Lutheran Church Missouri Synod

The Holy Bible

I. Question: Who wrote it, and When?

A. Men did: The Bible contains 66 books (39 in the Old Testament written in Hebrew and 27 in the New Testament written in Greek) written by people of all walks of life, written over a period of 1600 years. Job (2500 BC?) or Moses (1446 BC) was the first human author. John, the disciple of Jesus, was the last (90-100 AD). Because of the various authors, various writing styles and literary genres can be discerned throughout the Bible.

B. God did: Though composed by so many different authors over a tremendous stretch of time, the Bible shows forth a unity. Why? Because, God the Holy Spirit is the divine author behind all the human authors. We believe Scripture to be " inspired," ( " God-breathed"), that is the Holy Spirit so guided the authors of the Bible, that every word that they wrote was just as God intended it to be (2 Tim. 3:15-17; 2 Pet. 1:21). This is why the Scriptures refer to themselves again and again as the " Word of God." If every work of Scripture is God's Word, then every word is true (John 17:17), for God does not lie, nor does He err or contradict Himself. As He Himself is completely trustworthy, so is His Word.

II. Question: What is the Bible about?

A. Answer: Jesus the Messiah, Son of God, our Savior. Though the Bible deals with a myriad of subjects, the chief subject is Jesus Christ, God's Son, and the salvation that is freely given through Him (Luke 24:44-47; John 7:39; Acts 10:43; 2 Tim. 3:14-15; John 20:30-31). The Old Testament points to the Christ. The New Testament speaks of the Christ who has come.

B. Answer: The history of God's believing people both Old Testament and New. We are to learn from their example (Rom. 15:4; 1 Co. 10:11) and we are to follow their Faith (Romans 16:17-18; Hebrews 13:7-9; Jude 1:3).

III. Question: How Should the Bible be Interpreted?

A. Apart from faith in Jesus Christ, the Bible remains a " closed" book (2 Co. 3:12-16).

B. To properly interpret the Bible, we must carefully distinguish between Law and Gospel (John 1:17; 2 Co. 3:6).

C. To properly interpret the Bible human reason should be used as a servant of the text, not a master of the text (Heb. 4:12-13; 2 Pet. 3:15b-16). Since God's Word was given in human languages, cultures and times, we need to learn these languages, cultures, and times. Ultimately, though, God must aid us in understanding (Ps. 119:18).

D. On the one hand Scripture itself teaches that the Pastoral office is the main teaching office of the church (1 Tim. 3:2; 4:13-15; Eph. 4:11- 12). However, on the other hand, the Bible belongs to the entire Church. The Bible is essentially clear and all of God's people can understand it (1 Thess. 5:21; 1 John 4:1). Two evils to avoid in the Christian Church: theologian despotism and lay anarchy.