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Believing God's Word Is Inerrant

What exactly does it mean to believe that God's Word is inerrant? This 1-minute devotion explains what it means and what it doesn't mean. #Bible #BibleLoveNotes #Devotions

An important tenet of the Christian faith is the belief that the Bible is God’s inerrant Word.  See Hebrews 4:12 and 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

That means:

1. The Bible is completely reliable, accurate, and true.

2. It was written by human authors, but the words came from God’s Spirit. It’s not corrupted by human bias or error.(1)  



It doesn't mean we take each passage literally. 
The Bible contains some figurative language that isn't meant to be taken literally.(2)  

It doesn't mean: all cultures will apply biblical principles identically.
The principles are universal, but they'll be applied differently by different cultures (e.g. modesty).

It doesn't mean: all translations are perfect.
Some translations are more accurate than others.(3) 

It doesn't mean: we shouldn't study cultural and historical backgrounds.
Some Old Testament commands and situations are only understood in the context of history and culture. But history and culture do not negate New Testament commands and principles.

We may not understand every passage of the Bible, but we know it’s “God-breathed,” a poetic way to say 100% accurate.(4)  
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Foot Notes:

What exactly does it mean to believe that God's Word is inerrant? This 1-minute devotion explains what it means and what it doesn't mean. #Bible #BibleLoveNotes #Devotions
(1) 2 Peter 1:20-21: Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 

This includes the Old Testament. 
Romans 15:4: For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.

Also note that Peter refers to Paul's letters as Scripture in 2 Peter 3:14-16.
  

If you believe certain passages of Scripture are man's words, not God's, then everything in Scripture is suspect, including forgiveness, mercy, and salvation.

(2) Believing God’s Word is inerrant doesn’t mean we believe the earth is flat and trees clap their hands. See Recognizing Figurative Language in Scripture, How Can You Take the Bible Literally, and Flat Earth Lie.

(3) Please don’t be taken captive by arguments saying that there is only one God-approved English translation. See Is the King James Version the Best English Translation?

(4) Recently someone asked me why God approved of Lot offering his virgin daughters to be abused instead of the angels (Genesis 19:8). God didn’t approve. Just because something is included in Scripture does not mean it’s God-approved. Lot's actions were evil in this situation and in other situations as well. If men made up a religion, they’d “clean it up,” putting all of God’s people in a good light. But God honestly shared the history of His people including the sins of Abraham, David, and others.
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2 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. I'm assuming you mean the KJV....I'm not aware of a KJB, but if you are saying the KJV, I imagine you have heard some of the erroneous teaching that has caused great harm in the body of Christ.

      I find that most people who've heard this teaching are unwilling to read the facts, but if you are, you can check out the article I've written about the KJV and other modern translations.

      To believe the KJV is the only accurate translation, You have to believe God is a very poor communicator who is unable to speak in modern English and who let all people before the KJV suffer from false translations, waiting for the day when the KJV would be translated. And you have to believe that since the 1600's there have been no honorable men to translate the Bible.

      If you are genuinely interested in knowing the truth and understanding why the "omitted verses" is a deception, Here's my link to my article about it: https://biblelovenotes.blogspot.com/2009/06/is-king-james-version-best-english.html

      Your comment is fine, but I want to add that KJV Only people have written some of the rudest remarks on my posts on social media. I'm concerned when translation is exalted, but the truths it contains are not. Even in the KJV, rude mean-spirited speech is condemned.

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