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Thirty-Five Things Worth Knowing About the Bible
 by Greg Williamson (c) 2008(AC21DOJ.org)Unless otherwise noted, all Bible quotations are from the New English Translation (NET).
1
 
What are some basic facts about the Bible?
 
The Bible was written over a period of approximately 1,400 years -- from the time of Moses until theend of the first century AD/CE. Despite the fact that its 66 individual books were written over such along period of time by many different people from various walks of life, the Bible presents a unifiedmessage of God's plan to rescue the human race.The Bible is divided into two main sections, the Old Testament (OT) and the New Testament (NT).The OT is held in very high esteem by the world's three largest monotheistic (= belief in one God)religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The OT, written in Hebrew (and some Aramaic), depictsGod's dealings with humankind in general, and with his chosen people, Israel, in particular. The NT,written in Greek, presents the coming of Jesus Christ, the birth of the Christian Church, and thespread of the Gospel message of salvation through personal, saving faith in Christ.
 
2
 
WHO SAID WHAT
 
 A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a collegeeducation.
 
-- THEODORE ROOSEVELT (1858-1919)
[REF]
*
 
3
 
How can we know about God?
 
The Bible is built on the fact that there is a real and personal God who created people in order tohave a real and personal relationship with us. Because God is a supernatural being, we cannot see,hear, or touch him. And so he must choose to reveal himself to us before we can know anythingabout him. God has chosen to make himself known in two ways, often referred to as
general 
revelation and
special 
revelation. General revelation refers to God's communication of himself in ageneral sense. This is what can be known of God through nature (including human nature) andhuman history. The design and beauty of nature, the preservation of the nation of Israel, and ourreligious nature -- these are all general ways in which God reveals himself to us.
[REF]
 
SCRIPTURE SAYS
 The heavens declare the glory of God; the sky displays his handiwork. Day after day it speaks out; nightafter night it reveals his greatness. There is no actual speech or word, nor is its voice literally heard. Yet itsvoice echoes throughout the earth ... (Psalm 19:1-4)For since the creation of the world his invisible attributes - his eternal power and divine nature - have beenclearly seen, because they are understood through what has been made ... (Romans 1:20)
 
4
 
APOLOGETICS 101
 
Why should I believe in God when no one can prove he exists?
 
God is spirit. We cannot see, hear, or touch spirit. Therefore, we cannotsee, hear, or touch God -- at least not directly. That is why he gave us hisWord, the Bible. And that is why we must look at Jesus to see God.Lots of things cannot be "proven" through the scientific method. Love, forexample, cannot be weighed on a scale or poured into a test tube. Andyet we know love is as real as anything in this world. People setthemselves against tremendous odds, endure tremendous hardships, gotremendous distances -- all in the name of love. The greatest example of love, of course, is God's love for us: "For this is the way God loved theworld: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes inhim will not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
 
In addition, while there may be little direct evidence for God's existence,there is much indirect or circumstantial evidence:
[REF]
 
•
 
The universe must have had a beginning -- and hence a"beginner."
•
 
Complicated design -- that is, evidence of an intelligent designer --is found throughout all of nature, even down to the DNA within asingle cell.
•
 
Certain moral laws -- against murder, rape, stealing, lying, etc. --have been and still are accepted by many and various culturesaround the world.
5
 
Why isn't general revelation enough?
By itself general revelation is limited for at least two reasons: 1) "due to their fallen condition," humanbeings "suppress this knowledge and pervert its message," and 2) general revelation cannot provethat the God spoken of in the Bible actually exists.
[REF]
 
In addition, if all we had to go by was generalrevelation, we could reach some very misleading conclusions. For example, without knowing anythingelse about God, all the pain, suffering, and evil in the world could easily lead us to conclude that thebeing who created this world is unloving, powerless, or both.
[REF]
 
General revelation lays the foundation for special revelation, which is God's communication of himselfin a particular sense. This is what can be known of God through his many personal encounters. Asrecorded in the Bible, God communicated directly with such individuals as Abraham, Moses, and theOT prophets of Israel. God's ultimate revelation, however, came with the appearance of Jesus Christ.Through Jesus, God made himself known as never before.Jesus' many miracles, his sacrificial death, and his resurrection from the dead verified his teachingsand made a way for us to enter into a personal relationship with God. This is the message thefollowers of Jesus (the first Christians) took to all the world beginning in the first century AD/CE.
 
SCRIPTURE SAYS
 After God spoke long ago in various portions and in various ways to our ancestors through the prophets, inthese last days he has spoken to us in a son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom hecreated the world. The Son is the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains
 
all things by his powerful word ... (Hebrews 1:1-3)"And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people by whichwe must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
6
 
WHO SAID WHAT
 
 A single line in the Bible has consoled me more than all the books I have ever read.
 
-- IMMANUEL KANT (1724-1804)
[REF]
 
7
Why should the Bible be accepted as the authoritative Word of God?
 While there exists overwhelming historical evidence for both the OT and NT, the main reason weaccept the Bible as the authoritative Word of God is because of Jesus and his apostles. As Godincarnate, Jesus had ultimate authority. Jesus verified the OT in his own teachings, and hecommissioned his handpicked representatives, the apostles, to take his teachings to literally theentire world.
[REF]
In addition, the apostles' writings (our NT) are saturated with OT quotations andallusions. The apostles held the OT in highest esteem, and their own writings amounted to a divinelyinspired, authoritative commentary on the OT.
[REF]
 
SCRIPTURE SAYS
 "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, andwill cause you to remember everything I said to you."(John 14:26)Then Jesus came up and said to them,"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Thereforego and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the HolySpirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, tothe end of the age."(Matthew 28:18-20)They were devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and toprayer. Reverential awe came over everyone, and many wonders and miraculous signs came about by theapostles. (Acts 2:42-43)who was appointed the Son-of-God-in-power according to the Holy Spirit by the resurrection from the dead,Jesus Christ our Lord. Through him we have received grace and our apostleship to bring about the obedienceof faith among all the Gentiles on behalf of his name. (Romans 1:4-5)
8
How can we know the Bible is historically reliable?
There are three main tests historians use for determining the reliability of an ancient document:
[REF]
•
 
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL TEST.
 This has to do with how a document was preserved as it waspassed from generation to generation. 
•
 
INTERNAL EVIDENCE TEST.
 This has to do with contradictions and other inconsistencies. 
•
 
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE TEST.
 This has to do with other sources outside the document thathelp to prove the document is true and trustworthy.
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