Can we believe in the Bible - Sunday Morning Class

Teacher

Larry Johnson Teacher

Lesson Summary

The class opened by describing two primary models of biblical inspiration: a general‑idea approach where the Holy Spirit provides the content and human authors shape the details, and a verbatim‑dictation model where every word is directly supplied by God. The teacher contrasted these with several modern skeptical positions—dynamic inspiration, limited inspiration (only doctrines), mechanical dictation, and the demythologizing view that treats biblical stories as mere principles. Moving through Scripture, the teacher affirmed the doctrine of verbal plenary inspiration, explaining that "verbal" refers to God’s control over each word and "plenary" to His oversight of the entire text. He cited the many Old‑Testament statements that claim God spoke the words (e.g., the Lord’s command to Moses), as well as New‑Testament affirmations such as "All Scripture is God‑breathed" (2 Timothy 3:16). By the lesson’s close, the congregation embraced the conviction that the Bible is an error‑less, fully inspired record of God’s message to humanity.

Key Scriptures