The Bible claims to be written by God who moved men to pen His Word. We have seen that we have every reason to accept this claim. But we must eventually ask about other so-called holy books: non-biblical books that also claim to be inspired by God. In particular, what about the Quran or the book of Mormon? Are these also the Word of God?
We have seen that the Bible has been meticulously transmitted and accurately translated so that what we hold in our hands today is extremely faithful to the original texts. But how do we know that the original texts are true? And how do we validate the Bible’s claim that it is the Word of God?
In terms of the number of manuscripts and the shortness of the time between the writing of a biblical book and its discovery, the Bible is more authentic than any ancient text by far. But the Bible’s uniqueness and authenticity do not – by themselves – prove that the Bible is true or that it is the Word of God. And what about the Bible’s translation? Can we trust that our modern English translations are faithful to the original?
How did we get the Bible? How do we know that it is God’s Word, and what does that really mean anyway? If the Bible has been copied and translated so many times, can we have any confidence in modern translations? How do we know that the right books got included, and have any been left out? Doesn’t the Bible have contradictions and other errors? What about other books that claim to be from God? These are the questions that skeptics ask. Yet, many Christians do not have satisfying answers.
Last week, I had the privilege of attending the eighth International Conference on Creationism (ICC). This conference is a “meeting of the minds” in which several hundred creation scientists, Bible scholars, and other creation advocates can present and critique their research in various fields, including biology, geology, astronomy, physics, archeology, and biblical studies.