Why Should I Trust The Bible Series

Why> Series # 3

Why Should I Trust the Bible?

Matthew 7:24-27

INTRODUCTION:

I want to thank Steve and Janet for helping us to focus on our topic for today. Our “why” for this week is “Why should I trust in the Bible?” In the text from Matthew 7 Jesus explains that anyone who listens to the God’s word and puts it into practice will be as wise as a person who builds a house on solid rock. On the other hand, anyone who ignores the Bible is as foolish as a person who builds his house on top of shifting sand. So what can we say about the Bible?

Most people across the world have at least heard of the Bible. In fact, the Bible is the number one best selling book in the World. It sells over a billion copies yearly. The Bible was on the New York Times best-seller list for so long that they took it off the list. It’s a given that it is always a best-seller … and always will be. The question isn’t “Is it popular?” But in many people’s minds, the question is, “Why should I trust the Bible?”

Misconceptions about the Bible:

A lot of people have some serious misconceptions about the Bible. For one thing, many people assume that THE BIBLE ISN’T actually TRUE.

1. The Bible isn’t true

Some people think the Bible is no more than a collection of mythical stories. Some of the stories teach good moral lessons, but they don’t see them as true accounts of real people. They assume stories like Jonah and a Whale or Moses parting the Red Sea or David and Goliath are just cute little stories. Maybe they read a book like The Da Vinci Code where a character says, “The Bible is just a product of man; it is not a product of God. History has never had a definitive version of the book.” And they figure that must be the way it is.

If they’ve heard any serious discussion about the Bible at all, it was probably on the Discovery Channel or the History Channel --- where scholars give the impression that the Bible is chock full of contradictions and that Archeology has disproved the Bible time and time again.

Nothing could be further from the truth. If you take the trouble to look at the actual Scientific Evidence, you’ll find there is plenty of Manuscript evidence and Archaeological evidence to support the accuracy of the Bible.

For example, there was a time when scholars said there was no way Moses could have written the first five books of the Bible way back before 1400 BC. Why? Because, they had found no archaeological evidence that anyone knew how to write way back then. Well, that’s what the academics taught all the way up until the 19th century when the Ebla tablets were discovered. Over 20 thousand pieces of written literature were found in one location --- and these documents were dated a thousand years BEFORE the time of Moses.

Here’s another similar example: For many years, scholars claimed that the Hittites who are mentioned in the Old Testament never really existed. After all, no one had ever found any record of their existence. But then, a dig in 1974 uncovered a new city. And guess what --- the writing on the gate said it was the capital of the Hittite Kingdom.

Some of you may remember the Biblical account of Belshazzar. The book of Daniel says he was the last King of Babylon. In the Biblical account, he saw writing on the wall that warned his Kingdom would be taken over by another power. Right after that, the Persian army overthrew Babylon. Scholars said this could not be accurate because all the historical records said the last King of Babylon was a man named Nabonidus, not Belshazzar.

This was held up as proof that the book of Daniel was inaccurate --- until ---- a new historical document was discovered. This document recorded that King Nabonidus left the Kingdom of Babylon in order to worship the Moon god in the oasis of Tayma. While he was away, Nabonidus put his son in charge. And what was his son’s name? You guessed it: Belshazzar.

I’m just scratching the surface of evidence that supports the Historical Accuracy of the Bible. Let me sum it up with a quote from D.F.Albright, an archaeologist at John Hopkins University. He said, “Excessive skepticism shown toward the Bible has progressively been discredited. Discovery after discovery has established the accuracy of the numeral details. It has brought increased recognition to the value of the Bible as a source of history.” The Bible has stood the test to time.

All kinds of evidence shows the Bible to be a trustworthy document. There is not only Archaeological evidence, there is Manuscript evidence which you can read more about in your WHY> daily devotional this week.