THE SPIRITUAL BATTLE – 35 The Bible Is The Truth
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” (John 17:17). KJV
Loved ones, Satan fights in our Spiritual Battle by spreading various lies as the truth. For thousands of years, a book has influenced the world. Eastern and Western civilizations have had their laws, customs and culture molded by the teachings of this ancient document.
Kingdoms have risen and fallen in keeping with prophetical statements contained within its pages. In the 550 years since Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, the Bible has always been the best seller.
People have been jailed or have died for owning or distributing Bibles. This is still going on in China, some Muslim nations, as well as others. Satan is alive and still active in trying to undermine the influence of the most powerful book in the world.
Every religion claims its writings are divinely inspired. The Mormons claim the Book of Mormon is from God. The Muslims claim the Qur’an is from God. Hindus, Singhs, Shinto’s and others claim the same.
So the question is, “What is the evidence?” Claims can be made, but are just so many words if there is no supporting evidence.
Our aim is to show that the Bible is unique. There is no other writing in existence that has the evidence supporting it like the Bible.
Why do we need to know? Many try to discredit the Bible and destroy our faith. This is especially true in our educational institutions. Surveys indicate that some 66% of students who enter college as believers lose their faith. Their faith is ridiculed and assaulted, and few churches prepare the students, as there is little teaching done on evidences to build a solid foundation.
True faith is built on a solid foundation, not just wishful thinking. Notice just one example of the attitude of many professors in the following quote.
“We try to arrange things so that students who enter as bigoted, homophobic, religious fundamentalists will leave college with views more like our own...We are going to go right on trying to discredit you (fundamentalist parents) in the eyes of your children, trying to strip your fundamentalist religious community of dignity, trying to make your views seem silly rather than discussable. We are not so inclusivist as to tolerate intolerance such as yours.” (Professor Richard Rorty, in his essay “Universality and Truth”).
What is it about this book of books that makes it so unique and so powerful? The claim is that it is the Word of God, the revelation of the very mind of God.
"7 ... but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: 8 which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual" (1 Corinthians 2:7-13).
"For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe" (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
This claim of divine inspiration has been rejected by many, saying there is no proof of this, that the Bible contradicts itself, is filled with superstitions and inaccuracies, and that it is outdated in this scientific age.
While we can’t consider all the objections, we do want to consider some of the strong evidence supporting the belief that the Bible is what it claims to be—the divinely inspired revelation of the mind of God.
SCIENCE IN THE BIBLE
The Bible is not a book of science, yet in dealing with the creation, it states facts that were not understood when written. For example, where did hand washing come from? Why do we wash our hands before we eat? In today’s world, we understand the importance of cleanliness. But this was not known until about 1830.
An Austrian doctor, Ignaz Semmelweis, was concerned about too many new mothers in his hospital dying. He noticed many were examined by doctors who had just done autopsies or examined very sick people. Then the doctors would examine living patients without washing their hands, maybe even doing pelvic exams on the new mothers.
Dr. Semmelweis then ordered all to wash their hands after handling the dead and/or examining patients. The number of deaths went down immediately. Other doctors ridiculed him, but he stuck with his rules. But Moses had given similar instructions in the Bible 3,000 years earlier.
Numbers 19 instructs about purifying oneself. Leviticus 13 & 14 instructs about how to keep open sores and skin diseases from spreading. There are many such health regulations given in the Bible.
How did Moses know this 3,200 years before this was understood? They had no knowledge of germs, bacteria, or microscopes. The only explanation is that a higher intelligence caused them to be written. That higher intelligence was God.
What holds up the earth? This question has puzzled mankind for years. In ancient India, they believed the earth rested on several large elephants, who rested on the back of a large turtle. The Greeks believed the god Atlas held the earth on his shoulders. Others believed the earth was on the back of a large catfish swimming in an ocean.
But the Bible says that God, "hangs the earth upon nothing” (Job 26:7). How else would you describe this in non-scientific terms? But when the book of Job was written, about 1,400 B.C., no one understood this. How did Job know? The only conclusion is that God revealed this to the writer.
Another thing universally believed was a flat earth. If you sailed too far, you would fall off the edge. It was only a little over 500 years ago that such men as Magellan and Columbus demonstrated that the earth was round. But the Bible has said the earth was round for thousands of years.
Proverbs 8:27 (written about 950 B.C.) says that God "inscribed a circle on the face of the deep." Isaiah 40:22 (written about 700 B.C.) tells us that God is “enthroned above the circle of the earth." The Old Testament Hebrew word "khug" (circle) carries the idea of "roundness."
In every civilization, other than Israel, unearthed records show men believed that the earth was flat. But this one book, the Bible, and this one people, the Israelites, knew otherwise.
Should we be afraid of events in the heavens? Ancient people were often superstitious about the sun, moon and stars. Egyptians believed stars were the souls of dead people who had become gods. Eclipses were especially frightening. The Chaldeans thought the moon was mad at the earth and turned its face away. The Chinese thought an eclipse of the sun was caused by a dragon or some huge animal that ate the sun.
But Jeremiah, writing about 600 years before Christ, said, "Do not be terrified by the signs in the heavens although the nations are terrified by them" (Jeremiah10:2). He goes on to state that the universe is under God's control (vs. 12-13).
The first widely recognized public demonstration of effective surgical anesthesia in the Western world using diethyl ether occurred on October 16, 1846, at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. This historic event is often referred to as "Ether Day." Yet in the very beginning, God, in His word, showed that a person should be put to sleep before surgery (Genesis 2:21-23).
What about blood, splinters, and mice? For eons, “bleeding” was a common medical practice to rid the body of impure blood, which they believed caused illness. In December 1799 George Washington became ill, and the doctors bled him 4 times one day. No wonder the poor man died! The common method of bleeding was to use leeches, or to cut the wrists.
Yet the Bible states, 3,500 years ago, that "the life is in the blood" (Leviticus 17:11). The Egyptians of Moses' time (about 1,400 B.C.) were very advanced in science and medicine. There is evidence they even performed brain surgery. But they did have some very strange treatments for various ailments.
If you had a finger infected by a splinter, just spread worm's blood or donkey manure on it. For sick children, the physician might suggest that they be given skinned baby mice to eat.
Moses was adopted into the king’s family and grew up in the royal household, with the best education. Moses "was instructed in all the learning of the Egyptians" (Acts 7:22). Yet Moses, who wrote first five books of the Bible, mentioned none of these strange things in his medical advice.
How did Moses manage to omit every mistaken idea? If you examine his medical advice, you will notice that there is not one thing that would be contrary to modern medical science. That is amazing, when you consider that medical textbooks just 50 or 75 years old contain things that are considered in error and have to be corrected in later editions. How did Moses do this?
You know the answer. He received instruction from a Supreme Intelligence we know as God. You can mark this down and remember it, "No proven fact of science has ever contradicted a plain statement of Scripture."
CHART ON ISAIAH'S VISION
Consider the prophecies about Jesus Christ. Wouldn't it be amazing if someone could tell 15 facts about a person 750 years before he was born? That's just what the prophet Isaiah did in Isaiah 53. The description was so detailed that it could fit no one else but Jesus Christ.
Description – Predicted - Fulfilled
1. Hated - Isaiah 53:3 - Matthew 27:39-43
2. Man of sadness - Isaiah 53:3 - Matthew 26:38
3. Familiar with suffering - Isaiah 53:3 - Hebrews 4:15
4. Rejected by his people - Isaiah 53:3 - John 1:10-11
5. Taking our suffering for us - Isaiah 53:4 - Matthew 8:16-17
6. Without sin - Isaiah 53:9 - 1 Peter 2:22
7. Silent to his accusers - Isaiah 53:7 - Matthew 26:63; 27:12
8 . Taking our sins on himself - Isaiah 53:5 - 1 Corinthians 15:3
9. Taking our punishment - Isaiah 53:5 - 1 Peter 2:24-25
10. Treated like a criminal - Isaiah 53:12 - Luke 22:37
11. Asking for our forgiveness - Isaiah 53:12 - Luke 23:34
12. Treated unjustly - Isaiah 53:8 - Matthew 27:24
13. Buried with rich people - Isaiah 53:9 - Matthew 27:57-60
14. Raised from dead - Isaiah 53:10 - Luke 24:6-8
15. Honored - Isaiah 53:12 - Philippians 2:9-11
Early Christians used this prophecy as a starting place to tell about Jesus. Acts 8 tells of a man from Ethiopia who was reading from Isaiah 53 while riding in his chariot. Philip was sent by the Holy Spirit to ride with the Ethiopian, who then asked Philip who Isaiah was writing about.
"34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus” (Acts 8:34-35).
This is just one chapter containing a few of the 300+ prophecies that Jesus fulfilled in every detail. How do we explain this? These prophecies came from God. An attitude of obedient faith is everything (Romans 1:5; 16:26).
Shared with you by Samuel A. Matthews, preaching with the Liberty NW church of Christ, meeting in Portland, Oregon, USA. The God of Heaven and Earth is so good, and His love reaches all. He is in control, so trust Him. We love you with the love of the Lord (John 13:34-35).