The Bible in the Balance: A Further Look at the Battle for the Bible by Harold Lindsell (Good, 1979, HC, 384 pgs, Zondervan)

Former church library book: dust jacket has some wear; cover and pages have some wear; pages have underlining in pen throughout. ISBN 031027690x

The Bible in the Balance: A Further Look at the Battle for the Bible by Harold Lindsell, published in 1979, is the second volume to his seminal 1976 work, The Battle for the Bible.  The book serves as a prophetic exposé of contemporary figures and institutions within evangelicalism that claim to believe in biblical inerrancy but, according to Lindsell, do not actually hold to it.

Key aspects of the book include:

• Exposing Hypocrisy: Lindsell names specific professors, authors, and institutions he argues are promoting liberal higher critical methodology while deceptively signing institutional doctrinal statements that affirm inerrancy.
• The "Slippery Slope": He argues that abandoning the doctrine of inerrancy inevitably leads to a cascade of theological compromises, affecting other core Christian doctrines such as the incarnation, substitutionary atonement, and the reality of Heaven and Hell.
• Call to Action: Lindsell contends that those who deceitfully enter denominations and universities under false pretenses must be exposed and removed from office to preserve the integrity of the Christian faith.
• Historical Precedent: The work utilizes historical examples to demonstrate that whenever a denomination or seminary abandons inerrancy, it is typically followed by theological liberalism and a decline in spiritual vitality.

In essence, the book is a rallying cry for evangelicals to rigorously test the doctrine of Scripture, asserting that one’s view of the Bible is the foundational touchstone for all other theological positions.