The Most Remarkable Book 2 Peter 1:19-21; 2 Timothy 3:16

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1 The Most Remarkable Book 2 Peter 1:19-21; 2 Timothy 3:16 Intro Some time ago an elderly man living in New Jersey made an unusual discovery as he leafed through an old family Bible. Many years earlier, his aunt had died and left it to him. Part of her will read: To my beloved Steven Marsh, I bequeath my family Bible and all it contains, along with the residue of my estate after my funeral expenses and just and lawful debts paid. When everything had been settled the nephew got a few hundred dollars plus the old Bible mentioned in the will. After the money was used up, his only support was a small pension, and for more than 30 years he lived in poverty. Then one day he cleaned out his attic in preparation for a move to his son s home where he hoped to spend his old age. There in the trunk was the family Bible he had inherited. Opening it, he was amazed to find bank notes scattered throughout its pages. He counted over $10,000 in cash. Within his reach were riches he could have been enjoying all along if only he read the Bible. Many people do not read the Bible and many are biblically illiterate. Anecdotes abound about the abysmally low awareness of what the Bible says. This was illustrated in one quiz when some respondents guessed that Sodom and Gomorrah were lovers and that the Epistles were the wives of the Apostles. Further, many people cannot name one, let alone all four, of the Gospels. Others cannot identify Jesus Christ as the deliverer of the Sermon on the Mount. We live in a time where many Christians don t sit down to have a quiet time just to read the Bible, to meditate on it, to listen to God speak to the heart and to pray. It seems we are inundated with our gadgets. Os Guinness in his book Renaissance said it quite well, We are in the age of gargantuan numbers, truly instant information, ceaselessly hyperactive social media, when the World Wide Web has become a flood-driven Niagara of raw, uninterrupted information and emotion that pounds down on us by the minute with its ceaseless roar and its drenching deluge. Who can hear themselves think, let alone make sense of it all with genuine reflection and seasoned judgment? No wonder it is tempting to give up and go with the flow, rushing along with the crowds and sweeping past the best as we chase after the most. It is all too easy to get caught up in the sensational and forget the significant. (Source: Os Guinness, Renaissance, IVP Books, 2014, page 41) It is so crucial for believers to have a quiet time to read the Bible and pray. Psalm 119:11 says, I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. That s one good reason to read and study the Bible. Endurance of Scripture The Bible is truly an extraordinary and remarkable book. It has endured the critics and the skeptics throughout the centuries. Through history many people have tried to destroy the Bible and the Biblical manuscripts but they have never succeeded. For instance around 303 A.D. the Roman Emperor Diocletian wanted all the Biblical manuscripts destroyed. Eusebius, the historian wrote about Diocletian s campaign, he said royal edicts were published everywhere, commanding that the churches be leveled to the ground and the Scriptures destroyed by fire (Church History, Book VIII, Ch. 1). Diocletian went on to say that if one had a copy of 1

2 the Scriptures and did not surrender it to be burned, if it were discovered, he would be killed. Furthermore, if any other should know of one who had a copy of the Scriptures, and did not report it, he also would be killed. During this time many, many copies of the Bible were burned, After this edict had been in force for two years, Diocletian boasted, I have completely exterminated the Christian writings from the face of the earth! But had he completely destroyed it? History tells us that the next ruler, Constantine, became a Christian. He requested that copies of the Scriptures be made for all the churches. After Constantine offered a substantial reward for a copy of the Scriptures, within 25 hours 50 copies of the Bible were brought to him! Christ said, Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away (Matt. 23:18). The Di Vinci Code Dan Brown in his book The Di Vinci Code dismisses half the Bible to be false. He discredits the Bible as merely a book filled with myths and false interpretations. He also states that Constantine, through the Council of Nicaea, commissioned and financed a "new" Bible in the 4th century. Believers will be forced to examine Dan Brown's claim that Constantine made a "quick switch" of sorts, taking out the "original" Gospels, replacing them with Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, all done for purely political purposes. Is this true? Of course not. The famous Council of Nicaea never dealt with the issue of what should be in the New Testament. Although the official canon was still years from being finalized, the New Testament of today was deemed authentic more than two centuries before the Council of Nicaea. How Scripture was Preserved Throughout history the Bible has been persecuted like no other book. Many have tried to destroy it but they have never succeeded. Around 70 A.D. a group of Jews called Essenes who lived in Qumran (N.W. corner of the Dead Sea), put leather scrolls of the Old Testament in jars and hid them in caves because they feared the Roman invasion and destruction of their community. In 1947 they were discovered by an Arabic Bedouin shepherd boy. It is said to be one of the greatest archeological discoveries of the twentieth century. There were about 100 Biblical manuscripts on most books of the Old Testament. They contain most of the Old Testament books dated around 100 B.C. to 70 A.D. They were well preserved for The scrolls have shown that the version of the Old Testament which we have today are exact true copies of the Dead Sea manuscripts used around 100 B.C. to 70 A.D. The Copyists The Old Testament copyists throughout the centuries were ever so careful to copy Scripture letter by letter and they would count the letters from the original to see if they added up in their copy. If they made three mistakes they would destroy manuscript and start from the very beginning. They were diligent in producing an exact copy from the original without errors. Scripture was passed down through many generations. In Deuteronomy 6:5-9 we read: And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart, and you shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you lie down and when you rise. And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 2

3 Also Paul reminds Timothy of how he learned Scripture from his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5), But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from which you learned it, and how from your infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 3:14-15). This is how the Scriptures were carried on and preserved through the ages. The Jewish household would instruct and teach the Word of God to their children and so on throughout every generation, by reciting and memorizing Scripture. This practice still continues to this very day. Archeological Proof Some scholars and scientists have a way of giving the general public the impression that they already have all the facts, but this is not the case. They are often very protective of their theories and don t like to have them questioned. But recent discoveries show that there are still a lot of facts left to dig up literally! Every year, since the archeological digs in Israel began new facts overwhelmingly confirm the validity and the authenticity of the Scriptures. When Israel became a nation in 1948, there was a burst of archeological activity within the Holy Land. So you see archeology in Israel is not that old. In the last century much has been discovered and has proven the reliability of the Scriptures and there is still more to be unearthed. Millar Burrows (a scholar at Yale and an archeologist) states, On the whole, however archeological work has unquestionably strengthened confidence in the reliability of the Scriptural record. More than one archeologist has found his support for the Bible increased by the experience of excavation in Israel. He also stated, Archeology has in many cases refuted the views of modern critics. It has shown in a number of instances, that these views rest on false assumptions and unreal, artificial schemes of historical development. This is a real contribution and not to be minimized. (Source: Millar Burrows, What Mean These Stones? pg.1. New Heaven: American Schools of Oriental Research) Also Nelson Glueck (a Jewish archeologist) says, No archeologist discovery has ever controverted (denied) a Biblical reference. (Source: Nelson Glueck, Rivers of the Desert, pg. 31.) Fulfilled Prophecy One of the most unique aspects of Scripture is that no other religious literature can compare with the accuracy of the prophetic writings found in the Bible. Many predictions recorded hundreds of years before their occurrence have been and are being fulfilled. It is estimated that about 70% of Biblical prophecy has been fulfilled and about 30% is yet to be fulfilled within the course of future history. Approximately 2,500 prophecies are found in Scripture, about 2,000 of which already have been fulfilled. There are various prophecies in Scripture that deal with the Messiah (Christ), with historical events and others with nations. About 500 more or less look into the future and may be seen unfolding as days go by. Hugh Ross (astronomer) calculates, Since the probability for any one of these prophecies having been fulfilled by chance averages less than one in ten (figured very conservatively) and since the prophecies are for the most part independent of one another, the odds for all these prophecies having been fulfilled by chance without error is less than one in 10 to 2,000 (that is 1 in 2,000 zeros written after it)! 3

4 Prophecies concerning Christ The Bible contains about 500 specific prophecies concerning the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ some of which were made well over hundreds and even two thousand years prior to His coming. For example, it was not only prophesied that Christ would be a descendant of Abraham, (Genesis 12:1-3), but that He would be from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10) and from the house of David (Psalm 110:1); that He would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2); born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:1-4); betrayed for thirty pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12f.), and also that His hands and feet would be pierced (Psalm 22:16). It is noteworthy that this prediction was made long before crucifixion was invented as a form of capital punishment by the Persians and Isaiah s Prophecy Isaiah prophesied that a certain king named Cyrus would allow the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple and give release to those who wished to do this work to return to their land (Isaiah 44:28-45:4) About 200 years later a Persian king named Cyrus granted permission to the Jewish captives to go and rebuild their city (fulfilled in Ezra 1:1-11, 200 years after Isaiah s time). Daniel s Prophecies Daniel s prophecy concerning world powers in Daniel 2, 7 and 11 is quite impressive. Around 690 B.C. Daniel was given specific prophecy concerning four great world powers. Between 600 B.C. and the birth of Christ these world powers came into existence and were removed in the order indicated in Daniel. The four empires were Babylon, Medio-Persia, Greece, and Rome. One could go on and on with many prophesies that have been fulfilled and even are being fulfilled in our time. The above examples we have just covered, affirms to us that God means what He says and says what He means. Who could write about the future with such detail except God who knows the future and revealed it to his prophets and servants. Conclusion The Bible is truly a remarkable book. It is the single most important book ever written. It is an eyewitness account of historical events of such magnitude that they have literally shaped the world in which we live. Here are a few reasons why the Bible is remarkable: 1/ The Bible has transformed lives all over the world. 2/ People have died for this book. 3/ It s the most accurate book of antiquity. 4/ It contains a life-changing message of freedom and eternal life. 5/ It connects us to the most important person in life Jesus Christ I came across this wonderful story: In late 2012 seventy-five year old Marion Shurtleff purchased a Bible in a used book store near her home in San Clemente, California. After making her purchase and returning home, she discovered a couple of folded pages tucked in the middle of the Bible. The contents of the yellowed notebook sheets contained a child's handwriting that looked familiar. To her amazement, Shurtleff discovered her name at the top of the first page. When she looked closer she realized that she was actually reading a four-page essay she had written as a ten-year-old to earn a merit badge for the Girls Scouts in Covington, Kentucky more than 2,000 miles from where she had just purchased the Bible. By her own account, Shurtleff was deeply moved. "I opened the Bible and there was my name," Shurtleff said in a phone interview from her home. "I 4

5 recognized my handwriting. I was shaking, literally. I was crying." (Greg Asimakoupoulos, Mercer Island, Washington; source: Brian Mains, "Marion Shurtleff makes amazing discovery in used Bible, finds childhood essay she wrote 65 years ago," WCPO Digital, May, 28, 2013.) Although it remains a mystery how the essay ended up in a Bible in a used bookstore half way across the country, one thing is certain. When we look deeply into God's Word we see evidences of our lives, too. In the pages of Scripture we see individuals just like us people who pursue faith and hope in God, people who also battle depression, doubt, lust, and pride. As we read the biblical stories about Abraham, Ruth, David, Mary, and Peter we also recognize our own life story. Bibliography used in this series Apostolic Fathers. Early Christian Writings. Penguin Classics. Bruce. F.F. The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove. IL Barrett, C. K. The New Testament Background. Harper & Row. New York Burrows, Millar. The Dead Sea Scrolls. The Viking Press, New York Collins, Francis S. The Language of God. Gale Learning, New York, Flavius Josephus, The Complete Works of Josephus. Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids. Geisler, Norman L. The Historical Reliability of the New Testament in Christian Apologetics. Baker Book House Publishing, Grad Rapids, MI Heeren, Fred. Show Me God. Searchlight Publications. Wheeling, IL Jones, Timothy Paul. Misquoting Truth. Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove Keeft, Peter and Ronald K. Tacelli. The Bible: Myth or History in Handbook of Christian Apologetics, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove. IL Lindsey, Hal. The Late Great Planet Earth. Grand Rapids Zondervan Publishing House, Little, Paul. Know Why You Believe. Wheaton: Victor Books, McDowell, Josh. A Ready Defense. Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN McDowell, Josh, Are the Biblical Records Reliable in More Than a Carpenter. Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, IL McDowell, Josh. More Evidence that Demands a Verdict. San Bernadino:Campus Crusade for Christ, McDowell, Josh and Stewart, Don. Answers to tough Questions. San Bernadino: Here s Life Publishers, MacKendrick, Paul and Howe, Herbert - editors. The Classics in Translation. University of Wisconsin Press Mullins, E.Y. Why Is Christianity True? Chicago: Christian Culture Press. Nash, Ronald. Christianity & the Hellenistic World. Zondervan, Dallas,1984. Ramm, Bernard. Protestant Christian Evidences. Chicago Moody Press. Rehwinkel, Alfred M. The Wonders of Creation. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, Ross, Hugh. The Creator And The Cosmos. NavPress Publishing Group. Colorado, Sproul, R.C. Reasons to Believe. Lamplighter Books. Grand Rapids, Michigan Strobel, Lee. The Case for the Real Jesus. Zondervan, Grand Rapids Tenney, Merril C., gen ed. The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the bible, Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House,