On Monday night we began a few weeks of looking at now we can know that the Bible is truly God’s word (his speech) to us. Here are the notes:
1. God speaks, and it can be written down. (Verbal inspiration)
Exodus 23:3-4 Moses wrote all the words of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 30:10 The voice of the lord is written in the book See also: Isa 8:1; Jer 30:2; Jer 36:6; Hosea 1:1, 4:1, 8:12; Hab 2:2; John 20:30-31
Daniel 9:11 These words are considered the voice of the Lord.
Revelation 1:19 Jesus told John to write (Rev 21:5, 22:6-7,18-19)
2. God also speaks through human words: (Indwelling Inspiration):
How it works:
Not by God speaking audibly, but by the Holy Spirit revealing truth to a person in their heart and mind. And then by the Holy Spirit ensuring that what the person writes down is exactly what he wants written down. He doesn’t do it by taking a person over, but by working in and with the person so that what they write is what God writes. There is a match between their words and God’s words. It is their words, and it is God’s words too.
2 Peter 1:19-21 & 3:15-16 – The holy men of God wrote what they spoke as they were borne along and Paul is part of the same process
1 Corinthians 2:6-13 & 14:37 – The Spirit reveals the truth. The words Paul writes are then God’s command.
Ephesians 3:2-5 – God revealed certain truths to Paul. When we read the letter he wrote, we can understand his knowledge
1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 Rejecting Paul’s letter is rejecting God.
Implications:
We never have to regard the bible with mistrust, as if it somehow stands between us and God. We never have to let its human authors, its human language, or the fact that it’s in a book lead us to think it can’t be God’s word. We never have to worry that we have something less than if God himself stood and spoke to us audibly. In fact, the people who God did speak to audibly also received instructions or the inner prompting to write—which means that God himself chose writing and collecting writings in a book as the best way to preserve what he said for future generations. (See also 2 Peter 1:12)
The simple logic is this:
If the God of the Bible exists at all, he can talk.
If he can talk, he knows how to communicate in ways we can understand, and he can direct those words to be written down.
If he made us in his image, he is fully capable of working in us so that our writing matches what he wants to say.
3. Application: 2 Timothy 3:14-16 — Because it’s inspired, it’s what you need.
“profitable” = “yields a practical benefit”
- Doctrine – what should I believe? What should I think? What is true?
- Reproof – where am I going wrong? Where am I messing up?
- Correction – How can I fix things?
- Instruction in righteousness – How should I live my life in a way that pleases God?