Inspiration Theory Contained within the Bible is a consortium of books that are as various as they are numerous. Their genres range anywhere from histories, to letters, to narratives, to poems, and even beyond that. Something that binds all of these books together, however, is the means by which they were inspired. The muse that breathed these books into life is consistent from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21; that muse is the Holy Spirit. Many authors penned books that have been believed by many to belong in the Bible, but what separates those Apocryphal documents from the pure, holy scriptures of the Bible is the Holy Spirit; the one that inspired them. Claims of this fact are made throughout the entire Bible; 2 Timothy 3:16 says that “Every …show more content…
The natural inspiration theory says that the contents of the Bible were merely written by men of special religious insight; simply the philosophies and arguments of people that were remarkably close to the Lord. However, when one acknowledges the very nature of what the Bible is, this argument is made null. The Bible, according to John 1:1 was with God in the beginning, and is God. Looking at the Word through this lens rules out the option of its inspiration being meager religious intellect. The spiritual illumination theory says that the Bible was inspired by the Holy Spirit, yet is no more inspired than other Christian literature. This is saying, in extension, that a book by Judah Smith is just as inspired as the Bible, and that it is “the writers who are inspired, not the writings themselves” (Bible.org). Another theory, the partial inspiration theory, says that some parts of the Bible are Spirit-inspired and others are not. This theory says that the sections of the Bible that deal with heavy matters of the Christian faith, such as salvation, are inspired, while other parts, like history, are not. Charles C. Ryrie, a prominent theologian, said in regards to this theory, “But is not the biblical teaching about salvation based on historical facts? Suppose those facts are inaccurate? Then our understanding about salvation might also be erroneous. You cannot separate history and doctrine and allow for errors (however few) in the historical records and at the same time be certain that the doctrinal parts are true”
The Bible, for many centuries, has impacted society, culture, and religion in innumerable ways. Included in the Bible’s impact, is fictional literature (Erickson, 2015). Biblical allusion, defined as an ancillary reference to Scripture ("Definition," 2015), can be a useful tool for fiction writers to draw the attention of the reader to certain biblical truths. Mixed in with the writer’s style and language, biblical allusion, assists in building plot lines, themes, and influence over the reader’s beliefs (Erickson, 2015). Nevertheless, the real magic of biblical allusion lies within the author’s creative genius and ability to infuse biblical themes, metaphors, images, and characters in with the story to allow the audience to reach certain
It is the reader and his or her interpretive community who attempts to impose a unified reading on a given text. Such readers may, and probably will, claim that the unity they find is in the text, but this claim is only a mask for the creative process actually going on. Even the most carefully designed text can not be unified; only the reader's attempted taming of it. Therefore, an attempt to use seams and shifts in the biblical text to discover its textual precursors is based on a fundamentally faulty assumption that one might recover a stage of the text that lacked such fractures (Carr 23-4).
This meaning, the Bible is a motivational tool. An example of this in passage is 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” As the layers of a pizza each have their individual depth, the layers of the Bible (scriptures) are used as deeper significance and motivation for all God’s people to learn his ways and do well by him and others. Kuhn even mentions how the Bible is used by Christians similarly, “It grants believers the confident sense that answers to many of life’s questions (from the profound to most mundane) can be found in this sacred text (p. 4).” He is essentially stating the Bible is used for motivation and inspiration by many Christians to conquer daily
“The Bible is a special revelation from God to man of truths concerning Himself, His purposes, His plans, His will, man and his sinful nature, and God’s redemptive plan for man.”
The Hebrew Bible, better known as the Old Testament, is a collection of tomes that form part of the Biblical canon. Many scholars around the world do not think that a single author wrote the books contained in the Hebrew Bible, but rather that it represents centuries of stories frequently compiled after the events they describe . The stories were created with visions for the future, in order to allow audiences insight into communities and beliefs that were common thought during their era. The stories responded to the issues and problems of their time, but also addressed contemporary climates. While the stories themselves may not be true, they convey truth without needing literal readings. For example, the creation stories in Genesis, portray God as creating the universe, and while this is considered as not ‘literally true’; the stories communicate theological truths about mankind’s relationship with God through the eyes of Hebrew writers .
Even though humans wrote the text, translating it and passing it down from generations to generations, God’s truth is unchanging. Debates of the inerrancy of the bible cannot usurp God as the King of grace. Instead of focusing on the inerrancy of the Bible, individuals who wish to seek a life of faith should focus on the inspiration God is showing them in his word. These revelations should move them into applicable, daily life changing implications from what they have learned. God shows revelations of himself through the Bible, and his character is revealed time and time again throughout scripture. Any faulty facts or discrepancies in grammar or data, should not take away from the value that scripture holds. When we read scripture we bring new meaning of interpretations of the truths God shows us, since new eras and environmental factors will be influential on how we process information. The bible is not just a fact book, telling humans stories of the past, but instead the bible is inspired instructions for how we can deal with spiritual and ethical encounters we
For Christians it is impossible to comprehend all of God’s mysteries, all of God’s plans, all of God’s desires, abilities, mercies, and blessings. It’s impossible to comprehend all of God. This is the price they pay for serving a divine God of infinitive complexity. Even when he spells it out for them, as he did with creating the bible, the human mind is incapable of understanding how God works. Since people are simple minded and selfish beings, debates over what God is trying to tell them in scripture can be formed, and can get to the point where these debates spilt the Christian churches. The question of whether or not the gifts of the holy spirit still has an active role in the modern day churches is one that has been greatly argued among the believers. Although many ideas have been presented on the matter, three major viewpoints have been formed; Cessationism, Continuationism, and an open but cautious view. Whether or not the gifts of the spirit are still part of the Christian chu...
The Bible is read and interpreted by many people all over the world. Regardless, no one knows the absolute truth behind scripture. Walter Brueggemann, professor of Old Testament, wrote “Biblical Authority” to help people understand what he describes as six different parts that make up the foundation to ones understanding of scripture. He defines these six features as being: inherency, interpretation, imagination, ideology, inspiration, and importance. As Brueggemann explains each individual part, it is easy to see that they are all interconnected because no one can practice one facet without involuntarily practicing at least one other part.
~The agnostic will not deny that, if every particle of authority and supernatural character be taken from the Bible, it will remain one of the world’s great literatures, second to none. And the most polemic of all investigators must admit that appreciation is the end, and polemics only the means. {Richard D
For centuries now Christians have claimed to possess the special revelation of an omnipotent, loving Deity who is sovereign over all of His creation. This special revelation is in written form and is what has come to be known as The Bible which consists of two books. The first book is the Hebrew Scriptures, written by prophets in a time that was before Christ, and the second book is the New Testament, which was written by Apostles and disciples of the risen Lord after His ascension. It is well documented that Christians in the context of the early first century were used to viewing a set of writings as being not only authoritative, but divinely inspired. The fact that there were certain books out in the public that were written by followers of Jesus and recognized as being just as authoritative as the Hebrew Scriptures was never under debate. The disagreement between some groups of Christians and Gnostics centered on which exact group of books were divinely inspired and which were not. The debate also took place over the way we can know for sure what God would have us include in a book of divinely inspired writings. This ultimately led to the formation of the Biblical canon in the next centuries. Some may ask, “Isn’t Jesus really the only thing that we can and should call God’s Word?” and “Isn’t the Bible just a man made collection of writings all centered on the same thing, Jesus Christ?” This paper summarizes some of the evidences for the Old and New Testament canon’s accuracy in choosing God breathed, authoritative writings and then reflects on the wide ranging
The Bible student, laymen, or pastor will find the principles presented by Fee and Stuart helpful despite the weaknesses presented. The author’s contribution on how to interpret each of the different genres is especially beneficial. The Bible Student will have more knowledge of how to interpret God’s Word when finished with the work. Fee and Stuart achieve their goal helping the reader not only with interpretation, but with application.
Thus, an effort is made to highlight how Bible interpretation – through its publication – has developed in the history of Christianity.
The doctrine of salvation contains various aspects. The intent of this research paper is to provide a general overview of salvation from the angle of justification, propitiation, grace, redemption, and sanctification.
Answering these questions is the purpose of this essay. I begin by arguing that the Bible cannot be adequately understood independent of its historical context. I concede later that historical context alone however is insufficient, for the Bible is a living-breathing document as relevant to us today as it was the day it was scribed. I conclude we need both testimonies of God at work to fully appreciate how the Bible speaks to us.
was “inspired” by God over a period of 1500 years using 40 different men. The Words of