Definition of Inspiration
Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 9:26 am
I just want to start off by saying that I'm definitely not a liberal when it comes to the inspiration of the Bible. I believe it's inspired and infallible and the authoritative Word of God.
Recently, when studying Bible "contradictions," I stumbled across one about how Paul's statements of "this is not from the Lord, but from me" contradicted 2 Timothy 3:16 about Scripture being inspired by the Holy Spirit. It got me thinking about what "inspiration" actually means when it comes to the Bible. Does it really mean that every word in the Bible is meant to be interpreted as something God spoke Himself? For instance, in one of Paul's letters, he asked at the end for somebody to bring him a coat he left. It's in Scripture, so that verse is there for a reason. But is it necessarily from God?
I guess what I'm wondering is, did God speak every word in the Bible, or did he approve every word in the Bible? Obviously things like prophecy are direct inspiration, but what about the more subtle things, like the personal, cultural parts of Paul's letters, or David's recording his own personal emotions? We can learn from these things, but I wonder if they truly meet the definition of "God-breathed."
Any thoughts?
Recently, when studying Bible "contradictions," I stumbled across one about how Paul's statements of "this is not from the Lord, but from me" contradicted 2 Timothy 3:16 about Scripture being inspired by the Holy Spirit. It got me thinking about what "inspiration" actually means when it comes to the Bible. Does it really mean that every word in the Bible is meant to be interpreted as something God spoke Himself? For instance, in one of Paul's letters, he asked at the end for somebody to bring him a coat he left. It's in Scripture, so that verse is there for a reason. But is it necessarily from God?
I guess what I'm wondering is, did God speak every word in the Bible, or did he approve every word in the Bible? Obviously things like prophecy are direct inspiration, but what about the more subtle things, like the personal, cultural parts of Paul's letters, or David's recording his own personal emotions? We can learn from these things, but I wonder if they truly meet the definition of "God-breathed."
Any thoughts?