Why Inerrancy Matters and What We Must Hold as First Importance
Let me say it plainly at the start. If we cannot agree on what Scripture is, we will never agree on what Scripture means. That is not being combative; it is just honest. For Christians who confess that the Bible is God-breathed and without error in all it affirms, Scripture stands over the church. It judges us. It corrects us. It comforts us. We do not stand over it.
If we cannot agree on what Scripture is, we will never agree on what Scripture means.
Jesus treated Scripture that way. He said not an iota would pass until all was fulfilled (Matthew 5:17–19). He appealed to the tense of a verb to settle a doctrine (Matthew 22:31–32). He said the Scripture cannot be broken (John 10:35). The apostles followed Him. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16–17). Men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:19–21).
That conviction, inerrancy, is not a niche topic. It is first-order. Because once the Bible is only “mostly right” or “true in spiritual matters but not the rest,” the interpreter becomes the final authority. And if we hold the final authority, doctrine will drift. So yes, we can cooperate with a wide circle for mercy and public good; but deep church unity, pulpits, sacraments, discipline, mission together; those require shared submission to Scripture’s authority. Amos asked, can two walk together unless they are agreed? That is the heartbeat here.
From that foundation, evangelicals sort convictions into matters of first importance and matters where we may disagree while remaining brothers and sisters. Paul modeled this. He called the gospel “of first importance” and tied it to the Scriptures: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3–4). Notice the anchor. The gospel’s content is embedded in the Bible’s truthfulness.
So what are those first things? In brief, they are the doctrines that define historic, biblical Christianity.
- Scripture is inspired, inerrant, sufficient, and supreme over every human authority.
- God is one in essence and three in persons; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man; sinless; crucified for our sins; bodily raised; now exalted; returning to judge.
- Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Not by works. The Spirit regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, seals.
- All people are sinners in Adam and in act; unable to save themselves; in need of the new birth.
- The church is Christ’s body, made up of all true believers; called to the word, ordinances, discipline, prayer, mission.
- Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are Christ’s ordinances for His church. We may debate timing and mode, but not their divine institution.
- Christ will return. There is a resurrection of the just and unjust. Heaven and hell are real and eternal.
This is not everything we teach. It is the core we cannot surrender.
Now, here is where an old treasure helps us: The Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed. Many believers first meet this Creed and flinch at the word “catholic.” But “catholic” there simply means universal. Not Roman Catholic. Simply Universal. One church in all places and ages, grounded in the apostles’ doctrine. That creed, finalized in AD 381, is not Scripture. It is a faithful summary of Scripture. It gives voice to what the Bible teaches about God, Christ, the Spirit, salvation, the church, and the world to come.
Listen to its lyrical cadence and watch how it rises from the text of Scripture.
- One God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth. That is Genesis 1:1, Deuteronomy 6:4, Acts 17:24–25. The Lord who spoke worlds into being.
- One Lord Jesus Christ, true God from true God, of one essence with the Father. That is John 1:1–3, Colossians 1:15–17, Hebrews 1:1–3. Not a mighty creature. God the Son.
- For us and for our salvation He took on flesh by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary. Luke 1:34–35; Matthew 1:18–23; Galatians 4:4–5. The incarnation really happened.
- He was crucified under Pontius Pilate, suffered, was buried, and rose on the third day. The Gospels record it. Paul stakes everything on it (1 Corinthians 15). Isaiah foresaw the suffering Servant (Isaiah 53).
- He ascended and sits at the right hand of the Father; He will come again in glory to judge. Acts 1; Acts 2; Psalm 110; Matthew 25.
- The Holy Spirit is the Lord and giver of life; He spoke by the prophets. John 14–16; Romans 8; 2 Peter 1:21. Not an impersonal force. God, the life-giver.
- One holy, catholic, and apostolic church. Ephesians 4:4–6; Acts 2:42; 1 Timothy 3:15. One body, set apart to God, universal in scope, grounded in the apostles’ teaching.
- One baptism; the resurrection of the dead; the life of the world to come. Matthew 28:19; Romans 6:3–4; John 5:28–29; Revelation 21–22.
Why is that creed so important? Because it draws a bright line around first-order truths and does so with a Bible focused voice. It guards the deity of Christ and His true humanity. It honors the Spirit as God. It ties salvation to the real history of crucifixion and resurrection. It locates the church in the stream of apostolic doctrine. In other words, it gives the church a plumb line. When strange winds blow, you need a plumb line.
For evangelicals with a high view of Scripture, the creed does not replace the Bible. It reflects the Bible. It does not invent doctrine. It summarizes doctrine. And when you read it next to John 1, Philippians 2, Colossians 1, and Matthew 28, the fit is striking. Christ is the eternal Word made flesh. He humbled Himself to death on a cross; the Father exalted Him above every name. All things were made through Him and for Him. And He sends us to make disciples of all nations, baptizing in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
What about the word “catholic” again? Early Christians used it to mean “according to the whole.” Universal. You can even say “universal” when you recite it to avoid confusion. The point stands. Jesus has one body across space and time. The Lord gathers His people from every tribe and tongue. That is what the creed is confessing.
Let me add a pastoral word for those who feel weary of the debates. As Christians we will often disagree, but we must hold fast to the Book. Keep our Bibles open. Keep our tone gracious and our convictions clear. We should ask real questions in humility. Appeal to Christ’s own view of Scripture. Draw wise boundaries for church partnership. We are encouraged to cooperate widely for neighbor-love where we can. But we must keep first things first.
To answer the question: Does biblical truth matter? Yes. It absolutely matters – eternally. Without the inerrant, trustworthy word, the gospel’s content becomes blurred. With it, we stand on a solid foundation. I celebrate the creed. It helps us keep those first things in focus because it echoes Scripture. Biblical truth matters because Jesus affirmed it, and because He saves sinners in real history, by a real cross and empty tomb. All revealed in His word which cannot be broken.
