Building Bible Confidence: Part 6

Part 6: Measures of Reasonableness

The resurrection of Jesus was Paul's proof to the Athenians that there is a God and He wants all to repent and be saved. If the gospel writers can be trusted, then the resurrection is a reasonable conclusion. Bible students can test several factors to build a mature faith. (These factors are available for deeper study in works such as A Christ For Christ by Lee Strobel and I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Norman Geisler & Frank Turek.)

Reasonable Intent: Did the gospel writers intend to accurately write the truth? Luke explained that he wanted to accurately record the things on which there is full conviction (Luke 1:1-4). The apostle John stated that his purpose was for people to know and believe in Jesus (John 20:31). It is reasonable to conclude that the gospels are accurate to accomplish the writers' intentions.

Reasonable Witness: Were the writers able to credibly write about Jesus? Eye-witness writers include Matthew, John, Paul, James, Peter, and Jude. Those that weren't with Jesus were closely associated with someone who was (Luke with Paul, Mark with Peter). The New Testament autographs were written during the lifetime of many eyewitnesses. It is reasonable to conclude that the New Testament was written by credible eyewitnesses and/or contemporaries of Jesus.

Reasonable Ability: Were the writers able to accurately record history? There are over 150 eyewitness verifiable details that establish the credibility of authors. That includes the names of towns, officials, events, geography, etc., that can be researched and proven accurate. If the gospel writings were filled with mythological places and persons, it would be a stain on the accuracy of the documents. However, it is reasonable to conclude that the writers were credible based on their ability to accurately record verifiable details.

Reasonable Consistency: Are the writers consistent with themselves and one another? Some may ask why there are four gospels instead of one. Additionally, one can observe that the witnesses aren't identical. First, multiple gospels mean multiple witnesses. More witnesses increase the legitimacy of the narrative. And while some skeptics promote apparent contradictions, if these are examined closely and carefully, the passages harmonize. It is reasonable to conclude that the consistency of four gospels make reliable witnesses.

Reasonable Integrity: Since the writers were devoted followers of Jesus, would they be tempted to embellish His story? Jesus' teachings led to most writers being beaten, tortured and killed. It is reasonable to conclude they did not stand to gain anything from embellishing or promoting a lie. It is also reasonable to believe some would crack under the pressure of persecution and fear of death if they had embellished or lied. They preferred death to denying the name of Jesus. It is reasonable to conclude that they sincerely believed what they wrote about Him.

Reasonable Honesty: Did the writers leave out any embarrassing or incriminating evidence? This is a similar variation to the previous factor. It is a historical principle that something embarrassing or self-incriminating admitted by an author is probably true. Why? How many people would lie to make themselves look bad or get in trouble? How many would be willing to be beaten or killed based on an embarrassing or self-incriminating manuscript? The gospel writers referred to themselves as dimwitted, uncaring, rebuked, cowardly, deniers, and doubters (Matthew 15:16; 16:23; Mark 14:47-52; Luke 22:45, 54-62; John 20:24-29). Such honesty shows it is reasonable that they were more concerned with an honest witness than a self-serving one.

Reasonable Corroboration: Can the writer's details be independently verified? There is an assumption made by some skeptics that the gospel writers are inherently biased and had good reason to lie, while secular sources were more reliable and credible. We have previously considered that it is reasonable to conclude that the gospel writers had no reason to lie and everything to lose if they did. It is also worth considering that there are at least ten ancient non-Christian sources within 150 years of Jesus’ life that mention Jesus and His followers. When lined up, all of this extra-biblical testimony is congruent with the New Testament. 

Possible Adverse Witnesses: Were others present who could contradict the gospel writers if their narrative was false? Many people had reason for wanting to discredit Christianity in the first century. They could have done so if they could point out errors in the writings, but they did not. They could say that Jesus didn't live, teach, and lead His followers, but they did not. They could have said there was a body still in the tomb, but they did not. Why not? All of the evidence reasonably concludes that they could not.

*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