Statement of Biblical Inerrancy

Courtesy of www.LumoProject.com

Foreword

FCCF Ministries is committed to the authority, inspiration, infallibility, and inerrancy of Holy Scripture. Because these convictions are foundational to our teaching, we are pleased to present the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (1978), one of the clearest and most influential contemporary summaries of the historic Christian doctrine of Scripture.

We seek to recover the beliefs and practices of the first-century church by reading Scripture in its original historical, Jewish, and cultural context. We believe that understanding the Jewish and Greco-Roman world of Jesus, the apostles, and the biblical authors strengthens—not weakens—our confidence that the Bible is God's inspired and trustworthy Word. Sound historical and contextual study is not a substitute for faith but a means of better understanding the revelation God has given.

While this statement is not itself our authority, we believe it faithfully summarizes doctrines rooted in Scripture and confessed by orthodox Christians throughout the centuries. Our ultimate standard is, and always will be, the Word of God. While FCCF Ministries gladly affirms this statement, it should not be understood as an exhaustive statement of our beliefs. Our complete doctrinal convictions are outlined in our Statement of Faith.

We commend this statement to all who desire to better understand the Bible's own testimony to its divine inspiration, complete trustworthiness, and supreme authority for faith and practice. It is our prayer that every reader will search the Scriptures diligently, proclaim them faithfully, and submit joyfully to their authority, remembering the words of our Lord: "Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth" (John 17:17).

FCCF Ministries

Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy

AD 1978​

Editorial Note: This edition has been lightly updated for contemporary English, punctuation, and formatting while preserving the theological content and intent of the original 1978 Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy. Where wording has been updated and revised for clarity, no doctrinal changes have been made.

Article I

We recognize the Holy Scripture as the authoritative Word of God. We reject the notion that the Scriptures derive authority from the church, tradition, or any human source.

Article II

We uphold Scripture as the supreme written norm by which God binds the conscience, and we submit the church's authority under it. We reject any claim that creeds, councils, or declarations possess authority equal to or above the Bible.

Article III

We affirm that God has revealed himself through the written word. We deny that Scripture merely witnesses to revelation, only becomes revelation in human encounter, or depends on human response for validity.

Article IV

We acknowledge that God, who made humankind in his image, uses language to convey divine revelation. We deny that human language fails as a vehicle for God's truth. We further reject any suggestion that sin or the corruption of human culture has thwarted God's inspiration.

Article V

We affirm that God's revelation in Scripture progresses over time. We deny that later revelation corrects or contradicts earlier revelation. We further reject any claim that God has given normative revelation after the New Testament.

Article VI

We uphold the divine inspiration of all Scripture, down to the very words of the original texts. We reject any view that selectively affirms inspiration, excluding some parts while affirming others.

Article VII

We recognize that God, by his Spirit, inspired human authors to write Scripture. We acknowledge the divine origin of the text while accepting that the mode of inspiration remains a holy mystery. We deny that inspiration reduces to human insight or emotional states.

Article VIII

We honor the unique personalities and literary styles of Scripture's authors, as God used them in his work of inspiration. We reject the idea that God overrode these personalities in choosing words for Scripture.

Article IX

We affirm that inspiration guarantees that Scripture teaches truthfully and reliably in all that the biblical authors affirm. We deny that human finitude or sin introduced falsehood or distortion into God's word.

Article X

We hold that inspiration fully applies to the original manuscripts (autographs) of Scripture, whose text is faithfully preserved through the available manuscript tradition. We affirm that copies and translations convey God's word accurately when they faithfully reflect the originals. We deny that the absence of autographs undermines Christian faith or the doctrine of inerrancy.

Article XI

We affirm that God's word is infallible, accurate, and reliable in all that it teaches. We reject any claim that Scripture can be simultaneously infallible and erroneous. We distinguish infallibility from inerrancy without separating them.

Article XII

We affirm the complete inerrancy of Scripture, free from falsehood, fraud, or deceit. We reject the view that inerrancy applies only to spiritual or redemptive matters, excluding historical or scientific claims. We further deny that scientific theories may overturn the truthfulness of Scripture.

Article XIII

We affirm the doctrine of inerrancy, describing Scripture's complete truthfulness. We deny any evaluation of Scripture by standards foreign to its purpose. We further reject claims that minor textual variations, grammar, or literary forms negate inerrancy.

Article XIV

We affirm the unity and internal consistency of Scripture. We deny that unresolved alleged discrepancies diminish the Bible's truth claims.

Article XV

We affirm that the doctrine of inerrancy rests on Scripture's own teaching about inspiration. We reject any appeal to human limitation that diminishes Jesus' teaching on Scripture.

Article XVI

We affirm that the church has historically upheld the truthfulness and authority of Scripture. We reject the notion that inerrancy is a recent invention of scholastic Protestantism or a reaction to higher criticism.

Article XVII

We affirm that the Holy Spirit bears witness to Scripture, confirming its truth to believers. We deny that this witness acts independently of or contrary to God's word.

Article XVIII

We affirm that proper interpretation of Scripture follows the historical-grammatical method, taking into account literary forms and figures of speech, and that Scripture interprets Scripture. We reject interpretive methods that relativize, de-historicize, or dismiss its teaching or claims to authorship.

Article XIX

We affirm that confessing the full authority, infallibility, and inerrancy of Scripture is essential for sound Christian doctrine and should cultivate conformity to Christ. We deny that this confession is necessary for salvation, but we further reject any dismissal of inerrancy without grave consequences for the believer and the church.

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Bibliography​​

Primary Sources

Geisler, Norman L., et al. "The Statements."↗ Defending Inerrancy.

"Records of the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy."↗ Dallas Theological Seminary.

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For the biblical foundations of the doctrines summarized in this statement, readers are encouraged to study passages such as Matthew 5:17–18, John 10:35, John 17:17, 2 Timothy 3:16–17, and 2 Peter 1:20–21.