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Study Section 4: Inspiration and Inerrancy
4.1 Connect.
I love to build things out of wood. Sometimes I see something someone else has made
out of wood, and I get amazed. Once I visited a man who could make birds out of wood
and they looked like the real birds. It was inspiring. In fact, I was so “inspired” by his
work that I decided to try to make some birds out of wood for myself. And I did. I even
sell them as everyone things they are beautiful.
God gave us the Bible through inspiration. I’m sure the authors were “inspired” by what God was telling
them to write, but not in the same sense I was inspired by wooden birds. Today we are going to learn
how God inspired the Bible to be written and what that term means when studying bibliology. Let’s get
started…..
4.2 Objectives.
1. The student should be able to give a definition of the theological term, inspiration, and why
it is so important.
2. The student should be able to explain the value of inspiration and why it is so important in
our lives.
3. The student should be able to identify the difference between plenary and verbal inspiration and
what each term means.
4.3 Inspiration and Inerrancy – The authenticity of the Bible
Definition: Inspiration deals with the presentation and preservation of God’s revelation
so that what was received from God was accurately transmitted to men was written
down to be transmitted to others beyond the original recipient. Inspiration is the
horizontal communication the God’s revelation to others.
The English word inspiration has a number of connotations, the most fundamental being
the act of drawing in, as in inhaling air into the lungs. The word is also used of the stimulation of the
mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity, as being “inspired” by a certain truth. Sometimes
it is used of a work of art. Certainly these can be applied to the Bible, but none of these definitions fit
the biblical concept of inspiration.
In its theological usage, inspiration is derived from the Latin Vulgate Bible where the verb inspire is used
in 2 Timothy 3”16 and 2 Peter 1:21.
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