Is the Bible reliable?

Over the next few weeks, the blog will highlight some of the community groups that will be offered at NewLife this fall. Today’s post will highlight Is the Bible Reliable? by Dr. Stephen Meyer. This group will meet for the five Thursdays in October from 7-8:30 at NewLife, led by Jim Scrobko.

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” (Matthew 13:44-46)

When you listen to a sermon at NewLife, you can’t help but recognize a basic, unspoken assumption underneath what is being preached: the Bible is the reliable and authoritative Word of God. Every week, the text of Scripture is read, studied, and applied to our lives as if it is true, and as if our role is to trust in what it tells us and submit to what it commands us to do. But no one can truly get to that point without first answering this question: is the Bible reliable? Can we trust that what we read in the Bible is historically accurate? Or are we basing our lives on one long game of telephone, with words and meanings that have been altered over the centuries?

Paul writes to his protégé Timothy that “all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Jesus treats the Old Testament Scriptures as if every story is true. Peter writes in 2 Peter 1:21 that the prophets of the Bible did not make up what they wrote, but “spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” The claim of the Bible is that it is the inspired Word of God. If this is true, then praise God that He has spoken to us and left us with a revelation of who He is! If the Bible is God’s Word, then we would be wise to listen carefully and to submit ourselves to what we hear. But if it is false, then the Bible is simply another book of wisdom and stories from which we can pick and choose as we create our own philosophy of life.

So, my question for you is, do you trust that the Bible is the reliable, inspired, authoritative Word of God? If you do, then listen carefully to what God says and submit yourself to it! If you are not sure, then why not come to the course we will be offering in October called Is the Bible Reliable? Consider the evidence for yourself, and see if this book we preach from every Sunday truly is the Word of God.