The Bible gives me the basis for EVERYTHING in this life. Let's first talk about the element of faith. The book of Hebrews tells me, faith is the substance of something hoped for, yet not seen.
It takes just a much faith the believe there is a God who created all of this world as it does to believe all of the earth and it's inhabitants happened just by cosmic chance. I'll be blunt - I do not believe that. I cannot see air, yet I know it is here filling my lungs. I cannot see the wind, but I know it blows the fall leaves down.
This world was made by a majestic creator although, I have not yet seen Him.
I'm borrowing a list of topics from a Top 10 List of The Bible is True from Essentialbibleblog.com.
1. Manuscript Evidence - There are over 5800 parts of the New Testament (NT) which is preserved more than any other ancient text. For example, compare that to Homer's Iliad which only has 457 manuscripts.
2. Archaeological Evidence - the more folks dig, the more that is found to support the Bible as truth.
3. Corroborating Accounts - Non-Biblical sources like Josephus, a Jewish historian, born in 37 AD who provides valuable background information.
4. Literary Consistency - The Bible is comprised of 66 books over 1500 years, by 40 writers and yet it tells ONE big story. "There is indeed a variety of human authors and themes in the Bible, YET behind these lies a single divine author with a unifying theme" - John R.W. Stott
5. Eye Witness Accounts - The Bible was written by folks who under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, saw the events and many were persecuted and martyred YET never changed their story.
6. Prophetic Consistency - The Bible contains over 300 specific prophecies in the Old Testament (OT) that are fulfilled in the NT through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
7. Expert Scrutiny - The early church had extremely high standards for what books were judged to be authentic and therefore included in the Bible. A book had to have been written by an Apostle or someone in their immediate circle, had to conform to basic Christian faith and had to be in widespread use among many churches.
8. Leader Acceptance - Many greats have vouched for the authenticity and truth of the Bible. "I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given man. All the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to us through this book. But for it we could not know right from wrong.” - Abraham Lincoln.
9. Global Influence - The Bible has had a greater influence on the laws, art, ethics, music and literature of world civilization than any other book in history. Can you think of one that even comes close? “Christianity”, as set forth in the Bible “is responsible for a disproportionately large number of the humanitarian advances in the history of civilization—in education, medicine, law, the fine arts, working for human rights and even in the natural sciences….” Craig L. Blomberg.
10.Changed Lives - From the Apostles to St. Augustine to Martin Luther to everyday peeps like me, the words of the Bible have changed me forever!
There is much evidence demonstrated to me proving the authenticity, reliability, and validity of the Bible. I once heard a pastor say, "Genesis 1:1 'In the Beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth.' You might as well stop right there if you have a problem with that." While I agree with that statement, I also believe I have a responsibility to share the truth of the Gospel and the Bible with others so that they may too believe. Scripture also teaches us that Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. I hope I have encouraged your faith today.
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