Skip to content
Credo House Ministries
  • Home
  • Theology Unplugged
  • Donate
  • About
  • Credo Courses
  • Close Search Form
    Open Search Form
Christian Life
9Comments

The Sad Christian

The other day, I woke up at 2am to an unwelcome visitor. Unfortunately, I have become all too acquainted with this presence. I don’t know how to explain it. When it is...

Continue Reading

Apologetics
7Comments

Essentials and Non-Essentials in a Nutshell

    We Evangelicals talk a lot about essentials and non-essentials. Rightly so. We talk about distinguishing between those areas in our faith – those doctrines...

Continue Reading

Atheism
5Comments

Is God Egotistical?

“It is absurd to believe that the deity has human passions, and one of the lowest human passions, a restless appetite for applause.” -David Hume “Whether,...

Continue Reading

Bibliology
11Comments

If God still speaks directly to people today, doesn’t that mean that the Bible should be added to?

I am not Charismatic.  It is hard for me to describe myself as a traditional cessationist either. I refer to myself as a “de facto” cessationist. What does this mean?...

Continue Reading

Christian Life
10Comments

Beware of Professional Weaker Brethren

When my daughter Katelynn was eleven, she wanted to start wearing make-up. I had a rule: No make-up at all until she is twelve. My wife did not agree with me. She thought I...

Continue Reading

Culture
17Comments

Did Jesus Turn Water into Wine or Grape Juice?

The issue of alcohol and the Christian is an incredibly volatile subject causing great division and stern judgments on both sides. I have been deeply affected by this issue...

Continue Reading

Doubt
2Comments

Help! I Am Not Sure I’m a Believer Anymore

Are you possessed with fear that your Christian faith may be worthless, untrue, or naive? Do you constantly question whether you are really a believer? Are you paralyzed by...

Continue Reading

Abortion
5Comments

The Theology of Abortion — Can A Christian Be Pro-Choice?

  The Skinny: God created man  and declared him “very good,” both body and soul. Man fell, both body and soul was involved in the fall. Everyone after Adam is...

Continue Reading

Christian Life
10Comments

Is Cursing a Sin

Curse words are letters and syllables put together and sounded out through the human tongue. They attempt to say something we already have other words for in a more...

Continue Reading

« Older Articles Newer Articles »

NEW! Become a Patron of Michael Patton

Theology Unplugged

Theology Unplugged
Theology Unplugged

Get your weekly dose of one of the longest-running theology podcasts there is.

87. Through Theology in a Year: Evidencing Inspiration
byC. Michael Patton

How can we be certain that the Bible is inspired? What evidence supports the Christian claim that the Scriptures are uniquely the Word of God? In this episode of Theology Unplugged, Michael begins examining the cumulative case for biblical inspiration, including Scripture’s self-attestation, its uniqueness, its historicity, its prophetic character, the testimony of Christ, its life-changing power, and the testimony of the Holy Spirit.

Michael begins with Scripture’s testimony concerning itself. The Bible repeatedly claims to speak the words of God, but self-attestation cannot stand alone as the entire argument. Simply saying that the Bible is inspired because the Bible says it is inspired would appear circular. Nevertheless, self-attestation is a necessary part of the evidence. If Scripture truly is the Word of God, there can be no higher authority by which its divine inspiration may be authenticated. As Hebrews says of God, because He had no one greater by whom to swear, He swore by Himself.

The episode also considers the remarkable uniqueness of the Bible: a collection of 66 books, written by more than 40 authors from very different backgrounds, in three languages, on three continents, over approximately 1,500 years. Despite these differences, the books form a unified theological and redemptive story unlike any other collection of literature.

Michael then turns to the historicity of Scripture and explains the importance of examining both internal and external evidence. Christianity does not ask people to accept its historical claims merely because the Bible is inspired. Rather, the historical claims themselves—most importantly, the resurrection of Jesus Christ—must be investigated. If the resurrection occurred as a historical event, Christianity is true whether or not someone has already accepted a complete doctrine of biblical inspiration.

Finally, Michael begins considering the internal evidence for Scripture’s historical reliability, especially its striking honesty. The biblical writers consistently record the sins, doubts, embarrassments, and failures of their own heroes. David murders, Peter denies Christ, the apostles abandon Him, Abraham and Sarah doubt, Jonah runs, Noah becomes drunk, and Israel repeatedly rebels. These are not the kinds of carefully polished stories normally produced to glorify a nation, its leaders, or its founders. Scripture also preserves apparently incidental details that are difficult to explain as deliberate legendary embellishments.

This episode begins a larger cumulative argument. No single evidence by itself establishes everything Christians believe about inspiration, but together these evidences provide substantial reasons for believing that the Scriptures are what they claim to be: the written Word of God.

Get involved:
Michael’s public blog: https://credohouse.org
Courses and Manuscript Reproductions from Michael and other scholars: https://credocourses.com
Join us as we go through the great Fathers of the Faith in a year: https://throughthechurchfathers.com
Support Michael and receive exclusive podcasts, courses, and much more: https://patreon.com/cmichaelpatton

87. Through Theology in a Year: Evidencing Inspiration
87. Through Theology in a Year: Evidencing Inspiration
2026-07-15
C. Michael Patton
Will the True Church Please Stand Up?
2026-06-24
C. Michael Patton
Search Results placeholder

Every Credo Course On One Drive!

Or Send a Quick Tip

Subscribe

* indicates required

C Michael Patton’s discipleship book

Categories

RSS Theology Unplugged

  • 87. Through Theology in a Year: Evidencing Inspiration 2026-07-15
    How can we be certain that the Bible is inspired? What evidence supports the Christian claim that the Scriptures are uniquely the Word of God? In this episode of Theology Unplugged, Michael begins examining the cumulative case for biblical inspiration, including Scripture's self-attestation, its uniqueness, its historicity, its prophetic character, the testimony of Christ, its […]
  • Will the True Church Please Stand Up? 2026-06-24
    What happens when we become convinced that our church, our tradition, or our denomination is the official gatekeeper of the kingdom of God? In this episode of Theology Unplugged, Michael explores a surprising pattern that runs throughout the Gospels. Again and again, the disciples appoint themselves as the guardians of God's kingdom. They try to […]

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Address


Credo House 1209 Cedar Ridge Road Edmond OK 73013

Text

405-410-3039

Credo House Ministries

©2010-2017 SmartTheme. All Rights Reserved.

WordPress Theme by OptimizePress