Day 21: The Apostles, Too, Were Inspired By God

Yesterday we found that the accuracy and authority of the entire Bible depends on the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. We find that the apostles themselves clearly understood this and laid claim to this authority in their writings. For example, Peter writes:

“Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle... that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour.” (2 Pet. 3:1-2)

Here Peter sets the Scriptures of the Old Testament prophets and the written commandments of Christ’s apostles side by side, as being of precisely equal authority. Peter also acknowledges the divine authority of the writings of Paul, for he says:

“And consider that the long-suffering of our Lord is salvation – as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.” (2 Pet. 3:15-16)

The phrase “the rest of the Scriptures” indicates that even in the lifetime of Paul the other apostles acknowledged that his epistles possessed the full authority of Scripture. Yet Paul himself had never known Jesus in His earthly ministry. Therefore, the accuracy and authority of Paul’s teaching depended solely upon the supernatural inspiration and revelation of the Holy Spirit.

The same applies to Luke, who never received the title of apostle. Nevertheless, in the preamble to his Gospel, he states that he “had perfect understanding of all things from the very first” (Luke 1:3). The Greek word translated “from the very first” means literally “from above.”

In John 3:3, where Jesus speaks of being “born again,” it is the same Greek word which is translated “again” or “from above.” In each of these passages the word indicates the direct, supernatural intervention and operation of the Holy Spirit.

Thus we find, on careful examination, that the claim to absolute accuracy and authority of both Old and New Testaments alike depends not on the variable and fallible faculties of human beings, but on the divine, super-natural guidance, revelation and control of the Holy Spirit. Interpreted together in this way, the Old and New Testaments confirm and complement each other and constitute a coherent, complete and all-sufficient revelation of God.

We have also seen that there is nothing in this total view of the Scriptures which is inconsistent with logic, science or common sense. On the contrary, there is much in all three to confirm such a view and render it easy to believe.