Discussion Board
Spencer Kearn
Theo201
Lonnie Bell
The Reliability of the Scriptures
Some really big reasons for believing in Divine Inspiration are Fulfilled Prophecy, Internal
Consistency, and Transformative Power. With Fulfilled Prophecy, the Bible contains many places
and instances where prophecies were fulfilled. They would predict events centuries in advance,
and point to a divine author who was foreknowledge and control over history. Examples include
prophecies about the Messiah’s birth, life, death, and resurrection. I want to add that the Article
“Arguments that the Bible is the word of God” states two incredible quotes that I agree with.
One being “man could not have written the Bible if given the ability” and two being “Man would
not have written the Bible if given the opportunity”. I say I agree because it would be impossible
to predict something in the future with the Human brain alone, especially centuries out. It would
have to take a “Divine Being” such as God to bring it to our attention.
Now with Internal Consistency, despite being written over centuries by different authors, the
Bible demonstrates remarkable internal consistency in its overall message and theology. This
unity of message across diverse writing styles and perspectives suggests a single, overarching
divine author-guiding process. Lastly, with Transformative Power, the Bible has demonstrably
transformed countless lives throughout History. Its teachings have inspired acts of Love,
compassion, Justice, and forgiveness, leading to positive societal changes and personal
growth. This transformative power suggests a divine origin, impacting people across cultures
and periods.
Now some Objections to Divine Inspiration are because “We don’t have the original
manuscripts” we can’t be completely sure of the true nature and meaning, and another objection
is the Bible’s inspiration “it contradicts itself”. Now Starting with “We don’t have the original
manuscripts” I Disagree because of the convicting, convincing, and converting power of its
message. The Bible addresses many things that we deal with today, such as sin. The Bible talks
about many people and even Jesus being tempted by everything humans are tempted by. The
Bible is a gift from God that convicts us and helps us to see our wrongdoings and our sins and
our major need for a savior. Thankfully through the belief in Jesus all of our sins are washed
away. We may not have the original manuscripts but as Mark Strauss states in the Video “We
are about 95% close to the originals, and everyone whether it was biblical or not recopied things
so that people in the future could know the history”. But something I want us to realize is that
Yes, we may not have all the manuscripts but we have stories of men and women being
transformed by God himself. This evidence is proof that the Bible is God-inspired.
The second argument is “The Bible isn’t trustworthy because it contradicts itself. I strongly
disagree because of the unabashed, unmistakable honesty of the Bible. The Bible is the most
truthful, honest book when it comes to talking about Sin. The Bible is completely open about it!
What is truthfully amazing is all the gospels and prophets…the authors in general don’t lie or
hide the fact that they are sinful. If anything they wrote about it. We in fact can go back and read
and learn about them to this day! The Bible tells us that Our eyes should be focused on God and
not on men/the world. We as human beings are sinful, we have fallen short and the Bible isn’t
afraid of telling us that. Jesus, was the only perfect example, human being, and offers all of us a
way of freedom from our sin. Now this, this right here does not contradict itself and is inspired
by God. I truthfully believe that the Bible does not contradict itself because to this day it is still
fulfilling prophecies. The PDF Also states 4 different prophecies the bible has predicted and
they are:
1. Prediction of names
2. Predictions Concerning the Messiah
3. Predictions concerning the Nations
4. Prophecies about Israel
Citations
Towns, Elmer. “Arguments that the Bible is the Word of God.” In Theology for Today, ed. Joan
Manos (Fort Worth: Harcourt College Publishers, 2001), 43-59
McDowell, Josh. *Evidence That Demands a Verdict*. San Bernardino, CA: Here's Life
Publishers, 1972.
Strobel, Lee. *The Case for Christ*. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1998.
McDowell, Josh. *The New Evidence That Demands a Verdict*. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson,
1999.
Fuller, Daniel. *The Unity of the Bible: Unfolding God's Plan for Humanity*. Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan, 1992.
Lewis, C.S. *Mere Christianity*. New York: HarperOne, 1952.
Bridges, Jerry. *The Transforming Power of the Gospel*. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2012.
