Institute for Christian Teaching
THE BIBLE: REVELATION AND AUTHORITY
Richard M. Davidson
402-00 Institute for Christian Teaching 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD 20904 USA
Symposium on the Bible and Adventist Scholarship Juan Dolio, Dominican Republic March 19-26, 2000
Page 1 of 33THE BIBLE: REVELATION AND AUTHORITY
3/2/2014http://fae.adventist.org/essays/26Bcc_017 -055.htm
Introduction
I have not always held the view of Scriptural revelation and authority that I now maintain.
Having journeyed through a different perspective on the revelation/authority of Scripture and then returning to the position that I now hold, I am convinced that this issue is basic to all other issues in the church. The destiny of our church depends on how its members regard the revelation and authority of the Bible. In the following pages I have summarized the biblical self-testimony on its revelation and authority. The major focus of the paper is biblical authority, but a short statement concerning revelation-inspiration-illumination introduces the subject, and other biblical testimony on the nature of revelation is subsumed under the discussion of biblical authority. The paper also includes a brief historical treatment of the Enlightenment and post-Enlightenment understandings of biblical revelation/authority and an analysis and critique of their basic presuppositions in light of Scripture.
Following the conclusion, a selected bibliography of sources cited and other useful books and articles on the subject is provided. Appendices include: (1) a chart schematizing the two major modern approaches to the Bible's revelation and authority (Appendix I, A-D); (2) some of Ellen White's insights on biblical revelation/authority (Appendix I, E); (3) the Methods of Bible Study Committee statement on the historical-critical method (Appendix I, F); and (4) a