Bible Text: 2 Peter 1:12-21 | Preacher: Pastor Joe Ricchuiti | Series: “That’s The Gospel Truth”, 2 Peter

       1/3/16 (2 Peter 1:21):

Peter seeks to reassure believers about the reliability and authority of the Scriptures. Prophecy didn’t originate with the Prophets but rather they spoke as the Holy Spirit propelled them. Behind the human author of Scripture is the Divine author. Paul call Scripture “God breathed.”
“Men spoke, but God so worked in them so that what they said was His Word.” (Dr. Ed Blum)
It is the Scripture which is inspired, not men. (2 Timothy 3:16,17). God communicated to us by words. Oswald Chambers said: “That is the way God speaks to us, not by visions and dreams, but by words. When a man gets to God it is by the most simple way of words.”
Inspiration is the name given to the doctrine of how God communicated His revelation to man. Charles Ryrie defines inspiration this way: “Inspiration if God’s superintending of human authors so that, using their own individual personalities, they composed and recorded without error in the words of the autographs His revelation to man.” The doctrine is called “verbal, plenary” inspiration. The very words (verbal) and all of them (plenary) were inspired and so without error. For further study see: Charles C. Ryrie, “Basic Theology” or “A Survey of Bible Doctrine.”
The reliability of the Bible is a central tenet of faith and crucial to us since the Scripture is the sole authority for our faith and practice. The following quote illustrates that truth. “There are several types of facts upon which Christianity is based and that apologists study. One is the trustworthiness of the Bible. One is the trustworthiness of the Bible. Another is historical research and facts that support the faith. Third, there are philosophical facts. Apologists examine and expose the logical fallacies and flawed reasoning behind popular arguments against Christianity.” (Alex McFarland)