You Can Believe It

How do we know the Bible is true? Well, how do we know that any ancient book is true? The veracity of all historical books is based on how many ancient manuscripts are available to corroborate the accuracy of the text. The New Testament has around 5000 manuscripts, many of them dating within less than 200 years of the originals. Works by Virgil, Aristotle, and Sophocles have very few manuscripts and are dated hundreds of years after the authors’ deaths.

The Bible was written in three languages by more than 40 authors over a period of 1500 years. Its authors include kings, shepherds, farmers, fishermen, apostles, prophets, a tax collector, a physician, and others. Most remarkable is the way the 66 books fit together, consistently portraying the theme of humanity’s sinfulness and God’s love to save us. The 39 books of the Old Testament underscore our lost condition and point to a coming savior. The 27 books of the New Testament introduce the Savior and the salvation he brings.

The whole book fits together like a puzzle. For example, the prophet Isaiah predicted 700 years before Christ where he would be born and that he would be born of a virgin.

Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Matthew points out the fulfillment:

Matthew 1:22-23 “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’—which means, ‘God with us.’"

The Prophet Micah predicted that he would be born in Bethlehem:

Micah 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times."

Matthew points out the fulfillment in Matthew 2:1-6:

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him." When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. "In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the            prophet has written: “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'"

These are only two of the many prophecies that have been fulfilled in the life of Christ, thus underscoring the truthfulness of the Bible.

A Deadly Temptation

Adam and Eve had the most significant opportunity for happiness and fulfillment, and they blew it. Their home was Eden; it was a perfect place where everything functioned in harmony. They enjoyed an intimacy with nature, with themselves, and with God that was unimaginable to us. However, when God created these first two people, he gave them volition—the ability to choose to obey or disobey.

Moses described the first couple as “The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame” (Gen 2:25). That is an astounding statement that Adam and Eve knew no shame or guilt. They may have lived in this state for thousands of years before the Fall. Then came the deadly conversation with the Devil and the lethal consequences. Moses describes them after the Fall in these words: “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves” (Gen 3:7). What a contrast between the two verses. They now realized they were naked and their innocence was gone. That realization is the same one that every man realizes when he leaves his wife for another woman. It is the same realization that a woman has who has defrauded her company. It is the ugly, dirty feeling that this is not as good as I thought it would be.

The deadly conversation between the snake and Eve lured Eve to think that she could be like God. Moses says it this way, "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Gen 3:5). Sin has a lure that entices—it gives promises that enthrall the mind, but the lie is that they are empty promises. The temptation was one that promised Adam and Eve that they could make their own rules. That is the temptation of our culture. “I will make my own rules and chart my own course, and I will decide what is right and wrong.”

The deadly temptation could have only been averted by standing on the Word of God. Adam and Eve could have defended God’s Word that was being assailed by Satan, but instead they rejected it. The same thing happens to us today. While we helplessly stand by, the world mocks our faith and ridicules our beliefs. The most dangerous thing about our society today is the rejection of God’s Word. It is happening all around us, with the changing of the definition of marriage and the changing of the meaning of what it means to be male and female. The rejection of the idea that young men and women can live sexually pure until marriage is a lie that is accepted even by many Christians. Only in complete obedience to God’s Word will Christians be able to be salt and light. In our rejection of the Bible, we lose our saltiness.