The Truth of God’s Word

Loading Scripture… Psalm 19:7–9 (ESV)

Loading Scripture… John 17:17 (ESV)

In the previous chapter, we determined the scope of God’s Word. Now, we need to determine what is true about God’s Word.

What is it and why does it matter?

What is true about the Bible? Is it a good piece of literature, but flawed because it is written by men? Is it an outdated reflection on past civilization’s viewpoints? Did Paul hate women and write what he did to repress them? In short, did God really say…? Or have we rightly defined the Bible as “all Scripture” and is “all Scripture” the words of Almighty God without error?

Throughout history, the Bible has shaped Western societies. What is and is not acceptable behavior, right worship, the path to salvation, even common expressions and practices, have their origins from the pages of what we call God’s Word. As fewer people accept the truth claims of the Bible, society becomes increasingly disordered in violation of God’s Word.

But truth does not change because someone doesn’t believe the truth or seeks to establish his own truth. The law of gravity doesn’t care if you think you can jump off the top of the Empire State Building with no resulting harm. The officer who pulls you over for running a red light doesn’t care that you feel red lights are oppressive to your free expression. And God’s wrath isn’t withheld because your truth says God just wants you to be happy. God tells us in Proverbs 14:12 that “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” He even repeats himself in Proverbs 16:25.

There is a tendency of man to pretend he knows what’s best apart from God’s Word. But the Bible commands us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” Trusting in the Lord means trusting His Word is true.

What should I seek to understand about the topic?

• Did God really say…? A key truth claim of Scripture is that it is inerrant – meaning without error. If I read a passage of Scripture, it is 100% accurate, regardless of your opinion on the subject matter.
• What is meant by the inspiration of Scripture?
• Is the Bible authoritative? OK, so God said it. Does it apply to me? Is it my rule of life?
• Is the Bible sufficient? Do we need the Bible AND church tradition?
• Is the Bible expandable? Should we expect that the 66 books we have in our current Bible is all of God’s Word, or when our neighbor says “God told me…” should we be writing it down and calling the publisher to add book 67?

What does it mean that the Bible is "clear"?

What is the relationship between Scripture and tradition, reason, or personal experience?

My thoughts on the topic

I believe the Bible to be inerrant. I believe it to be sufficient for everything God wants to tell me and for how He wants me to live my life. I believe the Creator of the universe, Almighty God inspired every single word of it – meaning that if the Bible says it, it carries the force of that Almighty God, because it is the Word of God. Yes, God used human authors to write the Bible but not apart from the superintendence of the third member of the Godhead, as Peter makes clear in 2 Peter 1:21: “For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

Yet, I still sin. I put my own priorities ahead of God’s. I take Christ’s advent and his death, burial, and resurrection for granted at times by how I prepare for worship (or don’t), by how I lead my children, and by how I treat my neighbor. Fortunately, the truth of the Bible is that I am still considered righteous in the eyes of God, not because I have a righteousness of my own, but because Christ’s righteousness is credited to me through faith. That’s what the Bible says, and if it’s not true, then this book is really a waste of time for you. In fact, if the Bible isn’t true, it is a waste of time for you as well.

In John 14, Jesus tells his disciples about the coming Holy Spirit – “another Helper” according to verse 16 and “the Spirit of truth” according to verse 17. You may have heard the term “paraclete” in a sermon – that is the Greek equivalent for helper. This paraclete indwells the believer and accomplishes Jesus’ prayer in John 17:17: “Sanctify them in your truth; your word is truth.” Just as the Holy Spirit “bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:16)”, he also teaches us God’s truth through his Word. We can be confident that the Word of God accomplishes God’s purpose in the lives of believers, because God Himself – the indwelling Holy Spirit – instructs us in the truth. Praise be to God!

Let’s move on to Chapter 3: The World of God’s Word