Why you should trust the Bible

On Sunday I preached a sermon on the Bible. That might sound strange. Every sermon is (or should be) from the Bible. But you’ve got to follow the prepositions carefully here.

Sunday’s sermon was on the Bible.

As we kicked off a new series called “Uncertain” looking at the most common questions and objections to Christianity, I started by attempting to answer what I think is THE question when it comes to pressure-testing Christian beliefs: “Why should I trust the Bible?“

But why start with the Bible?

Because it’s the foundation of all the things we believe as Christians.

Christianity is the religion of Jesus. But not just any Jesus. He’s not the Jesus of our making (as if we’re Ricky Bobby praying to Sweet Baby Jesus in Talladega Nights). The Jesus we believe in and worship is the Jesus revealed to us in the 66 inspired books we call the Bible (2 Timothy 3:16).

So, to demonstrate why we should trust the Bible, I framed the sermon as a dialogue with a skeptic and responded to 5 challenges people often raise to undermine or reject the Bible’s credibility.

Here they are:

1. “The Bible can’t be trusted because the human authors were biased.”
2. “The Bible can’t be trusted because it’s been changed over time.”
3. “The Bible can’t be trusted because it’s not historically reliable.”
4. “The Bible can’t be trusted because it is full of errors and contradictions.”
5. “The Bible can’t be trusted because it is a man-made political document—men chose the books to control people.”

I’ve heard each one of these objections before in conversations with real people. I’m sure you could think of others.

My goal was not to answer or respond to every possible objection or criticism someone might raise about the Bible. Instead, I wanted to demonstrate for both Christians and skeptics that there are strong and readily-available answers to these questions and criticisms.

I invite you to watch or listen to the sermon to consider my evidence and rationale. But here is my bottom line: Scripture can stand intense scrutiny—and it has, for centuries.

I’ll never forget watching a pastor I deeply admired stand up before our church, hold up a copy of God’s Word, and assure us in the middle of his sermon that we could trust this book. We didn’t need to be afraid to bring our doubts and questions.

The Bible is the greatest story ever told.

It’s a story the living God has been writing for thousands of years. It not only spans more than a thousand pages. Its story explains the full sweep of human history. And its centerpiece and central theme is the mind-bending reality that both humanity and creation can experience renewal and redemption through the life-saving death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

The Bible is a miracle and a masterpiece. It has one author, one hero, and one story. And yet its drama of redemption unfolds through the inspired writing of 40 human beings, weaving together poetry, narrative, biography, and history, in three different languages, on three different continents, across more than 1,500 years, to produce one seamless message about Jesus and his coming kingdom.

Why should you trust the Bible?

There are countless reasons that I encourage you to explore. But there is none better than the fact that the Bible offers us the single greatest look at the God-man Jesus. He’s the hero of the story and the savior of the world.

If you’ve ever been afraid to ask hard questions about the Bible, I want you to know—you don’t need to be.

Take, read, and watch Jesus change your life.