Theories of Inspiration - Essay Example

Introduction: Inspiration is a very important doctrine in the Christian world, and for the mainreason that the Bible, which is a religious book for the Christians was inspired by God. This therefore contributes to the development and evolution of an individual faith in God, and his son Jesus Christ. If the teachings of the bible are based on human understanding, and not out of the inspiration of God, then there is no need of following those teachings, nor having a faith in God (Anderson, 2010 p. 29). This is because the teachings under consideration do not represent the views of the almighty God. The main reason as to why Christians value the Bible so much, to the extent that is the foundation of their faith is found in 2nd Timothy Chapter 3 verses 16-17. This verse of the Bible denotes that all scriptures are under the inspiration of God, for purposes of correcting, teaching, reproofing and training Christians to live in a righteous life (Hogue, 2010). This will help mankind to be equipped for performing every good work. There are five main theories of inspiration; 1. Intuition. 2. Illumination. 3. Dynamic. 4. Verbal 5. Dictation. This paper critically discusses the theories of intuition, dynamic and verbal, and identifies their implications in the various lives of Christians (Cohen, 2002, p. 33). Intuition Theory: The intuition theory denies the role of a super natural authority in the creation of the scriptures. According to this theory, the scriptures were written by religious men who had a unique spiritual insight. On this basis, there writings on spiritual and moral matters were far much ahead of their contemporaries. On this basis, they wrote the bible, in a similar manner in which other books are written. The religious ideas that these writers present are their own. This theory only lays emphasis on the role of human beings in the writing of scriptures. This view is wrong, and unacceptable amongst Christians. This is because most Christians believe in the human and the supernatural efforts in the writing of scriptures (Anderson, 2010, p. 44). This is because God used man to reveal His truths, and thoughts. The Bible is not just any book, but it is a Supreme book, that identifies the character of God, and his will. This can only be revealed through inspiration, and not religious insight, nor human genius. This view also directly contradicts the scriptures, found in 1st Thessalonians Chapter 2 verse 13. According to this scripture, the Bible is a word of God, and it is not brought forth according to the understanding of humans. The implication of this theory is that it advocates for the notion that God does not exist. This therefore helps to propagate the theories of evolution, which denotes that the world existed through the evolution process, and not through creation. Dynamic Theory: Dynamic theory on the other hand is a view that the scriptures were created as a result of the combination of Gods efforts, and that of mankind. According to this theory, it is only the thoughts of men that were divinely inspired. The religious writings of these authors were their own, and did not come from the Holy Spirit (Hogue, 2010, p. 41). From this theory, we can denote that God only inspired the writers of the bible, but allowed them to use their own words to describe the experience. This theory is used by Christians who react on aspects whereby they view God as dictating every word that comes from the scriptures. It therefore tries to create a balance between the role of God, and that of man, in the writing of the Bible (Carlson and Longman, 2010, p. 22). In as much as this theory tries to create a balance between the roles of God and man in the development of the scriptures, the views it holds are not biblical and they open a number of questions such as whether the writers correctly wrote what God required of them. On this basis, it is difficult to rely on the bible, because various authors relied on their understanding of God. This theory also emphasizes on the writers, and not on the inspired words. This is contrary to the bible, which identifies inspired words, not writers (2nd Timothy 3 Verses 16). The implication of this theory is that it creates doubt on the reliability of Gods words. This is because men can distort information, for purposes of serving their own interests. Verbal Theory: Verbal theory on the other hand denotes that the inspiration of Biblical writers stretched beyond the revelation, to influencing the choice of words they used, and the manner of communicating their messages. 2nd Peter Chapter 1 Verses 21 gives us a clue on the manner in which God inspired human writers, making sure that they convey His messages in an accurate manner (Frank, 2009, p. 28). According to this passage, prophets used to convey the messages of God, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. On this basis, Christians believe that the cultural, social and political background of Biblical writers did not affect the manner in which these people wrote the bible. This is because the Holy Spirit was there to guide them through the whole process. On this note, the scriptures are reliable and accurate as they reflect the personality of God (Gibbs, 2010, p. 34). The implication of this theory is that it creates faith, and reliance on the bible. This is because the process of writing this book, was under the inspiration and control of God. This is because those who wrote the bible heavily relied on the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to write the desires of the almighty God. Conclusion: In conclusion, the three theories of inspiration are believed by various members of the Christian faith. The most popular theory is the verbal theory. This theory is believed by a larger percentage of the Protestants, who believe that God played an active role in the writings of the scriptures. In fact, these people denote that an example is the Ten Commandments, whereby God personally wrote the laws in a stone tablet. Bibliography: Anderson, A. (2010). Studying global Pentecostalism theories and methods. Berkeley: University of California Press. Carlson, R. F., & Longman, T. (2010). Science, creation and the Bible: reconciling rival theories of origins. Downers Grove, Ill.: IVP Academic. Cohen, M. J. (2002). Pathways through the Bible classic selections from the Tanakh (3rd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Jewish Publication Society. Frank, A. (2009). The constant fire: beyond the science vs. religion debate. Berkeley: University of California Press. Gibbs, J. C. (2010). Moral development & reality: beyond the theories of Kohlberg and Hoffman (2. ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon. Hogue, M. S. (2010). The promise of religious naturalism. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. Read More