During the past year we have heard and read several statements that give a negative answer to the question posed by our title. It is not an insignificant question since the Bible is the very basis of our own faith. If there can be no trust in the Bible, then we cannot justify our belief and are wrong for trying to bring others to Christ through a false gospel revealed in that Bible. But we believe that Bible is true in every aspect and the gospel is the only revealed word of God.

The first negative reading came when we read of a Christian that was reported to have emailed a protest to one of the major networks regarding their portrayal of homosexuality in a favorable manner on one of their series, citing (I believe) scripture that condemned such. The network representative who responded back to him referred to the Bible as being just an old book and that it would be far better for the Christian to study the Declaration of Independence and/or the U.S. Constitution with its Bill of Rights.

The second came in our recent study of Islam when we found that the Muslims declare that the Bible (both Old and New Testaments) has become so corrupted that it cannot be trusted. Then add to these the constant harangue of the skeptic who tries to dissect and cast any doubt he can on the Bible.

All of these represent the actions of self-willed individuals who want to live their lives in physical pleasure without being condemned by any divine standard. To accomplish this they try to make it appear that either the “higher knowledge” of man or else so-called latter revelation shows the unreliability and corruption of the Bible. Our concern at this time will be to deal with that evidence within the Bible itself that shows it is far from being unreliable; and, is in fact the only great and sure anchor for the soul, given by God to mankind.

First of all, notice that all the writers of the Bible, being inspired of the same Spirit, agree with one another. These forty men, more or less, lived over a period of at least 1600 years. A few were contemporary but most never knew one another. Therefore, they could not have written in collusion and collaboration.

Yet there is doctrinal harmony between the Old and New Testament writers. The prophets of the Old Testament did not understand what it was that they had said/written when they proclaimed the gospel’s coming. “Concerning which salvation the prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that (should come) unto you: searching what (time) or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that should follow them. To whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto you, did they minister these things, which now have been announced unto you through them that preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven; which things angels desire to look into” (1 Peter 1:10-12). Yet they wrote accurately and harmoniously concerning the birth, life, death, and resurrection of the Christ, Jesus of Nazareth. Moreover, it was not intended for the people of their time, nor for future generations to use self-direction to determine when a prophecy was fulfilled.

The New Testament writers were in perfect agreement on what their Old Testament counterparts meant because the same Spirit of God inspired them all. “… the mystery of Christ; which in other generation was not made known unto the sons of men, as it hath now been revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; (Ephesians 3:5). For instance, the passage in Joel 2:28ff was quoted by Peter on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2:16-21. At that time he affirmed Joel’s prophecy was fulfilled by what was happening that very day!

Furthermore, the New Testament writers were in perfect agreement on what would be in the future. On the following subjects there is never the slightest discrepancy among them: infinity, the Second Advent of Christ, the day of Judgment, the resurrection, eternal reward and punishment, etc. In this vein our Lord’s apostles were in perfect agreement regarding the types and symbols of the N.T. There were the types of the tabernacle and temple, the sacrifices, the Passover and atonement, the legal and regal line of David in Jesus, etc. When any man tries to show a contradiction in the Scriptures, they only appear foolish and ignorant to those who have studied and know the Bible.

In the writings of the Old Testament we find “anticipation” on certain subjects that are explained in the New Testament. For instance, there is the passage in Genesis 1:26 that states: “And God said, Let US make man in OUR image, after OUR likeness:” The TRINITY, or Triune-Godhead, was not revealed until over four thousand years after the Creative act and over fifteen hundred years after Moses recorded the words in Genesis. A mere man would not have used “US” and “OUR” unless he was inspired. But it was not revealed until Jesus spoke the words of Matthew 28:19: “Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”.

In Deuteronomy 12:23 Moses said that “the blood is the life…” more than 3500 years ago. It was only in the Twentieth century that medical science has fully comprehended the validity of what he wrote. From 350 BC until then it was thought that blood carried disease and had to be bled from the body.

In Acts 17:26 Paul wrote: “He made of one every nation of men…” It was not until 1900 that science found that all human blood has one common base: PLASMA. Before then it was thought that different races existed due to their blood being different. Paul’s words only conform to the fact revealed in Genesis 1… all humanity comes from one common ancestor, Adam!

In Proverbs 8:27, Solomon wrote: “When he established the heavens, I was there: When he set a circle upon the face of the deep.” The Hebrew word for “circle” more exactly means “spherical” or “roundness”. The word translated “deep” refers to deep bodies of water. Solomon, about the year 1000 BC, knew by inspiration that the world was round and that such could be seen when looking out over the ocean. It was to be some 500 years later that Pythagoras would advance the theory that the earth might be round. But the great majority of mankind continued to believe the world was flat until AD 1492!

All the agreement and revelation of the Bible is a complete mystery…unaccountable…unless the Bible is just what it says that it is…THE INSPIRED WORD OF GOD! As such, how can we dare to disobey the rest of its contents, the commands of God regarding heaven, hell, eternity, and our soul.

Can we Trust the Bible