Building Bible Confidence: Part 1

Part 1: Introduction and The Evidence of ‘Self-Claim’

Introduction

When picking up the Bible to begin reading, some become nervous or filled with doubt. Questions begin to develop in the mind like: Can I really read this book? Can I really understand it? Do I have the time to commit to this book? Sadly, many will put the Bible down, never opening it again or learning from it. I hope you see the Bible differently. I hope you are willing to see that the Bible comes from God and gives us instruction and hope about how to live faithfully in response to God’s saving grace of heaven.

In this series, each lesson will build on the previous one to give an overview of what God desires for us to learn about the Bible. Why should we spend our time studying the Bible itself instead of learning about specific topics within the Bible? Like building a house, Bible students must have effective study habits to handle all the Bible has to offer.

We cannot add to our spiritual house of understanding until we have laid the heavy foundation stones of trust in the Bible as God’s word. This is the reason we are spending time studying the Bible itself. There may, however, be questions and doubts that some have about the Bible itself. There are many in the world who are either skeptical or flatly deny that the Bible is a Divinely inspired document. Bible students may also ask questions honestly, such as, "Has the Bible been corrupted? How can we know that we have what was originally written? How can we know that the Bible comes from God?"

Does the Bible provide any evidence for the inspiration that it claims? Let's look at several pieces of evidence that affirm the Bible is more than a man-made book and that it speaks with the inspiration and authority of God. 

Evidence

Evidence is a commonly accepted aid to determine truth. Imagine that a man is on trial for a crime. He is brought to a court of law. The judge and jury listen to the case and make a decision based on the evidence. The judge and the jury were not at the scene of the crime. When they reach a verdict of “innocent” or “guilty,” they do so by looking at and determining the truth based on the evidence. When done in a fair and just way, the man’s fate is in the hands of people who did not witness the crime yet render a verdict by evidence. The Bible says that faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1).

No one who is alive today was around when the Bible was originally written; however, the evidence of the Bible can lead sincere believers to conclude there was a Divine Author. Though unseen, the Christian’s faith is not based on blind hope but on substantive evidence.

The Evidence of ‘Self-Claim’

A Network of Validation & Reference

The word Scripture means sacred writings and is another way to refer to the Bible. The various writers in the Bible validated one another’s words. For example, the Old Testament Scriptures foretold a Messiah and His servants (e.g. Micah 5:2, Joel 2:28). Jesus, the Messiah, often referenced the Old Testament as Scripture and told His apostles the Holy Spirit would lead them into all truth (e.g., Luke 24:44, John 16:12-15). Finally, as the inspired New Testament writers wrote their epistles, they often referenced the Old Testament and Jesus' gospel as Scripture. Let's take a closer look a few examples of those who claimed that the Bible was inspired.

Jesus

Jesus validated the Old Testament with a steady reference to the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets. They were one of His pieces of evidence of His claim as Messiah. For example, Jesus scolded religious leaders for their ignorance of the Old Testament Scriptures:

“You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God,” (Matthew 22:19) ...  “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life,” (John 5:39-40).

Even when arrested, Jesus’ regard for the Scriptures was strong. When Peter tried to prevent His arrest with violence, Jesus rebuked him for standing in the way of the Scriptures being fulfilled (see Matthew 26:52-54).

New Testament Writers

The apostle Paul was inspired by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 7:40), meaning that what he wrote down was not mere opinion but God's will. The Spirit revealed to Paul the scope of God's revelation as all Scripture:

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work, (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Likewise inspired by the Holy Spirit, the apostle Peter defended Paul's epistles against those who denied inspiration. And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, (16)  as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. (2 Peter 3:15-16).

These brief examples demonstrate what the rest of the Bible writers also claim: the Scriptures are inspired of God and worthy of our consideration. They value the Bible as God's authority. They challenge believers for all time to consider the Scriptures as they did: The word of God.

Some may not consider Jesus or the Bible writers as reliable evidence. Such a person may ask about circular reasoning or contradictions in the Bible where some passages appear not to be consistent with others. In the next article, we will consider the consistency and the unity of thought as evidence that the Bible could not have been written by man alone.

*This article was taken from The Bible Series, a twelve part study written by Jonathan Edwards. This study is available for free PDF download at www.pureandsimplebible.com