The Word Of God
Since God reveals Himself through the Holy Scriptures, it is essential that we have a proper conception of the Bible. Holy Scripture is the inspired, written Word of God. The Bible is not an ordinary book. It is not man's book. It is the written record of God's revelation of Himself. This is the testimony of Scripture itself. God exhorts His people concerning the Scriptures, Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth. (Ps. 78:1). Jesus identified Scripture, as God's Word. He said, Full well ye reject the commandment of God that ye may keep your own tradition. ...Making the Word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered. (Mk. 7:9-13).
The Bible has its source in God alone. It is God's book. Although there were many men who were used as instruments in the writing of Scripture, God is ultimately the only Author. Thus the Scriptures form but one book. Although there are sixty-six books in the Bible, these books are a unity. The Bible is not merely a compilation of the writings of many men. The Bible is one book which God planned, brought into existence by the inspiration of the Spirit, and has given to His people as the written revelation of Himself. Therefore, the Holy Scriptures are perfectly consistent with themselves. There are no contradictions in the Bible. The gospel according to Matthew does not disagree with the gospel according to John. Holy Scripture, as God's one book, is a beautiful harmony.
Organic Inspiration
The Holy Bible is inspired of God. The human instruments, which were used of God to write the Bible, wrote under divine inspiration. The apostle Paul says, All scripture is given by inspiration of God... (II Tim. 3:16). God breathed His Word into the writers so that they wrote His Word and not their own. This does not mean that God simply dictated the words of the Bible to them. They were not like secretaries who write letters dictated by their employers. If that were true, there would not be the variation of style and language which we find in the Bible. There is an obvious difference between the style of the prophet Isaiah and that of the apostle Paul. On the other hand, inspiration is not merely a general influence of God upon the human writers. The inspiration of the Scriptures is not the same as the inspiration which someone receives from a beautiful sunset. God did not merely give them some good ideas which they put into there own words.
The proper view of inspiration is called organic inspiration. In inspiration, God did not deal with the writers in a mechanical way, but He dealt with them in an organic way. He worked within them and in harmony with their inner being and life. In eternity God planned exactly what He wanted in the Bible. In history, He gave certain men exactly the right characteristics and talents for the writing of that Bible. He so led them that all the experiences of their lives would fit perfectly with their calling. Finally, at the moment of writing the Holy Spirit so controlled them that they wrote nothing of their own but only the very Word of God. Thus Peter says, Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. (II Pet. 1:20-21).
Verbal, Plenary
Inspiration is of such a nature that all of the Bible is the Word of God. There are many who say that the Bible contains both the word of man and the Word of God. They tell us that there is in the Bible both a divine and a human element. Only part of the Bible is the inspired Word of God. Therefore, we must study the Scriptures and, by human reason, determine what is God's Word and what is man's word. The Bible, however, teaches plenary (complete or full) inspiration. The whole Bible is the Word of God. Thus the apostle says, All scripture is given by inspiration of God... (II Tim. 3:16). All Scripture! Not just part of the Bible, but all of it — every book and every chapter. From Gen. 1 to Rev. 22 there is nothing that is not God's Word.
Every word no matter how small and insignificant is inspired of God. When the Spirit of Christ moved the writers to write God's Word, He did not give them merely the ideas and thoughts and then let them express those ideas by their own choice of words. The Bible is verbally (word) inspired. Thus in Gal. 3:16 the apostle Paul makes an important point by appealing to a specific word. He says, Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many: but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. Here his argument depends upon the fact that the word seed used in Gen. 17:7 is singular not plural. Jesus also referred to verbal inspiration when He spoke of the everlasting character of the small parts of the letters of the words. He said, For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. (Matt. 5:18).
Infallible And Authoritative
Since Holy Scripture is the inspired Word of God, it must also be infallible. There can be no errors in the Bible. God never makes mistakes. Since He so controlled the human instruments which He used so that they wrote only His Word, the Bible of necessity is without error in all of its parts. Thus the Psalmist says, The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. (Ps. 12:6). The Bible, as God's Word, is pure. Something which is pure does not contain errors. God's Word is perfect. We read, The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. (Ps. 19:7). God's Word is also said to be true. Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever. (Ps. 119:160). Since the Bible, as God's Word, is true, how can it possibly contain mistakes? A fallible Bible is impossible.
Because the Holy Scriptures are infallible, they are also authoritative. The Bible is the Truth. The apostle Paul exhorts us, Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (II Tim. 2:15). Holy Scripture is the only standard of what is right, of what is the Truth. The Bible is the sole basis of all the doctrines of the Christian Faith. It is also the basis of the Christian life. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect throughly furnished unto all good works. (II Tim 3:16-17). The Bible, preached and studied, is profitable. It is the means God uses to instruct us in doctrine, to reprove us, to correct our sinful ways, and to teach us to walk in the paths of righteousness. The Psalmist says, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. (Ps. 119:105).
Preservation And Perspicuity
The inspiration of the Scriptures implies that God also preserves the Bible so that it is the possession of God's people throughout the ages. God takes care of Holy Scripture. Although many have tried to take Scripture away from God's people, by either physically destroying it or by perverting it, God so rules that the true Word of God is always available for His people. The prophet exclaims, The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. (Isa. 40:8). Jesus Christ said, Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. (Mark 13:31). This also means that God takes care that His people have His Word in their own language. We have God's Word in English. Although there are many modern versions which are perversions of Scripture, we can be sure that we have God's Word in the King James Version of the Bible. It is an accurate and faithful translation of the original Hebrew and Greek.
The inspiration of the Scriptures also implies that the Bible is perspicuous (clear). There are many who claim that the Bible is obscure and cannot be understood by anyone but a theologian. The Bible, however, teaches us that the Scriptures can be understood by all of God's people in general. The Psalmist says, Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. (Ps. 119:9). Even a young man can understand God's Word so that he can follow its instructions and live a godly life. In Ps. 119:130 we read, The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple. When Holy Scripture is read and studied it gives light to the understanding of even the simple. The perspicuity of the Scriptures does not mean that there are no difficult passages in the Bible or that all of God's people understand the Bible equally well. It means, however, that the Bible is God's communication to all of His people, not just to theologians or intellectuals of the Church. They can all understand the fundamental doctrines of the Faith.
The Illumination Of The Holy Spirit
A person, however, cannot truly come to understand the Bible unless he is illuminated by the Holy Spirit. In the Bible God tells us about Himself, Jesus Christ, and His grand plan of salvation. Thus Jesus said, Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. (John 5:39). Everything that we need to know for salvation about God and Christ is in the Bible. Holy Scripture is the objective revelation of God. All of Scripture from beginning to end speaks of God and Jesus Christ.
Yet a person can read the Scriptures and never come to know God in Christ. Man, of himself, does not have the ability to spiritually understand Holy Scripture. Jesus told Nicodemus, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3). Unless a man is regenerated by the Spirit of Christ, he cannot even see God's kingdom, let alone understand God's Truth. Man must be spiritually reborn and illuminated by the Holy Spirit, if he is to spiritually understand the Truth of God. His heart and mind must be opened to discern spiritual things. Thus Jesus' disciples on the road to Emmaus did not understand the Scriptures, until Jesus, by His Spirit, opened their hearts. The disciples said, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? (Luke 24:32). If we are to learn of God, Jesus Christ, and salvation in Him, we must pray with the Psalmist, Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of they law. (Ps. 119:18).
