The Written Truth

Why do we believe the Bible is true? Why does the world put such vigorous effort into making you doubt the Bible? What is the Bible to you?

Within modern academia it has become popular to attack the Bible’s reliability. It is the most vigorously attacked book in the world, and it is the most researched and corroborated book in the world. Even as people set out to discredit the Bible, nearly everyday something else is discovered that confirms the Bible. In Israel and the region around it, more evidence is continually discovered. We can go on and on just about recent discoveries because there are so many, and it seems like there is an acceleration of archeological discoveries that confirm what is written in the Bible.

But what is the Bible to you? I saw a great quote from an apologist named Voddie Baucham:

"I choose to believe the Bible because it is a reliable collection of historical documents, written by eyewitnesses during the lifetime of other eyewitnesses, reporting supernatural events that took place in fulfillment of specific prophecies, and claimed their writings are divine and not of human origin."

I didn’t follow Voddie so I can’t comment on all of his views, but I strongly agree with this statement. We don’t believe the Bible because of a feeling or because someone told us to. We choose to believe because we recognize it as true. Voddie mentions that the Biblical “writings are divine and not of human origin.” 2 Timothy 3:16 says all Scripture is God-breathed. This means that along with it being historical and factual, it proceeds from the mouth of God and it is also alive with the breath of God when we receive it in faith. Scripture is our face-to-face meeting with God Himself. The Bible is an intimate encounter with the Living God, Yahweh, and a factual historical document corroborated by eyewitnesses.

The Bible is a gathering of books and letters. It’s split into the Old Testament (before the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus) and the New Testament (the life of Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection, and the rise of His church). The Old Testament outlines the original covenant between God and the people of Israel based on the Law. It looks forward to and predicts a Messiah, and its final entry is Malachi, written around 500 years before Jesus was born. In the final verses God prophesies:

Malachi 4:5-6 ESV — “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”

The New Testament establishes a “new covenant” of grace and salvation available to all people through Jesus, the Messiah. Its final book is Revelation, written by the apostle John in his 90s, around fifty years after Jesus’ resurrection. The last few verses of the final book read:

Revelation 22:18-21 ESV — I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.

In 2 Timothy 3:16, Paul writes, “All Scripture is breathed out by God.” “Breathed” comes from pneuma, the same word for spirit. “Breathed out” is one word in the Greek that means inspired. All Scripture was inspired by God’s Spirit moving through men. When Paul wrote this statement, the “scripture” would have included the already recognized Old Testament and the growing body of what would become the New Testament. Nearly 25% of the New Testament is actually attributed to Paul. The rest of it was recorded by those who had a direct experience with Jesus’ earthly ministry and/or were discipled by direct witnesses. In some of these cases, the author would dictate to a scribe who would then put the words into writing.

The traditional timeline puts Jesus’ crucifixion around AD 33. The New Testament was recorded and gathered together to benefit the rapidly growing Church. All of the books of the New Testament were first written during the lifetime of Jesus’ disciple John, who died at the age of 94. John, who referred to himself as Jesus’ beloved disciple, shared the book of Revelation around fifty years after Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, and this was the final book of what would become the Bible.

Let’s briefly look at each of the authors of the New Testament and the timeline:

James wrote his letter around fifteen years after the resurrection (AD 48–50). He was a half-brother of Jesus who didn’t become a believer until after Jesus’ resurrection.
Paul wrote Galatians seventeen years after the resurrection (AD 50), then he wrote 1 & 2 Thessalonians (AD 51–53), 1 & 2 Corinthians (AD 55–57), and Romans (AD 57). Remember, the letters (“epistles”) were written or dictated as instruction, correction, and encouragement to individuals and churches.
Paul wrote Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, and Ephesians twenty-seven years after Jesus’ resurrection (AD 60–62). These are referred to as Paul’s “Prison Epistles”. 1 Timothy, Titus (AD 62–65), 2 Timothy, and Hebrews (AD 65–70) came in the following years. The author of Hebrews was anonymous, but has traditionally been attributed to Paul.
The Gospels of Mark (AD 60–70), Matthew (AD 60–80), and Luke, and the book of Acts (AD 63–70) were all written around thirty years after Jesus’ resurrection. John Mark was a missionary with Paul and Barnabas and close friend of Peter. His record is from what was directly related to him by Peter. Matthew was a tax collector who became one of Jesus’ twelve disciples. His record is of his personal experience with Jesus. Luke was a non-Jewish doctor who became a believer and disciple of Paul. As a doctor, he loved research, facts, and details. In writing his Gospel and the book of Acts, Luke explicitly states that he was not an eyewitness to Jesus’s ministry, but he meticulously researched historical records and gathered testimonies from eye-witnesses. Luke was actually present for portions of what he recorded in Acts —you see the shift from “they” to “we”.
Peter wrote his two letters between AD 62 and AD 70, around thirty years after the resurrection.
Jude wrote his letter around the same time (AD 65-70). He refers to himself as a servant of Jesus and a brother to James. This means he was another half-brother of Jesus.
John, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ, had a long life. He wrote his Gospel, his three letters, and the book of Revelation in his final years, between AD 85 and 95, around fifty years after Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection.

You may ask, why did many of these men wait so many years to record their accounts? They were busy doing the work of ministry and being persecuted. Paul was an avid letter writer, but most of these other men were more focused on spreading the Gospel, discipling new believers, and caring for a rapidly multiplying church that was also being aggressively persecuted. They were very, very busy. Also, they were all convinced that Jesus would return at any moment. As John says in the end of Revelation, “Come, Lord Jesus!” But as they grew older, I’m sure they felt the increasing need to record their first-hand experiences as the written truth of what they saw and heard from Jesus. This is why the Gospels were written between thirty to fifty years after Jesus was crucified and resurrected.

All of the New Testament authors were alive during Jesus ministry:

Peter, John, and Matthew were disciples of Jesus who were with Him before and after His resurrection.
James and Jude were half-brothers of Jesus. They knew Him intimately but refused to accept Him as the Son of God until He resurrected from the dead.
Paul was a Pharisee and an enemy of Jesus and all Christians until he was humbled and literally knocked off his horse by a vision of Jesus. Then he became a major missionary, church planter, and teacher. He went from terrible persecutor to terribly persecuted for Jesus.
John Mark was most likely a teenager during Jesus’ ministry, and he was very active in the church of Jerusalem and with the leaders. He was also close to Peter, Barnabas, and Paul, and went on various missionary journeys.
Luke was the only author who didn’t have first-hand experience with the ministry of Jesus. This is why he dedicated himself to researching and recording the experiences of those who walked with Jesus.

Luke 1:1-4 ESV — Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus [“Friend of God”], that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

Why are we talking about the Bible? Both the Old and the New Testaments are one narrative, one story line, and it all points to Jesus. In Revelation 19:10, an angel tells John, “I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” Remember that Paul said that all scripture is inspired by God. Here we see that the ultimate purpose of all God-inspired revelation is to bear witness to Jesus Christ. Christ said that He was born and came into the world to bear witness to truth. All scripture, Old Testament and New Testament, is God-inspired. The entire Bible bears witness to Jesus, and Jesus bears witness to the truth. Therefore the Bible testifies Truth. It is the Written Truth!

Why do you think the world spends so much time and effort trying to discredit and disprove the Bible? We don’t see atheists and non-Christians attacking any other religion as much as they attack Christianity, or any other historical document like they do the Bible. Why?

In John 7:7, Jesus says the world hates Him because He testifies about it that its works are evil. Jesus is the truth, and truth reveals the evil at work in the world, and the world hates this. In John 17:14, Jesus says, “I have given them Your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.” Jesus, the Word of God, is the standard of truth, and truth testifies against the wickedness of the world and causes great conviction. Now Jesus has given you the Word. In John 8:31-32, Jesus says, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” As you live in the Word and make it your permanent residence, you are no longer a partner to the lying wicked spirit of this world. This is why the world hates you. It hates Jesus, it hates the Word, and it hates the people of the Word. Because, just as these three shine and demonstrate and bear witness to truth, truth provokes conviction of sin and judgement.

John 12:47-48 ESV — “If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.”

Human opinions, cultural norms, and personal feelings will not be the measure of a person’s life. Instead, the unchanging truth of Scripture will serve as the ultimate standard. A person’s life, thoughts, and actions will be evaluated against the teachings of the Bible. It is the ultimate standard and final criteria for truth.

What is the Bible to you? Will you choose to believe?

Seeking His face!
Matt