Dr Paul Allen

How accurate is the inspired revelation of the 66 books of the Bible ? How do we know? Since Scripture is God ’s revelation given through inspiration, it is inerrant. Simply put, the inerrancy of the Bible means that the 66 books of Scripture are the truth, containing no error. In the original manuscripts, every word is entire without error. Whatever Scripture affirms is true and not contrary to fact. Whether speaking of the six-day creation, a global flood, the grace and mercy of God, the resurrection and the future bodily return of Jesus Christ , the Bible is true, factual, and without error. In other words, the Bible is absolutely inerrant. The question of inerrancy—how true is the Bible—depends upon the source and nature of the Bible. To understand the extent of the Bible’s truthfulness begins with asking, “What is the Bible?” and, “How did we get it?” First, the Bible is special revelation. That is to say, the very words are disclosure from God otherwise unavailable

English: Church of the Holy Spirit in Munich - Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit: Spirit of Strength. Painter: Peter Horemans (1753) Deutsch: Heilig-Geist-Kirche (München) - Sieben Gaben des Heiligen Geistes: Der Geist der Stärke. Maler: Peter Horemans (1753) Latina: Spiritus fortitudinis (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In some Christian traditions they are emphasized to the point of exhaustion; in others they are so diminished as to barely exist at all. Whatever we believe about the spiritual gifts, we at least need to acknowledge that the Holy Spirit gives a great range of gifts to his people and that they are given to glorify God as we use them to serve one another (read 1 Corinthians 12). Yet since we are sinful people, we can take even the good gifts of the Holy Spirit and use them as a means of discouragement. This can happen in at least two ways: when we envy the gifts given to others or when we assume that others should share our giftings. In his book Accidental Pharisees (