From the Mouth of God: Definitions [Foundations]

We believe that when Scripture speaks, God speaks. Scripture is not a lesser revelation than if God were to show up tonight and speak directly to you or me. Scripture comes from the mouth of God.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:10

Welcome to the Theological Touchpoints podcast. I'm Julian. The focus for this episode is Foundations theology for the everyday Anabaptist. Well, let's get back with you all again. We are starting a new series in this podcast, this one on the inspiration of Scripture. We are continuing the series, the longer series, on Scripture. We looked previously at the Canon of Scripture. We're going to look at the inspiration of Scripture. Going forward, we're going to look at other aspects of Scripture the authority of Scripture, inerrancy of Scripture and so forth. As we have opportunity in this foundation's focus, we're going to be dealing with different themes, about themes of Scripture. The last number of episodes were more polemical, attempting to counter theological drift within our movement, and I am glad to be moving back into these episodes on basic Christian theology, aimed at edification more than correction. So we will be talking in the next few episodes about the inspiration of Scripture.

Speaker 1: 1:12

The word inspiration brings many different thoughts to mind. In the modern sense, we sometimes think of inspiration as a motivating or energizing force. An artist may feel a flash of inspiration for his next painting, a musician may be inspired to compose a new song, or I may search for inspiration to study for and write this podcast. But inspiration isn't just about feeling good, feeling inspired, being energetic, maybe having a good idea or general optimism. Historically and theologically, inspiration carries a different meaning. The word comes from the Latin inspirere, which means to breathe or blow into. It was carried over into the English through its use in theology and within that vein, inspiration came to mean to influence, move or guide by divine or supernatural influence or action. When used of Scripture, it's a strong metaphor of God's very breath being at work. When we use the phrase the inspiration of Scripture, we indicate that God actively energized the writing and compilation of the Bible we hold. Specifically, god orchestrated the human writers so that the message of Scripture as delivered to us is exactly what he intended for his people to have. This concept of the inspiration of Scripture is presented most clearly in 2 Timothy 3.16, where Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says all Scripture is given by inspiration of God. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God. Every part of what we call Scripture comes from God, is inspired by him. The original Greek is Pas Grafe Theonostas, which translated here all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, is just three words in the original. Really, the simplest translation is the NIV All Scripture is God breathed. Literally we could say all writings God breathed. Pas is translated, all Grafe translated writings, and it's used a majority of the time I'm not sure if it's majority of the time or all the time, but nearly all the time.

Speaker 1: 3:26

The New Testament what speaks of the writings? it's referring to Scripture. And then the third word, theonostas, is a compound word of Theo which we use in theology. It's a reference to God. It's the word used of God in the New Testament Theo And Nostas, which we use for pneumatic or pneumonia having to do with air or breath. And this is literally God breathed. It's a compound word that means God breathed.

Speaker 1: 3:57

What's been communicated to us here in this text of Scripture is that all Scripture comes from the mouth of God. Put differently, we believe that when Scripture speaks, god speaks. Scripture is not a lesser revelation than if God were to show up tonight and speak directly to you or speak directly to me. The words of Scripture are the very words of God. They are no less than those words which come from His very mouth. They are breathed out by Him. Scripture comes from God.

Speaker 1: 4:31

Though most Christians believe that Scripture is inspired, they vary when they define that interpretation, though the term was originally used to indicate that the entirety of Scripture is divinely. Given that definition has degenerated over time. As a good understanding of inspiration degenerated, it became necessary to be more specific about what we mean when we say the Bible is inspired. Charles Ryery, describing this, says Formally all that was necessary to affirm one's belief in full inspiration was the statement I believe in the inspiration of the Bible. But when some did not extend inspiration to the words of the text, it became necessary to say I believe in the verbal inspiration of the Bible. To counter the teaching that not all the parts of the Bible were inspired, one had to say I believe in the verbal, plenary inspiration of the Bible. Then, because some did not want to ascribe total accuracy to the Bible, it was necessary to say I believe in the verbal plenary, infallible, inerrant inspiration of the Bible. But then infallible and inerrant began to be limited to matters of faith only rather than also embracing all that the Bible records, including historical facts, genealogies, accounts of creation etc. So it became necessary to add the concept of unlimited inerrancy. Each addition to the basic statement arose because of an erroneous teaching. End quote, obviously based on this. We need clarity in this discussion.

Speaker 1: 5:58

Inspiration is a vital Christian doctrine, but we must explain and defend what we mean when we use the term. I find myself agreeing with Rairi's definition in its final form. Though it is clumsy, it is accurate. We believe in the verbal plenary. Infallible, inerrant inspiration of the Bible. The words are inspired, all of it's inspired. The words are infallible, that is, we will not be led into error. The words are inerrant, that is, they are truthful, they are trustworthy and the Bible is inspired. It comes from God. So, again, when we say the Bible is inspired, we mean the Bible comes from God. When Scripture speaks, god himself speaks and that the word of God as we have it, scripture as we have it, is an accurate record of what God intends to communicate to His people. It accurately represents the truth, it is a reliable witness to the truth. And it is right to say, with the Apostle Paul, that all Scripture, every verse, every word, every book comes from God, so much so that can be said, comes from His mouth, from the very mouth of God. If we agree on the fact that Scripture is inspired, we're still left with questions on exactly how that inspiration happened. What method or what means did God use to breathe out His word.

Speaker 1: 7:21

In inspiration we have two distinct elements the human and the divine. As we read Scripture, the human authors not the divine are most clearly seen. Yet we believe that God is the true author directing the process, so as truth is clearly revealed. How these elements come together is difficult to understand, though men have developed various theories to try to explain them, with more or less success. The aberrant views usually slide down one of two slopes Either they major on the human aspect, overlooking the divine author, or they major on the divine, to the point of eliminating the unique characteristics of the human authors. H Orton Wiley notes that the rationalistic explanations emphasize the human element, while the supernaturalistic theories minify it, maintaining the sacred writers were so possessed by the Holy Spirit as to become passive instruments rather than active agents. But neither side rightly represents the truth. The Bible is both undeniably human and undeniably divine. It is not merely a human product, but it's more than just God dictating His words. It is a combination of human authors recording history, recording what they saw, recording what they heard, and God cooperating with them so that the final product can rightly be called the Word of God, and it's God's truth.

Speaker 1: 8:50

So, as I said, the insufficient or incorrect views of inspiration usually slide down one of two slopes On the one hand, emphasizing the divine element so much that the human is forgotten, and, on the other hand, emphasizing the human element so much that the divine is forgotten. On the first side the emphasis on the divine we find what's called the dictation theory, or sometimes called the mechanical theory. This view holds that the writers are merely the Holy Spirit's pen men. While it's true that the Holy Spirit used men to compose his word, this perspective holds that their unique personalities disappeared entirely when they wrote Scripture. They had no more involvement than the courtroom teller does, simply recording the information given. They heard and wrote straight from God's mouth. Now, it's true that we have instances of this happening, but is this a correct explanation of Scripture as a whole? And I don't think it is. This is problematic because it simply doesn't fit with how the Bible is composed.

Speaker 1: 9:53

Scripture is peppered with various styles and perspectives of the men who wrote it and isn't bound to a single approach. There's different perspectives, there's different languages used, there are different experiences, there are different writing styles, different ways of expressing the same truth. The Apostle Paul and the Apostle John and the Apostle James all had very similar ideas of justification and sanctification, that is, sinners made righteous, finding life in Christ and living it out. But they have different ways of expressing that. The Apostle Paul is clear to distinguish between justification and sanctification faith on the one hand and works on the other hand, if you want to use those labels where James puts them together Now. Do they disagree with each other? No, they have different ways of emphasizing the same truth. The Apostle John talking about the same truth that those who have experienced life in Christ, who have found life in Christ, have come to him in the gospel and found salvation, are going to live differently, are going to bear fruit. In John's usage, there's no division between those who have life in Christ and those who demonstrate life by having good works. So all three of these writers have different ways of expressing the same truth but, rightly understood, they harmonize and they teach one and the same thing.

Speaker 1: 11:14

If this was merely dictation from God, we would expect all three of them would write more or less the same thing. But we recognize the human element and the differences between books and that leads us to conclude that there's more going on than just mere mechanical dictation. Jc Wenger points out that the Bible contains the expression of human emotions such as disgust, discouragement, hope, aspiration, joy, sorrow and frequent accounts of the struggles and trials and temptations of the various saints of God. Even the accounts of historical events are told in simple honesty. The fact that the style and vocabulary vary sharply from writer to writer is adequate proof that inspiration does not mean mechanical dictation.

Speaker 1: 11:59

So the error in the dictation theory is not that it says God wrote scripture. The problem is it over-emphasizes that fact and forgets that God empowered the writers, not just the writings. Such is clearly shown in 2 Peter 1, 21, where he says Holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. They themselves spoke, not just repeating what God said, but expressing his truth in words consistent with their own character and experience. The men were not passive agents, but were actively involved in the writing of scripture. A second issue with the theory is it implies that scripture is merely the Holy Spirit's memoir, when in fact it's composed from a variety of sources. The writers refer to personal experiences, to their own knowledge of history or to facts gathered from others who witness the events, all of which are apart from God's direct revelation.

Speaker 1: 12:55

Riree gives us four sources of scripture that clearly show its diversity. First, material directly from God, a second prophetic material, third, research material and fourth, historical material. Of these, two are divine and two are human. Thus it's better to hold that God directed the writing rather than to teach that he merely dictated everything. On the other side of the slope, we find teachings that almost entirely remove God from the picture. Such are the intuition theory and the illumination theory.

Speaker 1: 13:30

The intuition theory is rationalistic. An inspiration, according to this view, is merely a superior insight on the part of natural man. It's merely the product of human wisdom. By this, the formation of scripture didn't require God to do anything. Man simply figured out the truth himself. The problem here is twofold. First, it teaches that man can discover God on his own, which disagrees sharply with 1 Corinthians 2,14, and it flies counter to scripture's own testimony of divine inspiration. Second, peter, chapter 1, which says that holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, and also 2 Timothy 3,16,17, which we talked about earlier. All scripture is given by inspiration of God.

Speaker 1: 14:17

Similar to the intuition theory is the illumination theory, which takes a step in the right direction, allowing for some divine involvement, but it still doesn't suitably account for the data in scripture. It basically brings inspiration down to the level of illumination, which is the Holy Spirit's enablement to understand better that which we already know, making no distinction between the empowerment, ever-christian experiences and the special revelation given to the inspired writings. This you put some of the church's great hymns on a level with the Bible. Now we recognize that some of the hymns of the church bear the marks of divine blessing. Similarly, when a sermon is preached or when the truth is taught, God is present to open our minds, to illuminate our minds, so we can understand the truth of the Word.

Speaker 1: 15:07

The illumination theory essentially says that's all that's happening in inspiration, where God gives men an additional ability to understand and rightly interpret the information that's already in front of them. But like the intuition theory, this doesn't require that God reveal anything. He gives the ability, but men still discover the truth themselves. This denies a fundamental tenet of scripture God's grace displayed as he reveals to us what we could never discover ourselves. The concept of revelation is God's willing disclosure of himself, so that he can be known by us, discovered by us, and we can have a relationship with him. The intuition theory and the illumination theory both remove this element, saying either we can discover the truth in and of Ourselves or all we need is a little help along the way, neither accounting for the fact that unless God speaks, we don't even have a place to start. We don't even have a starting point unless God chooses to reveal himself to us, as in the dictation theory. These two views get a certain aspect right and they focus on the fact that men were a necessary part of scriptures formation. But in that skewed perspective, god nearly disappears. The dictation theory majors on the opposite end and isn't much better.

Speaker 1: 16:26

The right understanding requires balance, a balance between the divine and human elements of the inspiration of scripture. Now, this kind of tension shouldn't be foreign to us. Think about the person of Jesus Christ. He is the God man. He is truly human and truly divine. We hold to both, even as we admit we don't understand how that can be. Many other biblical beliefs require a certain tension and a confession that we don't always understand God's ways and, by the way, that's a good thing. Likewise, the biblical understanding of inspiration requires a willingness to believe what the Bible teaches, even when it may not quite make sense to our human minds.

Speaker 1: 17:07

And the Bible presents the writings of humans, but according to the apostle Paul. It says those writings were directed by God and God worked in and through them, and it is right to say that the product of those writings, what we call scripture, what we call the Bible, can be said to be the word of God and even can be said to be from the mouth of God. So, in finding the balance, the theory that's generally accepted among Christians and that I believe best degrees with scripture, is sometimes called the dynamical theory, and I'm going to assume that most of you listening hold to this in one form or another, even if you don't know to call it by this name. I wouldn't either. This label is given by theologians seeking to describe and Categorize the different definitions and explanations of inspiration that are given by believers.

Speaker 1: 17:59

This theory, called the dynamical theory, is a marriage of the divine and human elements. In a nutshell, it holds that God used men to write scripture without stripping away their personalities. They wrote God guided, and scripture was created. God directed the content so that they wrote all that he wanted them to write, without excess or error. Nothing should have been in scripture that is not, and everything is exactly as God wanted it to be. Yet they did write, using their knowledge and their experience.

Speaker 1: 18:31

The Bible is distinctly supernatural and distinctly human. This combination evidence is a wise, loving revealer. The fact that it is human makes it accessible, but the fact that it is divine means it teaches us truth We could not understand if it weren't from God. It's fortunate that the Bible is not written in the form of an oracle from heaven, without any evidence of human emotion or experience. The fact is that the Bible employs the language of common people in everyday life, as they experience their trials and difficulties and Receive divine grace from God. It's just these truly human factors which makes the Bible meaningful to millions of people in all ages of the world. It is indeed fortunate that the Lord did not allow his word to be written in the language of science or philosophy, or even theology.

Speaker 1: 19:24

The purpose of the inspiration of Scripture is to make the sacred writings able to instruct us for salvation in Jesus Christ. God speaks to us through men, meeting us on our level and through the Word of God, leading us into relationship with Him, leading us into a life of faithfulness. Through Scripture, we are instructed for salvation, instructed for faith, instructed how to live, as 2 Timothy 3.17 says that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. It's easy to lose focus in the muck of this discussion, but several things are clear. We will dig further into inspiration in the following podcasts, but for now I'll leave you with these six things.

Speaker 1: 20:11

First, inspiration is essentially guidance. The Holy Spirit supervises the writing, preserving the authors from all error and all omission. Secondly, the Holy Spirit's involvement covers a spectrum. Sometimes he was directly involved, other times less so. Yet he was always involved and the resulting Bible is exactly as he wanted it to be. Third, inspiration includes the thoughts and concepts, but it also includes the individual words the writers used. Fourth, the writers were not passive. Each one wrote from his own perspective and experience. Fifth, inspiration in this sense only applies to the authors of Scripture. It is distinct from individual revelation, individual relationship with God and the Holy Spirit day to day guidance each Christian experiences. This is something distinct. The inspiration, this work of God in speaking through men, only applies to the authors of Scripture, only applies to those who spoke for God and whose writings are preserved for us in the pages of Scripture.

Speaker 1: 21:14

Sixth and finally, inspiration is only fully true of the original documents, and this gets into issues of preservation of the text and so forth. We believe the original documents, which nobody actually has access to, are fully inspired. The manuscripts we have today are entirely trustworthy. They are accurate representations of the original. And, yes, there are scribal errors in the discrepancies between texts. None of those affect the central truthfulness of Scripture. We believe the words of God were inspired when they were written. We believe God has not only written his word but he's also worked to preserve that truth so that we today, 2000 or more years after these words were written, can still learn the will of God, learn of God, come to faith in him through them.

Speaker 1: 22:01

So sixth inspiration is only fully true of the original documents. That said, we have good manuscripts and we can trust that we truly have the words of God and, even through translation, can be confident that we are hearing the truth of God. When Scripture speaks, god speaks. It behooves us to hear and obey. Thank you for joining us for this episode of the Theological Touchpoints podcast. This podcast is a production of Sword and Truppet Ministries. For more information, visit wwwswordandtrumpetorg Or theologicaltouchpointscom. If you have thoughts or questions, you can contact us at podcastattheologicaltouchpointscom. Now. May the God of Peace himself sanctify you completely and may your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you as faithful, who also will do it.