10 Reasons To Believe In The Bible By Kenneth E. Thomas 1). Its Honesty The Bible is painfully honest. It shows Jacob, the father of its "chosen people," to be a deceiver. It describes Moses, the lawgiver, as an insecure, reluctant leader, who, in his first attempt to come to the aid of his own people, killed a man, and then ran for life to the desert. It portrays David not only as Israel's most loved king, general, and spiritual leader, but as one who took another man's wife and then, to cover his own sin, conspired to have her husband killed. At one point, the Scriptures accuse the people of God, the nation of Israel, as being so bad they made Sodom and Gomorrah look good by comparison ( Ezekiel 16:46-52). The Bible represents human nature as often hostile to God. It predicts a future full of trouble. It teaches that the road to heaven is narrow and the way to hell is wide. Scripture was clearly not written for those who want simple answers or an easy, all optimistic no problems view of religion. Jesus rather teaches folks to "consider the cost" of discipleship (Matthew 10:32-34; Luke 14:25- 35). When Jesus chose and sent His apostles out on both commissions, they were well aware that it was not going to be "a bed of roses" by a long shot! He forewarned them (Matthew 10:16-25; 34-36). Yes, a man's foes shall be those of his own household sometimes. That is when one accepts the truth and another in the same household denies and rejects the same, conflict often results. 2). Its Preservation Just as many who make up modern Israel were returning to their ancestoral homeland, a bedouin shepherd discovered one of the most important archeological treasures of our time. In a cave of the northwest rim of the Dead Sea, a broken jar yielded documents that had been hidden for two millennia. Additional finds produced manuscripts that predated the previous oldest copies of copies of the Old Testament by a 1,000 years. One of the most important was a copy of Isaiah. It revealed a document that is essentially the same as the book of Isaiah that appears in our own Bibles. This discredited the claims of those who believed that the original Bible had been lost to time and tampering. 3). Its Claims For Itself It's important to know what the Bible says about itself. If the authors of Scripture had not claimed to speak for God, it would be presumptuous for us to make that claim for them. We would also have a different kind of problem. We would have a collection of unsolved mysteries, embodied in historical and ethical literature. But we would not have a book that has inspired the building of countless churches of Christ and yes, even human denominations and Jewish Synagogues all over the world. A Book that did not claim to speak in behalf of God would not have become foundational to the faith of millions of Christians and Jews. 4). Its Miracles Israel's exodus from Egypt provided a historical basis for believing that God revealed Himself to Israel. If the Red Sea did not part as Moses said it did, the Old Testament loses its authority to speak in behalf of God. The New Testament is just as dependent upon miracles. If Jesus did not rise bodily from the dead, the apostle Paul admits that the Christian's faith is built on a lie (1 Corinthians 15:14-17). To show its credibility, the New Testament names its witnesses, and did so within a time-frame that enabled those claims to be tested (1 Corinthians 15:1-8). Many of the witnesses ended up as martyrs, not for abstract moral or spiritual convictions but for their claim that Jesus had risen from the dead. While martyrdom is not unusual, the basis on which these people gave their lives is what's important. Many have died for what they believed to be the truth. But people do not die for what they know to be a lie. 5). Its Unity Forty different authors writing over a period of 1,600 years penned the 66 books of the Bible. Four hundred silent years separated the 39 books of the Old Testament from the 27 of the New Testament. Yet, from Genesis to Revelation, they tell one unfolding story. Together they give consistent answers to the most important questions we can ask: Why are we here? How can we come to terms with our fears? How can we get along? How can we rise above our circumstances and keep hope alive? How can we make peace with our Maker? What will happen when we die? Where are we going? The Bible's consistent answers to these questions show that the Scriptures are not many books but one. From Genesis to Malachi, Someone is coming. From Matthew to Acts 1, someone is here! From Acts 1 to Revelation 22, someone is coming again! 6). Its Historical And Geographical Accuracy Down through the ages, many have doubted the historical and geographical accuracy of the Bible. Yet modern archaeologists have repeatedly unearthed evidence of the people, places, and cultures described in the Scriptures. Time after time, the descriptions in the biblical record have been shown to be more reliable than the speculations of scholars. The modern visitor to the museums and lands of the Bible cannot help but come away impressed with the real geographical and historical backdrop of the biblical text. I suggest that even Jews who aren't particularly interested in their religion, accept the Old Testament stories of what happened to their ancestors as historical facts. They may leave Jehovah out of their affirmations, and some of them may even deny the miracles recorded therein, nonetheless they believe the people and places that are mentioned are accurate records. 7). Its Endorsement By Christ Many have spoken well of the Bible, but no endorsement is as compelling as that of Jesus of Nazareth. He recommended the Bible not only by His words but by His life. In times of personal temptation, public teaching, and personal suffering, He made it clear that He believed the Old Testament Scriptures were more than a national tradition ( Matthew 4:1-11; 5:17-19). He believed the Bible was a book about Himself. To His countrymen He said, "You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life" (John 5:39-40). Jesus spoke of many of the Old Testament miracles with confidence that they were actual events in history. He gave His approval of the creation account in Genesis along with Adam and Eve as the first human couple (Matthew 19:1-9). He spoke of the flood of Noah's day (Matthew 24:37- 39). He gave credence to the story about Jonah and the great fish along with the story of Nineveh (Matthew 12:39-42) He referred to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Matthew 10:14-15). Yes, He believed Elijah caused the widows meal not to deplete (Luke 4:25-26). He likewise spoke of Naaman the Syrian leper who was healed by God's power working through His prophet (Luke 4:27; See 1 Kings 5). There are many more that I could not recall as I worked on this lesson. The Bible is one complete whole, and if one doesn't believe it all, he has not right to lay claim to any of it. If Jesus believed the Old Testament was God's word and that all these miracles did indeed happen, we either accept the Bible or we reject the Christ Himself. For if He was mistaken, He wasn't "God with us" (Matthew 1:21-23), and we have no Savior! 8). Its Prophetic Accuracy >From the days of Moses, the Bible predicted events no one wanted to believe. Before Israel went into the Promised Land, Moses predicted that Israel would be unfaithful, that she would lose the land God was giving her, and that she would be dispersed throughout all the world, regathered, and then re-established (Deuteronomy 28-31). Central to Old Testament prophecy was the promise of a Messiah who would save God's people from their sins and eventually bring judgment and peace to the whole world (Daniel 2 and Daniel 7; Isaiah 2:2-4; Joel 2; Jeremiah 31:31-34; See Hebrews 7:12; 8:7-12). 9). Its Survival I am told that the books of Moses were written 500 years before the earliest Hindu Scriptures. Moses wrote Genesis 2,000 years before Muhammad gave the Koran. During that long history, no other book has been as loved or as hated as the Bible. No other book has been so consistently bought, studied, and quoted as this book. While millions of other titles come and go, the Bible is still the book by which all other books are measured. While often ignored by those who are uncomfortable with its teachings, it is still the central book of Western civilization. 10). Its Power To Change Lives Unbelievers often point to those who claim to believe in the Bible without being changed by it. But past history is also marked by those who have been bettered by this book. The Ten Commandments (Exodus 20), have been a source of moral direction to countless numbers of people. The Psalms of David have offered comfort in times of trouble and loss. Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-6-7), has given millions an antidote for stubborn pride and proud legalism. Paul's description of love in 1 Corinthians 13 has softened many angry hearts. The changed lives of people illustrate the difference the Bible can make. Even entire nations or tribes, have been transformed by the Word of God and the unprecedented life and significance of Jesus Christ. Jesus' "Golden Rule" was never equaled let alone surpassed in its nature (Matthew 7:12). Idolaters turned from their idolatry to serve the one true God and went to great lengths to publish these new found truths of the gospel of Christ to others as they awaited His return (1 Thessalonians 1:1-10). Saul of Tarsus gave up everything that men generally hold dear, to suffer and finally to die in service to Jesus as the Lord of his life (Galatians 1:11-24; Philippians 3:4-13). He had hope of the resurrection among the righteous (John 5:28-29; 2 Timothy 4:1-8). Paul wrote of this transformation in the lives of folks in language too clear to misunderstand. In(Romans 6:1-16; 12:1-2; Colossians 3:1-6; Galatians 5:16-21). "In Christ" we are made "new creatures" (2 Corinthians 5:17). When we arise from the watery grave of baptism we are indeed to "walk in newness of life." If you have yet to come to grips with these wonderful truths of the gospel of Christ, and if you are yet out of Christ, know that you are without God and without hope in the world, for the inspired Scriptures teach that there is not even one spiritual blessing that may be enjoyed for those "out of Christ," for every last one of those spiritual blessings are said to be "in Christ," (Ephesians 1:3). Know this too, that being "in Christ," and being in His body, His blood bought church are one and the same relationship, entered into by the new birth of the "water and spirit" (John 3:3-5; Titus 3:5), when a penitent believer confesses faith in Jesus as the Christ, and is immersed into Christ and into the one body, such a one is added to His church or numbered among the saved in the spiritual kingdom of Christ (Acts 2:38,41,47; Colossians 1:13-14) Paul said that this is where we are "reconciled unto God in one body by the cross.." (Ephesians 2:13-16). There will never be a better time nor a more favorable opportunity for you to come to Jesus my friend. The same is true of you my erring brother or sister in Christ. Why not do what heaven bids you do right now while we stand and sing the invitation song selected. Give me your hand and Christ your heart.