Inspiration

 If you’ve ever read one of Shakespeare’s sonnets, listened to a violin concerto by Bach, or observed a painting by Rembrandt, you might have thought to yourself, “These men were truly inspired.” At the purely human level, inspiration refers to the heightening of personal skills or insights. An inspired artist inspires our minds and hearts. But when it gets to the Bible, inspiration reaches a whole new level.

According to Second Timothy 3.16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” When we describe the Bible as the inspired Word of God, we mean much more than the idea of human inspiration. The Bible is inspired by God. It is God-breathed. This means that the Bible is the written expression of God’s mind and heart. As such, the Bible speaks with authority. It teaches us God’s truth, rebukes our sinful acts, and trains us to live righteous lives.

But how did God produce an inspired Bible? Obviously He didn’t write it with His own hand. Instead, God used trustworthy authors to accurately pen His thoughts. Second Peter 1.19-21 tells us, “And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” These verses inform us that God’s Holy Spirit carried the human authors along in a process we call inspiration. This process guarded the writings of these human authors from being merely the musings of men. Instead, what they wrote was and is the Word of God. As such, the Bible deserves our attention. After all, it’s a light that shines in a dark world. Frankly, we need all the light we can get. That’s why God has given us His written, inspired Word.

Because God has given us His Word through the process of inspiration, we can safely conclude that every word in the Bible carries divine authority. Jesus, in Matthew 5.18, said, “I tell you the truth, until the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is fulfilled.” We can trust every word, even every letter, in the Bible to have the mark of God’s truth.

It’s amazing to realise that God’s inspired Word is readily available to each and every one of us today. Why take your copy of the Bible off the shelf, open it up, and immerse yourself in the mind and heart of God. Then thank it’s Author for the gift of eternal life that can be yours by putting your faith in Jesus Christ.