May 5, 2019: Ask It: Questions about the Bible

May 5, 2019: Ask It: Questions about the Bible

May 5, 2019

May 5, 2019
Dave Irwin, Pastor of Ministry
Series: “Ask It” - Part 1 of 6
Message: “Questions about the Bible”

Big idea
We have good reason for believing the Bible to be the exclusive source of information and instruction from the God of the universe**

Where did the Bible come from?

Structure
2

- Old and New
66

1,189 total

31,202 total

Spanning about

Written by at least

authors

were both strictly examined for writings included in the Bible.
Old Testament authors were and/or kings.
New Testament authors were

of Jesus or were closely associated with an Apostle.
Regarding content, there could be

contradictions with other writings previously recognized as inspired by God.

How do we know the Bible is reliable?
The special

of the Bible gives us reason to believe it is credible. The God who inspired its content also preserved it through the years.

Textual evidence of the Bible’s reliability
Old Testament
The Jewish

followed very strict rules to ensure the copies of the Old Testament were accurate.
The Masoretic texts (1,000 AD) are

% identical to copies from the Dead Sea Scrolls (200 BC).

New Testament
The New Testament is THE most well established ancient document in existence.
Tacitus -

copies separated by

years
Plato -

copies separated by

years
Homer -

copies separated by

years
NT - 23,769 copies separated by

years
We are absolutely confident in

% of the content in the New Testament.

External evidence of the Bible’s reliability

have proven the Bible’s accuracy over and over again.

There are still historical and archeological questions about
the Bible. But no discovery has ever proven the Bible
incorrect; every discovery to date, has corroborated what
the Bible says.

What do we do with the parts of the Bible that are hard to understand?
Principle #1 - God intends for the Bible to be

.

Principle #2 - Look at the

of the surrounding verses to understand the bigger picture of what was written.

Principle #3 - Let the

teachings explain the confusing parts of the Bible.

What do we do with the hard to accept parts of the Bible?

Principle #1 - Some things in the Bible are

, not prescriptive.
Principle #2 - When there is disagreement with what the Bible has
said, the Bible must

.

Resources for further study:

Ravi Zacharias Minsitry
Josh McDowell Ministry