Can You Trust the Bible?

I guess for believers in Jesus Christ, the epitome of what we believe all comes down to the Bible that we believe without question is 100% absolute truth. There are many that would argue that since it was written by men, it has to have errors, mistakes, things that aren't true in it. I would beg to differ and challenge you to prove to me that it isn't true.

You can trust the Bible. Why? Here are 8 reasons that will hopefully convince you to look deeper and explore it for yourself to see if it is in fact, 100% true.

1. You can trust the Bible because of fulfilled Bible Prophecy. No other book in the world offers the clarity and details of Bible prophecy that has come true like the Bible. 743 years before it occurred the prophet Isaiah predicted the virgin birth of Jesus. That is pretty amazing. The study of the science of Bible Prophecy is Eschatology. It is in depth research to proving that the things the Bible predicts have happened or will come to happen. There are still events that have not happened but we can already see signs that they are slowly coming true. Did you know that 27% of the Bible is prophecy.

2. Archaeological Evidence points to the places, people and events the Bible describes. The science confirms the Bible is true. Any school or university will have at least one common book in the Archaeological Department, and that is the Bible. Why? Because when they discover things like the Hittites, they can reference the Bible for information and define where they lived during history and what their lifestyle was like. The evidence is backing it up!

3. There is evidence for first century crucifixions. Through discoveries in historical manuscripts and evidence that is being uncovered, they know this event really took place in Ancient Roman times as the cruelest form of punishment.

4. The Bibles Internal Consistencies. You can take Old Testament events and match them up with New Testament teachings. There is nothing that isn't consistent in the entire Bible.

5. Extra Biblical Writings - Other sources outside of the Bible confirm such things as a Great Flood in almost every culture, long life spans prior to the flood, details surround the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, The Assyrian invasion of Israel, Nebuchadnezzars invasion of Judah, King Cyrus freeing the Jews from Babylon, the murder of John the Baptist, the prolonged darkness on the day Jesus died in 32 A.D. is recorded in astronomical charts in other parts of the world, King Herod Agrippas' sudden death after being hailed as a god.

6. The Bible's scientific accuracy. The ancient mariners can attest to the accuracy regarding currents, the changing of seasons, and even the water cycle before man discovered them is mentioned in the Bible. God even puts migration in the minds of animals like the Monarch butterfly. It always knows where it's going even if it hasn't been there before.

7. Manuscript Evidence. Yeah but the Bible has been rewritten by so many people over the years, there are bound to be errors. When the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in a cave in 1947, copies of every book in the Old Testament have ben discovered with the exception of the book of Esther. In some cases multiple copies of the same book were found. 19 copies of Isaiah, 25 copies of Deuteronomy, and 30 copies of the Psalms. It has enable Biblical scholars and textual critics to go back and verify the Bible we have today is the same as the early church had 2000 years ago. It remains unchanged.

8. The Bibles transforming power for good in the world. Hospitals and orphanages have been created and founded by Christian missionaries all over the world. Universities and schools like Yale, Harvard and Princeton have been founded by Christian scholars; untold amounts of humanitarian efforts all over the world for the poor; work for the equality of men and women and those of different skin color; scientific exploratory ventures to the world and universe; the development of great arts; and the work of people like William Wilberforce to abolish slavery in the world.

Jesus Christ never traveled more than 200 miles in the world but He has impacted the entire world, more than any one person. The historian Philip Schaff summarized the enormous impact the Bible has had on people when he wrote this about Jesus, "Jesus of Nazareth, without money and arms, conquered more people than Alexander, Caesar, Mohammed, and Napoleon; without science and learning, He shed more light on things human and divine than all the philosophers and scholars combined; without the eloquence of schools, He spoke such words of life as were never spoken before or since. and produced effects which lie beyond the reach of orator or poet; without writing a single line, He send more pens in motion, and furnished themes for more sermons, orations, discussions, learned volumes, works of art, and songs of praise than the whole army of great men of ancient and modern times." (Schaff, The Person of Christ, page 29).

So if you are doubtful whether the Bible is true, examine the evidence and see if based on facts, where you have 66 different books, written by untold numbers of authors and yet that all collaborate perfectly on the same theme and that is God exists. You can take a handful of people and ask them to write on one specific topic without getting all kinds of variety, yet the Bible does it with precision and accuracy that can not be disputed by all of its authors.

John 1:1-4, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men." (NIV)

2 Peter 1:16-21, "We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophets own interpretation. For prophecy had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (NIV)