Scripture and Knowledge comes from GodVan Til sees Scripture as reliable because it comes from God. Yesterday I showed how Van Til posits God as the primary presupposition, the first starting point. "The search for a final ultimate must end in God." (Van Til, 75) Truth and knowledge are therefore personal categories, not impersonal ones, because their starting point is in the person of God. It's important to note that Van Til doesn't regard Scripture as containing all creation but speaks to all creation. (Van Til was a big fan of all creation being an expression of God but also maintaining the distinction between natural and special revelation.) Van Til also then argues that all knowledge is built on presuppositions, starting points that either assume God or are against God. Positively this means from Scripture, we can build a philosophy of knowledge! (1 Cor 10:31, 2 Cor 10:5)
The nature of Scripture
The classical doctrine of the infallible inspiration of Scripture was involved in the doctrine of divine sovereignty. God could not be sovereign in his disposition of rational human beings if he were not also sovereign in his revelation of himself to them. If God is sovereign in the realm of being, he is surely also sovereign in the realm of knowledge. (Van Til, 124)
Van Til then goes on to argue that if God is sovereign, clear and coherent then so must Scripture be, the mode of his special revelation to us. Van also argues that the four fold nature of Scriptures (authoritative, necessary, perspicacity, sufficiency) is both a claim about its nature and a challenge to our sinful selves.
Will the real B
ible please stand up!The question then becomes if God is reliable, how do determine if the Scripture we have is part of his communication with us? Van Til argues we can trust the original inspirationa and inerracy of the original autographs as we would cross a partially flooded bridge. Our footing is sure even if water is flowing across the bridge as we wade across. In other words; "There would be no reasonably reliable method of identifying the word of God in human history unless human history itself is controlled by God." (p 128) Furthermore says Van Til our access to the pure word of God has to have a degree of certainty or out knowledge of salvation is compromised.
Interesting Aside
The need for special revelation given man's finitude and sinfulness and so an organic relationship between:
theophany = saving presence
prophecy = saving words
miracles = saving deeds
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