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Bibliology

  1. God has chosen to reveal Himself to man by several means: Through nature (Rom. 1:20), through miracles (John 2:11), through direct communication (Exodus 33:11), through the Lord Jesus Christ (Heb. 1:2), and through the Bible (John 5:39).
     

  2. The word Bible comes from the Greek word biblios meaning book. The Bible is also referred to as the scriptures (Mt. 21:42), and the word of God (Heb. 4:12).
     

  3. The Old and New Testaments are terms that refer to two different relationships or covenants that existed between God and his people. (Mt. 26:28, II Cor. 3:6, 14)

  1. The Old Testament deals with the calling and history of the Jewish people.
     

  2. The New Testament deals with the history and application of the redemptive work of Jesus Christ.

  1. The Bible is the Inspired Word of God. (II Tim. 3:16)

    1. The word "inspiration" literally means "God-breathed." It is God speaking through men. It is God breathing into men, qualifying them to write truth without error (II Pet. 1:21).
       

    2. The word "inspiration" also conveys the idea of the authors being carried along by the Spirit of God. (II Pet. 1:21)
       

    3. Holy men of God wrote in obedience to God's command, and were kept from all error, whether they revealed previously unknown truths or whether they recorded truths already familiar. In this sense, "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God," the Bible is literally the Word of God, and the books of the Bible are of divine origin and authority.
       

    4. The Bible was verbally inspired. That is, the very words were given by the Holy Spirit. (Ex. 31:18; Is. 8:1, 11, 12; Rev. 2:1,8,12)
       

    5. The Bible was plenarily inspired. That is, the Bible does not merely contain the Word of God, but every word of the Scriptures is equally inspired. (II Tim. 3:16)
       

    6. The Bible is infallible . That is, its authors were supernaturally kept from any error by the Holy Spirit as they recorded God's message. (II Tim. 3:16)
       

  2. The doctrine of preservation is the teaching that God has providentially preserved His word from both destruction and corruption. (Psalm 119:89, 152, 160; Matt. 24:35) We can be confident that the Bible we hold in our hands is totally reliable and accurate.
     

  3. The word canon comes from the Greek kanon . It refers to a reed or rod--a measuring rod: a rule or standard. When we discuss the canonicity of the books of the Bible, we mean the process by which the 66 books of the Bible were "measured," found satisfactory, and were recognized as being inspired by God. Man did not determine which books belonged in the Bible. Man merely recognized the intrinsic authority of the Scriptures.

  • Because of its Divine nature and origin, the Bible is the true center of Christian fellowship, and is the standard by which all human conduct, beliefs and opinions should be tested.