Once, while traveling by plane, I got into a conversation with the man sitting next to me. We talked about the usual things and after telling me about himself, he asked, "What do you do?"

I told him I worked for my Father and left it at that. After several minutes, he reluctantly asked, "Well, what does your father do?" I explained we were in the business of telling people of God's love which is experienced through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. With that answer, I noticed his polite smile turned into a suspicious frown. As I continued to share my story, he fidgeted and pulled nervously at his tie, while beads of perspiration formed on his forehead.

That's the nature of the gospel though. It pegs a man on one side or the other. "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life" (1 John 5:12). While many people are willing to vaguely discuss God or religion, they become noticeably uncomfortable when the name Jesus Christ is mentioned. Finally, I asked, "Has anyone ever shared with you what it means to know Jesus Christ in a personal way?"

His reply to this simple and straightforward question was, "Do you really believe that story about Noah and the ark?"

Where did that come from? I was talking about Jesus Christ, and every man's need to hear about the salvation He offers. How did Noah enter the picture and why?

However, this man's question is not unusual. I have shared the gospel with hundreds of people who have asked the same question or similar ones, such as was Jonah really swallowed by a whale or did Moses really split the Red Sea. The questions being raised are smoke screens. What people are really saying is "I don't believe that the Bible is true, so don't bother me with that Jesus stuff."

I responded to his question with another question: "Who is Jesus Christ?" He was surprised, "Why do you ask?"

"Because," I replied, "you have questioned whether or not the Bible is true and can be trusted. Jesus claimed to be God. If He is God and He said there was an ark, there was an ark. If He isn't God, who cares? The real issue in deciding whether or not we can trust the Bible is determined by who Jesus Christ is." For the rest of the flight, that's where our conversation centered.

It is important that Christians accept the Bible as the Word of God, and that they know why this is so. This is vital in sharing Christ with others, as this story illustrates, and it is vital for everyday living. Our confidence in the Scriptures as our source of truth and authority must have a firm foundation in order to stand against the stresses of life. A faith built on anything else will crumble when seriously challenged. The only secure foundation for our faith is Jesus Christ Himself.

Let's examine what Jesus Christ (the Living Word) had to say about the Scriptures (the written Word), and why we can have total confidence in the truth of the Bible.

The Testimony of Jesus Christ (God) Concerning the Old Testament

After beginning His public ministry, Jesus traveled to His hometown of Nazareth and went to the synagogue. There, He took the scroll of Isaiah and read this passage:

Then, sitting down to teach, He said, "Today, this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing" (Luke 4:21). In other words, He was claiming to be the fulfillment of Isaiah's divine revelation written over 700 years before! That the listeners caught the enormity of this claim is seen in their reaction: "All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this" (Luke 4:28), and they tried to kill Him.

This was not an isolated incident in the life of Christ. Throughout His ministry, Jesus pointed to the Old Testament (the only Scriptures that existed to that point) as proof of His identity. In a confrontation with the Pharisees, He said:

You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. But do not think that I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say? (John 5:39, 40, 45-47)

In referring to Moses, Christ was talking about the first five books of the Bible. They were written by Moses about 1400 B.C. Yet Jesus says, "he wrote about Me." He is claiming that Moses wrote divinely inspired prophecies concerning the coming Messiah.

Jesus' opinion on the reliability of the Old Testament is clearly seen in the Gospel of Matthew:

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets (the Old Testament Scriptures); I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. (Matthew 5:17,18)

The Old Testament is not partly God's Word. It is all true, down to the "smallest letter" and "the least stroke of a pen." It is difficult to imagine how Jesus could have made His point any stronger.

Christ more than stated this truth; He bore witness to the Old Testament through His use of it. Almost 160 quotations from, or allusions to, the Old Testament can be found in the gospels. Jesus referred to nearly every major person and event in Old Testament history, including the most hotly debated portions.

Jesus quoted or referred to the creation account (Matthew 19:4-6); Noah and the flood (Luke 17:26, 27); the faith of Abraham (John 8:56-58); the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Luke 17:28-30); the call of Moses and the burning bush (Luke 20:37); David as an inspired writer of Scripture (Matthew 22:41-45); the story of Jonah (Matthew 12:39-41); Daniel as a prophet (Matthew 24:15) as well as many others.

People often say, "I believe in Jesus, but I don't believe the Old Testament is true." However, if you examine what Christ said about the Old Testament, you will realize this is an impossible position. Jesus Christ tied the truth of His identity to a consistent witness to the truthfulness of the Scriptures. He continually testified, "[God's] word is truth" (John 17:17). Therefore, if Jesus Christ is indeed God' the Word became flesh (John 1:14)' then we can rely on His testimony regarding the Old Testament.

The Testimony of Jesus Christ (God) Concerning the New Testament

But what about the New Testament, the writings of Jesus' followers after His departure from earth? On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples:

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever' the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. (John 14:16,17)

Today, Jesus Christ lives in every believer through the Holy Spirit (John 14:20). This is the birthright of every child of God in this age of the New Covenant.

In the lives of the apostles though, the Holy Spirit fulfilled some unique functions. Of these apostles Christ said:

All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. (John 14:25,26)

An example of this is seen in John 2. The Jews had demanded a sign from Jesus to prove His authority. He responded to them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it in three days." It says that after the resurrection the disciples "recalled what He had said."

Therefore, we have the assurance that the gospel records left by the apostles are true in regard to the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit enabled them to record accurately the words and actions of the Lord.

Later in the same evening, Jesus spoke more specifically about the ministry of the Spirit in the lives of the apostles.

I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. (John 16:12-14)

Notice what Jesus is saying here. First, He says that He has "much more to say." In other words, the gospels do not contain all that God wanted to teach us about living in the age of the New Covenant. Jesus had not yet gone to the cross, nor had the Holy Spirit come.

The gospels are clear in the recording of Jesus' ministry, His death on a cross and His ultimate resurrection. However, they provide very little explanation as to the meaning of Christ's death and resurrection. To understand what Christ accomplished, and the inheritance we now have, we must go to the New Testament writings of the apostles. How can we be sure that they are true? Because of the authority of Christ, who said the Holy Spirit would "guide [them] into all truth."

Once again the reliability of the New Testament rests on the truth of Jesus Christ. If He is indeed God, then we can trust the teachings of the apostles. Christ promised the apostles He would continue teaching them what He wanted them to say to His church and the world through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

The Testimony of the Apostles Concerning the Word of God

Throughout the early spread of the gospel, the apostles' preaching was based on their eyewitness testimony and on Scriptures which proved that Jesus was the Messiah. Peter, for example, said:

But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Christ would suffer. Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord...Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. (Acts 3:18, 19, 24)

In his second letter, Peter added his explanation of how the Old Testament prophets composed their writings:

Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:20,21)

The apostle Paul had the same idea when he wrote:

All Scripture is God-breathed. (2 Timothy 3:16)

He summed up the gospel message in Corinthians:

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. (1 Corinthians 15:3,4)

He consistently maintained that his authority and message came directly from the risen Lord Jesus Christ:

I want you to know, brother, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. (Galatians 1:11,12)

Paul never shied away from claiming that his message was God-given:

And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe. (1 Thessalonians 2:13)

Applications and Conclusions

You Can Trust the Bible

The validity of the Bible rests on the person of Jesus Christ. Because He is God and has placed His stamp of authority on both the Old and New Testaments, we have no need to doubt the truth of the Bible.

The Word of God Proves Itself

We should always be prepared to answer honest questions and objections, but we need to avoid trying to "prove" too much. For example, if you had a sword, and someone said he didn't believe it was sharp, what would you do? Well, you could stand and argue about it for hours. Or, you could simply poke him with it!

The same is true with the Word of God. Throughout the centuries, many people denied the truth of God's Word, and yet were brought to faith in Jesus Christ through its power. Remember "the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12). Use God's Word. It will prove itself.

We Can Trust the Word in Our Lives

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)

The Word of God is for our benefit. It is profitable and equips us for every good work. Trust God's Word. Put it into practice. As you do, you will experience in increasing measure the promise Jesus made:

If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:31,32)

Excerpt from The Word of God booklet - Copyright © 1991 People to People Ministries

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