The Bible is the "Holy Scripture" because God the Holy Spirit gave to His chosen writers the thoughts that they expressed and the words that they wrote (verbal inspiration). Therefore, the Bible is God's own Word and truth, without error (inerrancy). [Taken from Luther’s Small Catechism]

John 10:35 The Scripture cannot be broken.

Mark 8:38 If anyone is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His Father's glory with the holy angels.

John 14:26 The Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

Acts 24:14 1 admit that I worship the God of our fathers as a follower of the Way, which they call a sect. I believe everything that agrees with the Law and that is written in the Prophets.

2 Tim. 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

2 Peter 1:21 Prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Note: God gave the Old Testament in Hebrew and Aramaic and the New Testament in Greek. Errors in copying or translations are not part of the God-breathed (inspired) Scripture.

This means that the Bible cannot be properly interpreted without the help of the Holy Spirit.

This does not mean one does not need to study or use the principles of interpretation.

What it means is that after one uses all the principles of interpretation one is still dependent upon the Holy Spirit for true and complete understanding.

This is not a mystical thing. The Holy Spirit works through the very words of Scripture to help us understand its meaning.

Scripture is its own interpreter.

Since the Scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit, it is reasonable that inspired passages will be the best help in understanding other inspired passages.

Passages that are difficult must always be understood in the light of passage more easily understood.

This means that the Bible has the final say in all matters of faith.

No doctrine and no binding of conscience can be asserted through revelation that comes from another source than the Bible.

This also means that the Bible has a basic theological meaning. The Bible addresses the subject of God. This means that we have not properly interpreted the Bible if we do not understand God better.

Because the Bible is God’s final authority it is sufficient to tell us all that we need to know about God and about what he has done to save us.

Any subjects or questions which the Bible does not address are not essential for us to know.

This means that all of the books of the Bible are God’s Word.

One cannot choose which parts of the Bible one wishes to believe.

Each book, passage, and verse must be understood in the light of the general teaching of the whole of Scripture.

Holy Scripture is given in human language. To determine what it says we need to apply the rules of language, such as grammar and logic. It is right to use reason as a servant of the text, but the guidance of the Holy Spirit is essential for its proper understanding. [Taken from Luther’s Smaller Catechism]

Ps. 119:73 Give me understanding to learn Your commands.

Matt. 13:19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.

Matt. 22:37 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

Acts 17:11 They received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

Unlike all other books, Holy Scripture is God's Word and truth. It is wrong to question or deny the truthfulness of the sacred text (as happens, for example, with historical criticism).

Rom. 3:4 Let God be true, and every man a liar. As it is written: "So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge."

2 Cor. 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God.

Col. 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy.

2 Peter 3:15-16 Our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.

Note: See 1 Corinthians 1 and 2.

This does not mean that everything in the Bible is understandable.

What it does mean is that the essential message of the Bible is understandable to all people.

Anyone with normal intelligence can grasp the basic message of the Bible.

Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, is the heart and center of the Scripture and therefore the key to its true meaning.

John 5:39 These are the Scriptures that testify about Me.

Acts 10:43 All the prophets testify about Him that everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name.

John 1:18 No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made Him known.

2 Tim. 3:15 From infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

Bible narrative: Jesus revealed Himself as the center of Scripture (Luke 24:13-27).

All portions of Scripture must be understood in the light of Christ.

This means that no interpretation well contradict the basic teaching of Scripture about the person and work of Christ.

In general one may ask: "How does this book or passage help me to understand the person or work of Christ?"

The Bible story moves along an historical line.

Through the history of the Bible God reveals and unravels his will.

This is called progressive revelation.

This means that God makes his purposes clearer and fuller.

In general the older revelation must give way to the new.

Since Christ is the central message of the Bible all other revelation must be understood as progressing toward him.

The Bible is to be read like any other book.

This means that an author writes to an audience to convey a basic message.

Because the Bible is literature it is read by the basic rules of grammar that governs all literature.

To understand the Bible one must use good principles of grammar to properly understand the meaning which the author attempts to convey.

The author uses words, phrases, grammar, figures of speech, syntax, and various forms of human expression to convey a message to those for whom he writes.

Any attempts to understand the Bible separate from the historical context of a passage will fail.

In order to understand the Bible one must pay close attention to the historical context of the author, his audience, and to the rest of the history of Scripture.

This includes the era of time, the culture, the religious circumstances, the prevailing view of the world, and even the social and political circumstances of the writer and the hearers.

We must sharply distinguish between the Law and the Gospel in the Bible.

John 1:17 The law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

2 Cor. 3:6 The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

What does God teach and do in the Law?

In the Law God commands good works of thought, word, and deed and condemns and punishes sin.

Mark 12:30-31 Love the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. Love your neighbor as yourself.

John 5:45 Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set.

Rom. 3:20 Through the law we become conscious of sin.

What does God teach and do in the Gospel?

In the Gospel, the good news of our salvation in Jesus Christ, God gives forgiveness, faith, life, and the power to please Him with good work-,

John 3:16 God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 6:63 The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.

Rom. 1:16 1 am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.

Col. 1:6 All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.

The Law is given to direct us to Christ. It is not able to save, but points us to the One who can. It is in the Gospel - the good news about Jesus - that we learn about our salvation.