Inerrancy and the Gospels: How to Handle Narrative Differences

Last updated on: May 20, 2022 at 2:15 pm by Jack Lee

Inerrancy and the Gospels: How to Handle Narrative Differences 2022-05-20T14:15:13-05:00 Jack Lee

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Defending the inerrancy of scripture can be a challenging task for the unprepared Christian. In the world today, there is no shortage of critical voices speaking out against the authority of scripture. Even within Christendom, some seem determined to undermine the bible’s inerrancy in every instance. Therefore, Christians need to be equipped to defend, not only their faith but also the scriptures on which the only true, ancient religion is based upon.

Due to the narrative-centric nature of the gospels, seeming contradictions can be troublesome for even the most devout of believers. The gospels give us 4 different representations of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Because of this, the same event can be recorded multiple times. What do we do when there appears to be a contradiction between two or more narratives?

A notable example of this can be seen in The Centurion Servant. If we compare the narratives in Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10, questions can be raised between the two accounts. Most notable is the role of the “elders of the Jews” and the centurion’s “friends”. As Vern Sheridan Poythress, Westminster Theological Seminary Professor, rightly points out in his book Inerrancy and The Gospels, “Luke does not indicate that the centurion meets Jesus face to face. By Contrast, in Matthew 8 there is no mention of the intermediaries. What do we say about this difference?” (pg. 19).

Poythress goes on to point out the possible explanations for this seeming contradiction. He guides the reader to think critically about the texts, nuances, authorship, and literary features. He points out that, due to the author’s background and objective, certain emphasis may be added in specific areas. Such instances are not meant to contradict but complement one another. Citing South African Theologian, Norval Geldenhuys, Poythress explains that likely “there were several stages in the encounter between Jesus and the centurion. The centurion first sent elders of the Jews, then sent friends, then came in person (pg. 19). Luke was led to emphasize different aspects of the narrative when compared to Matthew. The example sets the stage for the entire book.

I don’t often read a theology book in a single sitting. However, I did just that with Inerrancy and The Gospels. I highly recommend Poythress’ book to anyone desiring to understand the harmonization of the gospels better. The book is largely broken up into two sections. The first is centered on the basic principles for studying harmonization, and the second examines specific gospel problem texts. I found the principles section to be the most useful part of the book. It creates a brilliant groundwork for the reader to approach the gospels in a logical, practical, and faithful way.

I’ll add that the practical nature of the principles was a relief. I have read numerous works on textual criticism, commentaries, etc. They have their place and are useful. Yet, it is easy to get lost in them. However, the basic principles laid forth in Poythress’ book are accessible to almost any believer. I truly appreciated this.

Poythress reminds us of the complete trustworthiness of scripture, and the importance of remembering historical, narrative context. As Christians, we are called to trust God and His written word. If we find what appears to be a contradiction, our first response should be to remember that the problem lies not with the text, but with us.

Poythress explains, “The differences between the Gospels are an integral and significant part of the Gospels. The differences are there for a purpose; they help us out. All the Gospels are talking about events that actually happened; they are not ‘making it up.’ But they are telling about the events in ways that help us to grasp their significance and their theological implications” (pg. 33). Just because we cannot immediately discern why differences in the gospels exist, doesn’t make the text wrong; the answer just has not been revealed to us yet. It is our understanding that has limits, not God’s. This is such a simple, yet profound principle.

Another principle I found particularly insightful and practical comes to us in the form of a warning. Poythress expounds on the dangers of “Mental-Picture Theory”. Admittedly, this pitfall is something I have been guilty of many times. If we are not careful, we can read scripture (especially the gospel narratives) with a mental picture of the events. We read the stories and, like a video camera, play the events in our heads. This may seem harmless, yet issues can abound.

The fundamental problem with doing this is that we will never know all of the biblical events’ details, colors, shapes, bystanders, spoken words, etc. Our knowledge is limited to that which God has revealed to us. If we make wrong assumptions about the events, we can skew our interpretation of the text and miss the inspired meaning of the text. Our imagination is no substitute for God’s revealed word. When reading the scripture, we must be careful not to mentally add to what is not stated in the text.

This reality of partial knowing is indicative of our humanity; only God is all-knowing. The more weight we place upon our mental images of the gospel narratives, the more risk we run of trying to hold some level of divine knowledge. We need to recognize and embrace the “sparseness” of human language. It is as Poythress says, “God does not guarantee that our mental pictures of events described in the Bible will precisely match those events. God does guarantee that everything He says is true” (pg. 52). We were never meant to know every detail, and that is OK.

As mentioned earlier, the second half of the book focuses on logic and a handful of specific examples of gospel problem texts – such as The Rich Young Ruler and Blind Bartimaeus. I found this section useful and interesting. It will probably be something I go back and reference at a later time as I study these specific texts. However, for me, the deep value of the book is found in the principles.

I highly recommend Poythress’ book to all Christians. Defending the inerrancy of scripture is not a hard task when we have the right tools and worldview to accompany it. Poythress’ principles to study the harmonization of the gospels are fantastic and worth the price of admission.

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Gospels

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