Shalom Aleichem...
Reflections is a weekly Christian Teaching Ministry. Each week we will talk about the Bible and lessons we can put to use in our daily life. We will try to, on a weekly basis, provide to you stories, thoughts, and just easy ways to live your life on a straight path.
THIS WEEK'S TEACHING....May 2, 2022
During the past few weeks and over the next few, we will be looking at some of the tougher questions/statements that people speak when talking about Christianity. In some small way, I pray these teachings are helping you in understanding and deepening your relationship with Jesus Christ.
Over the years of ministry, I have heard, many times, the argument that the Bible is "just another book of fiction and is not real." This teaching, I pray, will nullify that outlandish statement.
The Bible – written by men, inspired by God – it’s our Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. It’s the first major book that Guttenberg printed on his printing press back in the 1400’s and since then has sold billions of copies worldwide. The entire Bible has been translated into over 700 languages and the entire New Testament has been translated into over 1,500 languages. The Bible is inspirational. Jesus’ teachings on the Sermon on the Mount, the Psalms, the Ten Commandments and the continuous love of God for mankind have down through the centuries been the pillars on which millions have anchored their faith. And finally, the Bible is ultra-controversial. No book has caused more people to be burned at the stake, brought before firing squads, sent to prison, beheaded, stoned, sawn in two, subjected to scourging, mocked and made a spectacle of than the Bible. Folks, the Bible is without a doubt the most unique, amazing, intellectually sound, and transformational book ever written.
Most books present their readers with a theme, some story information, perhaps entertainment, and a conclusion. These books are read, but after a while fade into our distant memories. But the Bible is not called the “Book of books” for nothing. But just what makes the Bible so unique? For starters it is the only book that gives the account of special creation. It is the only book that gives a continuous historical record from the first man to the present era and on into the future. It is the only book of antiquity that accurately details prophecies of events to come. And it is the only book that convicts men of sin and leads them to salvation.
In addition, the Bible is intellectually sound in every way. Archaeologists have proven the Bible to be a first-rate accurate book of history. Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is clearly a masterpiece on how to live life completely mentally sound and full of joy. The Bible is the only religious book in the world that has
viable, believable, and verifiable prophecies. As a matter of fact, one of the greatest proofs of the truthfulness of the Bible is fulfilled prophecy. It is staggering in its amount. It is extra-Biblical in its verification.
And one other fascinating way the Bible stands alone is its ability to make scientific statements about our world hundreds and sometimes thousands of years before man has discovered these scientific facts. I like what Alex McFarland says regarding this point: “Long before scientists had discovered such data, many scientific facts had been recorded in Scripture. Among them include:
The roundness of the earth (Isaiah 40:22), the law of conservation of mass and energy (2 Peter 3:7), the hydrologic cycle (Ecclesiastes 1:7), the vast number of stars (Jeremiah 33:22), the law of increasing entropy (Psalm 102:25-27), the importance of blood to life (Leviticus 17:11), atmospheric circulation (Ecclesiastes 1:6) and the gravitational field (Job 26:7). The Bible is not a science textbook, but is does speak accurately when it notes aspects of the natural world. While the Bible does not explain all there is to know about the created world, it does offer an accurate description of our world, as well as the revelation needed to obtain salvation.”
Here are some evidences that the Bible is inspired (God-breathed), as declared in 2 Timothy 3:16:
1) Fulfilled prophecy. God spoke to men telling them of things He would bring about in the future. Some of them have already occurred. Others have not. For example, the Old Testament contains more than 300 prophecies concerning Jesus Christ’s first coming. There is no doubt that these are prophecies from God because of manuscripts dated from before the birth of Christ. These were not written after the fact but beforehand.
2) The unity of Scripture. The Bible was written by approximately 40 human authors over a period of approximately 1,600 years. These men were quite diverse. Moses, was a political leader; Joshua, a military leader; David, a shepherd; Solomon, a king; Amos, a herdsman and fruit picker; Daniel, a prime minister; Matthew, a tax collector; Luke, a medical doctor; Paul, a rabbi; and Peter, a fisherman; among others. The Bible was also written under a variety of circumstances. It was written on 3 different continents, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Yet, the great themes of Scripture are maintained in all the writings. The Bible does not contradict itself. There is no way, apart from God the Holy Spirit supervising the writing of the Bible, that this could have been accomplished.
Contrast this with the Islamic Qur’an. It was compiled by one individual, Zaid bin Thabit, under the guidance of Mohammed’s father-in-law, Abu-Bekr. Then, in A.D. 650, a group of Arab scholars produced a unified version and destroyed all variant copies to preserve the unity of the Qur’an. The Bible was unified from the time of its writing. The Qur’an had unity forced upon it by human editors.
3) The Bible presents its heroes truthfully with all of their faults and weaknesses. It does not glorify men as other religions do their heroes. Reading the Bible, one realizes that the people it describes have problems and do wrong just as we do. What made the heroes of the Bible great was that they trusted in God. One example is David, who is described as “a man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14). Yet, David committed adultery (2 Samuel 11:1-5) and murder (2 Samuel 11:14-26). This information could have easily been omitted from Scripture, but the God of truth included it.
4) Archaeological findings support the history recorded in Scripture. Though many unbelievers throughout history have tried to find archaeological evidence to disprove what is recorded in the Bible, they have failed. It is easy to say that Scripture is untrue. Proving it to be untrue is another matter. In fact, it has not been done. In the past, every time the Bible contradicted a current “scientific” theory, the Bible was proven later to be true and the scientific theory wrong. A good example is Isaiah 40:22. All the while that science declared the earth to be flat, the Bible stated that God “sits on the circle [sphere] of the earth.”
The Bible’s claims of being from God should not be understood as circular reasoning. The testimony of reliable witnesses—particularly Jesus, but also Moses, Joshua, David, Daniel, and Nehemiah in the Old Testament, and John and Paul in the New Testament—affirms the authority and verbal inspiration of the Holy Scriptures.
Consider the following passages:
Exodus 14:1; 20:1; Leviticus 4:1; Numbers 4:1;Deuteronomy 4:2; 32:48; Isaiah 1:10, 24; Jeremiah 1:11; Jeremiah 11:1–3; Ezekiel 1:3; 1 Corinthians 14:37; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Peter 1:16–21; 1 John 4:6.
Also of interest are the writings of Titus Flavius Josephus, a Jewish historian who wrote during the first century A.D. Josephus records some events which coincide with Scripture. Considering the evidence given, we wholeheartedly accept the Bible as being from God (2 Timothy 3:16).
Finally, the Bible is the only book that can transform sinners into saints. Down through the centuries millions of lost sinners have seen a radical transformation in their lives through coming to know the central figure of the Bible – Jesus Christ. My friends, the genius behind this collection of sixty-six books is without rival on planet earth. The Bible has withstood the test of time, and is timeless.
When talking about the quote that began this teaching, I remember a quote from Dr. Billy which states:
"It is man and not the Bible that needs correcting. Greater and more careful scholarship has shown that apparent contradictions were caused by incorrect translations, rather than divine inconsistencies."
I love you all:)