7 Mar 2024
Christians speak of the Word of God as infallible and inerrant; by ‘infallible’ we mean the quality of never deceiving or misleading, and by ‘inerrant’ we mean wholly true.
Both these terms express the conviction that all Scripture’s teaching is God’s utterance, and He never lies, and HIs words spoken remain forever. Hence HIs Word can be trusted implicitly (see Titus 1:2; 1 Peter 1:25).
However, this does not guarantee the infallibility and inerrancy of any interpretation, or interpreter, of that teaching, for that matter. This can be determined only by careful BIble study (hence the importance of studying the Bible carefully).
The Bible does not claim that it inspires every branches of human knowledge but it certainly teaches all things necessary to salvation. Scripture provides instruction that is true and trustworthy, not on every conceivable subject, but simply on those subjects with which it claims to deal. We cannot, for instance, look to Scripture on instruction on natural sciences, and whatever subject that comes to mind.
The Bible has an important role not only in Christian belief but also in Christian devotion. Hearing Scripture preached, reading it regularly, studying it, internalising it by meditation, and applying it to give content to one’s personal worship, as well as to find directions for living one’s life, are characteristic procedures for developing one’s communion with the Father and the Son.
Jesus writes on our hearts the faith set forth by the Bible writers, so that again and again we find ourselves turning back to him in contrition, in excitement, in love, and in gratitude. Here again, we see that living knowledge of Scripture is a prerequisite of maturing in Christ, and certainly, it is essential in developing our love for God and our delight in Him.
The grass withers, the flowers fade, but the Word of God abides forever! Do we believe this? If we do, why do we just leave our Bibles on the shelves to gather dust?