Beth-El Baptist Church

03/09/2009

Greg Tomlinson


How do we know that the scriptures are true and reliable?


This is one of those questions that atheists and agnostics have asked for centuries even as it continues to this day. Even amongst Christians, especially those who grew up in the church, have asked and need to continue to ask themselves. We need to know why the Bible is considered to be true and how can we verify its claims.


  1. Does the Bible tell us how to evaluate whether or not the scriptures (and prophets) are telling the truth?

Deuteronomy 18:21-22 Isaiah 41:20-23; 48:3-7

John 3:12 Daniel 2:26-28


The scriptures are challenging us and have asked us to not just sit blindly by and accept the scriptures are true because they say so, but they have challenged us to verify them. When the scriptures speak of things that are to come about, do they actually come about? Is there enough specificity in the scriptures to uniquely identify specific events, people, or things that without hesitation it can be demonstrated that this must be true.


  1. What are some of these specific historic events that only God could have know before hand?

Genesis 15:13-14 cmp Exodus 12:41

Jeremiah 25:11-12; 29:10-14 cmp Daniel 9:2; Zechariah 7:5-7

1 Kings 13:1-5 (933 B.C.) cmp 2 Kings 22:1-8; 23:1-14, 15-20 (610 B.C.)

Daniel 8:19-22; 9:24-27 Amos 8:11-12

Isaiah 44:28-45:2; Jeremiah 25:11-12; 29:10-14; 33:7-8 cmp 2 Chronicles 36:22-23


There are so many events. Israel's captivity in Egypt for about 400 years. Israel's captivity in Babylon for about 70 years. The identification of Josiah as burning Baal's prophet's bones on the altar of Baal. The identification of a king that will overcome the land of Babylon in an unbelievable time as being the king of Greece (Alexander the Great fits perfectly). The silence of God for an extended period of time and Daniel's 70 weeks of years until Messiah come in comparison to when Jesus would come. This does not include the prophecies of the Messiah it self, his birth place, his death by crucifixion (when it was unheard of), his triumphal entry. The list of the Messiah alone would easily run into more than 200 specific prophecies, all fulfilled within the 33 years of Jesus' life.


  1. What are some other things that can be identified to demonstrate the accuracy of the bible?

Matthew 26:31-34, 69-75; Mark 14:50; John 29:19 cmp Acts 2:32-36; 4:10-13

Matthew 27:60-66 cmp Matthew 28:1-8, 11-15; Mark 16:1-8 (Acts 16:24-28)

Acts 9:1-6 cmp 1 Corinthians 15:9-10

1 Corinthians 15:1-8


Some of the major issues to think about is the behavior of the eleven apostles at the time of Jesus' arrest, death and burial (denial, fear, hiding) and the time after his resurrection and especially after the coming of the Holy Spirit (boldness, accusing the Jews of killing Jesus). Don't forget about Paul either who was leading the charge to destroy the Christians and who became their greatest champion after seeing Jesus in person. What made the difference? The knowledge of the truth.

Remember the tomb with the huge stone, sealed by order of the Governor (Pilate) and protected by an armed guard yet the tomb was removed while the guards were there and the tomb was empty. Even the Jews professed the reality of the empty tomb. There there is the matter of the first attested witnesses, women. In the time frame, the testimony of women was considered nothing. Why then would the writers of the Gospels depend upon the testimony of women, unless it is true.


  1. What is the greatest demonstration of the validity of the scriptures?

John 8:31-36; 14:6, 16-17 Acts 16:30-31

Romans 10:17-18 2 Timothy 4:1-3

The greatest demonstration of the validity of the scriptures is when someone reads the Word of God and believes it. This is the opening of the tomb of the heart of the individual so that they are resurrected by the power and the might of Jesus Christ. There is no amount of evidence whether internal to the bible or external, yet confirming, that will convince someone of its truth. Convincing someone of the truth and the reliability of the scriptures is the work of God in the heart of man breaking down their strongholds and giving them life, life in and by and through the person of Jesus Christ dwelling with them by the power of God's Holy Spirit.