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  document.writeln("<span class=\"body\"><b><span class=\"headings2\"><span class=\"actsititle\">Is The Bible God's Word?</span></span></b><br>");
  document.writeln("<span class=\"actsilinks\"><a href=\"#\" onclick=\"window.print()\">Print this page</a></span>");document.writeln("<br><div id='actsartcl1'>");document.writeln("<p class=\"myparagraph\" align=\"left\">H</p><p class=\"body\"><br>ave you ever wondered why the Bible is one of the best selling books of all time and why almost every home has a copy?</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">Some, I suppose, have a  Bible as a sort of lucky charm. Others have a copy to maintain a form of  religious acknowledgment. And many millions have a copy because they believe  the Bible is God\'s Word.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">But is the Bible God\'s Word  and his special message to mankind, or is it simply a compilation of man-made  messages? How can we know whether it is one or the other? What evidence is  there to support the Bible\'s own claim that it is \"inspired by God?\"<sup>1</sup>  Let us examine the following evidence: </p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings4\">Support from Jesus Christ.</span> The fact that Jesus accepted the Bible as God\'s  Word is important to note. In his day, only the Old Testament section of the  Bible had been written. It was then known as the Law, the Prophets, and the  Psalms, or simply as the Law. Referring to these writings Jesus said, \"Everything  must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets  and the Psalms.\"<sup>2</sup></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">He also said, \"Do not  think I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to  abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth  disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any  means disappear from the Law [the Bible] until everything is  accomplished.\"<sup>3</sup></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings4\">Peter\'s confirmation</span>. The New Testament section of the Bible was written  immediately following Christ\'s time on earth. A large part was written by the  Apostle Paul. In speaking about Paul\'s writings, Peter&#8212;one of the better-known  disciples of Jesus&#8212;equates what Paul wrote with the rest of the Bible.<sup>4</sup></p>");
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document.writeln("<p class=\"headings2\" align=\"center\"><span class=\"headings2\"><img src=\"http://www.actsweb.org/Images/quote-left.gif\" height=\"19\" width=\"20\"></span>The fact that Jesus accepted<br>  ");
document.writeln("                  the Bible as God\'s Word <br>");
document.writeln("                  is important to note.<img src=\"http://www.actsweb.org/Images/quote-right.gif\" height=\"19\" width=\"20\"> </p>");
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document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings4\">Evidence from fulfilled prophecy</span>. The Bible boldly foretold events of major  historical significance hundreds of years in advance&#8212;many of which have already  been fulfilled.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">For instance, at least  fifteen hundred years <span class=\"small\">B.C.</span>, God gave the first hope of a Savior (the Christ)  who would come from Israel through the tribe of Judah.<sup>5</sup> A thousand years <span class=\"small\">B.C.</span>.,  the Bible said that Christ would come through the family of David.<sup>6</sup> Seven  hundred years <span class=\"small\">B.C.</span>, Bethlehem was named by the prophet Micah as the birthplace  of Christ.<sup>7</sup> About the same time the prophet Isaiah wrote that Christ would be born  of a virgin,<sup>8</sup> and six hundred years <span class=\"small\">B.C.</span>, the prophet Daniel predicted the time  of Christ\'s coming.<sup>9</sup> All of these predictions were fulfilled exactly as stated  in the Bible.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">Hundreds of years before Christ came to earth both David and Isaiah  predicted in specific detail the sufferings of Christ and the manner of his  death. David, referring to and \"speaking for\" Jesus Christ, wrote in  the Psalms, \"They pierced my hands and my feet.\"<sup>10</sup> This is precisely  what happened when Jesus was crucified on a Roman cross.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">Isaiah also predicted the  fall of the then mighty Babylonian Empire, saying it would be conquered by the  nation of Media. This happened in 539 <span class=\"small\">B.C.</span><sup>11</sup></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings4\">Evidence from Israel</span>. The nation of Israel is one of the clearest  evidences for the validity of God\'s Word, the Bible. Its history is a continual  story of biblical prophecy being fulfilled. </p><p class=\"body\" div=\"\" align=\"right\">Page 2</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">The result? In 721 <span class=\"small\">B.C.</span>, the  ten northern tribes of Israel  were taken into captivity by Assyria and in 586 <span class=\"small\">B.C.</span> the two southern tribes  were taken by Babylon.  Seventy years later a small remnant of 40,000 Jews returned to Israel  while the rest were scattered throughout the world. In A.D. 70 Jerusalem was destroyed by  the Romans, and the remnant of Israelites was dispersed among the nations. Israel  then became desolate as predicted 1,600 years before.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">God\'s word also stated that  the nation of Israel  would be restored, saying, \"Neither will I destroy them utterly.\"<sup>13</sup>  \"For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out of all  countries and will bring you into your own land.\"<sup>14</sup> \"I will restore  the fortunes of my people Israel,  and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and live in them again,\"<sup>15</sup> and  the nation \"will blossom as the rose.\"<sup>16</sup></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">The people of Israel  have survived heinous atrocities committed against them by the Assyrians, the  Babylonians, the Greeks, the Romans, Hitler and others. And even today there  are those who would like to \"wipe Israel off the map.\" Their repeated  survival against overwhelming odds and the rebuilding of their nation&#8212;which is  still taking place at this time, twenty-five hundred years after God said that  it would happen&#8212;is irrefutable evidence of the validity of the Bible.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">In considering whether on  not the Bible is the inspired Word of God we have considered the following  evidences: Support from Jesus Christ; the Apostle Peters confirmation; evidence  from fulfilled prophecy; and evidence from Israel. In conclusion let us  discuss two more affirming evidences: The continuity of the Bible, and evidence  from science and archaeology.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings4\">The continuity of the Bible</span> is further confirmation of its authenticity. Through  it was written over a period of fifteen hundred years by thirty-five to forty  different writers with sixty-six different books, it has only one major  theme&#8212;the salvation of lost mankind. This supports the claim that there is only  one author&#8212;God.</p>");
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document.writeln("<p class=\"headings2\" align=\"center\"><img src=\"http://www.actsweb.org/Images/quote-left.gif\" height=\"19\" width=\"20\">The nation of Israel is one of the<br>");
document.writeln("                  clearest evidences for the validity<br>");
document.writeln("                  of God\'s Word, the Bible. Its history<br>");
document.writeln("                  is a continual story of biblical<br>");
document.writeln("                  prophecy being fulfilled.<img src=\"http://www.actsweb.org/Images/quote-right.gif\" height=\"19\" width=\"20\"> </p>");
document.writeln("                  ");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings4\">Evidence from science and archaeology</span>. While the Bible isn\'t intended as a scientific text book, scientific  facts that have been in its pages for at least thirty-five hundred years have  come to light only in recent times. For example, many of the statutes and  regulations in the Old Testament were given for health and hygienic  purposes&#8212;knowledge that was unknown to the ancient world.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">As I\'ve quoted before, in  his book, <em>None of These Diseases</em>, Dr.  S.I. McMillen wrote, \"When God led the Israelites out of afflicted Egypt, he promised them that if they would obey  his statutes, he would put \'none of these diseases\' upon them [diseases from  which Egypt  and other nations were suffering]. God guaranteed a freedom from disease that  modern medicine cannot duplicate.\"<sup>17</sup></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">Dr. McMillen continues,  \"I am confident that the reader will be intrigued to discover that the  Bible\'s directives can save him from certain infectious diseases, from many  lethal cancers, and from a long gauntlet of psychosomatic diseases that are  increasing in spite of modern medicine.\"<sup>18</sup></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">In the final analysis, however,  it is up to each individual as to whether or not he or she chooses to accept or  reject the Bible as God\'s Word. For those who want to believe it is, there is  more than sufficient evidence to support this belief.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">Furthermore, all who have  accepted the Bible as God\'s Word, and have responded to Jesus Christ\'s  invitation to receive him as Lord and Savior and live according to biblical  principles, have a deep assurance that the Bible is God\'s Word, that it is  true, and that they have been given the gift of eternal life.<sup>19</sup></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\">The greatest quest of man  over the ages has always been to know: \"Where did I come from? Why am I  here? And, where am I going?\" Only God\'s Word, the Bible, can give him the  answers to these questions.</p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings7\">Note:</span> <a href=\"http://www.actsweb.org/articles/article.php?i=1007&amp;d=2&amp;c=5\">Read how science is catching up with the Bible in the article, \"Laughter Is Good Medicine.\"</a> <br></p>");
document.writeln("<p class=\"body\" align=\"left\"><span class=\"headings7\">Footnotes</span><br>");
document.writeln("                  <span class=\"small\">1. 2 Timothy 3:16 (<em>RSV</em>).&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;  2. Luke 24:44 (<em>NIV</em>).&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 3. Matthew 5:17-18 (<em>NIV</em>). &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;4. See 2 Peter  3:15-16.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 5. Genesis 3:15 and  49:10.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 6. 2 Samuel 7:12-16.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 7. Micah 5:2.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 8. Isaiah 7:14.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 9. Daniel 9:25, 26.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 10. Psalm 22:16 and Isaiah 53.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 11. Isaiah 13:5-22 and <em>The Wycliffe Bible Commentary</em>, p. 621.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 12. Leviticus 26:32-33.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 13. Leviticus 26:44.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 14. Ezekiel 36:24.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 15. Amos 9:14 (<em>TLB</em>).&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 16. Isaiah  35:1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 17. McMillen, S.I., <em>None of These Diseases</em> (Westwood, New  Jersey; Fleming H. Revell Company, 1963), p. 17.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 18. Ibid, p. 18.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 19. See John 17:17 and 1 John 5:13.</span></p>");
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  document.writeln("<p style=\"font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;font-size: 10pt;\">This and other articles by Richard (Dick) Innes <a href=\"http://www.actsweb.org/articles/\" target=\"_blank\">can be read online</a>.<br><br>Copyright &copy; 1990 - 2024<br /><a href=\"http://www.actsweb.org/\" target=\"_blank\">ACTS International</a></p>");
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