Theology I: Hermeneutics (part 1)
How We Got the Bible — Canon, Authority, Inerrancy, and Why Christians Trust Scripture
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0:27 Creation, conscience, Scripture, and Christ
1:21 Why the Old Testament’s three-part structure matters
1:55 Canon review — what books belong in the Bible
2:20 Criteria for canonicity: orthodoxy, apostolicity, self-authenticating Scripture
2:45 The rule of faith and Scripture interpreting Scripture
3:16 Apostolicity in relation to Ephesians 2:20
4:02 Internal consistency and external verification
5:04 Story of addressing alleged contradictions
6:34 Archaeology, the Dead Sea Scrolls, manuscript confidence
7:05 Addressing scribal variants and textual criticism
8:39 Manuscript evidence compared to classical literature
10:19 Early recognition of biblical books
10:38 Trusting God’s providence in preserving Scripture
11:04 Why Luke, Mark, and Hebrews belong
12:22 Visual overview of biblical books
13:04 Four “C”s: confession, canon, covenants, Christ
14:03 Why ordering of Scripture matters for the biblical story
15:14 Covenants pointing forward to the Messiah
16:19 Questions on canonical ordering
16:48 How the Hebrew Bible creates a narrative trajectory
16:59 Church history: patristic, medieval, Reformation
17:44 Scripture and tradition — sola scriptura clarified
18:19 Enlightenment influence and the rise of liberalism
18:45 Schleiermacher and modern views of fallibility
19:51 Neo-orthodoxy and the “Bible becomes the word of God”
20:24 Evaluating Peter Enns on Mosaic authorship
22:15 Student responses — implications for Christ’s deity and truthfulness
23:35 Christ’s view of Moses and Scripture
24:24 The authority Jesus exercised over tradition
26:02 Why undermining Jesus’ words collapses biblical authority
26:55 Defining key doctrines: inspiration, inerrancy, infallibility
29:01 Authority of Scripture and submission to God’s word
30:17 Necessity, sufficiency, clarity of Scripture
31:44 Illumination — how the Spirit enables understanding
32:52 Natural person vs. spiritual discernment (1 Corinthians 2)
34:02 Final application — living under the authority of the Word
34:53 Encouragement to read Scripture and pursue godliness on campus
This lecture continues the doctrine of revelation by exploring how the Christian canon was formed and why Scripture carries unique authority. Students examine natural and special revelation, the role of the apostles and prophets, and the early church’s recognition of the canon. The professor explains criteria such as orthodoxy, apostolicity, internal consistency, and external verification, including manuscript evidence and the Dead Sea Scrolls. He addresses questions about scribal variants, authorship concerns, and whether books like Mark, Luke, or Hebrews fit apostolic criteria. The session also surveys historical approaches to Scripture from the patristic era to the Reformation, critiques modern liberal and neo-orthodox views, and evaluates claims that Jesus accommodated first-century tradition. The class concludes with key doctrines of inspiration, inerrancy, infallibility, clarity, necessity, sufficiency, and illumination — and a call for students to live under Scripture’s authority and make conversations about the Bible normal in campus life.
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