According to John 1:1 above, God’s Word is more
than just words printed on pages. Logos
(logos) in Greek, rendered word in
English, can literally be translated as “the sayings of God.” In the Greek
language, logos implied two distinct meanings:
1.) “the word conceived,” and 2.) “the word uttered.” In the verse above, we
see logos beginning with capital
letters. This is an indication of personification, which in this case,
represents the Person of Jesus Christ. In this sense, the first phrase above “in
the beginning was the Word” indicates that the Word (Jesus Christ) already existed.
This gives credence to the eternality of God and the fact that Jesus is God and
was with Him at Creation. These points alone guarantee the veracity of
Scripture.
The Authenticity of Scripture
From a purely material perspective, there is more
evidence to support the authenticity of Scripture than there is for any other literary
work in existence. Over 24,000 manuscript copies of the New Testament still
exist from Greek, Latin, and earlier sources. Some of these were written within
20 or 30 years of the original autographs. Each of these manuscript copies has
been subjected to the same historical analysis and physical examination as all
other literary manuscripts, and all have been compared for consistency. After all
of this careful examination and analysis, the entirety of these manuscripts has
been found to contain less than one percent textual error. This is fewer errors
than have been found in any ten other manuscripts that have been examined using
the same criteria. No other single document even comes close.
By comparison, the second oldest and most
well-documented manuscript is Homer’s The
Illiad. Only 643 manuscript portions of it exist and they contain a
combined total of over five percent textual error. Few consider this percentage
to have any significant impact on the accuracy or meaning of the text.
Considering that the New Testament is historically the oldest and most accurate
literary work ever written, it stands to reason that it can be considered authentic.
The Historicity of Scripture
The Bible is historical in general,
though it contains poetry and parables, and it provides historical and
geographical data that can be substantiated through other sources. Those named
in Scripture were real people who lived in places that can be found on maps
today. Many historical figures mentioned in Scripture can be identified in
other historical literature. As a matter of fact, much of the ancient history
that is still in print today was based on the Old Testament historical
accounts. Much of what we find in Scripture has been verified by archeology. Events
and accounts mentioned in the Bible have been confirmed through other sciences
such as biology, geology, and astronomy. As Dr. Henry M. Morris, founder of the
Institute for Creation Research, once said, “There exists today not one
unquestionable find of archaeology that proves the Bible to be in error at any
point.”[1]
Much of Scripture was written as
eyewitness testimony of events that took place in history.
“1 Most honorable Theophilus: Many people have written accounts about the events that took place among us. 2 They used as their source material the reports circulating among us from the early disciples and other eyewitnesses of what God has done in fulfillment of his promises. 3 Having carefully investigated all of these accounts from the beginning, I have decided to write a careful summary for you, 4 to reassure you of the truth of all you were taught” (Luke 1:1-4).
In the very first verses of the Gospel
of Luke, we find him authenticating his writings by telling his readers by what
means he gathered and compiled them. In verse three, he declares specifically that
he “carefully investigated” everything he was about to write. In other places
in Scripture, we find the authors giving forensic explanations of times,
places, and reasons for what they are writing. Another example is the Apostle
Paul, who wrote many of his epistles while in prison.
“1 This letter is from Paul, in prison for preaching the Good News about Christ Jesus, and from our brother Timothy. It is written to Philemon, our much loved co-worker, 2 and to our sister Apphia and to Archippus, a fellow soldier of the cross. I am also writing to the church that meets in your house” (Philemon 1:1-2).
The Veracity of Scripture
In addition to its verifiable
historical accuracy, the Bible contains a significant number of fulfilled
prophecies. There are around 2,500 prophecies in Scripture, the vast majority
of which have been fulfilled precisely as foretold. The mathematical odds of a person or persons making this number of predictions and having every one of them be fulfilled in this way is beyond the realm of possibility, much less comprehension. One would have to surmise that fulfillment of this many prophecies is miraculous and could only be accomplished by a supernatural being. The Bible makes clear that this
supernatural being is God.
Of all books ever written, the Bible
has transformed more lives than any other book. There are countless accounts of
transformed lives in Scripture, but many thousands, perhaps millions more from
those who have been transformed from having read it. Only a book that is God-breathed could have this kind of
impact on mankind.
“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right” (2 Timothy 3:16).
God’s Word is Truth. Jesus, Himself declared this in his prayer to God in the
Gospel of John 17:17.
“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John 17:17 NKJV).
Since Jesus
is an historical person and given what claims He made about Himself, either we
can take Him at His Word and believe what He said, or we have to write Him off
as one of the worst liars or the most evil individuals in history.
“A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell.”[2]
As with any evidence,
we each must consider the evidence for the authenticity, the historicity, and
the prophetic accuracy of Scripture and make a determination of whether or not
we will choose to believe it.
Why Should I Believe the Bible?
The Bible claims to be the inspired
Word of God. It tells us about creation and the Creator, the origin of life, the
history of nations and languages, and most especially about the life and death
of Jesus Christ. If these accounts are true, then the Bible is the single most
significant book ever written. Obviously, we cannot substantiate everything
written in Scripture, but a lack of evidence is not evidence of a lack of authenticity.
I have never seen a Northern Hairy Nose Wombat before, but that does not prove
that there are no Northern Hairy Nose Wombats in existence. Given the best
evidence available, we each have to make up our own mind whether or not we will
believe the Bible.
The writers of Scripture make numerous claims that the Bible is God’s Word. Paul wrote to Timothy that “all Scripture is God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16 NIV). Jesus confessed to His Father that “Your Word is Truth” (John 17:17 NKJV). The apostle Peter wrote that “prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21 ESV). Peter’s description indicates that the writing of Scripture was directed by the Holy Spirit. This indicates that the Bible is the literal word of God which gives it not only His stamp of approval, but also His authority.
To determine whether or not to believe anything that is written one needs to examine all the evidence, internal and external, concerning its authenticity. The Bible is no different. Its unique message, its authoritative narrative, and its accuracy in the areas of history and prophecy should cause the reader to at least consider that it is valid. The ultimate test for its veracity, however, is its capacity to change lives.
Another consideration for the authenticity of Scripture is the unity of its message. The Bible was written over a period of approximately 1,550 years, by at least 40 different writers from disparate backgrounds, on three different continents, in a variety of environments, and in three different languages. Despite all this, there is a consistency and harmony in Scripture that defies all odds.
A careful reading of Scripture will unveil passages that have since been confirmed by science. Matthew Maury, a 17th century oceanographer, saw in Psalm 8:8 a mention of “paths of the seas.” Being a believer in the veracity of Scripture, he assumed that there must actually be paths in the seas and he began searching for them. His research led to the discoveries of specific ocean currents (the Gulf Stream being one of them) that became shipping channels and are still in use today.
Sir Isaac Newton, perhaps the most influential scientist of all time, believed from reading Scripture that God ruled over and held together the entire solar system as it says in Colossians 1:17. Dr. Henry M. Morris, the Father of the Modern Creation Science Movement, so strongly believed in the inerrancy and infallibility of Scripture, that he set out to prove that science affirms Scripture, particularly concerning the Great Flood of Noah. Dr. Morris and Dr. John Whitcomb collaborated to write the book, The Genesis Flood. To this day, this book is considered by most to be the “founding document of the creationist movement.”[3]
Finally, when tested, the veracity of Scripture is proved true every time and in every area. Though the Bible is true in many historical and scientific areas, its most significant area is in the realm of the spiritual. The Bible tells us “For all have sinned; all fall short of God's glorious standard” (Romans 3:23), and that the “wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). If these things are to be believed, then we realize that we desperately need a Savior. Thankfully, the Bible also tells us that “God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8), and that “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Believing and responding to these verses could be the difference between heaven and hell.
[1] Morris, The Bible and Modern
Science, 95
[2] Lewis, C. S., Mere Christianity, London: Collins, 1952, pp. 54 – 56.
[3] Morris, H. M., Thinking God’s Thoughts after Him, Dallas: ICR, 2009, p. 17.
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