Before I became a Christian, I had serious doubts about the authenticity of the Bible. How could anyone believe in 2000-year-old stories about a man who claimed to be God? Moreover, how could anyone believe the story of creation which was written 3,500 years ago? The Gospels could have easily been written by someone centuries after Jesus’ death, making it easy to add things about His life that weren’t true. And, the story of creation could have started out as a fictional story and, gradually, more and more people started to believe it to be true. I thought the people of that age just wanted a crutch to lean on, so they made Jesus God when He really wasn’t. I thought Jesus was another man in history that God used and I thought God used people of all religions to show others how to live a righteous life. I thought all rivers flow to the sea.
One day I decided to see what the fuss over Christianity was all about, so I started reading at page one, Genesis 1:1. The Holy Spirit started working on me and my eyes opened. I saw the truth written in these books and knew this is how God wanted me to live. At the same time the devil was working on me, too.
I still had doubts about the authenticity of the Bible until I learned about the 490 year prophecy found in Daniel 9:20-27. This prophecy predicts when the Messiah was to begin His ministry, His crucifixion, and when the word would go to the Gentiles. This is strong proof that the Bible can be trusted. But the devil would not give up on me. I found myself reasoning, “The Bible could have been written after Jesus’ life.”
Amazing Discoveries
I then learned about the Dead Sea scrolls which included a copy of Daniel. These scrolls were dated before Jesus was even born. They had to be true! I also learned that the New Testament books were written in the first century by those who knew Jesus personally. They were written by first generation Christians.
If Jesus’ life and the New Testament are true then the creation story and the Old Testament have to be true also because Jesus and the New Testament writers affirm it. The Bible is starting to make sense now, and I can see how believable it is. Without Jesus life would be hopeless and pointless. He is our Savior and Redeemer.
Jesus said, “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.” (John 5:39). Paul affirms this by telling us that “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2Timothy 3:16).
