The Question

How reliable is the Bible, specifically the New Testament?

Definition
Apologetics: The branch of theology concerned with the defense or proof of Christianity.

Questions
• What is the basis of your faith? God, Jesus, Bible, nature?
• What do we know of God outside the Bible? Of Jesus?
• If certain parts of the Bible were proven to be false, how would your faith be affected?
• Do you ignore or have doubts about certain areas of the Bible?
• Do you think questioning the authenticity or reliability of the Bible is wrong?
• Do you believe scripture is inspired by or originates from God?
• If the Bible is inspired by God, it is necessarily inerrant (making no mistake, not capable of error, never wrong). Do
you agree?
• What problem is inherent in the statement, “I believe the Scripture is reliable when it speaks about salvation but not
necessarily in regard to everything else?”
• What is wrong with the statement, “I believe the Word of God is found in the Bible” rather than “I believe the Bible is
the Word of God?”
• Is the Bible historically reliable?
• We trust the Bible for spiritual truth – do we trust it for truth in other areas? History, archeology, science? Should we?

Bible Verses
“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” 1 Peter 3:15
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of
God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2Timothy 3:16-17
“I am appointed for the defense of the gospel.” Philippians 1:16

Reliability of the Copies

We have over 24,000 ancient manuscript copies of the New Testament – the greatest number of any historical work by far.
• Number of manuscripts: New Testament 24,000; Iliad by Homer 643
The earliest copy of the New Testament is 25 years after the original writings.
• Time between when written and earliest copy: New Testament 25 years; Iliad 500 years
Though we don’t have “original documents”, the number of copies and their agreement is even more proof of their authenticity.
There are 40 lines (about 400 words) in doubt in the New Testament, equaling 0.5% of the whole. This means the New
Testament can be verified with 99.5% certainty to match the original content.
• You may read the claims that there are 150,000 variants in the New Testament. This means if the same word is
misspelled in 3000 manuscripts then there are 3000 variants. Of the 150,000 variant readings, they occur in only 10,000
places. Of these 10,000 places, all but 400 are questions of spelling in accordance with accepted usage, grammatical
construction, or order of words. Of the 400 words, only 50 are of great significance. In some places the copies have
“Lord Jesus” while others have “Lord Jesus Christ.” This is not significant because the meaning is clearly obvious. Of
the 50 of great significance, not one of these changes one article of faith that cannot be abundantly sustained by other
undoubted passages.
We have greater manuscript witnesses for the New Testament than we do any other historical document. We have greater
testimony for the New Testament than we do for Shakespeare’s plays which were only written three centuries ago. When
compared against classical literature, the historical reliability of the Bible is outstanding.

How they were chosen

Councils of Carthage in 393 and Hippo in 397 fixed the list of New Testament books. The oldest know list of New Testament
canon books was compiled about 200 years earlier.
• They had to have been written by an apostle or by an associate preserving an apostle’s teachings. This also means they
had to be written during the time when the apostles were still alive. There is strong evidence that the four Gospels were
written before 70 AD, no later than 85 AD.
• They had to have been generally accepted by the church and in continuous use in worship services.
• They had to cohere and agree with accepted and undisputed Scripture.
• They must be inspired by God.
Historical Accuracy
The Bible has constantly been charged with geographical inaccuracies. There have been claims that the Bible is in error
concerning the location and naming of cities because we have no record of the city. The Bible has stood the tests of archaeology
– never has one artifact been found disproving anything recorded in the Bible. In fact, archaeology continues to prove the words
of the Bible as we excavate and find more remnants of the past.
There are many writing of early Christians that substantiate and validate many of the authors and historical events documented
in the New Testament. Perhaps more importantly, there are also several non-Christian writers such as Tacitus, Suetonius and
Josephus who confirm the accuracy of the scriptures as early as 100 AD, saying that Jesus was the martyred leader of the church
in Jerusalem and that he was a wise teacher who had established a wide and lasting following, despite the fact that he had been
crucified under Pilate at the instigation of some of the Jewish leaders. Tacitus reported that an “immense multitude” held so
strongly to their beliefs about Jesus’ resurrection that they were willing to die rather than recant.

Without the Bible or other Christian writings, what would we know about Jesus?
• He was a Jewish teacher
• Many people believed he performed healings and exorcisms
• Some people believed he was the Messiah
• He was rejected by the Jewish leaders
• He was crucified under Pontius Pilate in the reign of Tiberius
• Despite his shameful death, his followers, who believed that we was still alive, spread beyond Palestine so that there
were multitudes of them in Rome by 64 AD
• All kinds of people from the cities and countryside worshiped him as God

How the Bible was Transmitted

A common misperception is that the New Testament was transmitted like links in a chain, each book being copied, then copied
by someone else. Instead, multiple copies were created at one time from one source document, thereby reducing the risk of
errors.

Arguments to Support the Bible

• The unparalleled reliability and accuracy of the historical text of the Bible.
• Strong Manuscript evidence. More ancient manuscripts than any other historical book.
• New Testament Confirmed by secular historians Josephus (before 100 AD), Roman Tacitus (120 AD), Roman Governor
Pliny (110 AD).
• Confirmation of the events, places, nations, and people of the Bible by archaeology.
• It is unique in many ways (written over 1,500 year span, over 40 authors maintaining harmony and continuity, survival
through time, influence on society, unique teachings, etc.).
• The process of the creation of the New Testament made it far more likely to exclude authentic Scripture than to include
false writings.
• Prophecy – Several hundred fulfilled prophesies including the time of Christ’s ministry, his birthplace, and method of
death. Destruction of Babylon by Cyrus, Progression of Kingdoms from Babylon through Medo-Persian Empire, the
Greek Empire and the Roman Empire, suffering of Jews under Antiochus IV Epiphanes, Freedom for Jews under Judas
Maccabeus and Israel’s rebirth as a nation in 1948.

Quotes
“Apologetics is not for proving the Word of God but simply for providing a basis for faith.” (Josh McDowell)
“True faith satisfies both the heart and the intellect.”
“To believe in something without first seriously reflecting on it or looking into it is not an act of faith; it is an act of foolishness.”
(Doug Powell)
“There are many evidences for the existence of God and the truth of the Bible. However, for someone committed to non-belief,
no amount of evidence will do.”

One praise or thing to be thankful for

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