When one truly
examines the foundations of Christianity it becomes inescapably clear that the
question of both Inerrancy and Inspiration of the Scriptures are paramount to
one’s theology. Reflecting on the above the issue of authority is raised. The
Lord Himself taught with great authority (Matt. 7:29) and furthermore He
utilized great power and authority in healing the sick (Mk. 8:22-25). This type
of authority is ontological authority[i] and was the
basis for Christ’s self-contained authority. Christ has been given the divine
title of the logos, “Word” (Jn. 1:1)
and if by ontological epistemology Christ can claim his authority then by the
same the logos of God is
authoritative, being in its very nature “God breathed” (2 Tim. 3:16). Naturally
you would expect such an authority to be both faithful and true (Ps. 119:89)
and the Word attests to itself this absolute faithfulness and truth.[ii]
The
Inspiration of Scripture is hard to deny and as one looks deeply into the text
you discover countless examples of men speaking from God and being prompted and
moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 1:21). This inspiration also gains its very
creditability in the fulfilled prophecies of the Old Testament in the lives of
historical figures such as Cyrus (Is. 45:1). This fits nicely with the theme of
truth and faithfulness discussed in the previous paragraph. Yet those critical
of such a view of inspiration lean on another idea, a conceptual form of
inspiration where God inspired the ideas of Scripture while neglecting to
inform the readers which parts were inspired[iii].
These critics also appeal to manuscripts that have no actual evidence of
existence[iv]
from which to draw the texts we have today. It would appear safer to assume the
historical, traditional understanding of inspiration, which is the Bible as a
whole is the written word of God.[v]
As
the debate continues the topic of Inerrancy arises. When Paul claimed he sailed
to Troas (Acts 16:8) it should be understood by the reader to be fact. Likewise
when Christ proclaimed Himself as the way, truth and the life (Jn. 14:6) it
should be properly understood that Christ claimed these things. Yet what we
cannot say of Scripture is that it is completely without error because we lack
the original manuscripts to empirically verify that no errors, including
grammatical, were made in transmission. However, on my view of Inerrancy, from
the grounds of God’s Middle Knowledge, the doctrine of Inerrancy need not be
the reason one forfeits his faith ala Bart Ehrman. If God does in fact posses
counterfactual knowledge, knowledge of what one would freely do in any given
situation, inerrancy does not need to be such a hotly contested doctrine.
Certainly some of the salutations Paul wrote (Eph. 6:21, 2 Tim. 4:19-21) could
have been indifference to God, yet we can affirm on Middle Knowledge, that the
Bible says precisely what God wanted to say and it conveys his message of
salvation to mankind.[vi]
The
arguments on Inerrancy start with The
Biblical Argument. This argument has some strong points yet its downfall
comes when it attempts to relate error to authority. When defenders of this
position state that if something contains errors it cannot be essentially authoritative[vii]
they ultimately take a path to the edge of the cliff. If in the future errors
are discovered in scripture then they will jump into disbelief. The second
argument, The Historical Argument,
appears to be the strongest argument for affirming the inerrancy of scripture.
Yet this argument is not without its problems for history shows starting with
Benedict de Spinoza and his publication
Tractatus Theologicopoliticus in 1670[viii]
that theologians believed in alternate views of inspiration thereby raising the
question of inerrancy. The third argument, The
Epistemological Argument, falls victim to the thought that if there is one
error then all scripture is false, overplaying the worry that this calls all of
Scripture into question.[ix] Just as with the Biblical Argument, the bar need not be raised this high. The Slippery Slope argument is the
weakest argument presented by Feinberg, and as such has the smallest defense. A
great many theologians hold a less rigid view of Inerrancy and are still
professing Christians, they have not surrendered the central doctrines of
Christianity[x].
There is simply no proof to support the necessity of such a conclusion.
The
relationship between inspiration and inerrancy find their locus in God Himself
for it was through the Word that became flesh (Jn. 1:14) that men were revealed
salvation, which is the overarching theme of Scripture.[xi]
When
properly applied to life, the Scriptures come alive by the very inspiration of
the Holy Spirit. Just as Peter and the apostles were filled with the Holy
Spirit and the Word of God (Acts 2:4) my view on Scripture continues to fuel my
passion to pursue the things of God with a focus on spreading His message to
the lost.
Bibliography
Craig, William Lane. “‘Men
Moved by the Holy Spirit Spoke from God’ (2 Peter 1:21): A Middle Knowledge
Perspective on Biblical Inspiration.” Philosophia
Christi, NS 1, 1999.
Feinberg, P.D. “Bible,
Inerrancy and Infallibility of.” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed.
Walter A. Elwell, 2nd ed., 156-59. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2001.
Henry, C.F.H. “Bible,
Inspiration of.” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell,
2nd ed., 159-63. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2001.
McDonald, H.D. “Bible,
Authority of.” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell, 2nd
ed., 153-54. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2001.
Towns, Elmer. Theology for Today Mason, OH:
Thomson Custom Solutions
Center, 2001.
[i] H.D.
McDonald, “Bible, Authority of.” in Evangelical
Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell, 2nd Ed. (Grand
Rapids: Baker, 2001), 153.
[ii] McDonald,
154.
[iii] Elmer L.
Towns, Theology for Today (Mason:
Thomson Custom Solutions Center, 2001), 61.
[iv] C.F.H.
Henry, “Bible, Inspiration of.” in Evangelical
Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell, 2nd Ed. (Grand
Rapids: Baker, 2001), 162.
[v] Henry, 161.
[vi] William
Lane Craig, “‘Men Moved by the Holy Spirit Spoke from God’ (2 Peter 1:21): A
Middle Knowledge Perspective on Biblical Inspiration.” Philosophia Christi, NS 1 (1999): 73.
[vii] P.D.
Feinberg, “Bible, Inerrancy and Infallibility of.” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell, 2nd
Ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001), 157.
[viii] Craig,
58.
[ix] Feinberg,
158.
[x] Feinberg,
158.
[xi] Towns, 53.
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