Speaker 1: 0:10

Welcome to the Theological Touchpoints podcast. I'm Julian. The focus for this episode is Foundations Theology for the Everyday Anabaptist. Over the last several episodes we've explored the biblical doctrine of the inspiration of Scripture. Our study led us to conclude a few things. First, god's word is both divine and human. God directed the writing and compilation of his word so that all of it is as he wants it to be. But he used human writers who brought their own perspectives, knowledge and experiences. He orchestrated those writers so that the message of Scripture as delivered to us is exactly what he intended his people to have. This is what is sometimes called concurrence, the cooperation of God's sovereign will and human agency here, especially in the writing and compilation of Scripture. Secondly, we discovered that all of God's word is inspired, all of it. 2 Timothy 3, 16, and 2 Peter 1, 21 both make that clear. There are some who try to divide the word into inspired or uninspired segments, or who create levels of inspiration, but neither of those views fit with the Bible's own testimony about itself. Every book, every word, every letter is exactly as God wanted it to be.

Speaker 1: 1:31

Third, scripture contains the words of God himself. It is rightly said that all Scripture is God breathed. It comes from his mouth, speaking with his power and authority. If we want to know what God thinks, we go to his word. If we want wisdom, it is found in the Holy Scriptures. If we want to hear his voice, we read the Bible. If we want to know him and love him, we are able to do that in and through his self-revelation and through the pages of Scripture. If we want to know what's wrong with the world and how God has made it right, we find that truth as divinely communicated to us in God's word. Scripture speaks for God Or, more accurately, scripture comes from the mouth of God. This leads us to a specific definition plenary, verbal inspiration of Scripture. Plenary means the entirety of something. In using it that way, we say, all of the Bible is inspired. You may be familiar with the term in connection with a conference or a gathering. The plenary sessions are those when everyone is together. All of the attendees are present. In the same way, the plenary inspiration of Scripture means that all of the parts are inspired. Every piece is from God.

Speaker 1: 2:53

The term verbal has to do with the words of the Bible, though the term verbal can be used in a variety of ways. When it is used in this context. It means, as Webster defines it, of relating to or consisting of words. So when we define inspiration as being verbal inspiration, we are including the words. The individual words that are part of the text, are inspired by God, are there by His will, by His plan, by His desire.

Speaker 1: 3:21

Others have come up with various understandings of the scope of inspiration, such as discussed in previous episodes, but they don't fit with what the Bible actually says about itself. Based on the Bible's own testimony that Scripture comes from the mouth of God, that the writings grafe, the writings came from God's mouth. We hold to verbal inspiration And, by way of reminder, the term inspiration means to fill up or to breathe into. The fact that Scripture is inspired means God actually breathed out each word contained therein. These aren't just pious writings. They aren't just the accurate records of men, though they are that. They're more than that. These are God's words to men, those alive when the Bible is written, and also to every person. Today, when we read the Bible, we read the words of God. But plenary verbal inspiration, as we defined it here briefly and more expansively in other podcasts this is more than just a theological construct. It's a definition of how the faithful Christian views the Bible. These terms shape how we explain what we believe and why we believe it.

Speaker 1: 4:34

One of my overarching goals in life is to make theological concepts understandable and tangible. I strongly believe that good theology is more than just an intellectual activity. Good theology impacts our lives. In fact, we need good theology if we want to be faithful Christians. We must rightly understand God before we can rightly worship or serve Him. To that end, i'd like to look at why a right understanding of the inspiration of Scripture is important.

Speaker 1: 5:05

This can be summed up in one word authority. The authority of Scripture relates to the fact that what the Bible says actually matters. The Bible has the right to dictate what we think, what we believe and how we live. Why? Because it is from God. If Scripture is truly inspired and it is, if it is truly from God and it is then what it says is important. A perfect word from a holy God has every right to command our lives. Inspiration means the words of the Bible aren't just man's words on a page. Those words are divine. They come to us from God. If so, then doesn't it make sense that God's people would direct their lives based on what that word says. And if the God of the universe says something, doesn't it make sense that we would be obligated to obey? And it does. The word of God has the right, has the power, or we could say it has the authority to govern our lives. This is where the rubber hits the road.

Speaker 1: 6:14

How do we view the Bible? How do we study it? How do we read it? How do we interpret it? Do we think of the Bible as an interesting book that gives religious tidbits? Is it a manual we consult to solve life's difficulties? Is it something we go to to prop up our opinions or traditions? What do we do when our ideas and our preconceptions clash with what Scripture clearly says? Are we willing to change our minds to conform to Scripture?

Speaker 1: 6:44

If we are Christians, we know the right answers to these questions, but do we live by them? Are you being changed by Scripture? or is Scripture nothing more than a helpful resource to get you by when life is tough and you're discouraged? Or perhaps you consult it to win an argument or prove you're right? Those things may be fine, but God intends far more for His word than that we simply give it occasional attention. He intends that our entire lives be ruled by the principles and truths of His word. By principles and truths I mean far more than just pithy sayings or starchy axioms. I mean those grand truths that reshape how we think about God, ourselves and our world, the pillars of the gospel that turn our lives upside down, those grand doctrines of the faith that have preserved faithful Christians for generations.

Speaker 1: 7:40

God intends that our thoughts and our lives be governed by His word. God rules His church through His word. To be a Christian is to be submitted to God. If we are submitted to God, we do what He says. And how do we hear God's voice? How do we know what God is saying Through Scripture? That's why this doctrine of inspiration is so crucial.

Speaker 1: 8:06

No other book came from God. No other book speaks for Him. No other book has divine authority to rule our lives. If Scripture comes from the mouth of God, scripture dictates our lives with the self-same power God himself wields. There is no such thing as true Christianity except that which is built upon the sound doctrines of Scripture. So the fact that Scripture comes from God is not some antiquated theological fact to tuck in the corner where it will gather dust. Nor is it something we put in a trophy case to show everybody else what we know or what we believe. Rather, it is imminently practical. Since the Bible speaks for God, we listen to it. We tremble before Scripture because in it we find the words of our sovereign Lord. The Bible speaks for God, and it speaks with God's authority. But we want to look at this not just in general terms but in practical ones, and so I want to ask the question and hopefully at least give some answers to this question What areas of the Anabaptist movement are suffering as a result of our neglecting this core biblical doctrine? What areas of the Anabaptist movement are suffering as a result of our neglect of this core biblical doctrine? Well, one area that's affected is how we, as Anabaptists, define the truth, both in terms of doctrine and in terms of practice.

Speaker 1: 9:38

Historically, we've been characterized by a commitment to the word of God. The Anabaptist movement was born from a commitment to Scripture alone. Over against tradition, over against the state, over against the established church. Scripture was the rule of the Anabaptist church, but I'm afraid that that conviction has faded in recent years, and our beliefs have been defined more by what Anabaptists believe than what the Bible teaches. Don't get me wrong I'm deeply indebted to my Anabaptist heritage and I still hold many of the convictions I was taught, some of them stronger than ever.

Speaker 1: 10:19

But I also see some things that we believe because they are Anabaptist's distinctives rather than because they're taught in the Bible. That is our reason for believing them is traditional, not biblical. We hold these things like non-resistance and the head covering and belief in strong community as important primarily because they're part of our sociology, they're part of our experience and they're part of our subculture. that makes us distinct from the world. But we hold these things because well, that's what it means to be a Mennonite. But we need to make sure that our conviction for these important applications is not based on tradition, is not based on what everybody else around us is doing, but rather is based on what the Bible teaches.

Speaker 1: 11:12

If, when these issues are discussed, we appeal to the traditional understanding rather than checking what Scripture teaches, I think we have it backwards. Likewise, when we define our standards and applications by personal opinion or experience rather than by clear biblical teaching, we functionally reject the Bible as our absolute authority. The Bible becomes a tool to strengthen our own position, not the authority which overrules even our darling ideas. Similarly, if we define the Gospel and its applications simply by what the majority thinks or feels and not by what the Bible actually says, we forfeit biblical authority. That is to say, churches and church movements that develop their doctrine based on what the majority thinks, not based on what the Bible says, are abandoning the solid biblical foundation for a foundation of sand. This approach what I have at times called theology-pike consensus develops doctrine by pole taking or by temperature gauging, not by Scripture.

Speaker 1: 12:24

But if Scripture is the ultimate authority in all matters and it is we must return again and again to it. The Bible has to be our source for all truth. When we lose that mooring, our churches and homes quickly deteriorate into cultural enigmas rather than biblically faithful communities. We may look strange to the world because we do things differently and feel we are fulfilling our call to be holy, to be set apart. But we major on the minors while neglecting the majors, neglecting the courtiers of Scripture, protecting our pet doctrines.

Speaker 1: 13:00

Again, i love the distinctiveness of the Anabaptist movement, but let's not think that being an Anabaptist is the main thing. We need to be Biblicists first. We are a word-based people, a Bible-based people, the application of that. Let's preserve those truths that have been abandoned by many other Christians, but let's make sure we are being faithful in believing and preaching and living the full counsel of Scripture and not just the things we think we have down pat When we are separate and in a sense we are outcasts in a world. We look different, we act differently, we think differently, but we may be doing that but not living biblically grounded lives. That's not as it should be. We will stand out in the world if we are being faithful to Scripture. But distinctiveness is an effect of faithfulness to Christ. It's not the goal. It is an effect of being committed to Christ, committed to His truth, committed to obeying Him in all things.

Speaker 1: 14:11

So I think we need to find our place with the original Anabaptists, who were ostracized and rejected because they believed the Bible and lived the Bible. The Bible held absolute reign over their lives, not as a cold, hard list of rules and regulations, nor as an appendix with some helpful extra information, but as words from a loving Father who has revealed His character and will through His word. We obey the word because it is God's word and submitting to it we submit to God. So if we want to recover faithful Anabaptism, we need to recover a commitment to the Word of God above all else. The second reason the inspiration of Scripture is so important is because a right understanding of the Gospel comes from a robust appreciation for the Word of God.

Speaker 1: 15:05

The Bible is clear about the Gospel and is especially clear when it tells us about our sin. It doesn't mince words when it tells us about our problem. Ephesians 2, verse 1, says And you he made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins. What were we spiritually? The Bible says dead. We were dead. We did not have the capacity to produce that which is good before God. Elsewhere Scripture says there is none righteous, no, not one. And Jesus says in John 15, without me you can do nothing. Speaking in that context of producing spiritual fruit, producing spiritual life, he says Without me, that life is impossible.

Speaker 1: 15:57

We are described in Scripture, outside of Christ, as being those who are dead in their trespasses and sins. How much good can a dead man do? What's his capacity to respond to external stimuli? None. To be dead, the Greek necrosis, to be incapable of desiring or doing anything. Spiritually speaking, this tells us of our spiritual inability on our own, regardless what our experience of coming to the Gospel, of coming to faith, was. We need to recognize from Scripture we do not will our way to God. If, left to ourselves, we can only produce what a dead man produces more death. Without God's grace, we would all remain dead in sin.

Speaker 1: 16:48

The Bible speaks of us as being dead in trespasses and sins. We are spiritually corrupt. We produce that which is unholy and undesirable before God. The expression of this can be both the outward rebellion and gross sin and immorality, or it's also the rebellion of saying I will do this my way. I will be righteous on my own, by myself, by my rules and my law. The outward perfection with inward corruption demonstrated by the Pharisees in the time of Christ, who were recognized among their people as being religious and spiritual, and they were inwardly dead. The religious veneer did nothing to fix the internal problem. So, whether our sin is expressed in self-righteousness and trying to be good enough on our own, or whether our sin is expressed in abandoning ourselves to sin, in either case we are living out this biblical principle.

Speaker 1: 17:52

We are dead outside of Christ, dead in trespasses and sins. And because we know the Bible is from God and every word is as He wants it to be, we can't simply redefine this deadness as sickness, though that is what we would like to think. When describing our spiritual condition, the Bible calls us lifeless, not diseased dead. If you've been to a funeral, you know the last thing everyone expects is for the person's dead body to come to life and begin walking around. The last thing anyone expects is that he would pick himself up and resume normal life. Dead people don't do that. Ephesians 2 says, and that's exactly what we were before Christ. We were dead in trespasses and sins, and this deadness requires that the first part of this verse also be true. Apostle Paul says you he made alive.

Speaker 1: 18:54

Salvation isn't something we do, but it's something that is done to us. It will not be done to the one who resists. It will not be done to the one who does not have faith. It doesn't mean we're inactive in the gospel. What does mean? all the good that happens in salvation is a result of God's grace, not of our merit or our ability or our contribution. Salvation is of grace.

Speaker 1: 19:22

The he here in Ephesians 2, verse 1, is God himself. He is the one doing the action. He made us alive. We were dead without life and God made us alive. And as we look at the entirety of Ephesians 2, verses 1 through 10, we are the ones acted on, not the actors. God is the actor in salvation. He makes us alive. He loved us in our sin. He raised us from the dead. He seeded us with Christ. He created us beforehand for good works. Salvation begins not with us but with God, and I realize this doesn't fit with how we in a baptism typically look at ourselves.

Speaker 1: 20:10

But a commitment to the word of God requires that we submit to what it says. If we redefine the words of Scripture to fit with what makes us comfortable, we inadvertently reject the inspiration and authority of Scripture. God didn't just suggest what he meant, he said what he meant. We must not disregard that We don't have the freedom to replace one word of Scripture with another word to make it more palatable, to make it more comfortable, to make it more appealing to us. Scripture says our state, apart from Christ, is dead in sin. We need the grace of the gospel for that to change. But the same commitment to the words of the Bible keeps us from the error of some of our Calvinist brothers.

Speaker 1: 21:00

Romans 10, 13 says Whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. This whoever is every bit as exclusive as the dead in Ephesians, just as we are all hopelessly dead. God also says we all have the opportunity to be saved through Christ. We need only ask and God will save. And just as there are no conditions on our deadness, there are no conditions on the reach of the gospel. Whoever calls will be saved.

Speaker 1: 21:35

The same truth is underscored in John 3.16,. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son That whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. Whoever believes shall not perish but have everlasting life. The offer of the gospel is available to all who are willing to receive it. To the point, then, are we willing to submit to Scripture? It comes from God. It speaks for God. To disbelieve or disobey any of God's commands to us in Scripture is to rebel against God himself. If we want to consider ourselves as faithful Christians, we need to bow the knee unconditionally to God's authoritative word.

Speaker 1: 22:19

This principle that we submit to God's word above all else encapsulates not only the issues we've been talking about, but many other issues, whether specifically anabaptist issues, as we think about headship covering or non-resistance, maybe issues in the broader evangelical movement of women in ministry, or social justice and CRT in the social gospel, or cultural issues, as we think about questions of abortion and the LGBTQ plus movement. Where we land on these issues will largely be defined by our view of Scripture, and if we are willing to compromise Scripture on any one of these points, it is inevitable that we will compromise on them all. Our view of Scripture is quickly revealed when we're under pressure for these controversial things. Whether we stand or fall, indeed, whether we are faithful Christians or not, rests on whether we accept the Bible for what it says and allow that to govern our lives. So we must not answer these questions based on popular opinion, nor based on what makes us comfortable, nor based on our own traditions or opinions. On any issue, whether in the church or in the culture, we need to ask the question what does the Word of God say? When we find the answer to that question, we bend to it, believe it and obey it.

Speaker 1: 23:46

We have no right to twist Scripture to make it say what the culture wants it to say. We have no right to twist Scripture to make it say what our own flesh wants it to say. We have no right to twist Scripture to make it say what those around us want it to say. We have no right to take the easy way out when the Bible teaches another way And we have no right to stand over the Word and choose our own opinions and perspectives over the clear teaching of the Word of God.

Speaker 1: 24:18

If we say we've submitted to God, we must always submit to His Word. If you have not submitted to His Word, you have not submitted to God. According to the Bible, unless you have submitted to God, you don't love Him and you don't know Him. All of these things hang together. If we say we love God, if we say we know Him, then we will submit to His rule, to His leading, to His authority, and He rules and He leads and He exercises authority through His inspired Word.

Speaker 1: 24:51

If you say you love Him but you don't submit to Him, you don't obey Him. It reveals you don't understand the weight of the Gospel. You haven't been changed by the Gospel if you don't, at the very core of your being, want to serve and obey God. Salvation comes with a desire to serve, to obey, to glorify God, with a desire to do what He wills and not what I will, and that leads us, that compels us to submit to the Word of God in all things, and that obedience begins by understanding and obeying God's Word. So then, does it matter what we believe about the inspiration of Scripture? I hope you see with me that it absolutely does.

Speaker 1: 25:45

Our faithfulness in the Gospel rests on whether or not we continue to live in faithful submission to Scripture. Whether Christianity will continue to the next generation or even survive this one rests on our commitment, with all true believers, to believe the Word of God and to live according to the Word of God. Scripture comes from God. It speaks for God speaks with His authority. We receive it, we submit to it and we obey it. Thank you for joining us for this episode of Theological Touchpoints Podcast. This podcast is a production of Sword and Trumpet Ministries. For more information, visit wwwswordandtrumpetorg or theologicaltouchpointscom. If you have thoughts or questions, you can contact us at podcastatheologicaltouchpointscom. Now may the God of Peace himself sanctify you completely and may your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.