"CAN WE TRUST THE BIBLE?" Regarding Its Inspiration By God? by Mark Copeland

 

"CAN WE TRUST THE BIBLE?"

Regarding Its Inspiration By God?

INTRODUCTION

1. Christians accept as their "canon" the 66 books of the Bible...
1. The 39 books of the Old Testament
2. The 27 books of the New Testament
2. They view the Bible as "inspired" of God...
1. Literally, "God-breathed" (Gr., theopneustos)
2. That its scriptures were given by the Holy Spirit, and are not simply the words of men
3. The Bible claims such inspiration...
1. It speaks of scripture inspired of God - 2Ti 3:16-17
2. It tells of men speaking as they were moved by the Holy Spirit - 2Pe 1:20-21
3. It contains claims by those who spoke words revealed by the Spirit - 1Co 2:9-13

[But what evidence is there that Bible is actually inspired of God? There are several which we will briefly enumerate...]

1. THE UNITY OF THE BIBLE
1. THE BIBLE CONTAINS 66 BOOKS, WRITTEN...
1. Over a 1600 year span
2. Over a period of 40 generations
3. By approximately 40 authors from every walk of life; e.g.:
1. Moses, political leader trained in the universities of Egypt
2. Peter, fisherman
3. Amos, herdsman
4. Joshua, military general
5. Nehemiah, cup bearer to a king
6. Daniel, prime minister
7. Luke, a physician
8. Solomon, king
9. Matthew, tax collector
10. Paul, tentmaker and rabbi
4. In different places
1. Moses in the wilderness
2. Jeremiah in a dungeon
3. Daniel on a hillside and in a palace
4. Paul inside prison walls
5. Luke while traveling
6. John in exile an the isle of Patmos
7. Others in the rigors of military campaign
5. At different times
1. David in times of war
2. Solomon in times of peace
6. During different moods
1. Some writing from the heights of joy
2. Others from the depths of sorrow and despair
7. On three continents: Asia - Africa - Europe
8. In three languages: Hebrew - Aramaic - Greek
9. Which subject matter includes hundreds of controversial topics
1. The origin of man and the universe
2. The nature of God
3. The nature of sin and man's redemption
2. YET THERE IS HARMONY AND CONTINUITY...
1. For example:
1. "The Paradise Lost of the book of Genesis becomes the Paradise Regained of Revelation"
2. "Whereas the gate to the tree of life is closed in Genesis, it is opened forevermore in Revelation."
-- Geisler and Nix
2. Compare the continuity of the Bible with any other such writings of man
1. Imagine what you would have if you just took ten authors...
1. From one walk of life, one generation, one place, one time, one mood one continent, one language
2. Speaking on one controversial subject
2. You would have a conglomeration of ideas, not harmony!

[The reason for the unity of the Bible? The writers were all moved by the same Holy Spirit (2Pe 1:20-21), providing evidence that the Bible is inspired! There is also...]

2. THE SCIENTIFIC FOREKNOWLEDGE OF THE BIBLE
1. THE NATURE OF THIS ARGUMENT...
1. In the Bible there are scientific truths
1. Unknown by man with all his wisdom and resources
2. Stated as facts hundreds of years in advance of the discovery of these truths by men
2. The writers of the Bible could have known these facts only through inspiration
1. They could not have known such things on their own
2. They must have had divine help, i.e., inspiration from God
2. A FEW EXAMPLES...
1. The roundness of the earth - Isa 40:22
2. The suspension of the earth in space - Job 26:7
3. The currents in the seas - Ps 8:8
4. The springs in the seas - Job 38:16
5. All nations of one blood - Ac 17:26

[Such things were not known or confirmed by man until modern times, with the aid of scientific instruments. Yet such knowledge reveals the Omniscient Mind that moved the writers of the Bible! More evidence of inspiriation...]

3. THE FULFILLED PROPHECIES IN THE BIBLE
1. THE NATURE OF THIS ARGUMENT...
1. The prophecies foretold events in detail that were beyond the scope of human speculation
2. How did the writers or speakers do it?
1. They attributed it to God!
2. And God declared that such evidence was a proof of His existence and superiority over men and all heathen gods - Isa 41:21-24; 42:8-9; 46:8-11
2. A FEW EXAMPLES...
1. The fall of Babylon, written two hundred years before it occurred - Isa 13:17-22
2. The fall of Egypt, that it would be destroyed more by civil war than by outside forces - Isa 19:1-4
3. The fall of Nineveh, with its utter desolation - Zeph 2:13-15
4. The fall of Tyre, with its becoming a place for the spreading of nests - Ezek 26:1-5
5. There are the prophecies concerning Christ - cf. Lk 24:44-45
1. It has been stated there 332 prophecies fulfilled in Christ - Henry Liddon
2. The mathematical probability that all could be fulfilled in one person by chance alone has been calculated as one in 84 times ten to the 123rd power (84 followed by 123 zeroes)
-- Cf. Introduction To Christian Evidences, Ferrell Jenkins, pp. 87-107
6. There are prophecies by Christ, such as the destruction of Jerusalem
1. Foretold in Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21
2. Fulfilled in A.D. 70, when Rome destroyed Jerusalem

CONCLUSION

1. This study barely touches the hem of the garment...
1. Volumes have been written on the subject
2. My purpose has been to summarize the evidence
2. We have examined objective evidence of inspiration, such as...
1. The unity of the Bible
2. The scientific foreknowledge of the Bible
3. The fulfilled prophecies in the Bible
3. There is also the subjective evidence of inspiration that comes by simply reading and heeding the Bible - cf. Ro 10:17; Jn 7:16-17

There are some who question whether any can understand the Bible by simply reading it. That question we shall address in our next study...

Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2022