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What is meant by the doctrine of the “inspiration of Scripture”
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The Word of God is “inspired”—literally “breathed out” by God. It is his voice, the work of his Spirit. God is a speaking, communicating God. In the beginning, he created all things by his Word (Genesis 1). He speaks to Adam, Abraham, Moses, Joshua, and the prophets in human language. He called prophets to speak for him. Old Testament prophets and New Testament Apostles claimed to be recording the very words of God, and spoke with God’s authority as such. Today, we have those words preserved in the Bible. Therefore, when the Bible speaks, God speaks.
“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 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 servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” - 2 Timothy 3:14-17
Other Scriptures to consider:
"Hear me, you heavens! Listen, earth! For the Lord has spoken.” (Isaiah 1:2)
“The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah...The word of the Lord came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah” (Jeremiah 1:1-2)
[God] spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David… (Acts 4:25)
“And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe.” (1 Thessalonians 2:13)
“Where do we find God’s Word except in the Scriptures?”- Martin Luther
The unity of Scripture
Another reason to trust that the Bible is God’s Word is that it tells an amazingly unified story. Although the Lord used over 40 human authors over a period of 1,400 years, and although the Bible contains many different types of literature (narrative, poetry, law, biography, prophecy, etc) it all fits together to tell one unified message about God.
Imagine various pieces of a cathedral arriving from different countries and cities, converging on a central location. In fact, imagine that….forty different sculptors made contributions over a period of many centuries. Yet the pieces fit together to form a single magnificent structure. Would this not be proof that behind the project was a single mind, one designer who used his workmen to sculpt a well-conceived plan? The Bible is that cathedral, assembled by one super-intelligent architect.
-Irwin Lutzer, Seven Reasons Why You Can Trust the Bible
(I highly encourage you to pick up a copy of this book!)
the history of the Bible
The story of the Dead Sea Scrolls
questions for reflection
What further questions do you have about the Bible’?
How have you experienced God speaking to you through the Bible?