THE POWER OF THE CROSS
(Part I)
The Word of God
I. WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT ITSELF
A. It is the Word of God
2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
1 Thessalonians 2:13
13 For this reason, we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.
2 Peter 1:20-21
20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, 21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
B. It is True (Inerrant and Infallible)
Psalms 19:7-9
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; 8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
John 17:17
17 “Sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth.”
C. It’s Relevant
2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
D. Needed for Life
Matthew 4:4
4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ “
II. WHAT’S UNIQUE ABOUT THE BIBLE - Prophecy
Peter Stoner calculated the probability of just eight Messianic prophecies being fulfilled in the life of Jesus. As you read through these prophecies, you will see that all estimates were calculated as conservatively as possible.
1. The Messiah will be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).
The average population of Bethlehem from the time of Micah to the present (1958) divided by the average population of the earth during the same period = 7,150/2,000,000,000 or 2.8×105.
The average population of Bethlehem from the time of Micah to the present (1958) divided by the average population of the earth during the same period = 7,150/2,000,000,000 or 2.8×105.
2. A messenger will prepare the way for the Messiah (Malachi 3:1).
One man in how many, the world over, has had a forerunner (in this case, John the Baptist) to prepare his way?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
One man in how many, the world over, has had a forerunner (in this case, John the Baptist) to prepare his way?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
3. The Messiah will enter Jerusalem as a king riding on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9).
One man in how many, who have entered Jerusalem as a ruler, has entered riding on a donkey?
Estimate: 1 in 100 or 1×102.
One man in how many, who have entered Jerusalem as a ruler, has entered riding on a donkey?
Estimate: 1 in 100 or 1×102.
4. The Messiah will be betrayed by a friend and suffer wounds in His hands (Zechariah 13:6).
One man in how many, the world over, has been betrayed by a friend, resulting in wounds in his hands?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
One man in how many, the world over, has been betrayed by a friend, resulting in wounds in his hands?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
5. The Messiah will be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12).
Of the people who have been betrayed, one in how many have been betrayed for exactly 30 pieces of silver?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
Of the people who have been betrayed, one in how many have been betrayed for exactly 30 pieces of silver?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
6. The betrayal money will be used to purchase a potter’s field (Zechariah 11:13).
One man in how many, after receiving a bribe for the betrayal of a friend, has returned the money, had it refused, and then experienced it being used to buy a potter’s field?
Estimate: 1 in 100,000 or 1×105.
One man in how many, after receiving a bribe for the betrayal of a friend, has returned the money, had it refused, and then experienced it being used to buy a potter’s field?
Estimate: 1 in 100,000 or 1×105.
7. The Messiah will remain silent while He is afflicted (Isaiah 53:7).
One man in how many, when he is oppressed and afflicted, though innocent, will make no defense of himself?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
One man in how many, when he is oppressed and afflicted, though innocent, will make no defense of himself?
Estimate: 1 in 1,000 or 1×103.
8. The Messiah will die by having His hands and feet pierced (Psalms 22:16).
One man in how many, since the time of David, has been crucified?
Estimate: 1 in 10,000 or 1×104.
One man in how many, since the time of David, has been crucified?
Estimate: 1 in 10,000 or 1×104.
Multiplying all these probabilities together produces a number (rounded off) of 1×1028. Dividing this number by an estimate of the number of people who have lived since the time of these prophecies (88 billion) produces a probability of all eight prophecies being fulfilled accidently in the life of one person. That probability is 1in 1017 or 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. That’s one in one hundred quadrillions!
There are 332 prophecies in the Old Testament of Jesus’ first coming and all have been fulfilled.
III. HOW RELIABLE IS WHAT WE HAVE
A. Manuscript Issues
1. Transcribing the Hebrew Bible
Stringent rules concerning materials used, technique, and format were followed. Samuel Davidson describes the disciplines in transcribing the Bible by the scribes:
a. A synagogue roll must be written on the skins of clean animals.
b. Each roll would be prepared for the particular use of the synagogue by a Jew.
c. These must be fashioned together with strings taken from clean animals.
d. Every skin must contain a certain number of columns, equal throughout the entire codex.
e. The length of each column must not extend over less than 48 or more than 60 lines. The breadth must consist of thirty letters.
f. The whole copy must first be lined. If three words are written without a line, it is worthless.
g. The ink should be black, neither red, green, nor any other color, and be prepared according to a definite recipe.
h. An authentic copy must be exemplary, from which the transcriber ought not in the least deviate.
i. No word or letter, not even a yod, must be written from memory, the scribe not having looked at the codex before him.
j. Between every consonant, the space of a hair or thread must intervene.
k. Between every new…section, the breadth of nine consonants.
l. Between every book, three lines.
m. The fifth book of Moses must terminate exactly with a line, but the rest need not do so.
n. Besides this, the copyist must wash his whole body before transcribing.
o. The copyist must sit in full Jewish dress.
p. He must not begin to write the name of God with a pen newly dipped in ink.
q. Should a king address him while writing the name of God, the scribe must take no notice of him.
2. Manuscript Comparisons Between Classical Writers and the Biblical writers
The closer the copy that is discovered to the original, the more accurate it is considered to be.
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Author/Literary Work
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Number of Surviving Manuscripts
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Julius Caesar/ Gallic War
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10 Copies
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Tacitus/ Annuals
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20 Copies
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Pliny the Younger/Historical Works
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7 Copies
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Herodotus/ Historical Works
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8 Copies
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Homer/ Iliad
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643 Copies
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New Testament
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24,000 Copies
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New Testament was written and finished including the book of Revelation no longer than 60 A.D. or 80 A.D.
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There is a copy of the book of Matthew that is said to be dated at 50 A.D. Jesus rose from dead in 32 A.D.
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3. Implications of Comparisons – The Early Church Fathers
a. There are 86,000 quotations from the early church fathers.
b. There are several thousand lectionaries (church service books) containing Scripture quotations used in the early centuries of Christianity.
c. There are enough quotations from the New Testament written by the early church fathers that even if we did not have a single copy of the Bible, scholars could still reconstruct all but 11 verses of the entire New Testament.
d. The bottom line is that the New Testament has an overwhelming amount of evidence supporting its reliability.
e. Because the New Testament has more surviving manuscripts than any work from ancient history, there is the capability of having more cross-checks to verify its accuracy. The Bible is verified to a textual accuracy of 99.5 percent.
B. Manuscript Evidence for the Old Testament
The Dead Sea Scrolls prove the accuracy of the Old Testament: “Even though the two copies of Isaiah discovered in Qumran Cave 1 near the Dead Sea in 1947 were a 1,000 years earlier than the oldest dated manuscript previously known (a.d. 980), they proved to be word for word identical with our standard Hebrew Bible in more than 95% of the text. The 5% of variation consisted chiefly of obvious slips of the pen and variations in spelling.” Dr. Gleason Archer
C. The Issue of Variant
1. With the 24,000 plus manuscripts, scholars
have discovered 200,000 variants.
This may sound like a staggering number to the uninformed, but this number is not as serious as it sounds according to the scholars.
a. Manuscript One—Jesus Christ is the Savior of the whole world.
b. Manuscript Two—Jesus Christ is the Savior of the whole world.
c. Manuscript Three—Jesus Christ is the Savior of the whole world.
d. Manuscript Four—Jesus Christ is the Savior of the whole world.
e. Manuscript Five—Jesus Christ is the Savior of the whole world.
2. The hard evidence indicates that the New Testament manuscripts are amazingly accurate.
The great majority of the 200,000 variants are solved by the above methodology. When all the facts are known, only about 40 of the variants have any real significance. No doctrine of the Christian faith is affected. 99% of the original text can be reconstructed to a practical certainty.
IV. ARCHEOLOGY
A. Archaeology Confirms the Historical Reliability of Both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Millar Burrows of Yale recognized the value of archaeology in confirming the authenticity of the Christian Bible when he states: “The Bible is supported by archaeological evidence again and again. On the whole, there can be no question that the results of excavation have increased the respect of scholars for the Bible as a collection of historical documents. The confirmation is both general and specific. The fact that the record can be so often explained or illustrated by archaeological data shows that it fits into the framework of history as only a genuine product of ancient life could do. In addition to this general authentication, however, we find the record verified repeatedly at specific points. Names of places and persons turn up at the right places and the right periods.”
(3) Pliny the Younger
B. Archaeological Discoveries
1. The Pavement of John 19:13
2. The Pool of Bethesda
3. Jacob’s Well
4. The Pool of Siloam
5. The Ancient Cities of Bethlehem, Nazareth, Cana, Capernaum, and Chorazin
6. The Residence of Pilate in Jerusalem
Conclusion
The Christian Bible is the most historically reliable and accurate document from antiquity!
There is no document that has this kind of adaptation as the Bible.
WHAT WILL THE BIBLE DO FOR YOU?
1. Guides You into the After Life. 2 Timothy 3:14-15; Romans 6:23; Mark 1:15; Acts 2:38
2. Explains Life’s Real Meaning and Purpose. Psalms 8:3-4; Genesis 1:26-27
3. Is the Key to Healthy Relationships. Matthew 22:37-39; 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
4. Teaches You How to Find Success and Fulfillment. Proverbs 3:5-6
5. Reveals the Future. Revelations 11:15
6. Lights Your Path. Psalm 119:105
7. Builds Your Faith. Romans 10:17
8. Feeds Your Spirit. Matthew 4:4
9. Heals You. Psalms 107:20
10. Cleanses Your Way. Psalms 119:9
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