A. 10 REASONS WHY THE BIBLE IS AUTHORITATIVE
1. The Bible is the Word of God because of its unique revelation of the Person of Christ, i.e., He claimed to be God.
a. He applied to Himself the statement of Jehovah, “I am” (John 8:24).
b. Jesus claimed to be identical with the Father (John 14:9; 10:33).
c. He asserted His omnipresence (Matt. 18:20; John 3:13), omniscience (John 11-14), and omnipotence (Matt. 28:18; John 5:21-23, 6:19).
d. Jesus received and approved of human worship (Matt. 14:33).
e. He forgave sins (Mark 2:5-7).
If man invented Christ, why has he not improved upon Him?
If man invented Christ, why has he not invented another?
f. Ad Absurdum: Jesus’ claims are either true or false. If false, He knew they were false and He is a liar, or fool for dying for His claims. Or, Jesus didn’t know His claims were false, so he is a deluded lunatic. But if His claims are true, you must bow to accept Him as LORD!
2. The extraordinary claims that the Bible is from God.
a. We cannot prove that the Bible is the Word of God merely by saying, “It claims to be the Word of God.” This is a circular argument.
b. Over 3000 times in scripture the authors claim their message is from God, i.e., “Thus saith the Lord.”
c. We would expect that if God wrote a book His truthfulness would demand that He claim to be its author.
d. Prior arguments:
(1) Because there must be a message from God.
(2) Because Jesus Christ could not be invented by the human mind.
(3) Because the uniqueness of the message demands a unique avenue of communication.
(4) Because the message demands credibility so it can be accepted.
(5) Then God must communicate the message in a way that guarantees its reliability.
Man could not have written the Bible if given the ability.
Man would not have written the Bible if given the opportunity.
(6) Ad Absurdum: did God write the Bible? If it is a fraud, we should reject it completely for its lack of integrity and reliability. If the Bible is God’s book we must accept its message and respond accordingly.
3. The empirical evidence of the fulfillment of prophecy.
a. The enemies of scripture usually do not attack the fact of fulfilled prophecy. They usually try to explain it away, making it a historical event or they spiritualize the predictions and fulfillments.
b. The Septuagint (270 BC) and the Dead Sea Scrolls (400 BC) establish a historical date indicating the Old Testament was written before prediction come true.
4. The convicting, convincing, converting power of the message.
a. The Bible has a transforming power to transform the lives of individuals.
b. Thousands who have rejected the existence of God, but began reading the Bible, were brought under conviction and they accepted its message concerning Jesus Christ, and they came to know Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, and were converted.
5. By the inexhaustible infinity of revelation.
a. In a casual reading, the Bible is a simple book, but on the other hand, there is such infinity in the Word of God that no reader can every exhaust its depths.
b. As sincerely as finite man attempts to understand theology, he encounters the infinity of God – he cannot comprehend every part of its teaching.
c. The fact that the Bible is infinite and unfathomable implies that the author is infinite in His nature and expression.
6. The unity of the message from different human sources.
a. The argument of unity is based on the dual authorship of Scriptures. Each book of the Bible was written by a human author as he was guided by the Holy Spirit.
b. There were at least 36 authors perhaps 40, who wrote the 66 books of the Bible, yet in spite of the diversity of authors, there is unity in the Bible, reflecting one supernatural author.
c. There were approximately 1600 years during which the Bible was written over 55 generations, yet there remains the single unity.
d. There was also a great diversity of occupations of the writers of scriptures, yet there is one theme.
e. The Bible was written in different locations stretching over 2200 miles, yet the social background does not change the perspective nor destroy the unity.
f. The Bible has a unified message that centers in Jesus Christ, a unified theme which is the redemption by God, a unified structure so that each part of the Bible contributes to the whole, a unity of literary emphasis even though there are numerous authors; there was one mind that guided the preparation of the entire Bible.
7. The transcultural and transtemporal appeal of the message.
a. Although nearly 2000 years old, the Bible always seems to be up to date and meets the needs of its readers.
b. The universal appeal extends to all races as well as the poor.
c. Linguists have pointed out that the “translatableness” of the Bible is another demonstration that it is a unique book whose author is God.
d. All ages love the Word of God, from children to the elderly.
8. The unmistakable honesty of the Scriptures. The Bible is unmistakably honest in objective statements. It describes the sins of Abraham, David, and Peter. If the Bible were “invented” by men, they would have been more respectful in omitting the sins of some of God’s people. However, the sins of God’s heroes are always included.
9. The immeasurable superiority of the Bible when compared to other literature. A comparison of the Bible to the other religion books of the world will demonstrate the superiority of the Bible in most literary aspects.
10. Pragmatic test of experience.
a. Perhaps the greatest test that the Bible is the Word of God is its pragmatic impact on the lives of those who test its conclusions, i.e., it transforms and gives victory.
If you have never really accepted Jesus as your personal Savior, would you do it right now? Do not delay or put it off. If you would like to receive Christ by faith, pray this simple prayer in your heart:
Dear Lord,
I acknowledge that I am a sinner. I believe Jesus died for my sins on the cross, and rose again the third day. I repent of my sins. By faith I receive the Lord Jesus as my Savior. You promised to save me, and I believe You, because You are God and cannot lie. I believe right now that the Lord Jesus is my personal Savior, and that all my sins are forgiven through His precious blood. I thank You, dear Lord, for saving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
If you prayed that prayer, God heard you and saved you. I personally want to welcome you to the family of God and rejoice with you.
For more information on the TRBC Pastor’s Bible Class, log on to the Internet for TRBC Home page at www.trbc.org/pbc.
