Why the Bible?

There are all kinds of religious works penned by sages and prophets in various countries: what’s so particular about the Bible that makes it stand out above all the rest as the world’s best-seller? What makes it so unique?

First of all, its note of divine authority. By its often used expression, “Thus says the Lord”, it communicates that the almighty Creator himself is speaking to mankind. About 2,000 times in the Old Testament expressions occur such as, “Hear the word of the Lord”, “The Lord spoke to … saying…”, “God said”, “The Word of the Lord came to …”, “the Lord commanded” etc. This means that 2,000 times the Bible claims to bring the actual words of God himself. This is either true or constitutes 2,000 lies about the Almighty.

Secondly, the high call to holiness that is expressed throughout the Bible. Nowhere else can one find such a high and holy mandate for human behaviour. All sin is fully condemned and all kinds of virtues are required. The moral teaching of Jesus, and in particular his Sermon on the Mount, are acknowledged to be of such purity and so demanding as would convince an honest seeker that this must come from the high and holy Creator of humankind.

A third element in the Bible, attested in the Pensées of Blaise Pascal, is the phenomenon of prophecy whose fulfilment has been confirmed. God alone can know the future, and the Bible contains a number of clear predictions that were subsequently fulfilled. The most striking is the 53^rd chapter of the book of the prophet Isaiah which depicts the sufferings and death of the Christ. Jesus himself predicted his own resurrection from the dead. He foretold the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles which occurred seven weeks after he had left this earth and gave birth to the Christian church. 

Another element of this is the promises that God gave – for example to Abraham that he would have a son and innumerable descendants, when he was old and his wife was barren. The existence of the Jewish people attests to the fact that God makes and keeps promises, for they are the fruit of God’s “impossible” prediction.

The profundity of biblical thought is another indication of the Bible’s divine origin. The eternal plan of the Creator is progressively revealed in its pages – a plan that no human mind could have invented, for it included the divine incarnation, death and resurrection in history of Jesus, the Son of God.

Together with that, the Bible unfolds a true and realistic account of who we are, both in our intrinsic value as persons made in God’s image, and in our grievous lack of real goodness; it informs us of why we exist, how we should live, and where we go after death.

The most convincing of all is that the Bible promises not only to forgive the sinner, but to radically change his or her whole life; and this promise can be put to the test by anyone who reads the Bible and takes it as true. By believing in the Jesus who is revealed in the Bible, by following his instructions to repent and obey, anyone – you included – can discover for themselves that this book comes from a God who stands by his word and fulfills his promises: the profound change in the life of those who put their trust in the Saviour is testable personal proof. Millions have found this to be true in their experience, and this proof is open to anyone who, like the immoral philosopher become great theologian, St Augustine, heeds the call to “take up read” this extraordinary book, the Bible.

Clive Every-Clayton