Killing Lazarus

I don’t remember ever hearing a message about “the plot to kill Lazarus.”

What happened earlier is more familiar. The death and resurrection of Jesus’ close friend Lazarus is recorded in John 11:1-44. Jesus heard that Lazarus was dying but waited an extra two days before he headed off to see him. But the time Jesus arrived Lazarus had been dead four days and was already starting to decompose. As the KJV puts it, “by this time he stinketh.” The extra time had allowed many people to arrive to mourn Lazarus’ death. Then Jesus commanded the stone in front of the cave to be rolled away. Jesus prayed out loud to the Father and said that this was so “that they may believe that you [God the Father] sent me.” Then Jesus commanded Lazarus to rise from the dead and come out. And he did. 

The raising of Lazarus is a familiar story but I had never paid much attention to the “plot to kill Lazarus” tucked away in the next chapter:

“When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, they came, not only on account of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.” –John 12:9-11

It takes a lot of nerve to plot to kill a guy just after he was brought back from the dead! What was the reason that people wanted to kill Lazarus? Was it because they had something against Lazarus personally? No. People wanted to kill Lazarus because his physical resurrection was undeniable evidence that Jesus was who He claimed to be. That miracle was very public and obvious. Many people knew Lazarus had been dead. Now they could see he was alive. People were coming to faith in Jesus because they saw the signs of life in Lazarus. The enemies of the light wanted to put an end to that.

If that is the case with Lazarus, what should we expect?

There is such as things as physical resurrection, but there is also spiritual resurrection. Physical resurrection is when someone is physically dead but is brought back to physical life. On the other hand, spiritual resurrection is when someone is spiritually dead and is brought back to life spiritually. This happens at the moment of salvation. Ephesians 2:1 says that we “were dead in the trespasses and sins” in which we once walked. Ever since Adam's rebellion, each of us come into this world spiritually dead—separated from the life of God because of sin. Even Christians were “by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Eph. 2:3) Thankfully, God did something about this. The next verse says, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.” This is spiritual resurrection. Salvation is being made alive again.

When God raised Lazarus there were obvious signs of life. He wasn't just laying there anymore. People could tell that he was no longer dead. In the same way, people should also be able to see signs of life when someone receives spiritual resurrection. It doesn’t outwardly look the same for everyone, but at salvation God starts the process of changing us from the inside out. We receive a new heart. New affections start growing—new loves. Sins we used to love become bitter. The things of God that we used to find dull turn from black and white to color. Some people are able to say goodbye to deep sinful habits. Others start to struggle against them—when there wasn’t even a struggle before. People find themselves wanting to read God’s Word, go to church, and pray and worship…not because they have to, but now because they want to. These changes are noticeable.   

Our lives should be a testimony to what God has done. It takes a miracle to physically raise someone from the dead and it also takes a straight-out miracle to raise someone to life spiritually. That new life did not come from the corpse. Corpses don’t do anything. God did it and God gets all the glory. Whether the changes seem big or small, fast or gradual, people see them. Some people will be happy with what they see. Others won’t.

Are you living a life that God’s enemies would be worried about? Or not? Does your life give evidence to the world that Jesus Christ saves and changes lives . . . or does your life, so far, give little or no evidence of Christ’s work?

They wanted to kill Lazarus. If we are living changed lives we should expect that some people won't like it. Darkness hates the light. Sin hates a contrast. Sinners like other people to sin with them because it helps down out feelings of guilt. Those who hate Jesus won't like it. Satan certainly isn’t going to like it. He doesn't want more people to put their trust in Christ. Satan doesn’t want people to look at your life and see undeniable evidence of Jesus’ power to give new life. The enemies of the light want to cover that up. Expect that. Prepare for that. But don’t let it happen.

Don't Be a Baby: Marks of Spiritual Maturing

Jesus taught that we must be born again. We start our Christian lives as spiritual babies but we shouldn’t stay there. But unlike physical growth, spiritual growth does not happen automatically. Too many Christians grow up to be “adult babies.” Paul complained about this with the Christians at Corinth. He wrote, “But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready” (1 Cor. 3:1-2; see also Hebrews 5:11-14).

It may not be possible to pinpoint your spiritual age, but I think that there are markers that we can look for. Just as we see certain things happen in the physical growth of a baby, we can also look for certain markers as a baby Christian grows toward maturity. Here are a few:

•      Learn to feed yourself.

Babies need milk to grow, but eventually they need to move on to solid food. A Hebrews 5:14 states, “solid food is for the mature.” But another mark of spiritual growth is being able to feed yourself rather than being spoon fed.  

“Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation” -1 Peter 2:2

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” –2 Timothy 2:15

•      Stop messing yourself.

We expect that babies are going to mess their diapers. In time, however, that should stop. In the same way, new Christians need to stop messing their lives as they did before they knew Christ. None of us reach perfection in this life, but we need to start trying to keep clean.

“For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry.” -1 Peter 4:3

•      Stop crying when you don’t get your way.

How do you react when things don’t go your own way? Do you pinch a fit or do you see yourself growing in peace, patience, gentleness and self-control?

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” –Galatians 5:22-23

•      Stop hitting.

Paul taught that the fighting among the Corinthians Christians was a mark of their immaturity. If we hit—with our fists, our words, or our actions—we are acting like bratty children.  

“infants in Christ . . . for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?” -1 Cor. 3:1,3

•      Learn to walk.

The Bible often uses walking as a metaphor for the Christian life. After we become Christians, we need to start living the way that Christians ought to live.

“…walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” –Colossians 1:10

•      Lean to speak.

We need to learn to open our mouths to talk about Jesus Christ and our relationship to him. We need to learn to use our words for good. We need to learn to verbalize our faith and have the confidence to speak and pray in front of others.  

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” –Ephesians 4:29

•      Learn right from wrong.

Children need to be taught what is right and what is wrong. Christians need to learn what God says is right and wrong. If we don’t do this, we will listen to the world and keep believing that evil is good and good is evil.

“But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” –Hebrews 5:14

•      Learn to get dressed.

There are two parts to this: Getting undressed and getting dressed. Christians are called to “take off” the practices of the old self and to “put on” the practices of the new self.

“Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator . . . Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” –Colossians 3:9-10,12

•      Take responsibility for yourself.

As kids get older they need to learn responsibility so that one day they can live without Mom packing their lunch every day and reminding them to do their homework. As Christians grow, they need to take responsibility for their own Christian lives. If someone still has to “make” you go to church and read the Bible and to serve, it isn’t looking good for your spiritual maturity!

“ for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.” –Ephesians 5:8-10

•      Take responsibility for others.

Not every person is mature enough to babysit or to be a good parent. A sign of even more maturity is that a person not only takes care of his or her own self, but now also takes care of other people. God wants us to move beyond our own needs so that we can help other people to grow toward spiritual maturity.

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus”   

–Philippians 2:3-5

•      Be able to reproduce!

Part of physical maturity is being able to reproduce. The same is true spiritually. A mature Christian should be able and willing to explain the message of salvation to another person. God wants to use you to help make new baby Christians!

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations . . .” –Matthew 28:19

•      Learn to make wise decisions.

Eventually kids leave the house. They need to be able to make good decisions on their own. (Although sometimes wisdom means knowing when to ask for advice!) Growing in wisdom means being able apply the right Biblical principles to your situation in life. It means planning long-term for the best goals. It means seeing the difference—not only between right and wrong, but between good, better, and best.  

“ Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” –Ephesians 5:15-17

This is a very incomplete list, but these are some of the marks that show that a person is growing toward Christian maturity. 

The Perspicuity of Scripture

Satan hates God’s Word and he will do whatever he can to keep people out of that book. One of his most successful lies is the myth that the Bible is too complicated to be understood by normal people. Don’t bother. Be afraid. Leave it to the experts. “Don’t try this at home.”

The word perspicuity is obscure, but what it refers to is the “clarity” of Scripture. (Ironic, isn’t it?) Perspicuity means clarity, plainness, transparency, or intelligibility. The perspicuity of Scripture means that Scripture is written so that it can be read and understood by ordinary believers.

Lie: The Bible is too complicated to be understood by normal people.

Truth: The Bible is meant to be read and understood. Think about these words from Deuteronomy 6:6-7:

“These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

These instructions are given to parents, not scholars. In order for this to make sense, God’s message must be clear enough that it could be understood by everyday parents and communicated to everyday kids.

Lie: You cannot understand the Bible without special teachers.

In the early church, the Gnostics claimed that they alone had secret knowledge that was the key to true understanding. If you wanted true understanding, you were held hostage to these teachers. Over the years, many other teachers and authorities have implied the same thing. Some church authorities have claimed that everyone must look to them for the official interpretation of Christian teachings. Some scholars love to give people the impression that they are the only ones skilled enough to analyze and understand the complex labyrinth of God’s Word. In addition, even evangelical teachers write books and publish videos claiming that they have discovered the keys to finally unlock God’s mysteries. You too can have these keys—if you buy their book or pay to go to their conference.

Truth: The Holy Spirit is given to all Christians to help them understand His truth. Read these words from the Apostle John in 1 John 2:27:

“But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true…”

John’s point was that believers didn’t need to be held hostage by the false teachers that were claiming that Christians needed them to give them the true interpretation of Scripture. Instead, John taught that all Christians have the anointing of the Holy Spirit and that part of the Spirit’s work is to illuminate the message of God’s Word to them. I don’t think that John is saying that teachers aren’t useful for Christians (there is a spiritual gift of “teacher” after all), but what he is saying is that Christians don’t need to be dependent on human teachers.

What Perspicuity Doesn't Mean

Having said that, we need to make sure we don’t swing to the opposite extreme. There are several things this doctrine does not mean:

·         The doctrine of perspicuity does not mean that nothing is difficult to understand. Some parts of Scripture are difficult. Even the Apostle Peter recognized this (2 Peter 3:15-16).

·         The doctrine of perspicuity does not mean that you will understand everything automatically. Effort is involved. Sometimes, a great deal of effort and practice is involved.

·         The doctrine of perspicuity does not mean that you will understand verses out of context. You couldn't even understand a sentence from a simple children’s novel out of context. Why would you think you could do that for Scripture?

·         The doctrine of perspicuity does not mean that you will understand everything.

·         The doctrine of perspicuity does not mean that you will understand Scripture infallibly. Be humble and open to correction.

However, this doctrine does mean that the most important doctrine of Scripture are clearly set forth for those who are willing to read it, seeking God’s help with a heart that is willing to hear and obey God’s Word. I believe some of these clear teachings include the deity of Jesus Christ, the message of salvation by grace alone through faith alone, and basic instructions about God’s moral will for our lives.

Sometimes the real reason why people think God’s Word is unclear is because they do not want it to be clear. They don’t like what it says. They want to pretend that God’s Word is cloudy so that they do not have to obey it.

Is God is a competent communicator?

Ultimately, it comes down to either believing that (a) God is a good communicator, or (b) God is a lousy communicator. Yes, there are challenges for an infinite God to communicate to finite beings like us. And yes, there are problems even with communication between human beings—context, perspective and background information can all shape or distort the message that is heard. Still, the same people who write books about the impossibility of communicating truth still assume that you can understand  their books, blogs, and comments well enough. How arrogant it is to think that we can communicate better than God.

God does not have a speech impediment. We have a hearing problem. Our problem is that we have our hands over our ears to keep ourselves from hearing what God is saying. God’s Word is clear because the God who made us is a good communicator. Take your hands away and hear His voice through His written Word.

This article was part of a series, Five Things I Hope You Believe are True About Scripture: (1) Necessity, (2) Authority, (3) Inerrancy, (4) Sufficiency, and (5) Perspicuity. Also related: How to Silence God on a Subject You Don't Like and If Scripture is Clear, Why Don't We Agree?

The Sufficiency of Scripture

If you want to write a bestselling Christian book, tell people about hidden truth that isn't in the Bible. Write about your trip to heaven. Write about the personal information that Jesus channeled to you during your time of listening. Give people something newer and fresher than the dull pages of their dusty Bibles. A quick look at the top selling books at Meijers or Walmart will confirm that these are the books that fly off the shelves.

What does it say about Christianity that these are our most popular books? I’m afraid it indicates that we are enamored with the novel. We are more interested in privileged information than in the public record of the Bible. Our attentions are more perked by fresh finds than old truths. 

In the early days of the church, the Gnostics were a major problem. The word “Gnostic” means “knowing ones.” The Gnostics taught that salvation came from receiving hidden wisdom. They believed they had secret, insider knowledge that was only known by the privileged few. Men and women were drawn to Gnosticism because they were attracted to the idea of getting the inside scoop. People in those days had the same tendencies as people today.

In contrast to this, I hope that you believe in the sufficiency of Scripture. The sufficiency of Scripture means that the Bible contains everything we need to know to be saved and to live the Christian life. Everything that God meant to tell us for this age is written in the completed pages of Scripture. It is the full measure of revealed truth that God intends for humanity for this stage in redemptive history. Until Christ returns, it is all that we need.

There are no extra-biblical Easter eggs to go looking for. Scripture is enough.

Many of you will go camping this summer. If you go to a store to be outfitted for your camping trip and they have a sign in the window claiming they carry "Everything You Need!" then you shouldn't have to go to another store to buy something else for your trip. If they can give you everything you need, then you would be thoroughly equipped. If they didn’t have everything you need, then you wouldn’t be thoroughly equipped. With that in mind, think about what Paul tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:15-17:

…and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Paul tells Timothy that Scripture is able to make him thoroughly equipped for every good work. Timothy did not need revelation from another source to equip him thoroughly. Neither do we.

The sufficiency of Scripture does not mean that the Bible tells us everything there is to know about how to build nuclear reactors or how to remove someone’s appendix. However, it does mean that everything we need to know about God, salvation, and the Christian life is found in Scripture. It means that we don’t have to look to someone’s (very doubtful) trips to heaven for a secret glimpse behind the curtain. It means that we don’t have to buy someone’s book to get their secret knowledge. It means that we shouldn’t look for spiritual short-cuts. There are no divinely inspired Cliff-Notes for Scripture. There are no deleted scenes. It means that we don’t have to feel like “there’s gotta be something more.”

Satan will do anything he can to get us away from the Word of God. If he can make something else seem more interesting, more fresh, more authoritative, or easier... he will do it.

Years ago Rene Pache wrote this wisdom:

Why be tied to a book out of the past when one can communicate every day with the living God? But this is exactly the danger point. Apart from the constant control of written revelation, we soon find ourselves engulfed in subjectivity . . . Let each remind himself of the prohibition of taking anything away from Scripture or adding anything to it (Deut. 4:2; Rev. 22:18-19). Almost every heresy and sect has originated in a supposed revelation or a new experience on the part of its founder, something outside the strictly biblical framework. 

James Montgomenry Boice once warned that the great issue of our day would not be the authority of Scripture, but its sufficiency. The alternative to the sufficiency of Scripture is the insufficiency of Scripture. Either you believe that Scripture is enough, or you will turn to other experiences and teachings to supplement it. 

Remember, God is omniscient. When the Holy Spirit inspired the words of Scripture, He knew exactly what we would need today—even in the 21st century. Our world didn’t catch Him by surprise.

Be satisfied with what God has chosen to reveal. He could have revealed more, but He didn't. God has His reasons for that.

My advice to you is to disregard books on trips to heaven, special messages, and secret wisdom. Don't give it a market. Don't be fascinated by novelty. Instead, appreciate all that God has revealed in Scripture. Read it! Read all of it. Meditate on it. Appreciate the fact that the Holy Spirit is with us to illuminate the truths that He had written down long ago. He makes it come alive to us and shows us how it applies, in glaring brilliance, to our lives today.

I hope you believe that Scripture is enough. I hope you are satisfied with the sufficiency of Scripture. 

Next up: The Perspicuity of Scripture
Others in this series: The Necessity of Scripture; The Authority of Scripture; The Inerrancy of Scripture; 

The Inerrancy of Scripture

The Watershed

Thirty years ago Francis Schaeffer predicted that inerrancy would prove to be the watershed issue for evangelicals. He was right.

Schaeffer described that not far from his home in Switzerland, there was a ridge along the mountains, covered with snow. If the snow melted on one side of the ridge the water drops would trickle down the mountain into a stream, eventually joining the Rhine River, flowing through Germany and emptying into the cold waters of the North Sea. However, if the snow melted two inches to the other side of the ridge, these drops would flow down the Rhone valley into Lake Geneva, then into the Rhone River, flowing through France, until finally reaching the warm waters of the Mediterranean.   

This ridge along the mountains is called the watershed. Although the snow at the top of the mountain seems unified, as it melts its eventual destination will be determined by what side of the watershed it falls on. What seems like a very small difference at first will eventually separate these drops of water by thousands of miles.

Thirty years later, it is obvious that Francis Schaeffer was right. Ideas have consequences.

This article is the third in a series of introductions to the five attributes of Scripture: Necessity, Authority, Inerrancy, Sufficiency, and Perspicuity. These are Five Things I Hope You Believe Are True About Scripture.

Verbal Plenary Inspiration

In a nutshell, inerrancy simply means that Scripture is without error in all that it teaches. This doctrine dovetails with the belief that Scripture is the result of verbal plenary inspiration. If that phrase is new to you, please let me explain it: Inspiration is an older translation of the word theopneustos from 2 Timothy 3:16. It literally means “God-breathed.” The term verbal refers to the words of Scripture (think: “verbs” = words). Finally, if you go to a conference, a “plenary” session is one that everyone attends. So, plenary means “all.” Together, verbal plenary inspiration is the belief that all of the words of the Bible are God-breathed.

• Verbal = The words of Scripture are God-breathed, not merely the thoughts or ideas.
• Plenary = All the words of Scripture are God-breathed, not just some of them. (Not just the “red” ones, the popular ones, or the ones we like best.)
• Inspiration = God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16; theopneustos)

2 Timothy 3:16 teaches that all Scripture is God-breathed. It is wrongheaded to carve it up as if some parts are inspired and some parts are not. It is especially wrongheaded to think that the ink color in modern editions makes any difference. Jesus taught that even “the smallest letter” and “the least stroke of a pen” were all God’s unchanging Word (Mt. 5:18). We also see Jesus (John 10:24-35) and Paul (Gal. 3:16) making theological arguments that depend on the specific words of Scripture. In one of these instances, Jesus also declared, “Scripture cannot be broken.”

Another View: Infallibility without Inerrancy

In the past, the terms infallibility and inerrancy basically meant the same thing. Infallibility means that something cannot fail and inerrant means that something cannot err. They were two sides of the same coin. However, now many theologians distinguish between these two terms and argue that we can have one without the other. This redefinition of infallibility was solidified in the 70's by Jack Rogers and Donald McKim’s who argued (wrongly I believe) that the Scriptures are infallible but not inerrant. They argue that inerrancy is a modern invention, while infallibility is the historic Christian position. They also give the term infallibility a new, very limited meaning. McKim writes:

[Scripture presents] a divine message in human thought forms. The purpose of scripture is not to present inerrant facts; yet it is ‘infallible’ in that it will not lie or deceive about what it is intended to focus upon: God’s salvation in Jesus Christ. In this view, scripture is seen in relation to its central purpose, the proclamation of the gospel (John 20:31) . . . Scripture is infallible in accomplishing its purpose.

In this view, all of the words in Scripture are not inspired. Instead, God gave the human authors certain ideas and helped them to communicate those ideas as best they could in rough human thought forms. All of the details do not need to be correct, they argue, in order to lead people to Jesus.

Because of the influence of this view, a change in language has taken place. Infallibility used to be the more common term, but it used to mean, basically, that Scripture doesn't make mistakes. However, now inerrancy means that Scripture doesn't make mistakes and infallibility (to many) means that Scripture actually does make mistakes, just not very important ones.

Francis Shaeffer saw the difference between these two views of Scripture as the difference between one side of the watershed and the other.

By the way, I should point out that it is true that many older theologians did not list inerrancy as one of the four attributes of Scripture. However, it can be demonstrated that they believed that Scripture never taught any real errors. They saw this as part of the authority of Scripture—and often treated it under that heading. Today, we are forced to be more specific about this issue because of the redefinitions that have taken place.

The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy

As inerrancy was being hotly debated in the 1970’s, conservative theologians met in Chicago in 1978 and drafted the document known as The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy. It is a detailed description of what conservative Christians mean when they say that all Scripture is inerrant.

Many of the people who reject inerrancy these days seem to be reacting to a crude, strawman understanding of this doctrine. Instead, it is important for us to understand what inerrancy actually means—whether you accept it or reject it. Either way, it is worth your time to study this document. It helps us to know what inerrancy means, and what it doesn’t actually claim.

Here are a few examples of what the Chicago statement teaches (in bold), along with my summaries and comments: 

  

Article VIII.
     We affirm that God in His work of inspiration utilized the distinctive personalities and literary styles of the writers whom He had chosen and prepared.
     We deny that God, in causing these writers to use the very words that He chose, overrode their personalities.

God used the human writers’ personalities and writing styles without overriding their personalities. God did not use mechanical dictation.

Article X.
     We affirm that inspiration, strictly speaking, applies only to the autographic text [the original writings] of Scripture, which in the providence of God can be ascertained from available manuscripts with great accuracy. We further affirm that copies and translations of Scripture are the Word of God to the extent that they faithfully represent the original…

Inerrancy does not mean that every copy of Scripture has been miraculously preserved from type-o's or mistakes. It also does not mean that our translations are perfect. However, our copies and translations are inerrant to the extent that they faithfully reproduce the original. 

Article XII.
     We affirm that Scripture in its entirety is inerrant, being free from all falsehood, fraud, or deceit.
     We deny that Biblical infallibility and inerrancy are limited to spiritual, religious, or redemptive themes, exclusive of assertions in the fields of history and science. We further deny that scientific hypotheses about earth history may properly be used to overturn the teaching of Scripture on creation and the flood.

We should not limit inerrancy to “religious” areas of “faith and practice.” By the way, the phrase "faith and practice" originally meant everything that we believe and everything that we do. It was meant to cover everything, not to carve out some small section of truth that is different from science, history, and everyday reality. 

Article XIII.
     …We deny that it is proper to evaluate Scripture according to standards of truth and error that are alien to its usage or purpose. We further deny that inerrancy is negated by Biblical phenomena such as:

• a lack of modern technical precision
• irregularities of grammar or spelling
• observational descriptions of nature (example: "sunrise")
• the reporting of falsehoods (example: accurately reporting Satan's words)
• the use of hyperbole (obvious exaggeration to make a point)
• and round numbers
• the topical arrangement of material (rather than strict chronological order)
• variant selections of material in parallel accounts
• the use of free citations

This is a very helpful list of things that are not genuine errors. When you realize that the Bible speaks in the common language of observation, the vast majority of the alleged "errors" in the Bible vanish.

Article XV.
     We affirm that the doctrine of inerrancy is grounded in the teaching of the Bible about inspiration.
     We deny that Jesus' teaching about Scripture may be dismissed by appeals to accommodation or to any natural limitation of His humanity.

Jesus viewed the Scriptures as being the authoritative and unerring Word of God. If Jesus is God, then His view of Scripture is correct and we should believe it also.

Your view of Scripture will have consequences. The difference may seem like inches at first, but the eventual result is the difference between the frigid seas of liberalism or the warm sea of Biblical truth.

Next up: The Sufficiency of Scripture...

The Authority of Scripture

Some people treat the Bible as if it were just a fallible collection of human wisdom. For example, one professor of religion wrote in the Huffington Post, "The Bible hates homosexuality. So what?" This professor frankly admitted that the Biblical writers consistently disapproved of homosexuality. However, she counseled other same-sex advocates to stop trying to force the Bible to approve of that which it clearly does not. Instead, we can let the Bible say what it says—but we don't need to worry about it. After all, these inspired writers were "still only human" and "[got] some stuff dead wrong." Yes, these spiritual ancestors of ours "were ahead of their time in many ways, and . . . pooled their wisdom together for the benefit of society . . . but they also never thought of many of the questions that we have to deal with." Thus, their opinions are not mandatory for our own time.

Compare that attitude with the comment that Paul made to the believers in Thessalonica. In 1 Thessalonians 2:23 Paul commended them saying: 

And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe. 

They realized that they were not receiving from Paul a mere message of human wisdom. Instead, the message was from God and had His authority. 

The authority of Scripture is the second of Five Things I Hope You Believe are True About Scripture. (Click here for part one.)

2. The AUTHORITY of Scripture

The authority of Scripture means that everything that Scripture teaches and commands has God’s authority because Scripture is God’s Word. The voice of Scripture is the voice of God.

The Bible claims to be the Word of God around 1,500 times. Over and over again we see the prophets proclaim “Thus says the Lord.” They realized that God was using them as His mouthpiece to communicate His authoritative message. God has ultimate authority: Therefore His Word has authority. 

Dual Authorship

Let me ask you another question: Is the Bible the word of man or the word of God? The answer is that it is both. In the same way that Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully man, the Bible likewise is both fully the product of man and fully of God.  

We call this “dual authorship.” On one level, the words of the Bible are the words of human authors. God did not use channeling or some sort of automatic “zombie writing” to take over their bodies as they penned Scripture. Instead, God used their personalities, experiences, and writing styles—but also superintended the process in such a way that they wrote down exactly what He wanted written down. Peter describes it as though the Biblical writers were “carried along” by the Holy Spirit. The language he uses is like that of the wind carrying along a sailboat.

Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. -2 Peter 1:20-21

But—you might ask—if Scripture is also the work of human beings, then won’t it have errors in it? After all, the saying goes, “To err is human”? Well, that saying is not actually from the Bible. Also, it isn’t entirely true. Jesus Christ became a human being, and He never sinned (Heb. 4:15). So, just as Jesus was both human and divine without sinning, in the same way God kept the human authors of Scripture from communicating anything false as they wrote.

Revelation, Inspiration & Illumination

There are three phases to the process that God uses to get His truth to us. First, God reveals truth to his messengers, the prophets and apostles. Second, God inspires the writings of these authors so that the words they record are the exact words that He wants to be written. Finally, God illuminates this truth to our hearts as we read the words of Scripture. All three of these steps are the work of the Holy Spirit.

Step 1: Revelation (from God to the prophets and apostles)

The first step is for God to make knows the previously unrevealed truth to the prophets and apostles. Numbers 12:6 is an example of this:

He said, "Listen to my words: ‘When a prophet of the LORD is among you, I reveal myself to him in visions, I speak to him in dreams.’”

Another great example is Paul’s words in Eph. 3:3-5:

…that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets.

Step 2: Inspiration (from the apostles and prophets to the Bible)

Next is the process called inspiration. Sometimes we talk about great writers such as Shakespeare being “inspired” or ourselves being “inspired” when we have a great idea. However, when we speak of Scripture being inspired we mean something much more than that. The word used in 2 Timothy 3:16 (which used to be translated “inspired”) is the Greek word theopneustos. It literally means “God-breathed.” Thus, the Bible is God-breathed just as if it were the movement of air coming out of the mouth of the Lord.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. -2 Timothy 3:16-17

Also notice that according to this verse, it is not the writer that is inspired. It is the writings that are inspired—or better, that are God-breathed. It is not as if God just gave the writers some good ideas and left them to write it down the best that they could. No, instead, God oversaw what they were writing and worked with them so that each word was what He wanted in order to accurately communicate His message.

Step 3: Illumination (from the Bible to you and me)

Sometimes people will say, “God revealed something to me!” However, what they usually mean is that God helped them to see something that was already revealed to mankind in Scripture. This is actually what we call illumination. Illumination is when the Holy Spirit takes His truth from His book and makes it come alive to your heart. Think of illumination like a light being turned on in a room. The light doesn’t create anything new, but it helps you to see what was already there. 

In Ephesians 1:18 Paul said, “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.” 1 Corinthians 2:14 and 1 John 2:27 also illustrate illumination.

Oftentimes, illumination is really what is going on when we have experiences of God guiding us. What the Holy Spirit does is to illuminate certain Biblical truths that we have stored up in our hearts. It is as if we have His words written on the walls of a cave, and the Spirit shines His flashlight on the truths we need to apply. Of course, this means that the more of the Bible you have stored up in your heart, the more you have for the Spirit to work with! Just be careful not to confuse your gut feelings with what God is actually saying. If the Holy Spirit is really saying it, it will be written in His book.

Living Under God’s Authority

Remember, all of Scripture has God’s authority because all of Scripture is His Word. What it says, He says. This means that it is not optional advice. God never says, “Hey, this is just my opinion. Take it or leave it. I’m fine either way.” You can choose to live as if you are above God’s Word—or you can live as though God’s Word is over you. Only one of these choices is legitimate.

Because it is His Word, Scripture's authority is greater than:

• our feelings
• our opinions
• church traditions
• human laws
• the prevailing wisdom of the age

When Scripture speaks, God speaks. When God speaks, we need to listen, believe, and obey.

Next up: The Inerrancy of Scripture...