What is so special about the Holy Bible? How do we know that the Bible is really God's Word? Can we really trust the Bible?

We believe that the Bible is the Word of God and was written by men inspired by God's Holy Spirit. And the Bible clearly makes this claim for itself (1 Peter 1:25, 2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:21).

But just because the Bible makes a claim that it is the true Word of God ... doesn't mean that it is. We know that many other "holy" books also make that claim. The difference is the EXTERNAL evidence of science, history, archeology, prophecy, and reliable eyewitness accounts. Only the Judeo-Christian Scriptures backs up its claim with external evidence of being the actual Word of God. Only the Bible can withstand the scrutiny of honest and intense study and research.

The acronym "S.H.A.P.E" can help you to share and increase your faith by organizing and memorizing the vast amount of evidence for the true divine origin of the Holy Bible (no other "holy" book can pass all these tests):

S: Science
While the Bible is not a science book, it does not contradict known scientific laws. Most ancient religious books make statements or describe events that clearly go against proven laws of science. For example, we know that the earth is not flat and that it is not being held up by a Herculean man or sits on the backs of large animals. The Holy Bible is different. It describes that the earth is round like a circle and that it hangs on nothing, the weather is formed by wind patterns, matter is held together invisibly, and the sea contains deep underwater currents. How did the ancient writers of the Bible know these things? These are but a few of the many examples. If the Bible was truly inspired by God, you would expect that the things of science mentioned in the Bible would match up with the laws of science and that God, being the Creator, would be able to easily modify the laws of the universe to perform miracles ... and that is exactly what you find in the Holy Bible!

H: History
Another significant reason that the Bible is different from other books is its amazing history of how it all came together and survived intact. Although men composed the Bible, it is an amazing flow of unity and structure. The Bible was written over a period of about 1,500 years by more than forty different human authors. The majority of these authors did not live in the same generation or area but they all wrote in unity about the same thing! They all wrote about the salvation that God would bring through His Son one day. Even Jesus Himself claimed that He was the theme of the entire Bible (John 5:39, Luke 24:27). This harmony and unity is supernatural and cannot be explained by coincidence or chance. The Holy Bible has also survived the many attempts to completely destroy it and remove it from the face of the earth. Throughout history, evil men and empires have tried to destroy God's Word. But God's Word is still here! The Dead Sea scrolls also proved that God's Word remained intact as Jewish scribes meticulously passed on the Bible to each generation. The historical unity, cohesion, and remarkable survival of the Bible are strong arguments in favor of its divine inspiration and providence.

A: Archeology
Archeology is the science that studies human cultures and history through the recovery, documentation, analysis and interpretation of material remains and environmental findings. The Bible contains many details of people, places and events that have been verified by archaeologists and historians. The evidence from archaeology is another proof of Biblical accuracy and truth. Many excellent books and reliable resources are available to verify the dependability of the Holy Scriptures in archeology and world history.

P: Prophecy
Prophecy describes the disclosing of unknown information through divinely inspired revelation or interpretation. The most remarkable prophecies concern the future. The Holy Bible is the only source of direct and clear prophecies that were revealed to the Hebrew prophets of old. Since only an intelligent being that eternally exists outside of our known dimension can accurately predict the future on a 100% basis, Biblical prophecy is the single strongest evidence that the Holy Bible is truly the Word of God all mighty! Unlike non-Biblical "prophets" and "psychics" (Nostradamus, Edgar Cayce, Jeane Dixon, etc), Bible prophecies are clear, concise, and always 100% accurate. Only the Holy Bible can make the claim of true divine origin and back it up with real prophecy.

E: Eyewitness Accounts
Another powerful evidence of the divine origin of the Bible and of Christianity is the testimony of the millions of believers throughout the world. In history, many believers were thrown to the lions, burned at the stake, or had their heads chopped off. Today many Christians throughout the world suffer the same fate at the hands of terrorists and other evil people. All they had to do was to deny Jesus to live ... but they did not! This type of testimony is the most reliable of all. Would you die for a lie? Jesus is real and He lives in each person that has believed and received Him as Lord and Savior and the reality of that relationship provides a supernatural strength of courage, boldness, love, faith, hope, and truth. Today the testimonies of Jesus' power and healing within believers provide ample evidence of God's truth in His Word and in His promises.

The Bible is special and unique. No other book can pass the test of internal and external scrutiny and evidence. No other book even comes close. The Christian faith is not a blind faith. You can trust the Bible as your guiding source for eternal life, adventure, and truth as you share the good news with others. We encourage you to keep searching and prove it to yourself that God, His Word, and Jesus are real!

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