6.5.20 Praise & Prayer Prompt: The Hard Questions – How Can We Trust That the Bible is the Inspired Word of God When It Was Written By Men?

TODAY’S SIGNATURE VERSE ••• All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV)

PRAISE & PRAYER PROMPT ••• I am actually really excited about today’s hard question. We’re on Day 10… and today, we’re asking, “How can we trust that the Bible is the inspired Word of God when it was written by men?” Y’all, this is one of my favorite topics. I totally embrace and believe that the Holy Bible is the inerrant and inspired Word of God. It’s God’s love letter to us… His instruction book on how to live… and it’s something that is deeply personal and timeless — and that can only be possible by a perfect Holy God. And of course, we must remember that Jesus IS the Word (John 1:1). To read the Bible is to get up close and personal with God Himself! Maybe it’s because I’m a writer and book nerd, but I love that of all the ways God could choose to reveal Himself to us, He did so through the written Word.

Before I even dive into this, I’m going to give a book recommendation. I’ve almost finished reading “Cold Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels” by J. Warner Wallace. It has been a brilliant and exhaustive study of the Gospels. As a homicide detective, the author has applied so many analytical techniques to validate the Word of God! I really cannot recommend this book more! It’s been an excellent read and by nature of what the author does for a living, it has been well-researched and examined.

With that said, let’s go to 2 Timothy 3:16 which says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” Right off the bat, I’m going down a rabbit trail. Isn’t that the most beautiful phraseology? “All Scripture is breathed out by God…” I just love how that is worded… I can imagine God taking a deep breath and slowly, deliberately breathing His voice of authority over the authors of Scriptures in order to divinely guide their hands so that we can have His Word today.

But how do we know that He ordained it? Let’s take a look first at how the Bible came to be. The Bible is technically 66 books that was written over the course of 1500 years by over 40 writers across three continents and in three languages. Yet, despite the different voices, there’s a seamlessness about the Holy Bible. The more we study it, the more we see evidence of God from start to finish, despite multiple authors! Through the pages, we discover His character, His consistency, His justice, His love, and His compassion – it’s all there from the story of creation all the way to the end of time prophecies that were revealed to John in Revelation. 

The Bible’s prophecies are also indicative of its divine inspiration. God alone is all-knowing, but details about Christ were predicted throughout the Old Testament. Some of the most popular prophecies are found in the book of Isaiah and were predicted with accuracy approximately 700 years before Jesus’ birth. Moreover, Jesus fulfilled over 300 messianic prophecies during his earthly ministry. Unfortunately, I’m not mathematically equipped to give you the odds of one man fulfilling so many specific prophecies… but thankfully, someone else is. My research led me to this explanation based on the statistical probability of one man fulfilling only eight of the prophecies:

Mathematics & Astronomy Professor Peter W. Stoner has made the statement that the chances of just 8 prophecies coming true by sheer chance is 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. That would be equivalent to covering the whole state of Texas with silver dollars two feet deep and then expecting a blindfolded man to walk across the state and on the very first try find the ONE coin you marked. 

And let me reiterate — that is just based on EIGHT prophecies. And Jesus fulfilled over 300. That incredible estimation alone gives me plenty of reason to trust in the authenticity of God’s Word.

There are so many reasons we can trust in the Bible as the infallible Word of God. I’ve hit on two of my favorite points. But those are certainly not the only two reasons we can trust Scripture. Validation comes from non-biblical sources. The Bible has a voice of authority and power. It’s survival, despite generations of opposition, gives it divine credential. Plus, archeological evidence supports it…. There are so many ways to trust in Scripture. I encourage anyone who questions the validity of the Bible to do their homework. 

As we wrap up today’s question, let me share one of my favorite truths about the Bible: it’s the only book we can read while simultaneously developing a personal friendship with the Author. 

Today, as you pray, thank God for His inspired and timeless Word. Thank Him for loving us enough to give us His Word. Ask the Holy Spirit to write faith on your heart so that you can trust the timelessness of God’s Holy Bible. Ask Him to help you see Him clearly as you read and deepen your relationship with Him through Scripture.

SHARING ••• Please share with others! Visit www.MyGraceFullLife.com to read past blogs. ***Unless noted otherwise, all Scripture references are from the ESV translation.