"The Bible is NOT the inerrant words of God"

[HisWordIsSufficient]

i didnt read the whole thing. But it just seems to be old news with new wrapping paper. We all know there are too many "chrstians" out there who dont trust or follow the bible fully. I believe that the word of God is true in all its fullness and it is the only truth there is in this world that is without error. Translated versions may or may not have made mistakes with words and verses, i dont know because i can only read one language, english, but i believe if you seek God and read your bible and ask the Lord for revalation of his word, your only going to get truth. Hes not going to point you to a mistake. He will bring revalation. Truth.

[halifaxchristian]

"The Bible is not the inspired and inerrant word of God"

Most Christians today do NOT believe The Bible IS the inerrant and infallible word of God.

This statement may seem shocking at first, and many pastors and Christians will give the knee-jerk reaction saying that they do believe the Bible IS the infallible word of God. However, upon further examimation, it will soon be discovered that when they speak of an inerrant Bible, they are not referring to something that actually exists anywhere on this earth. They are talking about a mystical Bible that exists only in their imaginations; and each person's particular version differs from all the others.

God said: "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD." Amos 8:11

The Lord Jesus Christ also stated in Luke 18:8 "Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?"

The apostle Paul wrote concerning the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto Him: "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, EXCEPT THERE COME A FALLING AWAY FIRST..." 2 Thessalonians 2:3

The number of professing Christians who do not believe in a "hold it in your hands and read" type of inspired Bible has steadily increased over the years since the flood of multiple-choice, conflicting and contradictory modern bible versions began to appear about 100 years ago.

The following testimonies about the character of Evangelicalism today were made by key Evangelical leaders. The irony is that these same men are part of the problem they lament. Each of these men has been guilty of endorsing modern bible versions.

"MORE AND MORE ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS HISTORICALLY COMMITTED TO AN INFALLIBLE SCRIPTURE HAVE BEEN EMBRACING AND PROPAGATING THE VIEW THAT THE BIBLE HAS ERRORS IN IT. This movement away from the historic standpoint has been most noticeable among those often labeled neo-evangelicals. This change of position with respect to the infallibility of the Bible is widespread and has occurred in evangelical denominations, Christian colleges, theological seminaries, publishing houses, and learned societies" (Harold Lindsell, former vice-president and professor Fuller Theological Seminary and Editor Emeritus of Christianity Today, The Battle for the Bible, 1976, p. 20).

"WITHIN EVANGELICALISM THERE ARE A GROWING NUMBER WHO ARE MODIFYING THEIR VIEWS ON THE INERRANCY OF THE BIBLE SO THAT THE FULL AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE IS COMPLETELY UNDERCUT. But is happening in very subtle ways. Like the snow lying side-by-side on the ridge, the new views on biblical authority often seem at first glance not to be very far from what evangelicals, until just recently, have always believed. But also, like the snow lying side-by-side on the ridge, the new views when followed consistently end up a thousand miles apart. What may seem like a minor difference at first, in the end makes all the difference in the world ... compromising the full authority of Scripture eventually affects what it means to be a Christian theologically and how we live in the full spectrum of human life" (Francis Schaeffer, The Great Evangelical Disaster, 1983, p. 44).

George Barna, president of Barna Research Group, reported that a study exploring the religious beliefs of the 12 largest denominations in America highlights the downward theological drift that has taken place in Christian churches in recent years. The study found that an alarmingly high number of church members have beliefs that fall far short of orthodox Christianity. ONLY 41 PERCENT OF ALL ADULTS SURVEYED BELIEVED IN THE TOTAL ACCURACY OF THE BIBLE. Only 40 percent believed Christ was sinless, and only 27 percent believed Satan to be real.

Of the Baptists surveyed 57 percent said they believed that works are necessary in order to be saved, 45 percent believed Jesus was not sinless, 44 percent did not believe that the Bible is totally accurate, and 66 percent did not believe Satan to be a real being. Barna said, "The Christian body in America is immersed in a crisis of biblical illiteracy."

What Christians really believe

A book by George A. Marsden, "Reforming Fundamentalism" quotes a survey of student belief at one of the largest Evangelical seminaries in the US. The poll indicated that 85% of the students "do not believe in the inerrancy of Scripture."

This book also lists the results of a poll conducted by Jeffery Hadden in 1987 of 10,000 American clergy. They were asked whether they believed that the Scriptures are the inspired and inerrant Word of God in faith, history, and secular matters: 95% of Episcopalians, 87% of Methodists, 82% of Presbyterians, 77% of American Lutherans, and 67% of American Baptists said "No."

The Barna Research Group reported in 1996 that among American adults generally: 58% believe that the Bible is "totally accurate in all its teachings"; 45% believe that the Bible is "absolutely accurate and everything in it can be taken literally."

"Support dropped between that poll and another taken in 2001. Barna reported in 2001 that: 41% of adults strongly agrees that the Bible is totally accurate in all that it teaches."

"Seminary students, future pastors and leaders in the church, show very little support for the inerrancy of the Bible position. What does that foretell about the future of the church? Undoubtedly, just as the poll results show in the 1996 - 2001 time frame, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE BELIEVING THE BIBLE IS INERRANT WILL DROP."

http://www.worldviewweekend.com/articles/c...nstudents.shtml

According to pollster George Barna:

* Less than 10 percent of American Christians actually posses a biblical worldview.

* Two out of three born-again believers assert there is no such thing as absolute moral truth.

Indeed, ideas do have consequences and today, we are reaping the consequences of a humanist worldview that is based on moral relativism that says there is no right or wrong, situational ethics; the end justifies the means, pluralism; all religions and ideas are equal, and tolerance; no one is to speak from a worldview based on moral absolutes. Unfortunately, the desire to be non-judgmental and tolerant is now a growing problem among Christian students, thus causing them to reject biblical truth.

The 1994 Churched Youth Survey conducted by the Barna Research Group for the Josh McDowell Ministry revealed the following facts through a scientifically designed process that randomly selected youth groups from thousands of churches throughout the U.S. and Canada. Over 3,700 youth were extensively and confidentially surveyed. The participants were youth involved in church activities and who overwhelmingly identified their parents as loving and their family experience as positive. This survey reveals the same troubling data as does the national PEERS test results.

The Churched Youth Survey revealed the following:

* Only 44% asserted that humans are capable of grasping the meaning of truth

* 57% could not even say that an objective standard of truth exists.

* 85% are likely to reason "just because it's wrong for you doesn't mean its wrong for me."

* Only 29% disagreed with the statement: "When it comes to matters of ethics, truth means different things to different people; no one can be absolutely positive they have the truth."

* Only 38% disagreed with the statement: "Nothing can be known for certain except the things that you experience in your life."

No absolute truth

The explosion of modern versions has encouraged the student to pick and choose his own preferred readings and has created a tendency to treat every Bible lightly and to look upon none as the final words of God.

Sam Kobia, Secretary, World Council of Churches, ENI 1-23-04:"Having a variety of translations available encourages the Bible to be read in a plural and ecumenical way. HAVING A VARIETY OF TRANSLATIONS AVAILABLE IS A PRECIOUS TOOL IN THE STRUGLE AGAINST RELIGIOUS FUNDAMENTALISM." (Caps are mine)

Here are some excerpts from a Wall Street Journal, editorial page, that appeared on the internet in July of 2004. It is an article written by Dale Buss, titled "Christian Teens? Not Very"

Mr. Buss writes: "It turns out that, while they may profess the faith and indeed love Jesus, the vast majority of Christian teenagers in this country actually hold beliefs fundamentally antithetical... Some leaders believe that mushy doctrine among the younger generation ranks as the No. 1 crisis facing American Christendom today."

"About one-third of American teenagers claim they're "born again" believers, according to data gathered over the past few years by Barna Research Group, the gold standard in data about the U.S. Protestant church, and 88% of teens say they are Christians. About 60% believe that "the Bible is totally accurate in all of its teachings." And 56% feel that their religious faith is very important in their life."

"Yet, Barna says, slightly more than half of all U.S. teens also believe that Jesus committed sins while he was on earth. About 60% agree that enough good works will earn them a place in heaven, in part reflecting a Catholic view, but also flouting Protestantism's central theme of salvation only by grace. About two-thirds say that Satan is just a symbol of evil, not really a living being. Only 6% of all teens believe that there are moral absolutes--and, most troubling to evangelical leaders, only 9% of self-described born-again teens believe that moral truth is absolute."

"When you ask even Christian kids, 'How can you say A is true as well as B, which is the antithesis of A?,' their typical response is, 'I'm not sure how it works, but it works for me,'" says George Barna, president of the Ventura, Calif.-based research company. "It's personal, pragmatic and fairly superficial."

Mr. Buss continues in his article: "Some commentators produce even more startling statistics on the doctrinal drift of America's youth. NINETY ONE PERCENT OF BORN AGAIN TEENAGERS surveyed a few years ago proclaimed that THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS ABSOLUTE TRUTH, says the Rev. Josh McDowell, a Dallas-based evangelist and author. More alarmingly, that number had risen quickly and steadily from just 52% of committed Christian kids in 1992 who denied the existence of absolute truth. A slight majority of professing Christian kids, Mr. McDowell says, also now say that the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ never occurred."

"There's a greater disconnect now than ever in the history of the church in America between what a Christian young person says they are and what they actually believe," says Mr. McDowell, who has ministered mainly to youth for more than 30 years. "Christianity is based on truth; Jesus said, 'I am the truth.' But you have an overwhelming majority even of Christian kids saying there is no absolute truth."

A popular New Age religious site that endorses all religions of the world is called Religious Tolerance. Org. (http://www.religioustolerance.org)

This site has some interesting comments regarding the doctrine of the inerrancy of the Bible. They ask: Does inerrancy really matter?

"From one standpoint, this doctrine is of great importance, because it determines, at a very fundamental level, how Christians approach Scripture."

"To most conservative theologians Biblical inerrancy and inspiration are fundamental doctrines. Unless the entire Bible is considered to be the authoritative word of God, then the whole foundation of their religious belief crumbles. If the Bible contains some errors, then conservative Christians feel that they would have no firm basis on which to base their doctrines, beliefs, morality and practices. The books of the Bible must be either inerrant, or be devoid of authority."

They continue: "To most liberal theologians, the Bible is not inerrant. They believe that its books were obviously written and edited by human authors: with limited scientific knowledge, who promoted their own specific belief systems, who attributed statements to God that are immoral by today's standards, who freely incorporated material from neighboring Pagan cultures, who freely disagreed with other Biblical authors." (Religious Tolerance.org)

What I personally found of great interest is the following comment in the same article. The people at Religious Tolerance noted: "Some Fundamentalist and other Evangelical Christians CONSIDER A PARTICULAR ENGLISH TRANSLATION TO BE INERRANT. THIS IS PARTICULARLY TRUE AMONG LAY MEMBERS IN THEIR BELIEFS ABOUT THE KING JAMES VERSION. But most conservatives believe that inerrancy only applies to the original, autograph copies of the various books of the Bible. None of the latter have survived to the present day. We only have access to a variety of manuscripts which are copies of copies of copies...An unknown number of errors are induced due to Accidental copying errors by ancient scribes or intentional changes and insertions into the text, made in order to match developing theology." (Religious Tolerance.org)

Most Christians who do not believe the King James Bible or any other version are now the inerrant, infallible, complete and pure words of God, define Inerrancy in the following manner:

[apothanein kerdos]

Don't get your hopes up Halifax. He's wrong on several points of analysis. Likewise his support of information comes from his own website and AV1611, a website that resembles modern Pharisees.

[dgolvach]

Hi other one, I just told you what I believe about the crucial issue of an inerrant, complete and 100% true Holy Bible. I wrote the article (aside from the quotes from others) and put it all together. Now, my question for you is this: Do you believe The Bible, or any bible or any text in any language IS NOW the inerrant words of God?

Would it be just to put us down here , not give us a pure sorce of truth and then judge our actions?

Dan

[followerofjesus]

Isn't it the message that counts?; & Billy Graham does believe there are other pathways to heaven. There was a quote from 15 yrs. ago stating this. This might be why GW stated we all worship the same God seeing that Mr. Graham is his spiritual leader. It might explain this. A student learns from a teacher.

[halifaxchristian]

Isn't it the message that counts?; & Billy Graham does believe there are other pathways to heaven. There was a quote from 15 yrs. ago stating this. This might be why GW stated we all worship the same God seeing that Mr. Graham is his spiritual leader. It might explain this. A student learns from a teacher.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Billy Graham does state that there are different paths to heaven. On Larry King he said this also. He is also a 31st degree freemason and has a close relationship with the Pope and Catholicism.

I abhorr all of the above information.

God bless.

[other one]

brandplucked, it is nice to come by and give us a cut and paste that we could go get for ourselves with little or no trouble.

I hope you can come back and tell us what you believe about this and not just someone elses idea's....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hi other one, I just told you what I believe about the crucial issue of an inerrant, complete and 100% true Holy Bible. I wrote the article (aside from the quotes from others) and put it all together. Now, my question for you is this: Do you believe The Bible, or any bible or any text in any language IS NOW the inerrant words of God?

Most Christians I run into do not; or they refuse to name it for us. If you tell us "all reliable versions" are inspired and inerrant, then you have a really strange way of using these words. It is like saying every color is the same, or all the days of the week have the same name.

In His grace,

Will K

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

For some time I also did not think it was 100% inerrant. Then I picked up some computer programs that give me access to the origional languages that has removed most of the seemingly descrepencies.

I would agree with you in some of the later versions that rely heavly on the Alexandrian texts for their input. While I am not a Texus Receptus freak like some of my friends, there are some obvious problems that I can not reconcile myself.

I also changed my fiew of what the Bible is and the reason it was given to us after reading and hearing it dozens upon dozens of tiimes.

I used to think that the Bible was the instruction and warranty book for the Human, but in reality to me it is the introduction to the human race my Father in Heaven. It's sole purpose is to introduce Him to me and tell me what I must know to spend eternity with Him and working with/for Him forever.

That knowledge does not have to be word for word precice for it to be revelant and usable for this purpose.

Up to the origional NASB I do believe that the knowledge to accomplish this is there. No problimo...... past this where John 3:16 is written as those who believe "will be saved" instead of "may not perish" is a suttle change that can be used with others to make a person think he/she is saved when in reality they "may" not be.

But for the message of salvation, if a person takes in "all" scripture instead of just part of it, the Bible will give you the way to the Father and that's what it is all about, and it does not have to be written by the hand of God himself, but spoken and written by many is good enough for me.

You are making too much of each word of the book and overlooking the whole of the message.

My view of your agruments,

Sam

Sam

[halifaxchristian]

Ahum...didn't Jesus say "every word"? And didn't satan, when tempting eve, only change 1 word of God's command???

Ummmmmm....

[halifaxchristian]

Is there a passage in the bible that says "the bible is inerrant"?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

"The grass whithereth, the flower fadeth: but the Word of our God shall stand for ever."-Isaiah 40:8

"For ever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in heaven."-Psalm 119:89

"...One jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the Law, till all be fulfilled."-Matthew 5:18

[yomotalking]

As dear Botz says: "not all translations of the Bible are perfect".