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Selwyn Hughes
Selwyn Hughes (April 27, 1928–January 9, 2006) was a Welsh Christian preacher, evangelist, and author, best known for his daily devotional Every Day with Jesus, which reached nearly a million readers worldwide. Born in Fochriw near Caerphilly, Wales, to a coal-mining family, Hughes worked as a miner during his teenage years, including a stint as a “Bevin Boy” in 1946–1947 during National Service. Converted at 16 in 1944, he felt a divine call to ministry, leading him to study theology in Bristol after leaving the mines. Ordained in the Pentecostal Assemblies of God, he served churches in Cornwall, Wales, Yorkshire, Essex, and London for 18 years, beginning his writing career in the 1960s with Bible-reading notes on postcards for his congregation. In 1965, Hughes founded the Crusade for World Revival (CWR), an international ministry focused on training Christian counselors and producing resources, including Every Day with Jesus, which he wrote for over 40 years. He authored over 50 books, blending pastoral insight with practical faith, such as The 7 Laws of Spiritual Success and his autobiography My Story (2004). Despite personal tragedies—the death of his wife Enid from cancer in 1986 and both sons in 2000 and 2001—his faith remained unshaken, earning him praise from George Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury, as a “giant in the faith.” Hughes died of cancer in 2006, leaving a legacy of spiritual encouragement and revivalist zeal. He received an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Brunel University in 2005.
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Selwyn Hughes emphasizes the eternal nature of God's Word, contrasting it with the temporary nature of earthly things. He delves into the concept of the Bible being 'inspired' and presents five views: natural inspiration, partial inspiration, dictational inspiration, verbal inspiration, and supervisal inspiration. Hughes aligns with the supervisal inspiration view, believing that every word in the Bible came from God and that the writers were guided by the Holy Spirit to ensure accuracy and honesty in their writings.
The Book of Books
"The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever." (v. 8) For reading & meditation: Isaiah 40:1-11 What do we mean when we say that the Bible is "inspired"? There are various views. One is natural inspiration - that the Bible is inspired in the same way that any work of genius is, like Pilgrim's Progress for example. Another view is of partial inspiration, which claims that the Bible is not a scientific textbook and therefore cannot be trusted in scientific matters, such as the origin of the species. It is, however, to be trusted in matters that relate to salvation. The third view can be described as dictational inspiration - that God dictated the Bible to its writers verbatim, as a businessman would dictate a letter to a secretary. The fourth view is of verbal inspiration, which holds that every word in the Bible came from the mouth of God. The fifth and final view is of supervisal inspiration - that nothing is included in the Bible which God did not want there and nothing is omitted which was meant to have a place in the sacred book. I hold to the last view - supervisal inspiration. I rule out natural inspiration and partial inspiration, but not necessarily dictational inspiration, at least in part. Large sections of the Bible were personally dictated to men by God, the Ten Commandments being just one example. The writers of the Bible were, I believe, divinely indemnified against errors of observation, lapses of memory, and unintentional misrepresentation of facts. Their writings were honest, accurate, and supervised by the Holy Spirit before being compiled into this wonderful book we call the Bible. No wonder it is often referred to as the "book of books." O God, I know Your Word is inspired, for it inspires me. Help me to have Your Word hidden in my heart so deeply that it becomes the hidden spring of action, determining my conduct and my character. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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Selwyn Hughes (April 27, 1928–January 9, 2006) was a Welsh Christian preacher, evangelist, and author, best known for his daily devotional Every Day with Jesus, which reached nearly a million readers worldwide. Born in Fochriw near Caerphilly, Wales, to a coal-mining family, Hughes worked as a miner during his teenage years, including a stint as a “Bevin Boy” in 1946–1947 during National Service. Converted at 16 in 1944, he felt a divine call to ministry, leading him to study theology in Bristol after leaving the mines. Ordained in the Pentecostal Assemblies of God, he served churches in Cornwall, Wales, Yorkshire, Essex, and London for 18 years, beginning his writing career in the 1960s with Bible-reading notes on postcards for his congregation. In 1965, Hughes founded the Crusade for World Revival (CWR), an international ministry focused on training Christian counselors and producing resources, including Every Day with Jesus, which he wrote for over 40 years. He authored over 50 books, blending pastoral insight with practical faith, such as The 7 Laws of Spiritual Success and his autobiography My Story (2004). Despite personal tragedies—the death of his wife Enid from cancer in 1986 and both sons in 2000 and 2001—his faith remained unshaken, earning him praise from George Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury, as a “giant in the faith.” Hughes died of cancer in 2006, leaving a legacy of spiritual encouragement and revivalist zeal. He received an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Brunel University in 2005.