Infallible and Inerrant

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 3:16,17 NIV

Really? I mean, are you kidding? Every word in the Bible really IS the Word of God?

When you are brought up in the church as I was, you accept and understand that the Bible is the Word of God, without question. From the quaint story of Adam and Eve with a fruit tree and a talking snake, through to the revelation and testimony of an apostle who was exiled on an island for the mentally insane! In between we have the story of a big fish that swallowed Jonah purely to teach him a lesson that he should never have disobeyed the instructions of God. 

There are those in church circles who treat some of the Bible as fables to teach us lessons, but they are NOT completely true. If that really is the case, what do we do with the verses at the top of our blog? If we discount them, what other verses do we discount? Do the ten commandments still hold? I suggest we are in dangerous territory when we mess about with the Bible as written, no matter the translation. We can’t pick and choose what we accept depending on the version or translation we prefer.

The questions raised by some believers (yes they are believers) are real, and take some answering, but they must be addressed. Otherwise we cast doubt on the infallibility and inerrancy of Holy Writ, and that cannot ever be good for believer and unbeliever alike.

I prefer to take the position that I may not understand the Bible in its entirety but I believe it enough to take it to the grave and therefore my eternity because my salvation depends on it. There are enough unbelievers and disbelievers to go round and pick at our Bible, but please do not let us join their ranks. All that does is cement their thinking. Can you hear their words as they talk to their other unbeliever friends? Hey, did you not know that David doesn’t believe the Bible either? Based on his life and words, the Bible and the way of salvation just cannot be trusted. Told you they are all hypocrites.

For my part, I must take my Bible as truth, in its fullness, otherwise there are many who will drive a bus through my belief system. I do not wish to stand before my final judge, and be condemned by my own words of apparent doubt. It comes down to this: Will you and I take the Holy Scriptures as fully true, or will we cast doubt which will be a means of tripping up another seeker and letting them slip into a lost eternity? We have a grave responsibility in the words we speak, yes, even to our believing friends!

Confidence

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. Hebrews 10:35,36 NIV

In our youth, we feel that we can take on the world, and nothing will be able to get in our way. But as we get older, we start to realise that our confidence ebbs as we find out that there are some things, no make that many things we just can’t do anymore. It’s a stark truth and reality, and something we can’t change.

This verse gives me some comfort because the rich reward is not limited only to those who have boundless confidence. For me, the key word is not ‘confidence’, but to ‘persevere’ doing the will of God. Then, and only then it becomes certain, that we will receive God’s promise.

However, there is a serious note of caution. I started out to say that our confidence can ebb, and that is true as life affects us, but we are warned ‘do not throw away your confidence’. As with many things in the Christian life, we have choices, and here we have a choice to make too. If our God given free will allows us to throw our confidence away, thus losing the promise, we must also have that same free will to retain our confidence! With the strength given by God, we have the certainty of receiving the promise of God. What could be better than to be in the will of God, and in His favour?

Doubt

To be more accurate, faith and doubt, because I believe doubt can only come after you have experienced faith in something or someone. Faith is usually held dear, but doubt is dangerous. A simple example may be a restaurant you have used for years, and have built up a faith in its food and good reputation. Then, someone tells you they heard that this same restaurant had failed a health check. It may not be confirmed, but a seed of doubt is sown, and soon you are looking around for a new place for your takeaway food. Your doubt only came after you had first put your faith in the establishment. Most of us have been there already.

Doubt can be funny when it comes down to thinking your wife can’t make a roast dinner like your mother’s, or your husband can’t put an Ikea wardrobe kit together like your dad! However, when a seed of doubt is sown it is very difficult to remove, and may not be possible. The worst doubts are the ones you have about the people and things you care about the most. For example if a spouse starts to doubt that their partner doesn’t really love them, and all because a friend has whispered in their ear. When that seed is placed in your heart, how do you remove it, after all you may not want to talk about it openly for fear you are wrong. Talking about your own feelings could be disastrous for your relationship. This scenario is probably more prevalent than we care to admit. Doubt is dangerous, because it undermines the common foundation of faith you share.

The Christian faith can run deep in the heart, and can withstand many storms and external doubts which can be thrust at you from those whose opinions you don’t care about. Our faith is in the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and the finished work of Calvary, and the resurrection. For the most part, and in most Christians, this faith will endure, and most doubts will be dealt with quickly and easily. We can and do believe in the faith we treasure, and there is not a lot which can alter that.

The true Church is the bride of Jesus Christ as described in the Bible, so let me go back to the analogy of the doubting spouse, and the dangerous place they find themselves, fermenting in a situation before anything is openly said. This can and does end in separation and even divorce, but always leads to distrust. How can you trust your spouse after they have doubted your love? Using that analogy, what then if a seed of doubt is sown in your heart about your church? Not the true bridal Church of Christ, but in that unseen hierarchy which controls many small assemblies? What if those whispered doubts are unfounded, or perhaps only partially founded, in other words, some parts may be true? Make no mistake, there can be nothing worse than a half truth, or deceit under the guise of truth. As you weigh these things up, what blame lies with those who  shout their whispers and hide behind the pretence of ‘speaking the truth in love’, or  ‘telling you for your own good’, or ‘the Lord gave me this message’? We do not need an enemy without, when we have such an effective enemy within. How about these words of the pharisee Gamaliel as a final thought: I advise you: leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.’ Acts 5:38,39 NIV

Faith? Easy!

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Heb 11:1 (KJV)

Faith is easy when you are well, and don't need to be healed. Faith is easy when you have enough for your family, and don't need food. Faith is easy when you are IN the boat, and don't have to step out into the unknown. Faith is easy when your children are healthy, and you don't fear disease. Faith is easy when you sit opposite the doctor and he tells you the result is negative. Faith is easy when you sit in church thinking about roast beef, and don't have to worry about the hunger of foreign children. Faith is easy when the police don't come to your door to tell you your child is held in a cell, undergoing a drugs test. I could go on, but do you get the idea?

The verse above has words in it, like 'hoped for' and 'not seen'. How vague is that? How can we have faith when the whole idea is cloaked in doubt? If you have ever been in a situation where you needed to feel and see God, and exercise your faith, but couldn't, you will understand how empty these negative words can sound.

But take another look at the verse. It also has words like, 'substance' and 'evidence', and these are very positive words. Words we want to hear, and at times, need to hear. When times are tough, these are the sentiments you want to feel, and let's face it, as God's children, we can.

I think there is a veil between the way we see things in our humanity, and the way God sees things in His wisdom. We think 'hope for' and He thinks 'substance'. We think 'unseen' and God thinks 'evidence'. So, the lesson is clear. When our faith is tested, and we have doubts, we must bear in mind that we only see part of the image. God sees the bigger picture, and so can add the substance and evidence to ease our human doubt.

So, when things get out of your own control, try handing it over to the one who knows the end from the beginning. The one who can fill in the blanks in your life. Later on, when you are in the better position of being able to look back, you will maybe just be able to make out the faint form of your Saviour 'standing somewhere in the shadows'. I trust you will not have to go through a long valley, before you see that welcome shadowy form! Take heart, faithful ones, the way out of your difficulty is near, and certain.