Coffee and Philosophy Ministry
Topics and Discussion
Biblical Inerrancy
• Bart Ehrman, the leading sceptic of Christianity and the inerrancy of the Bible, authored a book (Did Jesus Exist?)
on the historical Jesus to refute mythicists- those sceptics who not only refute Christianity but deny that a person called Jesus
even existed. Even as a non-Christian who refutes the truth of the gospel message, he makes a very convincing historical case for the existence of Jesus.
• Mike Licona is a Christian apologist that holds to a minimalist approach- that even if we simply believed the least contested parts of the Bible,
there is enough evidence and foundation to support the core of Christian belief.
• Some people look at “Biblical inerrancy” as that the Bible is literally and factually accurate word by word. Biblical inerrancy can also mean
that the Bible is true idea by idea.
• Type of genre can inform what parts of the Bible are intended to be historical representations of fact and what parts are more concerned
with the truth of the ideas revealed.
• Inspiration is not the same as dictation.
• Ninety-seven percent of Mark appears in Matthew and/or Luke.
• Authorship was considered in deciding which books would be in the canon, but we are finding that we cannot always nail
down authorship. Sometimes the argument for a specific authorship is that the prose is like other works by the same author.
That doesn’t mean that the exact same author wrote them.
• If all the books of the gospels were exactly the same, they would be copies, not attestations to the truth of the content.
Versions of the Bible
• A question came up about Ten Commandments in classrooms- what version of Ten Commandments?
• There are many versions of the Bible based on different original manuscripts. Scholarly work collaborates to reconcile
differences in manuscripts so that the most likely words/meanings are transmitted.
• Virtually all versions of the Bible are “inerrant” if you consider inerrancy to be idea-by-idea. The versions typically
contain 95-98% of the same ideas/content.
• The “best” version is the version that a person will read, and which will bring that person closer to God.
• There are three main factors used in creating Bible versions- elegance of language, accuracy (either word-by-word or idea-by-idea),
and readability/accessibility.
• Typically, people raise the KJV as a model of the “elegance of language.” It may not be quite as historically and paleographically
accurate as other versions, but there is substantial benefit in the reverence and gravitas of the language.
• Accuracy can be accomplished in some versions by literal word for word translations… this preserves the historicity but may not
convey the intended message because of archaic idioms. Some versions that stress historical accuracy will convert archaic idioms to the
idea they would have conveyed to a first or second century reader.
• Readability/Accessibility- Starting in the 70s and 80s, “common language” type “translations” like the Living Bible, The Message,
The Good News became popular. They are easy to understand, but they need to be understood more like modern day paraphrases than an actual
original translation. Using them in conjunction with a more literal translation can work well.
• Sometimes, in an effort to be inclusive, versions may make changes that end up losing a Christological sign. For instance,
in Psalm 1, some versions say, “Blessed are they,” but a more accurate translation says “Blessed is the Man.”
By making the phrasing inclusive, we lose the clear signposting to the coming of Jesus (the Man.)
Can We Find God’s Truth Outside the Bible?
• Creation
• Artistic accomplishments
• Even artists (Cat Stevens, Kahil Gibran) can inspire people to think about the big questions of life and spirituality, thus opening a door to God.
• God can use whoever and whatever He wishes to reveal His truth.