Introduction
The Scriptures of the Christian faith can be briefly defined as the collection of the books of the Old and New Testaments which comprise the book commonly known as the “Bible.” This only presents the surface of a deeper doctrine which explains the Scriptures as God’s actual words to mankind as they were transmitted through human authors and preserved in oral and written form. Because the Scriptures are accepted as God’s revelation to mankind, they are the foundation for all Christian beliefs and doctrines. Every time an evangelist reaches out to find new converts, a pastor preaches the Gospel, or whenever the faith needs to be defended, the verses of Scripture are the instrument used. The importance of Scripture can best be understood by imagining Christianity existing without the Scriptures. Christianity would lack any authority and have no basis on which to authenticate the truth claims and beliefs of the faith. The Doctrine of Scripture is the collection of the elements of Scripture which provides for its truth, inspiration, inerrancy, necessity, authority, sufficiency, and clarity.
Scripture is the Word of God
The Scriptures are the foundation on which Christianity and its beliefs stand. The view that the Scriptures are the actual words of God which proceed from His mind and to mankind’s ears are what has elevated the Scriptures to the highest form of revelation that man can acquire. The Scriptures authenticate themselves as the Word of God by the accuracy of the prophecies given by the prophets who have spoken His words, “And if you say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the LORD has not spoken?’—when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him,” (Deut. 18:21-22). Those who were chosen by God to speak His words were given prophecies that were fulfilled by Him so that the people could distinguish a true prophet from a false one. God provided these instructions so that the people can test future prophets who claim to speak in His name. Because God’s presence and relationship to Moses was so visible and undeniable, his status as God’s spokesperson was absolute and beyond question. God would continue to raise other prophets who would speak for Him after Moses, so He provided the method by which He would elect them, give them His revelation, and command them to provide His revelation to the people. “Then the LORD said to me, ‘They have spoken well. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. I will hold accountable whoever does not listen to my words that he speaks in my name. But the prophet who presumes to speak a message in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods—that prophet must die,” (Deut. 18:17-20).
Inspiration
What is the Church’s teaching regarding the inspiration of Scripture? It is that all of Scripture is inspired by God. Every author of the books of Scripture was divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit as they wrote. Each author was chosen by God and anointed to be the instrument who would document the words of God as they were led by the Spirit. God worked with the individual styles, skills, and qualities of each author as He speaks His word through the human agent so that each word written as Scripture is the actual Word of God. God carried along each man so that what they wrote as Scripture is God’s message to mankind. Each author was directed by the Spirit of God to write in his own distinct style and intellect the word’s that proceeded from God’s mouth, then through the author’s mind and with the author’s hand so that the finished work was the message desired and approved by God. The Holy Spirit also supervised each author through the writing process so that His message was composed and recorded without error.
The Authority of Scripture
The authority of Scripture rests on the two pillars of the attributes of Scripture which we have already explained; Scripture is the Word of God, and the Inspiration of Scripture. The primary source of authority is God Himself. Having established that Scripture is the word of the living God, then it possesses the same authority as God Himself because Scripture is God speaking. God speaks only truth and His words contain no deception because God cannot lie, “in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago,” (Titus 1:2). Because Scripture carries this degree of authority, to question or deny it is equal to questioning or denying the words of the Lord Himself. The weight of the authority of Scripture falls heavily on the false teachers who deny, contradict, or falsify the clear teachings of Scripture. This is what makes this attribute of Scripture of such importance to the faith. Without the authority of Scripture to support the accuracy and truthfulness of the commands, declarations, and teachings contained within the Bible then Christianity collapses because it has no foundation on which to support its claims.
Inerrancy and Infallibility
Every book ever written, and every book ever read contains some errors and is not totally accurate or reliable in everything it claims. There is, however, one book that is free from error, and is completely reliable and truthful in all matters contained within it. This is a bold claim, and many people will challenge it. How can Christianity make such a claim about their Scriptures? The answer is that Scripture is the actual Word of God, and when God speaks His words contain no falsehoods or errors. God’s Word is true, and every word that comes from His mouth is truth. Then as God’s words move from His mouth to the pens of the authors of Scripture, the Spirit of God through His inspiration directs the process so that His Word is recorded as divine truth.
Closing Thoughts
The Doctrine of Scripture is comprised of the various attributes which form the foundation on which it stands as the divine Word of God. Jesus condemned those who attempted to corrupt and alter it as hypocrites who proclaim holiness, but their works display wickedness, (Matt. 15:7-9). The same is true today for those apostate pastors who corrupt the Scriptures in order to justify their own sinful deeds and to try to make acceptable what is clearly prohibited by the commandments of God. Their scheme is to disrupt God’s holy order so that they can be praised instead of being condemned.
Holy Scripture documents the Drama of Redemption from Genesis to Revelation, with each book functioning as part of a divine tapestry which provides God’s revelation to mankind. Every false teaching and corruption of God’s revelation is like a loose thread being pulled from the tapestry. Left unchecked, these loose threads will multiply and begin to cause God’s beautiful tapestry of Scripture to unravel until the Gospel message becomes distorted. As servants of Christ and defenders of the faith we are duty bound to defend Scripture and oppose false teachings. Let us learn, teach, and defend the Doctrine of Scripture with all of its attributes so that God’s revelation continues to save the lost and bring them into the Kingdom of Light!
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