of the cross.” Php.2: 7 – 8.
·
Luke shows him as the Son of Man and
gives his genealogy as, ‘the seed of the woman’ the son of Mary,’ which gives
his actual line as the Son of David so, that actually and legally his right to
the throne of David is established.
·
John presents him as the divine Son of
God, which is what he was from eternity, and hence there is no genealogy.
The
coincidence of the prophetic word with the known facts of history
While I believe that the best
testimony to the truth of the scriptures lies within scripture itself it
may be that some would raise the question of how they compare with known
history.
In the O.T. prophecy of Daniel
the example of the progression of the four great empires namely, the
Babylonian, the Medo/ Persian, the Grecian and the Roman with well known
history will provide substantial external evidence of the truth of scripture.
Particular attention is drawn to the Greek empire and Alexander The Great’s
exploits and the subsequent division of the empire to his four generals, Greece under Antipater,
Thrace under Lysimachus, Syria
under Seleucus 1 Nicator and Egypt
under Ptolemy.
In the N.T. others have drawn attention to the census instigated by
the decree of Caesar Augustus spoken about in Luke’s Gospel Chapter 2.
The N.T.
use of the prophetic word and the introduction of grace
The way in which the N.T. uses and applies the O.T. scriptures
simply breathes inspiration. Consider the following;
·
In Luke 4: 19 - 21, we find the Lord in the synagogue at Nazareth and reading from
the prophet Isaiah Chapter 61, where
his omission of the words, “and the day
of vengeance of our God” is notable when he says, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears,” the day of
vengeance being still future. Similarly the words, “to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, that beauty should be given to them
instead of ashes” etc. are omitted as their fulfillment awaits a future
day. The hearers also wonder at the words of grace (not merely gracious words)
that were coming from his mouth. This is all in contrast to law and is said in the
presence of the law teachers. In John’s
Gospel, we read that, “The law was
given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” Here indeed was
a change, (The law could only condemn the sinner) what the sinner needed in the
first instance was grace, not law but it is grace and truth; grace is not where truth is sacrificed. In Christianity,
contrasted with law, the order is that grace should reign through righteousness
to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
·
Paul’s limited use of Isaiah 52 in Romans 10: 15, again demonstrates a similar situation where the
omission of the reference to both, “the
mountains” and the statement that, “That
saith unto Zion
thy God reigneth” is due to the fact that these references await another
day for their fulfillment. i.e. the day of the kingdom of Christ
on the earth. Rev. 11: 15.
Conclusion
I think that sufficient has been said to show what I mean by the
expression, ‘Inspiration’ and to give some idea why I believe that the Bible is
‘The Inspired Word of God.’ If I speak from my own experience, then surely it
was the opening verses of John’s Gospel pressed home, I believe, by the Spirit
of God, which has left an indelible impression on me, including the words, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among
us - - - full of grace and truth.” John
1: 14.
It is important when handling the word of God to (as the scripture
itself says) rightly divide the word of truth. Where this is done and the
scriptures are seen in context the truth of their inspiration stands out
showing them to comprise one harmonious whole.
In past times the scripture tells us that God spoke to the fathers
(i.e. the fathers of Israel)
through the prophets in many parts and
ways. Heb. 1: 1 -2. The
revelation of God is no longer partial but is full in that he has, in these
last days spoken to us through his Son. If there was no excuse in O.T. times
for doubting the word of God, how much less now when things are no longer
partial but full. Nevertheless without faith man will not believe, as the poet
put it;
Blind unbelief is sure to
err,
And scan his word in vain,
God is his own interpreter,
And he will make it plain.
W.Cowper
G.W.D. JAN. 2002 REVISED DEC. 2004