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The Inspiration of the Bible
The Bible is the word of God (not that it only contains the word of God as some say). Severally, in the scriptures, we find phrases such as: Thus saith the Lord, the Lord said etc. The Bible is God’s written revelation to the human race.
It is originally written in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic and the writers were instruments in God's hands. According to 1 Timothy 3:16, the Bible is given by the inspiration of God (God-breathed).
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16).
New International Version
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16).
In essence, God, through the Holy Spirit engaged human writers to pen down the pages of scripture. They were not transcribers. They wrote about things as they happened and used different styles.
Some wrote accounts (stories), poems, letters, etc. and they also wrote according to their vocabularies. In all, they expressed the mind of Christ, the will of God and the words of the Holy Spirit.
We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 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 (2 Peter 1:19, 21).
The Bible is true in its entirety. It is correct in what it says about geography, science and other aspects of knowledge. It is free from error.
If any area seems unclear, it only needs to be properly interpreted.
Proofs of divine inspiration of the Bible
There are many people today who doubt the inspiration of the Bible.
Let's examine these seven proofs of the Divine Inspiration of God’s word. They are;
a. Its Continuity
b. Historical records
c. Biography of the Writers
d. Transformed Lives
e. Fulfilled Prophecies of the Bible
f. Standing the test of time and attacks
g. The testimony of the Bible about itself
1. ITS CONTINUITY
Continuity depicts consistency. The writers (about 40 of them) were of different backgrounds, cultures and languages. Yet, their writings on several biblical issues were uniform. They also wrote over about 1500 years. Paul was a lawyer, Peter was a fisherman, David was a Shepherd and later King, Luke, was a Doctor etc. Peter was a Jew and Paul was from a Gentile nation.
They even wrote at different places and different situations and their words give an impression that they come from the same Source.
2. HISTORICAL RECORDS
It is noteworthy that all historical accounts of places mentioned in the Scriptures are actually real and they can still be visited today. Israel, Syria, Egypt, Gethsemane Garden, Greece, Corinth etc. were places mentioned in Scripture and they still exist to date. Egyptian and Iraqi Museum contains evidence of the Exodus of the Jews.
3. BIOGRAPHY OF THE WRITERS
An incisive look at the life history of the writers of the Bible reveals that they were all people who had encounters with God. They were men who had been transformed by the grace of God.
The question we need to ask ourselves is if people of such calibre would want to present false information upon which people would base their faith. The answer is a certain NO.
Paul, for instance, was a man who was opposed to Christianity. He met the Lord on his way to Damascus and he became converted (Acts 9).
After this encounter, he began to preach the gospel he once opposed and 13 books in the New Testament are credited to him.
4. TRANSFORMED LIVES
The Bible has been a great source of transforming lives for centuries.
Testimonies abound of people who have seen the Light and experienced salvation as they read the Bible.
God opened their understanding and they understood and received the gospel. If the Bible has been a tool to transform people into Christlikeness, then we can conclude that it must no doubt be from God.
5. FULFILLED PROPHECIES
The fulfilled prophecies of the Bible prove that the Bible is truly inspired. A prophecy states that Israel would be scattered among nations and would later come together again (Ezekiel 37: 1-14). The prophecy was fulfilled in the 19th and 20th century. The Jews that were scattered returned from countries like Germany, Russia, Britain, Ethiopia, America etc.
The Bible also gave the promise of the birth of Jesus in the Old Testament (Isaiah 9:6). This promise was fulfilled in the New Testament in Matthew 1:21 which reads, “And she shall bring forth a son and thou shalt call His name JESUS: for he shall save His people from their sins”.
6. STANDING THE TEST OF TIME AND ATTACKS
No other book has experienced so much attack as the Bible. It has received more criticism over the years than any other book.
Concerning survival through the centuries as compared to other ancient books like the original writings of Julius Caesar, no other book has as many copies of the ancient manuscripts as the Bible. There are over 24,000 copies of New Testament manuscripts, some written within 35 years of the writer’s death.
Concerning withstanding attacks, it has survived the threats and predictions and threats of men like Voltaire, Robert Ingersoll and Diocletian that the Bible would soon become irrelevant or that Christianity would soon go into extinction. They were sorely disappointed as their intentions and actions against the Word of God were made void by the Holy Ghost. No doubt then, this book must be God’s book to man.
7. THE TESTIMONY OF THE BIBLE ABOUT ITSELF
The Bible tells us in I Timothy 3: 16 that, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God...”
The Encarta Dictionary ascribes the meaning of the Scriptures to biblical writings.
Furthermore, the Bible reveals that “...no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private information. 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. (2 Peter 1:21).
CANONICITY OF THE BIBLE
The canonicity of the Bible was another factor in determining the reliability of the Scriptures. The early church fathers were not the ones who determined it as some think but rather, it was the Holy Spirit working through these men.
Canonicity refers to the normative or authoritative books inspired by God for inclusion in Holy Scripture. The canonicity of a book is determined by God and only discovered by God’s people. In discovering canonicity certain questions were asked about each book that were considered.
The books that answered those questions in the affirmative were accepted while others were rejected. Such questions include;
1. Was the book written by a prophet of God?
This means thatfor the writer was a spokesman of God and for God. It could be an apostle, prophet, judge or king.
The most important thing was if they had a relationship with God. The Bible says, “Holy men spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost...” Think about the number of times we have the phrase, ‘Thus saith the Lord...’ in the Bible.
2. Was the writer confirmed by the acts of God?
A miracle is an act of God to confirm His word given by His messengers. The Holy Spirit bore witness by signs and wonders in the ministry of the apostles and also that of the prophets in the Old Testament (2 Cor 12:12, I Kings 18)
3. Does the message tell the truth about God?
Does the message tell the truth about the personality of God. God cannot contradict Himself. Any book that failed this test was rejected. That was why one of the other books was rejected because it contained heretical teachings such as praying for the dead.
4. Did it come with the power of God?
This refers to the spiritual impact those books would make.
Would it be able to edify and encourage believers or not?
Was it powerful enough to convict sinners?
Books like Song of Solomon and Ecclesiastes were initially considered inauthentic but eventually, the messages of these books were seen as spiritual and accepted. (2 Timothy 2:15 -17)
5. Was it accepted by the people of God?
Did the initial hearers and succeeding hearers who were genuine people of God accept it as from God? Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice”.
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