It is trendy today for people, especially those who embrace “science”, to scoff at and mock those who practice Christianity. One of their favorite targets is the Bible. They proclaim that the Bible, at best, is a story book. It is not to be believed, and many events recounted in Scripture are no more than fairy tales. A growing number of professing Christians, in fact, do not believe that the Bible is God’s inspired word.

But we believe. We believe that the Bible is God’s inspired, inerrant, prophetic word of God. How do we know that the Bible is, in fact, inspired of God? Is there any evidence that supports our belief? I will suggest there are at least four ways we can see demonstrated God’s inspiration of the Scriptures:

First is the amazing cohesion of scripture. God used forty men to write what is now our Bible, over a period of about 1600 years, in three languages. Despite this, the scriptures align perfectly- they do not contradict themselves, and they tell a compelling and continuous story from creation through the life of the first century church. In addition, scripture is full of occurrences where different scriptural authors, often in different times, make identical references in detail about things  such as events, places, cultural practices, and persons. Only divine oversight can explain such serendipity.

Next is the accuracy of scripture. The Bible is full of specific references to people, places, and dates. Critics have often doubted many of these references. However, as archaeological discoveries continue to be made, discoveries always confirm information recorded in scripture. A specific example can be found in the study of Acts. The writer, Luke, makes a huge number of specific geological and personal references, including nearly 100 individuals, nine islands, more than 50 cities, and 32 countries. Many of the people Luke mentions are only found in Acts. Historians have found no errors in any of these references. Once again, only God’s guiding Hand could produce such amazing accuracy.

Then there  is fulfillment of prophecy. The Bible contains over 2500 prophecies. About 2000 of these have been fulfilled as written, with the remainder written for future fulfillment. Many of these prophecies included specific names and dates. Of particular interest to Christians are those prophecies that related to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. In the Old Testament there are more than 300 prophecies pointing to the Messiah, including lineage, birthplace, His death, resurrection, betrayal, and more. The mathematical odds of coincidental fulfillment of all these prophecies approach infinity. Yet they were all fulfilled- another sign of divine inspiration.          

The fourth way is in the Bible’s accuracy ahead of its time regarding scientific facts and instruction. The Bible does not present itself as a science textbook or medical book, and yet…

Example one- God’s instructions to Noah regarding the construction of the ark were quite specific, with dimensions of 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high. It turns out that the ratio of 30 to 5 to 3 is the ideal configuration for seaworthy vessels, and it is still used today.

Example two- God instructed the Israelites to circumcise their male babies on the eighth day of life. Medical researchers have determined that circumcision is beneficial for the male as well as his female sexual partner, in the reduction of cancers. They also have found the elements that help with blood clotting are highest in the male child on the eighth day of life.

Example three- Isaiah the prophet wrote in Isaiah 40:22, that God sits above the circle of the earth. This was around 700 BC, it was not until the 15^th century AD that the concept of a spherical earth was finally accepted.

There are additional examples too numerous to list here. The inescapable conclusion is that the weight of evidence pointing to the inspiration of Scripture is absolute. There can be no other explanation except that the Bible was written under the inspiration of Almighty God.