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The Original Autographs

I. Most Christians and churches claim to believe in the inspiration and inerrancy of the scriptures.

II. But when you probe under the surface of that statement, you will find that they actually do not.

III. Most Christians and churches only believe in the inspiration of scriptures in the original autographs written by the hand of the prophets and apostles.

"Article X - We affirm that inspiration, strictly speaking, applies only to the autographic text of Scripture, which in the providence of God can be ascertained from available manuscripts with great accuracy. We further affirm that copies and translations of Scripture are the Word of God to the extent that they faithfully represent the original." (The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals).

"We believe that this divine inspiration extends equally and fully to all parts of the writings—historical, poetical, doctrinal, and prophetical—as appeared in the original manuscripts. We believe that the whole Bible in the originals is therefore without error." (Dallas Theological Seminary Doctrinal Statement, Article 1 - The Scriptures).

We affirm that the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, though written by men, was supernaturally inspired by God so that all its words are the written true revelation of God; it is therefore inerrant in the originals and authoritative in all matters. (Liberty University Doctrinal Statement).

IV. Most Christians and churches do not believe that the Bible is inspired or infallible.

It is a fact that the original autographs no longer exist and have not for thousands of years.

If the Bible was only inspired and infallible in the originals, then the Bible today is not inspired and infallible.

V. To claim to believe that the Bible is inspired by God only in the originals is a worthless statement.

First of all, how can anyone claim that a book that he has never seen nor read be inspired by God?

Secondly, of what value is an inspired book that was destroyed thousands of years ago?

VI. To claim to believe that the Bible is inspired by God, and only mean the original autographs, is a lie.

Many preachers will hold up their Bible and declare that it is the inspired, infallible, inerrant word of God.

But they do not believe that about the actual book they are holding, but only about a book that they have never seen which ceased to exist thousands of years ago.

Therefore, they are lying when they hold up their Bible and make that statement.

VII. God promised to preserve His word forever.

Psa 12:6 - The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.

Psa 12:7 - Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.

The fact that the originals were destroyed long ago demands that God has preserved His word in copies and translations.

When I hold up my KJV Bible and say it is the inspired, infallible, inerrant word of God, I mean it.