Common Questions
The following are some questions and objections that are commonly raised against the authenticity of the Scriptures by both believers in Christ and non-believers alike. Answers were provided by Mario Shepard, an SCF and Stevens alumnus.
Q Since many of the stories of the Scriptures seem like fairy tales and myths, why should we treat them any differently than other mythological accounts?
A Many people assume that the Scriptures are mythological simply because they contain elements of the supernatural. This is not a judgment that is reached by comparison and research, but a presupposition that overshadows a person's reading of the Scriptures.
Unlike many characters in fictitious stories, the people described in the Scriptures are usually very slow to believe in the miraculous events that are taking place around them. Even Joseph considered not marrying Mary because she was reported to be pregnant with a child by the Holy Spirit. Joseph initially did not believe the report and did what any rational 21st century man would do: assume that his bride-to-be had been unfaithful. A personal supernatural encounter was the only thing that changed his mind.
Personal study of the Scriptures should convince us that the authors wrote with a sober and cautious authority that reveals that they regarded some of the events they were reporting as extraordinary yet very true.
Q The Scriptures are full of errors and contradictions, how can they be the inspired Word of God?
A In most courts of law hearsay not only carries little credibility, but is forbidden. The main reason why hearsay is rejected in witness testimony is because it is simply what one person has heard another person say. Some communication may or may not be true and proves absolutely nothing. People who make the above objection usually have based their assumptions on hearsay. In most cases when you hand a copy of the Scriptures to the person raising the objection and ask them to show you one error, they will suddenly retract or soften their statement. This should be surprising, especially since they claim that the Scriptures are "full of errors and contradictions", surely one error or contradiction should be very easy to find.
People who have what they consider to be a legitimate issue with the Scriptures should first decide whether or not they have read any serious literature that sheds light on their concern. In most cases there is not only ample material dealing with the issue, but also compelling answers to their questions. If after hearing and considering credible scholarly opinion on a particular issue, the person is not convinced, then they have earned the right to hold their objection. But they should always be willing to reconsider in light of new findings.
Wayne Grudem (Harvard B.A.; Westminster M.Div.; Cambridge Ph.D.) gives the following opinion based on years of scholarly research and academic study:
... during the last twenty years [I have] examined dozens of these 'problem texts' that have been brought to [my] attention in the context of the inerrancy debate. In every one of those cases, upon close inspection of the text a plausible solution has become evident.
Grudem, Systematic Theology, p. 99
A very helpful resource in answering many questions is the Encylopedia of Bible Difficulties, by Gleason Archer (Grand Rapids: Zondervan 1982).
Q The Scriptures were written by many men who could have written down their own religious opinions or flawed personal observations. Why should we trust a book written by imperfect men?
A Although this is a good question, it makes a fatal assumption that is not necessarily true. It assumes that the Holy and All Powerful God cannot use sinful and flawed humans to communicate to sinful and flawed humans.
One of the clearest and most unique teachings of the Scriptures is that all humans are sinful and rebellious (Romans 3:9-19). However, the Scriptures equally teach that in spite of the human proness to sin, God is at work in human history using sinful men and women for His holy purposes (Romans 3:1-4). It is to the glory of God that by His Holy Spirit He can move rebellious men to write the greatest words ever penned.
The men whom God inspired to write were very conscious of their flaws. Nevertheless, they still proclaimed that their message was indeed the Word of God (compare the Apostle Paul's words in Romans 7:3-25 with his words in 1 Thessalonians 3:13).
The Apostle Peter counters this age-old objection in his own day when he wrote the following words:
For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit
If we refuse to believe the Scriptures because they were written by human hands, our objections will prove vain before the judgment seat of God. Our ultimate objections are not with the people who wrote the Scriptures but with our own unwillingness to believe that God is capable of using humans to communicate to humans. Many people who reject the authority of the Scriptures because they were written by human writers, usually have no difficulty believing other books also written by human writers (i.e. magazines, history books, scientiffic textbooks). The real question is not: "Did men write the Scriptures?" But rather: "Is what they wrote true?" The Scriptures cannot not be ignored by default because they were written by human authors, but their claims must be weighed and either rejected or believed based on their own merits.
Q The Scriptures describe many miracles which contradict the laws of nature, why should we believe in these events which we know are impossible?
A My response to the question has more to do with perspective than with proof. The Scriptures teach that all of nature was created by an All Powerful God who "does whatever He pleases" (Psalm 115.3). The reason 'nature' even has laws is because it has a Lawgiver. It is this Lawgiver who has the authority to interact with His creation in whatever ways He so desires. If someone rejects these foundational principles, they are forced to explain why there are any laws of nature at all. In a very real sense the Scriptures teach that all of the natural world is a miracle along with all of its laws and creatures.
A classic refutation of anti-supernaturalism (disbelief in miracles) was written by a converted skeptic, graduate of Oxford, and Cambridge Professor, C.S. Lewis — Miracles. I highly recommend this book which offers several thought-provoking and powerful arguments against rejecting miracles.
Q There are many other religious/holy books, why should we consider the Scriptures to be the only Word of God.
A Imagine being in a doctor's waiting room, when the nurse walks in asks for Mr. Steven Albert Johnson, III. You would be very surprised if seven men all stood up and claimed to be the Mr. Steven Albert Johnson, III. The nurse may very well be led to ask, "Will the real Mr. Steven Albert Johnson, III please stand up?"
Although all seven of these men may be Steven Albert Johnson, III, in a very real sense there is one certain Mr. Johnson and given the right criteria and qualifications we should be able to find out who he really is. We all readily recognize that although there are seven men with the same name, there is one certain man to whom the question refers.
Although many books may claim to be the inspired Word of God, if they make different claims and in some cases mutually exclusive claims, then we are obligated to search for the certain book that best meets the criteria and qualifications.
The Scriptures are not just any religious writings, they are unique in many ways and the message which they proclaim is singularly unique. Either their claim to be the Word of God is true or false.
Josh McDowell quotes Professor M. Montiero-Williams, former Boden professor of Sanskrit, who spent 42 years studying Eastern books and said in comparing them with the Bible:
Pile them, if you will, on the left side of your study table; but place your own Holy Bible on the right side-all by itself, all alone-and with a wide gap between them. For, ... there is a gulf between it and the so-called sacred books of the East which severs the one from the other utterly, hopelessly, and forever ... a veritable gulf which cannot be bridged over by any science of religious thought
McDowell, Evidence that Demands a Verdict, 1979 Thomas Nelson Publishers
Q Many of the opinions, practices and beliefs taught in the Scriptures are primitive and barbaric. Since we are more civilized and advanced, should we put so much trust in such an ancient book?
A After two world wars, civil wars and genocides on every continent, the threat of nuclear war, and terrorism — the last one hundred years are arguably the most barbaric years of human history. The message of the Scriptures is that humans are fundamentally the same in their rebellion against God and their need for deliverance.
Rather than being ancient and obsolete, I find the message of the Scriptures to be the most relevant and reliable words to every generation. Times may change but people seem to remain essentially the same. The ancient words of King Solomon seem just as true today as when they were first penned:
What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
If our greatest needs were physical, then the ancient writings of medicinal healings would be of little value to our situation. If your greatest needs were technological, then the primitive writings of an ancient culture would be curious at best. But because our primary needs are spiritual, then the record of God sending a unique Savior into the world is not only relevant but enduring.
Q If the Scriptures are the Word of God, shouldn't they be scientifically precise, teaching us many new theories about the natural world that we could test and thereby prove their validity?
A Imagine someone explaining Einstein's theory of relativity to Sir Isaac Newton. It probably would have sounded like complete nonsense to him. The mathematical explanation would help his understanding, but it would include concepts that would be completely foreign to him and require much time to learn. Even to us the theory of relativity is not intuitive and many contemporary physicists would have difficulty reproducing the highly ingenious and original thought that produced such an elegant theory.
Now imagine the Supreme Intelligent Being giving humanity a scientific treatise concerning the laws of nature. Who would be able to interpret such a work? I could guarantee you that most of it would not be intuitive and the mathematics involved would be so far removed from our current concepts that centuries would be spent deciphering it.
However, all of this does not mean that God has not given us a book which has teachings that are scientifically verifiable and many teachings that are even foundational for scientific discovery. It was no coincidence that most of the leaders of the scientific revolution were professed believers in the Scriptures (Sir Isaac Newton included) and they used many of its presuppositions and principles in many of their discoveries. It has been rightly said that apart from a belief in an Intelligent Designer who created an ordered universe, modern science has no real starting point. Many contemporary scientists who hold to IDT (Intelligent Design Theory) have argued convincingly that some of the teachings of the Scriptures are indeed scientifically verifiable.
God has given us the Scriptures because our fundamental problems are not in the realm of science but in the realm of sin. Although the Scriptures do deal with some important scientific questions (i.e. origins, life, death, etc) their primary purpose is to inform all people — educated and uneducated alike — of the coming judgment and God's gracious offer of deliverance.