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Thursday, November 17, 2011

Four Tests for defining God's Word

Isaiah 41:21-23 “Present your case,” the LORD says. “Bring forward your strong arguments,
The King of Jacob says. 22Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place;
As for the former events, declare what they were, That we may consider them and know their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming; 23Declare the things that are going to come afterward, That we may know that you are gods; Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together.


Many claims to "God's word"
There are at the writing of this blog over 7,000 different religions in the world today.  Almost all of them claim to have the true view of reality, current events and eternity.  Truth by its very nature is exclusive - meaning that once a truth claim is made, anything in conflict with that claim cannot be at the same time true. 

When it comes to claims about certain documents being Divinely inspired or revealed, many of the world's religions claim to have documents of divine origin.  Islam has its Koran, Hinduism has its Upanishads, Buddahism and followers of Confusius and Mormonism have the writings of their founders, and then there is the Bible.  Is there an objective way to measure marks for divine inspiration?  There is.  In the above text such a test is put forth.  In today's blog I am going to briefly outline what these four tests are, and then over the next several blogs submit the Bible and all the other would-be contenders to these tests to answer one simple question: What is the Word of God?

The four marks of the Word of God
When we say the phrase "The Word of God", we are claiming that a particular document was revealed by God, and that He both spoke and is speaking to people through the words of that document.  The above text helps determine whether or not a given claim of revelation is a product of men, or a product of God.  Four tests are given by the prophet Isaiah:

1. Infallibility.  Isaiah writes: "Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place".  Infallibility has to do with giving perfect guidance in all matters, no matter what."  Anytime someone is claiming to speak for God, we have to assess whether or not what they're saying is going to lead us to the truth, or lead us down a road of lies.  Infallibility has to do with the character of the given revelation.  

2. Inerrancy.  Then he states: "As for the former events, declare what they were, that we may consider their outcome".  Inerrancy, stated positively, describes a given document being accurate in all matters of science, faith and history.  Stated another way, a document is claimed to be inerrant when it contains no errors.  Does a given text describe the past in perfect, error free- detail?  According to the prophet, this is a crucial test for determining which is the Word of God.  This test deals with the contents of the alleged revelation.

3. Clarity.  Isaiah writes: "That we may consider them and know their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming; 23Declare the things that are going to come afterward, That we may know that you are gods."  Clarity is that quality wherein a document is clear in its explanation and meaning.  When I examine any book claiming Divine authorship, is it consistent and clear, or do I find contradicitions and confusion?  Is there a well-defined meaning in the context of what is written?  Clarity is another test for evaluating claims of Divine authorship.

4. Sufficiency. Then finally, Isaiah notes: "Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together."  Will I be able to take the given document and live by it in every area of my life?  In other words, can I trust what the document says about eternal salvation?  Raising a family?  Working at my job?  Making moral decisions?  Knowing God?  Understanding history, science and every major branch of knowledge?  Only a document that is God's Word can fulfill this criteria.  Frankly this last test can only be passed when the first three have been shown to verify the claims of Divine authorship of a given text. 

In tomorrows blog we will submit different texts and the Bible to the first test of infallibility to determine: Which is the Word of God.