Bible Question:
It is my opinion that the new testament in accurate, useful and reliable but not "the word of God". It seems that 2 timothy 3:16 is not refering to the new testament. It had not yet been compiled. It is my opinion that the word of God is Christ and the gospel as in (2 corinthians 2:17,4:2, john 1:1, 1:14) I think the belief that the bible is the word of god is a stumbling block for some people to come to Christ. Do we need to believe the bible is the word of God for salvation? Then why do we Christians seem to hold on to this belief? Why do we need to believe the bible is the word of God in order to become a member of a church? Are there any Christian groups or demominations that have my view? I would greatly appreciate your opinion on this subject. |
Bible Answer: Dear hetfield, I’ll offer my opinion if you’ll hear it: Our Bible, both Old and New Testaments are the inspired word of God. I’ve seen a definition of biblical inspiration that states it is “the Work of the Holy Spirit by which, without setting aside their personalities and literary or human faculties, God so guided the authors of Scripture as to enable them to write exactly the words which convey His truth to men, and in doing so preserved their judgments from error in the original manuscripts.” Through (fallible) human authors, God manifested the infallible and errorless writings, which convey His messages. If you admit that the New Testament is not the inspired word of God, you must admit then, that is simply the work of fallible humans. If that is the case, how can you further attest to its accuracy and usefulness and its reliability. Throughout the ages men have proven to be unreliable and to history’s account, well history, or our perception of it, depends on who we are and who’s account we read. Example: George Washington was a great hero to the Revolutionary Army of the colonial United States. To England, he was a traitor. His character is depicted differently depending on whose version you read. The same can be said of Benedict Arnold. He was a national hero in one view, a treasonous rebel in another. So to put your trust in the historicity of the New Testament while it was composed and written by uninspired men is dangerous to say the least. How do you know for sure that it is the undeniable truth? If written by uninspired men and therefore not the word of God, then you never really can. Can you? History is infested with fallacy. The New Testament is more than just simply some historical document. It is part of God’s revelation to man. We damage so severely the word of God, our Bible, when we think we can play God and pick and choose what Scripture is inspired and which is not. In doing so, quite quickly, the rest of the Bible begins to unravel. Only God has the authority to decide what is inspired and what is not. Scripture attests to the fact that all of it is inspired, as has been pointed out by numerous people throughout this thread. You can claim this is circular reasoning but that is God’s reasoning. He determined to inspire the men He did to record His word. If God is truth: (John 3:33, Romans 3:4) then you must admit that what is breathed out by God must also be true and infallible. The Holy Spirit is the inspiration behind the Prophets and Apostles. They spoke the truth predicated on that inspiration, which was then recorded for our benefit and secured by God Himself through His Holy Spirit, to ensure that was recorded, remained unadulterated by the “fallible” human authors. Now the Bible cannot save you, that is for sure. But it can direct your ways to discover the One who can, which you attest to already knowing. You seem to put your faith in Christ and strongly and consistently state that, but you diminish the authority of the Word that pointed you in His direction. As you stated: “I can and do believe in Jesus because of the bible.” If your faith is in Christ and your salvation is true, it is because the Holy Spirit, a work of God has made it so. The same Holy Spirit that so divinely inspired the written Word of God in which you question. Just some thoughts. WOS |