The Bible consisting of 66 books, 1,189 chapters, 31,173 verses, and 757,444 words certainly has enough content for people to wonder if it all is truth and the pure Word of God. It is not a unique thing to wonder if the Bible is true. It has happened to the best of saints at times. Even Billy Graham, the most famous and successful evangelist in church history, wondered if the Bible was trustworthy for a season. However, whenever you’re struggling with doubt about the Bible and its authenticity, it is best to behave like the Berean Jews (Acts 17:11), see if what you’ve been told is true.
If you question the trustworthiness of the Bible, it is ok to ask as long as you’re interested in truth like the Bereans were. Some questions you might ask are…
Questions You Might Have
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Where did the Bible come from?
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Whose thinking does it reflect?
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Did any books of the Bible get lost in time past?
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What does the Scripture claim for itself?
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Does it live up to its claims?
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Who wrote the Bible— God or man?
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Has Scripture been protected from human tampering over the centuries?
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How close to the original manuscripts are today’s translations?
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How did the Bible get to our time and in our language? Is there more Scripture to come, beyond the current 66 books?
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Who determined, and on what basis, that the Bible would be composed of the traditional list of 66 books?
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If the Scriptures were written over a period of 1,500 years (c. 1405 B.C. to A.D. 95), passed down since then for almost 2,000 years, and translated into several thousand languages, what prevented the Bible from being changed by the carelessness or ill motives of men?
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Does today’s Bible deserve the title “The Word of God”?
I hope to answer these questions as we move forward in this blog. When questioning a document or making a truth claim, it is best to investigate its contents before concluding. In this blog, we will look at what Scripture says about itself. So what does the Bible say about itself?
Scripture Self-Claims
Over 2,000 times in the Old Testament alone, the Bible asserts that God spoke what is written within its pages. The phrase “the Word of God” occurs over 40 times in the New Testament. See the scripture references below from the New Testament to see that the “Word of God” is part of the foundation of the early church and what Christians believe today. Also, please continue reading below to see some common questions asked about Scripture, and it’s the origin.
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It is equated with the Old Testament (Mark 7:13).
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It is what Jesus preached (Luke 5:1).
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It was the message the apostles taught (Acts 4: 31; Acts 6:2).
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It was the word the Samaritans received (Acts 8:14) as given by the apostles (Acts 8:25).
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It was the message the Gentiles received as preached by Peter (Acts 11:1).
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It was the word Paul preached on his first missionary journey (Acts 13:5-7; Acts 15:35-36).
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It was the message preached on Paul’s second missionary journey (Acts 18:11).
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It was the message Paul preached on his third missionary journey (Acts 19:10).
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It was the focus of Luke in the book of Acts in that it spread rapidly and widely (Acts 6:7; Acts 12:24; Acts 19:20).
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Paul was careful to tell the Corinthians that he spoke the word as it was given from God, that it had not been contaminated, and that it was a manifestation of truth (2 Corinthians 2:17; 2 Corinthians 4:2).
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Paul acknowledged that it was the source of his preaching (Colossians 1:25; 1 Thessalonians 2: 13).
Question 1: If the Bible is the “Word of God” and over 2000 times in the Bible, God spoke these words, then the authority of the Bible rests on the integrity of God. Is God trustworthy and dependable?
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God is Perfect (Matthew 5:48)
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God is True (Jeremiah 10:10; John 17:3)
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God is Upright- (Psalm 25:8; Psalm 92:15)
If we see the contents of the Bible described more than 2000 times that it is God’s word and God himself is perfect, true, and upright, then we should not fear or wonder if the Bible is trustworthy.
Question 2: Maybe God is trustworthy, but men wrote the Bible, and maybe they had a hidden agenda and wrote their own things. Is God strong enough or wise enough to overcome that? The heart of this question is whether or not God can override human intention. We know that:
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God is Powerful (Psalm 62:11)
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God’s Power is Everlasting (Isaiah 43:13; Ephesians 3:7)
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God’s Power is Great (Psalm 79:11; Nahum 1:3)
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God’s Power is Incomprehensible (Job 26:14; Ecclesiastes 3:11)
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God Alone is Wise (Romans 16:27; 1 Timothy 1:17)
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Scripture Cannot be altered (John 10:35; Matthew 5:17-18; Luke 16:17; Revelation 22:18-19)
Even if man had a hidden agenda to try and change the contents of Scripture God is too powerful to allow that to happen, he is wiser than the wisest man, and it is a promise from Jesus himself that Scripture cannot be altered. If Jesus was lying about that then even Jesus needs a saviour, and his death on the cross is not sufficient for our salvation.
Question 3: If a man is sinful and capable of error, then how did this powerful God give them the scriptures?
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God-Breathed (God used the minds, vocabularies, and experiences of the Bible writers to produce his own perfect, infallible, & inerrant word.) (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
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Sometimes God told the Bible writers the exact words to say – (Jeremiah 1:9)
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So identified is God with his Word that when Scripture speaks, God speaks (Romans 9:17; Galatians 3:8)
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Oracles of God (Romans 3:2)
God used the unique minds, vocabularies, and experiences of the Bible writers to produce the contents of the Bible. The verses mentioned above in Romans 9:17 and Galatians 3:8 identify Scripture as if it were God himself speaking to us. It is considered the very Word of God and has been faithfully passed on to us.
Question 4: Since the Bible is so attached to God himself, and it is His words, then the Bible is considered…
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Inerrant (without error)- (Psalm 12:6; Psalm 119:140; Proverbs 30:5)
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Holy- (Romans 1:2)
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Useful for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction- (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
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Sufficient in itself to teach you how to honour God- (Isaiah 55:11; 2 Peter 1:3-4)
Conclusion
An internal search of the Scriptures is critical for us to understand whether it is trustworthy or not. We see that the Scripture is so tied to God himself that it could be said that if you question the authority of God’s Word, then you question God himself. Do you have a problem with God?
Please continue reading this blog series as we will have some more questions answered. If you have any other questions about the Bible and its origin, feel free to send us a message or email us.
