Systematic Theology
Systematic TheologyOctober 21 Windsor Locks Congregational
Church Tony Arsenal11Bibliology2Key AttributesWe affirm that the
Scripture isDivine and HumanScripture ultimately originates with
GodScripture is genuinely a product of human processesReliableWe
can trust the Scriptures to accomplish that which God intended it
to accomplishSufficientWe do not need to seek another source of
revelation in order to know what we must knowClearWe do not need
any special gifting by God to understand what the Scriptures are
saying3Divine and HumanInspiredThe origin of Scripture is
ultimately an activity of the Holy SpiritThis inspiration extends
to the very words and word orders chosen by the human authorsDoes
not mean dictation, the authors composed these books the same way
any other author composes any other book in regards to human
activityThe Holy Spirit providentially ensured that every word was
exactly what he desiredIt is the text itself that is inspired, not
the author / speaker of the textThe meaning of the text is found
within the text itself
4ReliableInfallibleThe Bible is infallible, or unfailingThis
means that whatever God is intending the Scripture to communicate,
it never fails to communicateNot only does this mean that it never
actually DOES fail, but that it is not capable of
failingInerrantThe Bible contains no errors in what it affirmsIs
not violated when the Bible records a lie, mistake, or other
similar event in a historical text or quoteIs not violated by lack
of precision or phenomenological languageKey points to rememberThis
only applies to the original manuscriptTranslations are not
inerrant, nor are original language manuscripts apart from the
original5SufficientSola ScripturaProtestants affirm that the
Scriptures contain all things necessary for salvation, faith, and
good worksChurch traditions and interpretations are authoritative
in so far as they are faithful interpretations of the
ScriptureThere is no deposit of authoritative tradition outside of
the Bible that is infallible or necessary for salvation that is not
also presented within the BibleNothing outside the Bible is to be
necessary for Salvation, regardless of its originNothing outside
the Bible is to be binding on the conscience of a Christian,
regardless of its originCircumstances and ElementsElements are
things that are inherently a part of what Scripture is
sayingCircumstances are things that are contextual to what
Scripture is sayingCircumstances may change over time, but Elements
do notGood and NecessaryAn extrapolated doctrine (the Trinity, the
Hypostatic Union, etc) must be both good and necessaryGood Is a
logical and rational understanding (usually a synthesis) of the
textNecessary There must be no other reasonable understanding of
the text
6ClearPerspicuityThere is no special spiritual or charismatic
gifting required for interpretation of the Scripture beyond the
illumination given to all ChristiansThis does not mean that all
parts of the Scripture are equally clearThis does not mean that all
persons (Christian or otherwise) are equally capableWestminster
Confession of Faith 1.7All things in Scripture are not alike plain
in themselves, nor alike clear unto all; yet those things which are
necessary to be known, believed, and observed for salvation, are so
clearly propounded, and opened in some place of Scripture or other,
that not only the learned, but the unlearned, in a due use of the
ordinary means, may attain unto a sufficient understanding of
themThis is an attribute of the textIf I read a text without my
glasses, it is blurry because there is something wrong with my
eyes, not with the textDoes not mean that we will all come to the
exact same interpretationDoes not mean that nothing outside of
Scripture is necessary for proper understanding
7Four Broad Views8The Spectrum Protestant
Christianity9FundamentalismEvangelicalismNeo-OrthodoxLiberalismFundamentalismThe
Bible is a collection of propositional truth statementsEssentially,
this takes the Bible and assumes that EVERYTHING is an
affirmationTends to miss the difference in genres and therefore
misinterprets poetry, prophecy/apocalypse, and wisdom literatureThe
meaning is inherent in the text, but the author is somewhat
irrelevantBecause the Bible is a collection of propositional truth
statements, the authorial intent is sometimes ignored (since the
authorial intent is not always to make a propositional truth
statement)
10EvangelicalismThe Bible is a collection of documents written
for different purposes by different authorsRecognizes that each
book must be taken on its own termsSometimes underemphasizes the
divine authors intent in favor of the human authors intent, or
assumes that those two things are identicalThe meaning is inherent
in the text, but only in the human authors intended meaningSince
the human authors intent is the primary location of the meaning,
the divine authors intent is either hidden from us or identical
with the human authors intent
11Neo-OrthodoxyRevelation is given through the text, but the
text itself is not necessarily revelationThe text itself has
inherent meaning, but that meaning is auxiliary and sometimes
irrelevantDivine meaning (revelation) is given to the text by the
Holy Spirit as we encounter and experience the text in communal
interpretationThe text itself is not inerrant or infallibleThere
are errors in the text, but since it is the Holy Spirit who gives
meaning as we encounter it, that meaning is always infallibleThe
original author may intend to communicate something, but fail to do
so12LiberalismThe text is an artifact that we give meaning toThe
text has no inherent meaning, rather we decide what the text means
to usThe Bible is simply an account of various authors experiences
of God, and reflects their culturesIs most certainly fallible and
errantMany times, denies any sort of divine meaning to the
text13Hermeneutics and Exegesis14Genres Old
TestamentPenteteuch/Torah (Genesis-Numbers)Historical accounts of
the origin and constitution of Israel as a nationFollows the same
format as Ancient Near Eastern Suzerainty treatiesHistorical
PrologueCovenant StipulationsCovenant Sanctions (Curses and
Blessings)Historical Narratives (Joshua-Esther)Historical accounts
of the United Monarchy, Divided Monarchies, Exile of Judah, Return
from Exile, and Exilic LifeWisdom Literature (Job-Song of
Songs/Solomon)Prophets/Apocalypse (Isaiah-Malachi)Major Prophets
(Length, not importance) Isaiah, Jeremiah (and Lamentations),
Ezekiel, and DanielMinor Prophets (Length, not importance) Hosea
through MalachiOracular in nature, meaning that they often contain
verbatim statements Thus saith the Lord15Genres New
TestamentGospels (Matthew-Luke)Theological biographies of Jesus
focusing on his life, ministry, and especially his death and
resurrectionActsHistorical account of the growth of the Church
immediately after the ascension of JesusInitially focuses on the
original 11 disciples and the ministry in JudeaShifts to the
ministry to the gentiles through the work of PaulEpistles
(Romans-Jude)Pauline Epistles (Romans-2 Thessalonians) Occasional
letters written to specific congregations with specific
purposesPauline Pastoral Epistles (1 Timothy-Philemon, Hebrews)
Occasional letters written to various elders/bishops/pastors with
specific purposesGeneral Epistles (Hebrews-Jude) Occasional letters
written by non-Pauline authors with no clear
audienceRevelationProphetic / Apocalyptic book written initially to
7 specific congregations, but seemingly intended for general
distributionHighly figurativeOracular16Other Considerations17Text
CriticismThe discipline of Text Criticism is devoted to
reconstructing the original text from the various manuscripts we
haveWe can reconstruct the text with near certainty due to the
voluminous amount of manuscript evidence we haveOperates based on
various rules that are in play, but there is no formulaGenerally
these criteria are usedThe older manuscript is preferredThe more
difficult text is preferredThe more populous text is
preferredSimple ExampleIf we have 10 manuscripts that are all
copies of an original, we can reconstruct the original even if
there is disagreement in the copies6 say The dog chased the cat up
the tree3 say The dog chased the cat1 says The dog ______ the cat
up the tree (Manuscript damage)We can be reasonably certain that
the original read is The dog chased the cat up the tree18Texts and
Accounts that likely unoriginalThe Pricopae AdultareThe account of
the woman caught in adultery in John 7:53-8:11 is not in our
earliest manuscriptsThe evidence for the non-Johannine origin of
the periscope of the adulteress is overwhelming. Roger L.
OmansonThe Long Ending of MarkThe longer ending of Mark 16:9-20 is
likely a later additionContains doctrine which was common among the
Montanist schismatic group, but not present in earlier forms of
ChristianityComma JohanneumThe explicitly Trinitarian statement in
1 John 5:7-8 in some manuscripts is likely not an original part of
the letterThis reading is absent in nearly all of the earliest
Greek manuscripts, and is not quoted by any of the Greek Church
Fathers19TranslationsTranslators have an agendaWhen you read an
English Bible, it is an interpretation, since all acts of
translation involve interpretationEven when we read from a Greek
critical text, we are still getting an interpretation since
doctrinal cohesion is one of the considerationsSome translations
attempt to remain closer to the original formEnglish Standard
Version (ESV) Has a broadly Reformed biasHolman Christian Standard
Bible (HCSB/HCS) Has a broadly Baptist (particularly Southern
Baptist) biasNew American Standard Bible (NASB) Consciously
attempts to retain word order and word choice consistencySome
translations attempt to represent the thought of the original
authorNew International Version (NIV) Tries to translate thought
for thought, and consciously attempts to represent the whole
Evangelical traditionNew Living Translation (NLT) Tries to
translate broad concepts into EnglishSome translations represent a
full on interpretation, with little regard for original formThe
Message (MSG) A paraphrase by Eugene PetersonThe Voice (VOICE) A
collaborative paraphrase by various parties20Translations
Comparisons John 1:1Greek - ESV - In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.HCSB - In the
beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was
God.NIV - In the beginning was the Word,and the Word was with
God,and the Word was God.MSG - The Word was first, the Word present
to God, God present to the Word. The Word was God, in readiness for
God from day one. (1:1-2)VOICE - Before time itself was measured,
the Voice was speaking. The Voice was and is God.Literal Word Order
Translation In beginning was the Word, and the Word was with the
God, and [a] God was the WordTony Arsenal Version In the beginning,
the Word was, and the Word was with God [the Father] and the Word
possessed the divine nature
21BibliographyHorton, Michael.Pilgrim Theology: Core Doctrines
for Christian Disciples. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013..The
Christian Faith: A Systematic Theology for Pilgrims on the Way.
Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010.Omanson, Roger L, and Bruce M
Metzger, German Bible Society.A Textual Guide to the Greek New
Testament: An Adaptation of Bruce M. Metzgers Textual Commentary
for the Neds of Translators. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaff,
2006.Sproul, R C.Can I Trust The Bible?. Sanford: Reformation
Trust, 2009.22For Further ReadingBrown, Jeannine K.Scripture as
Communication: Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics. Grand Rapids:
Baker Academic, 2007.Fee, Gordon, and Douglas Stuart.How to Read
the Bible Book by Book: A Guided Tour. Grand Rapids: Zondervan,
2002..How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth. Third Edition. Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 2003.Goldsworthy, Graeme.Gospel-Centered
Hermeneutics: Foundations and Principles of Evangelical Biblical
Interpretation. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2007.Sproul, R
C.Can I Trust The Bible?. Sanford: Reformation Trust,
2009.23Reading for Next WeekChapters 10-12 (pp 246-301)Chapter 13
(pp 303-324)24
