Apologetic: Is The Bible Reliable?

Topic:

Faith plays a major role in Christianity. Many people criticize this fact, but our faith is not blind. We have knowledge about God from general revelation (nature) and special revelation (those things about God revealed by the supernatural, especially Scripture). We can trust this and have our own experiences with God through our relationship with him. The Bible is foundational in what we know about God. It is often described as his love letter to us that reveals who he is and what he has done. People try to discredit the Bible as a way to disprove God or poke holes in our faith. The Bible is historical and reliable.

Facts:

1. The Bible has 66 books written by 40 authors over 1600 years. 

2. All the books agree with each other and fit in to the same grand story of God. 

3. The Bible was written in Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic.

4. There are over 4000 manuscripts or copies of books of the Bible. Other ancient texts such as Plato and Aristotle are based on a handful of manuscripts from more than a thousand years later.

5. The copies can be traced back to within 35-100 years of when the original would have been written. 

6. There are multiple copies of each book. The “errors” from one manuscript to another can be credited to copying mistakes and do not significantly alter the meaning of what is written.

7. Our modern translations are based on the best and oldest manuscripts of each book and are translated by committees to remain faithful to the original message. 

8. Archeology has continually affirmed the historical accuracy of the Bible. Some places archeologists have discovered were only known about from the Bible.

Biblical foundation:

The Bible is the inspired word of God spoken through people (2 Tim 3:16). The Holy Spirit worked in them (2 Peter 1:21). The Bible can be trusted for salvation through faith in Christ, right beliefs, and growing in God. The Bible is inerrant (without errors) and authoritative.

Where to start:

There is a lot of research and a lot written about the reliability of the Bible and the Gospels. Start with what someone is challenging about the Bible and look into it. You can find solid answers to these concerns and learn a lot more in the process.

Where to learn more:

Most of these cover several topics about the reliability of Scripture. Find one that fits you or your students to learn more:

Why You Can Believe the Bible By Every Student, a Christian organization focusing on answers to questions from teens

What To Say When Someone Says The Bible Has Errors By the Resurgence, the theology branch ministry of Mars Hill Church. A thorough and focused answer.

Is the Bible Reliable? - Seven Questions By Bible.org

Can We Trust The Bible? The Top 3 Reasons the Bible is Reliable (Video) Is the New Testament Reliable? Academic and apologetic articles from Stand to Reason a Christian philosophical organization.

Is the Bible Reliable? By Focus on the Family, a leading Christian based family organization