Inerrancy

 I don’t know about you, but I’m thankful that I have spell-check on my phone. It identifies spelling errors that I might not otherwise recognise. However, I still like to proofread my writing, since there are words that fly under the spell-check radar. For example, when I type in the word ‘right', as in correct, I might misspell it as ‘write', as in the act of writing. Spell-check wouldn’t pick up on this error. By the way, I just used the word ‘misspell' and am doubly glad for spell-check. 

While we strive for accuracy, there’s always room for human error. However, the Bible isn’t a human book. It’s God’s book. Because the Bible is the inspired Word of God, we would expect it to meet a higher standard of accuracy. In fact, we would rightly expect the Bible to be inerrant. Inerrancy refers to the concept that the Bible, because it’s the product of divine inspiration, is perfectly accurate and without error in any and every way. The Bible is equally inerrant when it describes God’s character, when it relates events in human history, when it touches on facts of nature and science, when it describes spiritual matters, and when it makes predictions for the future.

Psalm 18.30 tells us, “As for God, his way is perfect, the word of the Lord is flawless.” For the Bible to contain errors would mean that either the Bible isn’t God’s Word or that God isn’t perfect. Hebrews 6.18 declares that “it is impossible for God to lie.” He couldn’t implant error in His inspired Word. Second Timothy 3.16 says that “all Scripture is God-breathed,” so we know that the Bible claims to be God’s Word. The Bible, therefore, must be free from error.

Of course, there have been numerous attacks on the Bible down through the ages. Many people have tried to undermine the Bible’s inerrant quality. Some have accused the Bible of being riddled with contradictions, even though competent Bible scholars have repeatedly defended the consistency of God’s Word. Others have attempted to identify historical errors in the Bible, often to find out later that further historical and archaeological discoveries have vindicated the Word of God. Still others have attempted to set aside the Bible in favour of modern scientific theories. But even science, rightly understood, doesn’t do away with the Bible’s inerrancy.

In John 17.17, Jesus said to God the Father, “Your word is truth.” The Bible is the Word of God. Therefore, the Bible is perfectly true. It is without error. Because the Bible is inerrant, we can trust it to speak accurately about our lives. When the  Bible describes us as having fallen short of God’s holiness and needing a Saviour, we should take notice. When it says that Jesus is that Saviour, the only way to forgiveness and peace with God, we should embrace its message. Invite Jesus to be your Saviour today, and begin to explore God’s inerrant Word. You’ll find that you won’t be disappointed.