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LIFE CHANGE OBJECTIVE
To deepen (or to form) your conviction that
the Bible, as God’s Word, can be trusted
more than your feelings, values, opinions,
and culture.
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Three Important Words, Their Definitions,
and Their Implications
Revelation: God has chosen to reveal his
nature and his will to us through the Bible.
Inspiration: The process through which God
gave us the Bible. God inspired writers to
write down his words.
Illumination: Holy Spirit helps us to
understand the Bible as we read it.
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How Do We Know the Bible
Came from God?
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HOW DO WE KNOW THE BIBLE
CAME FROM GOD?
First- The external evidence says the Bible is a historical
book:
There are 5366 ancient manuscripts to compare and draw
information from dating back to the 2nd century AD.
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The ancient Jewish scribes had a strict code to follow when
copying scripture to insure accuracy.
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The historical accuracy of the Bible has been questioned but
archaeology has provided evidence to support the accuracy of
most Biblical accounts.
●
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HOW DO WE KNOW THE BIBLE
CAME FROM GOD?
Second- The internal evidence says the Bible is a unique
book:
The majority of the Bible is from eyewitness
accounts.
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The amazing agreement and consistency
throughout the bible.
●
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HOW DO WE KNOW THE BIBLE
CAME FROM GOD?
Third- The personal evidence says the Bible is a powerful
book:
The Bible is the world’s best selling book.
Translated into over a 1000 languages.
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Millions of lives have testified their lives have
been changed because of the Bible.
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Personal testimony is proof of the Bible being
God’s book.
●
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HOW DO WE KNOW THE BIBLE
CAME FROM GOD?
Fourth: JESUS said the Bible
came from God.
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Jesus Said the Bible Came from God
1.
Jesus recognized the Spirit as the
AUTHOR.
- Matthew 22:43-44
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Jesus Said the Bible Came from God
2.
Jesus quoted the Bible as
AUTHORITATIVE.
- Matthew 22:29
- Luke 11:28
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Jesus Said the Bible Came from God
3.
Jesus proclaimed its uniqueness.
- Matthew 5:18
- John 10:35
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Jesus Said the Bible Came from God
4.
Jesus called it the “WORD OF
GOD.”
- Mark 7:13
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Jesus Said the Bible Came from God
5. Jesus believed that people and places in the
– He believed
in the PROPHETS (Matt. 22:40;
Bible
were real.
–
–
–
–
24:15).
He believed in NOAH (Luke 17:26).
He believed in ADAM and EVE (Matt. 19:4).
He believed in SODOM and GOMORRAH (Matt.
10:15).
He believed in JONAH (Matt. 12:40).
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How Do We Know We Have
the Right Books?
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HOW DO WE KNOW WE HAVE THE
RIGHT BOOKS?
The testimony of the BIBLE
- Jesus and the apostles recognized and
quoted passages from the OT.
- Peter recognized parts of the New
Testament.
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Paul recognized the EQUAL
inspiration of the Old and New
Testaments in a single verse.
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HOW DO WE KNOW WE HAVE THE
RIGHT BOOKS?
The history of the church
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Books Were Included in the New Testament
on the Basis of Three Things
1. The authority of an APOSTLE
2. The teaching of the TRUTH
3. The confirmation of the CHURCH
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HOW DO WE KNOW WE HAVE THE
RIGHT BOOKS?
The power of God
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Our assurance that we have the
right books is a matter of FAITH.
God would not have allowed any
part of what he had chosen to
stand forever to be left out.
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What Does It Mean When We
Say the Bible Is Inspired?
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WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN WE
SAY THE BIBLE IS INSPIRED?
Inspiration means God wrote the
Bible through PEOPLE.
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WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN WE
SAY THE BIBLE IS INSPIRED?
Inspiration means the Holy Spirit
is the FINAL AUTHORITY.
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Two Important Words to Understand
Verbal:
God inspired the WORDS, not
just the ideas.
Plenary: God inspired ALL, not just part.
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If you believe what you like in
the Gospel, and reject what you
don’t like, it is not the Gospel you
believe, but yourself.
— Augustine
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WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN WE
SAY THE BIBLE IS INSPIRED?
Inspiration means God’s Word is
to be our FINAL AUTHORITY.
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Understanding inspiration
increases my CONFIDENCE in
the Bible.
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The truth behind inspiration is
that I can trust his Word above
my FEELINGS, VALUES,
OPINIONS, and CULTURE.
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