The New Testament...Is it inspired Scripture ?

Is the New Testament part of inspired Scripture ? Paul says:

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
(2 Tim 3:16)

Did Paul consider his letters to the churches to be part of Holy Writ already ? Did he not base his teachings, instructions, edifying, and doctrines on what was considered inspired writing which in his time was only the Old Testament ?

Again, he says:

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Romans 15:4


As for Peter, he says: 2 Peter 1:21
For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

So, is the entire Bible the inspired, inerrant Word of God ? All 66 books ?

If yes, where is the Scriptural proof ?
If no, then who taught us that the entire Bible is the inspired Word ?

Your thoughts, please.

 

I have read that Scripture also, Helen, with all due respects, to congregations both in the Philippines and here in the states, as proof-text that the New Testament is indeed inspired Scripture, particularly the Pauline and General Epistles.

But, here are the verses you cited:

2 Peter 3:15-16

Now, let's take a close look at what is being said here.

The subject: the day of the Lord, which, in the Old Testament, is also described as quick, unexpected, sure to come.

The Statement: Paul, according to the wisdom given unto him wrote to you. That is, explained to you in his epistles, what the meaning of certain Scriptures, which are really hard to understand.

The warning: the unlearned, that is, those untaught in the Scriptures, as Paul is, come up with erroneous doctrines and wrong conclusions trying to explain what is clearly not given to them.

Peter's statement has always been consistent with his earlier assertion that ..."no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time F4 by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." (2 Peter 1:21)

I still do not see Peter saying that Paul's writings were itself inspired Scripture. I see him saying that Paul's writings were correct interpretations of inspired Scripture breathed by God to holy men of old, and therefore ought to be heeded and accepted.

 

</font>[/QUOTE]sorry about that, BF. However, would you please clarify further ? do you mean 'wrest' ? or did you really mean 'rest' ?
thanks.

 

Thank you for your concern for my soul, Texas Sky, but, my soul is alright in Christ.

Please try to stay on topic.

My question is prompted not by feelings of heresy, or because I am a 'lost soul', but simply that we all consider the true Bible to be a compilation of 66 books against the Roman Catholics' more than 66 books.

I want to know why, and when, and who made the decision that only 66 books are truly inspired, and on what Scripture, plain and untwisted, did they base this ?

The gospels pointing out that Christ quoted the Old Testament does not prove that the New Testament is equally God-breathed as the Old Testament, merely that Christ was drawing His teachings from the Old Testament.

The phrase 'Thus saith the Lord' may be found more than 400 times in the Old Testament, not once in the New Testament.

The only book in the New Testament that claims to have written what was dictated to him by God is the Book of Revelation, and the Book of Revelation does not make the whole New Testament.

Now, am I saying that we should disregard the whole New Testament ?

Not so.

I simply want TRUTH, scripture based truth. Not inferences, not hints, not Bible-college taught answers to objections, only Veritas Sola Scriptura.

Educate me.

Don't judge my standing in Christ.

 

TS, the only truth I have to know is that God is a merciful God who loved me and sent His Son to die on the cross for me, and that the cross and salvation is all about God and Him alone, and not about me.

Now, I do not doubt that the Bible is God's Word, but, the word Bible means a library of books, and what I want to know, if you will enlighten me, is are all 66 books God-breathed, or is it just the 37 books of the Old Testament since Jesus Christ quoted from the Old Testament, Paul said that scriptures written aforetime and not during his time or after his time were written for our learning, the our including us in today's time, and Peter seems to say the same thing.
So, where is the Scripture, tell me since you seem so well-versed in Scripture, that says Paul's, Peter's, the 3 John's, and Jude's writings were God-breathed.

 

It is Pinoy, Texas Sky, the 'n' before the 'o', I say that merely to avoid your mistakenly omitting the 'i' sometime, and so now, I become a pony, which is a small horse, and small I am not at 250 lbs.

There is no part of the Bible I do not believe. I believe Peter when he says that no scripture is of any private interpretation......, I also believe Paul when he says, everything that has been written aforetime were written for our learning...I believe the virgin birth, the substitutionary atonement in 2 Corinthians 5:20, the believer's present position in Christ in Ephesians 2:6, I believe in the efficacy of the blood of Christ as taught in Hebrews.
But, you are inferring that my eternal salvation, and the success of Christ's work on my behalf, is dependent on whether or not I believe the Bible, and that I do not believe, nor find to be in Scriptures.
I belive every prophecy that Jesus Christ has uttered, and I believe that the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night.
I have no problem at all with the New Testament, except the fact that we teach the Epistles of Paul, Peter, John, and Jude to be as equally God-breathed as the writings of the prophets of old.
That is where I am asking for Scripture. Not historical documents, not inferences, but Scripture, since without a doubt, your position, as well as mine, is Sola Scriptura.

Agreed.

[QUOTE
But then again, neither was David or King Solumn or Nahum or any of the other authors of God's Holy word. I don't even know if Moses realized it.
[/QUOTE]

Disagreed. The prophets of old were told by God Himself to 'write', and more than 400 times the phrase 'Thus saith the Lord', were written down by prophets and Scripture writers. They were not egotistical, but they sure were directly told to write and repeat.

I do not think accuracy has ever been an issue from the start of this thread. I agree that the Bible is the inspired word of God, but then again, which Bible ? The Bible of 39 books of the Old Testament ? or the Bible of the 27 books of the New Testament ? Or the Bible of 66 books as we know it ?

If it is the 66 books, again the question begs itself. Where is Scripture that shows that the Epistles were, by and in themselves, God-breathed words of revelation such as the Old Testament ?

I think I first pointed out about the book of Revelation being the only book that says write, saith the Lord, or words to that effect.

I think I will disaggree with that. Paul is pretty much like any modern preacher who, at this point, is saying, 'this is what I think, but I do not say take this as doctrine'. If you preach, you probably have been in just such a situation, when trying to drive home a point to which you cannot testify to be accurate Biblical doctrine.
I know I have been in such a situation at times.
Gray areas in Scripture can present such a situation, where we say what, to us, seems to be what Scripture indicates.

I will agree to your second point, that the entire letter to Timothy, except those that Paul had clearly identified as his, is from God, but only in the sense that Paul builds his premise from the writings of the Old Testament, and those , not the letter to Timothy, were God-breathed.

Of course they would not be able to find anything to pin on Him, He was the One who breathed those words in the Book they were holding, which, by the way, is the Old Testament, not the 66 books of the Bible we say are all God-breathed.

 

Thank you, MikeinGhana. I will take that as a compliment. As a matter of fact, I am not much learned or much cultured as some of you in this Board apparently are.
I have had three years of Bible College, and reject everything I have learned in those three years concerning my part in my salvation. As for the rest, I follow Paul's precepts: prove all things. hold fast to that which is good.

Unfortunately, or is it fortunately, my salvation does not depend on any authoritative plan, but on the executed and finished work of Christ, and that alone.

MikeinGhana.
The handle seems to indicate that you are probably a missionary in Ghana, from the US or some other English speaking country.
Tell me, have all in Ghana head the gospel as preached, taught, and presented by MikeinGhana and his fellows ?
In relation to the deaths that occur per minute among the millions of Ghanaians, to the number of those who heard and believe the NT teaching about the plan of God for their salvation, how many therefore are alright compared to those who are not ?

Like I said, quote Scripture that shows the entire New Testament to be God-breathed in the sense that the Old Testament is.
All you can do is infer. That is not enough.
Do you, MikeinGhana, as a missionary, preacher, and teacher, teach that the Bible and only the Bible is the sole authority ? Sola Scriptura ? Good, and I agree. BUT, where, oh, where, is the Scripture that points to the New Testament, particularly the Pauline and General Epistles, to be God-breathed, in the way that Paul and Peter point to the Old Testament, as God-breathed ?
Where is the Scripture, or account in Scripture, that shows the original New Testament church, believed, held, and taught, that the writings of Paul and Peter, John and Jude, were all God-breathed ?

Like I said. Scripture, please.
And like I said, Christ's being my Savior does not depend on what I know about Him, but on what He knows about me, and what He did for me.
If knowledge is a prerequisite to anybody's eternal redemption, then we condemn a lot of people.