The word ‘Scripture’ means ‘a writing’ or ‘a sacred writing’ (2 Tim. 3:16). This word is used to refer to the inspired writings both in the Old Testament and the New Testament. The word ‘Scripture’ is found in fifty-two places in the New Testament and in one place in the Old Testament. God’s special revelation came to man in the Scripture which we call as the Bible or the Word of God.
THE BIBLE AND THE WORD OF GOD
The Scripture is God’s Word given to man in written form (Heb. 4:12). It reveals God and His truth. The Scripture is called as the Word of God in more than two thousand places in the Bible. The name ‘Bible’ comes from the Greek word bibles which means ‘the book.’ The collection of all the books of the Bible was called as biblia or ‘the books’ in the fifth century (Richards 1991:87). The Bible contains sixty-six separate books and so it can be called as the divine library of books. But the study of the Bible reveals that it is a unified book. The Bible is the written Word of God. The living Word is Jesus Christ. The living Word and the written word are called as logos.
1. Advantages of the Written Word of God
The Bible is the special revelation of God about the living Word. The Scripture
helps us to learn and know Jesus Christ. The basis for Christian teaching and
preaching is the Word of God. So it can be categorised as the fundamental
material in written form, which God has given to mankind to know Him and understand His truth. Bruce Milne gave the following four advantages of the written word by quoting the Dutch theologian Abraham Kuyper.
It achieves durability: Errors of memory, deliberate or accidental corruption over a long period are minimized.
It becomes universal: It can be universally disseminated through translation and
reproduction.
It attains stability and purity: It has the attributes of stability and purity since it cannot be altered at will.
It confirms its finality: It is given a finality and nor mativenes which other forms of communication cannot attain.
2. Evidences to accept Bible as the Authoritative Word of God
God is the source of all authority and He gave us His word in written form. Here are a few evidences to show that the Word of God is authoritative.
a. The claim by the writers
The prophets and the writers of the Bible believed that they were communicating the message of God. They used phrases like, ‘Thus says the Lord’ or ‘the Word of
the Lord came to me,’ in more than two thousand places in the Bible. The written assumed the Scripture as the Word of God (Ps. 19:7-11)
b. The view of Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ accepted that the Scripture is the Word of God (Lake 436-21, Mark 7:11-13; John 10:34) and believed that it is authoritative ve (Matt. 4:4) and inspired (Mark 12:36). Jesus Christ taught that the Scripture will not pass away (Mark 13:31) and must be obeyed (Matt. 5:21: 7:24: John 8:311). He believed that the
Bible has power (John 6:63; 15:3). c. The acceptance of Jesus Christ
Jesus quoted many Old Testament incidents like the burning bush (Mark 12:28), the Queen Sheba’s visit (Luke 11:31), the experience of Jonah (Luke 11:30), David eating the showbread (Matt. 12:3), the destruction of Sodom (Luke 17:25) and the murder of Abel and Zechariah (Matt. 23:35). He also accepted the Old Testament prophecy (Matt. 11:10; Mark 7:6) and denounced those who did not believe them (Matt. 22:29; Luke 24:25).
d. The teachings of the Apostles
The New Testament writers accepted the authority of the Scriptures (Acts 17:2-3, 11; Rom. 1:17; 12:19). The apostles referred to the Old Testament passages while teaching or writing to the people (Acts 2:10-35; 3:22-25; 4:11; Rom. 1:2: Gal. 3:16-18). They related their teaching with the Old Testament (Rom. 4) and called them as ‘the oracles of God’ (Rom. 3:2; Heb. 5:12).
e. The acceptance by the Apostles
The apostles wrote that what they write is the Word of God (1 Cor. 14:37; 2 Thess. 3:14). They claimed that their writing carried authority (1 Cor. 2:13; Gal 1:8; 1 Pet 1:12; Rev. 22:18, 19). Peter accepted Paul’s writing as Scriptures (2 Pet 3:16) and commanded his writing to be read in the church (Col. 4:16). The book
of Revelation prohibits addition to the Bible (Rev. 22: 18, 19).
f. The declaration of the Bible
The Bible declares that all Scripture is given by God (2 Tim. 3:16) and the holy men of God wrote it when the Holy Spirit moved them (2 Pet. 1:21).
g. Accepted by the church
The Christians all over the history of the world testified that the Bible is God’s word and accepted it’s authority without any question. Bruce Milne wrote that St. Augustine accepted the Scripture by saying, ‘Indeed, O man, what my Scripture says, I say, and Calvin saw that the ‘inward witness of the Holy Spirit is the strongest proof to accept the Scripture as the word of God (Milne 1986:33).
h. Accepted by believers now
The Christians all over the world accept that the Bible is the Word of God and read the Bible daily. They believe that God spoke through His prophets and Jesus Christ in the past. Now He speaks to believers when they read His Word. There is an instinctive desire in man to study and obey the Bible as a new born baby in Christ (1 Pet. 2:2).
1. The acceptance of the Bible
18 Josh. 18, 8:32-35, 2 Sam. 22:31. Ps. 1:2: 126: Is. 55.10.11) Jer. 15-16: Mark 13:31 Hundreds of Bible passages say that the Bible is the Word of God (Deut. 6-9,17, John 2:22: Acts 17:11, Rom. 10:17, Col. 3:16, 1 Pet. 1:23-25) Rev. 1:2)
1. The fulfilled prophecy
Jesus Christ said that every predictive Word of God will be fulfilled (Matt. 2435) The prophecies concerning history of nations (Amos 1:1-216), Israel’s preservation and restoration (Jer. 30:1-11: 31:36, 37, Rom. 11:25,27), prophecies conceming Jesus Christ (Is. 52:13-53:12: Ps. 22; Zech. 12:10) and His birth, death and resurrection (Luke 24:27-47) and the prophecies prior to second coming have been fulfilled as predicted in the Bible.
