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Lesson 1December 31-January 6/7The Spirit and the Word
Memory Text:"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16, 17, NKJV).
The Bible says the following about itself: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Tim. 3:16, 17, NKJV). Scripture fulfills this role because it is the Word of God, revealed to humanity through the work of the Holy Spirit.In the Bible the Holy Spirit reveals God's will to us, showing us how to live a life pleasing to Him.
But the Holy Spirit was operational not only in the distant past, in the origin of the Bible. He is involved with the Word of God in many other important ways even today. And perhaps the most important is our reading the Word and desiring to understand it properly. This is when we need the Holy Spirit. This same divine Spirit awakens in us the desire to embrace the Word of God and to apply its teaching to our lives. Thus, the Spirit works with and through the Written Word to transform us into new creatures in Christ.
This week we will trace the work of the Holy Spirit as it relates to the Scriptures.
SundayJanuary 1The Holy Spirit and Revelation
How does God ensure that His will is faithfully transmitted to fallen human beings?He does this in two major related activities of the Holy Spirit: revelation and inspiration.
In the process of revelation, human beings are dependent upon the help of Someone outside of themselves to reveal things to us that we, as created (and fallen) beings, cannot know of ourselves. That is, the Holy Spirit teaches us truths that have to be told to us (see, for example,Dan. 2:19-23); otherwise we could never know them through natural means.
Revelationis a process in which God makes Himself and His divine will known to humans. The basic idea associated with the word revelation is an unveiling, or uncovering, a disclosure of something that otherwise is hidden. We need such a revelation because, as finite and fallen beings separated from God because of sin, we are greatly limited in what we can learn on our own. We are dependent upon God to know His will. Hence we are dependent on God's revelation because we are not God and have only a very limited natural knowledge of Him.
Read2 Peter 1:19-21.19We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lightshining in a dark place, until the day dawnsand the morning starrises in your hearts.20Above all, you must understandthat no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things.21For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from Godas they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
What does this say about the origin of the biblical prophetic message?A POSSIBLE ANSWER: It says that the biblical prophetic message originates in the presence and work of the Holy Spirit. What does the divine origin of the biblical message tell us about the authority of the Bible?A POSSIBLE ANSWER: The divine origin carries with it the authority of God as owner/redeemer who is to be loved worshiped and obeyed.
According to the apostle Peter, the prophetic message of the Old Testament was not of human origin. The prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit in such a way that the content of their message came from God. These men did not create the message themselves. They were merely the vessels of the message, not the originators. Peter was very intentional in stressing the Spirit-inspired source of the prophecies: though written by men, "prophecy never came by the will of man" (2 Pet. 1:21, NKJV). And it is this divine origin that gives the Bible its ultimate authority over our lives.
God used human beings to proclaim His Word to the world. How can we be used by the Holy Spirit to do something similar today, not in writing Scripture but in proclaiming what has already been written?A POSSIBLE ANSWER: We can be used in a similar manner by being cleansed by the Spirit, searching for His will in revelation and then be empowered to communicate (verbal or written)only that which the Holy Spirit has impressed on us.
MondayJanuary 2 The Holy Spirit and Inspiration
Inspiration is the term used to describe God's influence through the work of the Holy Spirit in transmitting His message through human instruments. The work of the Holy Spirit in the process of inspiration is the reason we find a fundamental unity in all of Scripture in regard to truth. As the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17, 15:26, 16:13), the Holy Spirit will lead us into all truth.
Read2 Peter 1:21,Deuteronomy 18:18, Micah 3:8,and 1 Corinthians 2:9-13.What do these texts tell us about the biblical writers and about God's involvement in the origin of the Bible?
2 Peter 1:21 For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from Godas they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 21. For the prophecy. Rather, “for prophecy.” Peter speaks of prophecy in general, not of some particular passage. For comment on “prophecy” see on Rom. 12:6; 1 Cor. 12:10. In old time. Gr. pote, “formerly,” “ever,” here meaning in OT times. By the will of man. True prophecy is a revelation from God. The initiative comes from God. He decides what shall be revealed and what shall remain concealed. Unless the Holy Spirit impresses the mind, man is incapable of prophesying—of speaking forth for God—no matter how ardently he may wish to do so. Holy men of God spake. Important textual evidence may be cited (cf. p. 10) for the reading “men spoke from God,” that is, men who were moved by the Holy Spirit spoke the messages they had received from God. Men who are moved by the Holy Spirit will be holy men, men of God. Whichever reading is adopted the meaning is virtually the same. Moved. Gr. pherō, here used in the passive sense, “to be conveyed,” “to be borne,” with a suggestion, perhaps, of speed or force, as by wind. In Acts 27:15, 17 the word is used for the driving of a ship before the wind, and in Acts 2:2 for a rushing mighty wind as the Holy Spirit descended on the believers at Pentecost. Here the use of pherō implies that the prophets were borne along by the Spirit as a ship is borne along by a wind. They were entirely under the Spirit’s motivation. Holy Ghost. Or, Holy Spirit (see on Matt. 1:18). This is the only direct reference to the Spirit in this epistle.[1]
A POSSIBLE ANSWER:This text tells us that did not permit their will to a factor in the production of the bible. God the Holy Spirit was involved in that He gave the revelation to the author, then motivated them to speak/write and oversaw its production to the extent that that which was communicated reflected the original intent of God.
Deuteronomy 18:18I will raise up for them a prophetlike you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my wordsin his mouth.He will tell them everything I command him. “18. A Prophet. See on v. 15. Christ was the true prophet “that should come into the world” (John 6:14).He shall speak. Christ alluded to this prophecy when He said, “The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works” (John 14:10; cf. John 16:13, 14; 5:45, 46).”
A POSSIBLE ANSWER:The fact that God raises up the prophet would suggest that God chooses and empowers the prophet who is generally form among the people. Further, God will give them the messages that they are to communicate to the people. .
Micah 3:8 But as for me, I am filled with power,with the Spirit of theLord,and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression,to Israel his sin. “8. Full of power. In contrast with the false prophets who followed “their own spirit” (Eze. 13:3), Micah was directed “by the spirit of the Lord” (see 2 Sam. 23:2; 1 Peter 1:10, 11; 2 Peter 1:20, 21). We may analyze his threefold endowment thus: He was filled with (1) power so to proclaim the divine message that it fell with force upon the hearers (see Luke 1:17; Acts 1:8); (2) judgment and a knowledge of the justice and righteousness of God, that made his words right and fair; (3) might, and courage to deliver the divine communications against any and all opposition (see Isa. 50:7–9; Jer. 1:8, 17–19; 15:20; 2 Tim. 1:7). How opposite was Micah’s ministry from that of the self-appointed, deceitful, fawning, and timeserving false prophets, who called “evil good, and good evil” (Isa. 5:20).”
A POSSIBLE ANSWER:This text tells us that the prophet is indwelt and directed by the Holy Spirit to such an extent that the message is communicated with force, with courage and in fairness. .
1 Corinthians 2:9-13 9However, as it is written:“What no eye has seen,what no ear has heard,and what no human mind has conceived”—the things God has prepared for those who love him—10these are the things God has revealedto us by his Spirit.The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.11For who knows a person’s thoughtsexcept their own spiritwithin them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.12What we have received is not the spiritof the world,but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.13This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdombut in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. “9. Eye hath not seen.That neither eye nor ear can understand the things of God proves that other faculties than the physical senses are required to understand spiritual truths (v. 10). Heart. Gr. kardia, a word referring to the center of human faculties (see on Rom. 1:21). The grand realities of the kingdoms of grace and glory cannot be fully understood either through the avenue of the senses or by the intellect. But through the knowledge God imparts to those who are willing to be instructed by Him, Christians may gain an ever-increasing understanding. 10. God hath revealed. God has planned a continuing revelation of truth to His people (see 5T 703). By his Spirit.The third member of the Godhead is the one through whom an understanding of truth is imparted to mankind (see on John 14:16). A continuous acquisition of knowledge is possible only for those who willingly submit to the guidance and illumination of the Holy Spirit (see Rom. 8:5, 14, 16). Searcheth. Being a member of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit knows all things. He is not in any sense ignorant of anything. He searches, not in order to discover something He did not previously know, but to bring to light the hidden counsels of God. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to bring the things of God to the remembrance of His people and to guide them in their investigation of truth (John 16:13, 14).
This passage shows that the Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force. Searching is an attribute of personality involving both thought and action. The Spirit knows and understands all the profound plans and counsels of God. Here is clear evidence of omniscience, and hence of divinity. 11. Spirit which is of God. Rather, “Spirit which is from God.” The reference is to the Holy Spirit. That we might know. God’s purpose in giving us the Spirit is that we may understand the things provided by the grace of God. The Spirit of God not only reveals to man the blessings of the gospel but works out in him the will of God. The result of this reception of the Holy Spirit will be seen in the life that is lived in harmony with the will of God. In such a life the fruits of the Spirit are seen (see Gal. 5:22, 23). Those who turn away from the “spirit of the world” are emptied of self, and re-created and refined by the Holy Spirit, who leads them to fix their affections on the kingdom of God. They are fitted to become citizens of heaven.13. Man’s wisdom teacheth. The phrase reads literally, “not in taught words of human wisdom.” The words, the subtle reasoning, of Greek philosophy could not rightly present the truths of God.
Holy Ghost teacheth. Literally, “in taught [words] of the Holy Spirit.” Paul was the recipient of instruction communicated by the living Spirit of God. He recognized that he was under the leadership of the Holy Spirit and that his thoughts were prompted by the Spirit (see AA 251; EGW Supplementary Material on Peter 1:21). Seeing that heavenly wisdom is so different from all earthly knowledge, it must be expressed in a way and in words that differ from ordinary earthly usage. The one in whom the Spirit of God dwells, and through whom He works, lives in a different sphere from the worldly-minded person, and will of necessity speak in a different way. A mathematician expresses a mathematical truth in the technical language of mathematics; a musician discusses a musical theme in the vocabulary of music. Similarly spiritual truths are expressed in spiritual words and forms of statement.
A POSSIBLE ANSWER:This text tells us that the things that God desires for us to know cannot be discovered by the natural senses but rather only through the Holy Spirit. Plus, the recipient is so emptied of self and the world that that person would be sure to communicate only that which the Holy Spirit has given them.
Being "carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Pet. 1:21, NIV) is a strong affirmation of the work of the Holy Spirit in inspiration. In 1 Corinthians 2:9-13, the apostle Paul credits revelation and inspiration to the Holy Spirit. To us, he says, God revealed the hidden things that no eye has seen, which he mentions in verse 9. God revealed them through the Spirit (1 Cor. 2:10). The apostles have received this "Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God" (1 Cor. 2:12, NASB). Then in verse 13 he moves to the work of inspiration, where he speaks of things "not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words" (NASB). Paul had no doubt about the source and the authority of what he was proclaiming.
While many parts of the Bible are a result of God's direct supernatural revelation, not everything in the Bible was revealed in that manner. Sometimes God used biblical writers in their careful personal investigation of things or in their use of other existing documents (Josh. 10:13, Luke 1:1-3) to reveal and communicate His message. Thus all parts of the Bible are revealed and inspired (2 Tim. 3:16). This is the reason Paul states that "whatever" was written, was written for our instruction, so that through "the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope" (Rom. 15:4, NASB). The God who speaks and who created human language enables chosen people to communicate in human words the inspired thoughts in a trustworthy and reliable manner.
"God has been pleased to communicate His truth to the world by human agencies, and He Himself, by His Holy Spirit, qualified men and enabled them to do His work. He guided the mind in the selection of what to speak and what to write. The treasure was entrusted to earthen vessels, yet it is, nonetheless, from Heaven." - Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, book 1, p. 26.
Tuesday January 3 The Holy Spirit and the Truthfulness of Scripture
While revelation is the supernatural act by which God reveals truth to chosen human beings, inspiration is the activity of the Holy Spirit that safeguards the truthfulness of what the human authors wrote, so that their words have the full approval of God. God hates false witness (Exod. 20:16) and cannot lie (Heb. 6:18). He is called a God of truth (Ps. 31:5, Isa. 65:16). In a similar manner, the Holy Spirit is called "the Spirit of truth" (John 14:17).
ReadPsalm 119:160 “All your words are true;all your righteous laws are eternal.
What does this teach about anything God reveals to us?
A POSSIBLE ANSWER:It teaches us that all that God has communicated in the Bible are true and righteous and the laws that arise out of it are of an eternal nature..
ReadJohn 17:17.John 17:17 Sanctify them bythe truth; your word is truth.
What does Jesus say to us here about God's Word?A POSSIBLE ANSWER:Jesus is saying that God’s word has sanctifying power...believers are sanctified by obeying the truth that is revealed in the Bible. .
The Word of God is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance.It is not our task to sit in judgment over Scripture; Scripture, rather, has the right and the authority to judge us. "For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Heb. 4:12, NIV).