A Reason to Believe

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to everyone that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15).

Is faith a reasonable thing? There are those who would have us believe that our faith is built around a fallacy. The Bible, they argue, is not the word of God. Our world was not created, it just happened. Jesus Christ, if he lived at all, was nothing like the picture painted by today’s preachers.

TIME (April 8, 1996) focused on the debate. Jesus made the cover. In the past the magazine had drawn attention to the liberal claims of the Jesus Seminar (a self-appointed panel of so-called experts who deny any measurable historical content to the New Testament). This time, however, they offered at least a token response to the outlandish claims of this Seminar, and it was about time!

Is there any real reason for us to question the validity of the Biblical record, and especially the New Testament account of Christ and His church? Frankly, research into the past is not as easy as we would like. There are no old newspapers, file footage of events, or tape recordings to be consulted. It is impossible to verify the gospel story with these modern methods. Obviously, we cannot go back and interview the main participants in the saga. There is not that much extra-biblical material from that period to be examined. But, what does exist in no way destroys the creditability of the Scriptures.

Among the earliest believers, however, there would have been opportunity to consult with eyewitnesses, to verify facts, to determine truth. And, there is no doubt that such was done. The writers of the New Testament claim to have been eyewitness of the things which they describe. Peter wrote: “We have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Peter 1:16). John said much the same thing (1 John 1:1-3).

The antiquity of the Bible, and in particular the New Testament, is undeniable. Given the age of Scripture and the events described, who would be in a better position to accurately represent the true Jesus, His contemporaries, or a group of self-appointed liberals in the twentieth century with an agenda to destroy the credibility of the Bible and Christianity?

Be assured, there are many, many highly educated, scholarly men and women who accept the historical reliability of the Scriptures. Our faith in Jesus Christ is built on a solid foundation. Those who take the time to learn the facts, if they are fair minded, will have no trouble accepting the fact that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, and that the Biblical record of His life and ministry is true!

— Roger