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lesson 1 WHAT
IS BIBLICAL INSPIRATION? I. WHAT DOES "INSPIRATION" MEAN? A. 2 Tim. 3:16 Says That All Scripture Is "Inspired By God." This Phrase Means That he Scripture Is "God-Breathed." In That Way The Divine Origin Of the Scriptures Is Expressed. Because Of That We Call It The "Word Of God." B. The Idea Is That The Written Text Of The Bible Was Directly Inspired By God. In Other Words, God Spoke By Means Of The Human Authors. C. God Guided The Writers Of Scripture In Such A Way That They Faithfully Wrote God's Message. II. HOW DID GOD INSPIRE THE SCRIPTURES? A. Through His Spirit, The Holy Spirit - 2 Peter 1:19-21 B. 2 Peter 1:21 Says That The Writers Were "Directed" or "Guided" By The Holy Spirit. In That Way God Guided Them So That They Would Choose The Correct Words To Express God's Message. C. Biblical Inspiration Is Like Prophetic Inspiration: God Moved The Men He Had Prepared And Chosen So That They Would Write Exactly What He Wanted Them To Write In Order To Communicate Saving Knowledge To His People, And Through Them, To The Whole World. D. Although The Biblical Writers Used Their Own Styles, They Did Not Contribute Anything To The Content Of The Bible. The Inspired Scriptures Are Exclusively The Creation Of God. III. FALSE IDEAS ABOUT INSPIRATION A. That The Bible Is The Result Of A Direct Dictation From God To The Writers. 1. This idea claims that the scriptures are the result of a message dictated by God to the writers, who served only as amanuenses, only copying down what was dictated. 2. Luke 1:3 speaks of Luke investigating the data concerning the "story" he was about to write. 3. In other places the writers wrote of their own experiences, relying on their memories helped by the Holy Spirit. 4. Inspiration by God did not prevent each writer from writing according to his own style and with his own personality. B. That Any Human Translation Is Inspired By God. 1. The Bible only speaks of the original texts as being inspired by God. 2. Although most versions are trustworthy, there are some written by certain groups or certain people only for the purpose of supporting their own doctrines. C. That There Are Degrees Of Inspiration 1. This idea claims that there are some passages in the Bible that are more inspired than others. For example: What Jesus said is more inspired than that written by Santiago. 2. Although some passages might be more significant than others (e.g.: John 3:16 and 2 Tim. 4:9), all the Bible is equally inspired. D. That The Bible Only Contains The Word Of God. 1. This teaching claims that only some parts of the Bible are inspired by God while the rest is only myth or fable. 2. Remember what 2 Tim. 3:16 says: "All scripture is inspired by God..." E. That There Are Modern Day Prophets Who Are Inspired Just Like The O.T. Prophets. 1. Many of these so-called prophets have produced the fruit of sensuality and exploitation instead of proving themselves as mentioned in Dt. 18:22. 2. To these people inspiration is an emotion or sentiment. 3. Modern prophets do not conform to the historical model - 2 Peter 3:2 Many of them do not promote true holiness nor is there evidence accompanying them showing them to be true prophets. 4. In His inspired Word God did not trouble Himself with the trivial and insignificant things of this life. For example: "God told me that you should buy a new car." 2 Peter 1:20 speaks of what has been revealed and taught in the scriptures. MEMORY VERSE - 2 PETER 1:21 QUESTIONS
- LESSON 1 1. T F Almost all the Bible is inspired by God. 2. T F God dictated word by word to the writers of the Bible what they should write down. 3. T F There are many people today inspired by God as were the writers of the Bible. 4. T F Some parts of the Bible are more inspired than others. 5. T F Because it is inspired by God, the Bible has authority for our lives. 6. What did the human authors contribute to the content of the Bible? |