RETURNING FROM ATLANTA, GA. on a Delta flight I sat next to a middle aged single woman. She was not a Christian, and on learning that I was a pastor, we began to discuss spiritual things.
"How can I know that the Bible is God's word?" she asked. She wanted me to pull a silver bullet out of my bag of apologetics and giver her a proof that would never let her down.
"Have you ever read the Bible?" I asked.
"No!"
"That is where I would start."
"That doesn't help," she answered in frustration. "Why would I read the Bible if I didn't believe it was inspired?"
"Because that is the only way that you will ever know whether it is inspired." I continued. "The Bible continually testifies to its own authority. Read it. If the Holy Spirit is at work in you, if God is real, the Bible itself will convince you that it is inspired by God."
I am not sure that she took my advice. She got off the plane at the next stop, and I have not heard from her since. However, that is the truth. The only way we can ultimately know whether the Bible is God's Word is by reading it.
In his Institutes John Calvin writes, “Scripture
bears upon the face of it as clear evidence of its truth, as white and black do
of their color, sweet and bitter of their taste." (Vol 1, pg 91).
In his book Above All Earthly Powers, theologian David Wells concurs. “The biblical Word is self-authenticating under the
power of the Holy Spirit. This Word of God is the means by which God
accomplishes his saving work in his people, and this is a work that no
evangelist and no preacher can do. This is why the dearth of serious, sustained
biblical preaching in the Church today is a serious matter. When the Church
loses the Word of God it loses the very means by which God does his work" (pg. 9).
How about you? Are you reading your Bible? Are you meditating on it? Biblical immersion is the sure cure for doubts about whether the Bible is really God's holy Word.
Labels: bible, scripture, theology
