MAY 16

Hebrews 11:6
Memorise Hebrews 11:1
“Now faith is the… evidence of things not seen”

WHY DO WE BELIEVE IN A PERFECTLY PRESERVED BIBLE?

The quick and correct answer to why we believe the Bible is perfectly preserved is simply this: that God said that He would. Many of the modern critics today point to the manuscript evidences and take pleasure in pointing out every inconsistency and apparent discrepancy in the Bible to prove that the Bible has not been preserved. Yet others would mock at our circular arguments, for they question how one can cite the Bible itself, to prove that the Bible is perfect. They always seem to desire an external validation before they would believe Word of God in faith.

Let us consider the self-authenticating nature of the Bible. When something is self-authenticating, it proves itself to be genuine as no higher authority exists which can be referred to in order to verify the truthfulness of its contents. For example, God said He created everything. Since only God the Creator Himself was present during creation, no other person’s account of this event can be more authoritative than His. Likewise with perfect preservation-the Bible proclaims it and no one can say otherwise because of its self-authenticating nature. What is required here is faith.

Thus our response can only be: God said it, I believe it and that settles it because God cannot lie. Why? Because God said so Himself. This is circular reasoning, but this is valid if the basis for it is true. God promises that all who diligently seek Him will find Him as He had described Himself in His Word-the Bible. He would not have said so if He believed that there would come a day when His Word could no longer be trusted because it is not preserved 100% error-free. It is by faith that we believe that God preserved His Word for us right down to the last minute detail in the copies of Scripture in the original languages that still exist today. It is by faith that we believe that the scribes that meticulously copied God’s Word did so without any error with God’s help. None of us were around to witness how the scribes actually performed their work. None of us know every event, big or small, which God had caused to come to pass in order that the scriptures would withstand every attempt made to corrupt it. The substance of things hoped for and the evidence of that which is not seen is found in the perfect Bible we still have today.

Thought: I know God well enough through His Word to trust Him fully because I have His perfect Word.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, let us not just rely on evidence but rather strengthen our faith also that we may please Thee.