Inspiration and Incarnation, Essay Example

After reading this section, step back for a moment: What is the big issue, the big problem that has spurred Enns to write this book?

The major issue that inspired Enns to write this book is to draw connections between the evangelical doctrine of Scripture and modern themes of religious studies. Ultimately, the author intends to demonstrate that even though Scripture has remained unchanged, there is still a need for bible scholarship in the modern world because there is still much we have left to understand about these holy words. He intends to inspire the reassessment of the doctrine so that we may be able to form a tighter connection with God.

Read the paragraph that extends from p. 13 to 14 carefully. How does Enns regard the Bible?

Enns affirms that the bible was given from God to the church and that we must use this knowledge as a guide as we interpret the words contained within the bible. Views that the bible was not handed down to us from God result in misguided beliefs. Despite this, Enns believes that we constantly learn new information from the bible and it is essential to incorporate our continuously evolving interpretations into future studies. In this manner, we will be able to gain a greater understanding of Scripture. Ultimately, Enns regards the bible as work that is not straight forward and it is our responsibility to unfold its mysteries.

Enns states that his goal in writing this book is to provide a particular theological paradigm. For whom is this theological paradigm intended?

This theological paradigm is primarily intended for biblical scholars because this mode of though serves as a basis for greater understanding. However, it is also important that the average bible reader with no scholarly intentions thinks critically about what is written and tries to find a deeper meaning within these words. The specific wording used by Enns is that this book will serve as a theological paradigm for “people who know instinctively that the Bible is God’s word” (Enns 15). This work attempts to resolve the clash between the biblical word and modern world.

What does Enns believe many of the problems in the Bible stem from?

Enns believes that many of the problem in the bible stem from the fact that our preconceptions cloud our ability to truly understand the holy words. The author hopes that those who read this book will not be blinded by their prior judgments.

Briefly summarize the three issues that Enns proposes as challenges to the traditional way of regarding the Bible?

The three issues that Enns proposes as challenges to the traditional way of regarding the bible include understanding the connection between the Old Testament and other literature from the ancient world, understanding theological diversity in the Old Testament, and understanding the way in which the New Testament authors handle the Old Testament. In short, this is problematic because two of these problems are generated by the bible itself and older biblical interpretations do not take extrabiblical evidence into account. We must use knowledge from all sources in order to be effective biblical scholars.

Explain Enns’ notion of the incarnational model of Scripture. How, exactly, does he relate the humanness of Jesus to the humanness of Scripture?

Interestingly, Enns compares the way we think about Jesus to the way that we ought to think about the bible. Jesus is both human and God at once and we must also recognize that the bible is both human and divine. Since the bible was written by human hands, we must consider that it belonged to the culture of the individuals who lived during the various times it was contributed to. It is a reflection of history and it is therefore important to consider history as evidence to support the bible’s lessons. The “human” element of the bible is what occasionally troubles and confuses scholars, so it is important to approach our understanding of the bible with these considerations in mind. Therefore, the purpose of Enns’ book is to resolve this confusion.