Some historians (usually those of the atheistic or agnostic persuasion) try to claim that the New Testament is not a reliable historical document. In today’s article I’d like to briefly cover the manuscript evidence for the New Testament compared to some other historical documents. While this is just one (of the many) pieces of evidence for the reliability of the Bible, I believe it to be an integral one.
The question we must answer is: is the New Testament reliable as a historical document based on manuscript evidence? Well, we need to consider that there are more copies of the New Testament documents (over 5,800 copies) than many of the other texts that historians have no problem accepting as authentic. Here are some examples:
Homer’s Iliad: Written about 700 B.C., the earliest manuscript of this work is unknown. There are 643 known copies of this manuscript.
Josephus’ Jewish Wars: Written about A.D. 70 and the earliest known manuscript is dated at 400 A.D. There are 9 known copies of this manuscript. *There are parts of Joshephus’ work that some believe to be embellished but that is another topic for another time.
Histories of Tacitus: Written about A.D. 100, the earliest known manuscript is from around 900 A.D. There are 2 known copies of this manuscript.
The New Testament: Written between 50-100 A.D. with the earliest manuscript (partial) dating back to 125 A.D. There are now over 5,800 known manuscripts of the New Testament.
It should be noted that historians seem to have no problem accepting all of the manuscripts above largely as historically reliable – except for the New Testament. It should also be noted that when it comes to overall historical reliability (based on manuscript evidence) the New Testament wins “hands down” against these “respected” historical documents.
The conclusion is that the New Testament is indeed a reliable document. We do have what was originally penned and whether or not you believe the content of the New Testament does not determine its reliability (based on manuscript evidence). This is just one more piece in the puzzle that should lead all reasonable men and women to a believe in the inspiration of the Bible.
In America we love to measure and keep account of things. It may be our finances, our career position, or even our bowling average (I think that’s what you call it). We love to count things to see if we are progressing and there is nothing wrong with that. However, when it comes to making time for new acquaintances we might be inclined to say “I have enough friends” or that there is “only so many hours in the day”. With the pressures of our family, our current friends, and other associates, we just might not feel we have extra time for a “new arrival” – in other words, we might feel that our soul capacity is full.
I remember researching about the hiring process when I was looking for a new worker in my business years ago. One piece of advice that I thought was pretty good (at the time) was to set an inopportune time for the potential hire to come in for a meeting; say, 6:00am. If the hire did not show up (or was late) you could immediately write them off of your list of potential hires.
This might be good advice for a boss who is looking for the most “productive” worker he can get, but I think it is terrible advice for a Christian looking to save souls. We must remember that everyone we meet is a soul that God created! That soul has the potential to end up either in Heaven or in Hell. We should not test people to see if they are “worthy” to hear God’s Word (or to be our Christian acquaintance). We should not “look” at them (or their background) to see if their personage qualifies them for Christian aid. That is how the “world” behaves, that is not how a Christian behaves. If someone wants to discuss Biblical topics we should be there for them at any time, no questions asked. As James said so eloquently:
Jas 2:2 For if there come unto your assemblya man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment;
Jas 2:3 And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool:
Jas 2:4 Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?
Does “being there at any time” mean you should just leave work to attend a Bible study with a potential convert? Does that mean you should just leave your wife (who happens to be in labor) to get to that phone call from a potential Christian? Not necessarily. It means you should enthusiastically let the potential Christian know that they are important to you and you should get back to them in a timely manner. Let them know that you want to help them as soon as possible and schedule a time to do so.
This same rule should extend to all of our brothers and sisters in Christ. If someone needs something we should always be there to help. We may think, “this person is trying to use me”, or “I’m not a psychologist”, but the truth is that we cannot tell how much a person is in need by looking at them. That brother or sister may be in desperate need of advice or a Christian discussion. And of course this always goes for someone looking to become a member of the body of Christ…
We’ve probably all heard the story of someone calling up a preacher at midnight and saying “I’m ready to become a Christian!” The next part of that story is usually that the preacher gets up and goes to the church (no matter the time) and baptizes that individual. That is the exactly what should happen! In the case of someone seeking to be baptized we should always be there immediately. In addition, I hope that a part of that story is that the preacher (or Christian) shows up and does his duty with enthusiasm and joy. That is our purpose here, to obey God and to bring the lost to Jesus. Let us strive to never leave a soul out in the cold. Let us strive to never reach our “maximum soul capacity”.
One of the biggest controversies in religion today is whether we are saved by faith (often called antinomianism) or by works ( often called legalism). It seems that most people view “faith” and “works” as if they are on opposite ends of a spectrum – and maybe they are. However, even if they are it does not follow that two things on opposite ends of a spectrum are necessarily in conflict or opposition.
In addition, the words “antinomianism” and “legalism” remind me a lot of the “package deals” of political ideologies. You are either “red” or “blue”. We should remember, however, that red and blue (when mixed) make purple, and there is nothing contradictory about purple.
Pro 4:27 Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.
We should never stray too far from God’s Word when seeking truth. Truth is only measured by the Master of all truth, God. Since we have God’s Word we no longer have to seek the opinions of men or “groups” to find ultimate truth.
So, Faith or Works?!?!?
Let’s break this down a little bit. the Bible tells us that all scripture is from God and should be treated as such (respected and adhered to). Most people would agree with this assertion, but just in case you need a little proof, here is some scripture to back up this claim:
2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
2Ti 3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
Even so, many denominations today say that Paul and James are in conflict or they ignore the part of scripture that does no suit their traditional values (usually that of faith only). Here is an example (from Romans) of the teaching that most denominations assert to be true:
Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
And here is a section of scripture that is either ignored or explained away in an insufficient manner:
Jas 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Now, one has to make a decision. Are we going to believe both James and Paul? If we say yes then we must work to achieve harmony by rightly dividing the Word of God. This means we must see if we can make these verses about faith and works (and many other verses on this topic in the Bible) harmonize. We do that by reading the rest of the Bible and applying a rational study of the gospel.
Thankfully, when one puts in the necessary Bible study they are easily able to see that “faith” and “works” are not exclusive to one another. We are able to see from the story of Abraham that it was both faith and obedience that made him a friend to God. If we look at what is commonly called the “Hall of Faith” in Hebrews 11 we see countless examples of faith and then action (Noah, Rahab, even Sampson, etc.).
The Bible affirms that faith and works are not in conflict and that both faith and works (obedience) are required to attain eternal life. That is how we show our faith:
Jas 2:18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
What Kind of “Works” is Paul Speaking of?
Why does Paul seem to be preaching against works in many verses? Because he was preaching against the tendency of many Jewish Christians to demand that the Law of Moses continue to be kept despite Christ’s bringing in of the New Covenant (Acts 15: 1, 5). Jesus had brought in the New Covenant which enhanced and fulfilled these old “laws”. Paul wanted the Jewish Christians to let go of the past and embrace the New Covenant brought in by Christ.
Still, we can see that Paul also preached that faith and works were necessary:
Gal 5:6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
This short article is not designed to fully explain faith and works, however, I think it shows enough to get an adherent of the “faith only” doctrine to stop and think. If you believe in faith only then you simply need to reexamine the scriptures with an open mind. You need to see that faith and works are not at odds with one another and that the Christian can (and in fact must) both obey and have faith. It’s only then that Jesus’ blood will be able to cover his/her sins.
Please do not think this means you have to be perfect. None of us are worthy of salvation (we are all sinners) but thanks to Christ’s blood we can have our sins remitted, remitted by His ultimate sacrifice. Let us all be grateful for this sacrifice and seek to live in a way that incorporates both faith and obedience.
From what I can see the church of Christ and education have had an interesting relationship over the years. Many preachers (and I am one of them) state that the only education needed in ministry is a strong foundation in the knowledge of God’s Word, a desire to preach, and the desire to be a dedicated Christian. These components will lead to experience and skill and thus will lead to a pretty solid preacher.
Still, education can be valuable as well. Brother Thomas B. Warren was a big proponent of education (even secular education) for preachers. He felt that the universities had had education to themselves for too long and that good Christians needed to become a part of the system. I agree, but I also wonder if things have now gone too far for that to (realistically) happen.
I will tell you a story to illustrate my point. I had a professor in undergrad who what blatantly misinterpreting scripture by “picking and choosing” verses and using “the argument from authority” fallacy. What I mean by this is he was taking another professor (who he obviously looked up to) and stating that because this professor said such and such that such and such was “fact”. I spoke up in class and refuted each point that the professor made with scripture. Things did not go well.
Before I get into the outcome of this contention I would like to state that I did nothing that any solid brother or sister in the church could not have done. In fact, I looked many of the verses needed to refute him on my iPad right there in class! So, I am not saying that I’m some kind of Biblical genius who refuted this well educated man. Still, I was able to refute every argument he offered and I did so.
He became VERY agitated and began to yell at me. He said, “Do not insult my intelligence! This man [the professor he was looking up and referring to] has a PhD and has been on the New York Times best seller list!” I basically replied that what the Bible says outweighs any man, as I believe it to be the Word of God. During this “confrontation” the other students in the class were looking at the floor uncomfortably. Still, I continued to refute each false premise (I felt it was my duty as a Christian for the benefit of the other students in the class), and he became even more angry.
After five or six refutations he was literally yelling so loudly that I was afraid other professors (in other classes) were going to intervene. He said many things, that I did not have the expertise to correct this famous professor, etc., and concluded by bellowing “That’s it! Class is over! I cannot be interrupted by someone with such a naive view of the Bible!”
After class I tried to give him a Bible reference card that tells you where to look up various subjects (Plan of Salvation, etc.) in the Bible. He refused to even look at me and told me he did not want my material and to take it with me and then followed me out of class yelling about the “insulting” of his intelligence and my “naive” view of the Bible. He went to the elevator and I took the stairs, I heard his yelling echoing down the hallway until the doorway to the stairs closed behind me.
I tell this story because the situation at public universities is (in my opinion) worsening. I know there are some places where this is likely less severe, but consider that I was at a university in the south! The ability to express views is being limited to that which is “culturally acceptable” and Christianity is becoming less and less acceptable in the university culture. Forget “equality”, we have a power shift (that has been happening for decades by the way) occurring in our public institutions – and I believe it is reaching an unprecedented level. Certain religious and political views are just not allowed to be put forth. This should not be the case.
Now, I understand that freedom of speech has its limitations (see my article here), but I also understand that if atheistic and evolutionary views are being presented in college (as well as views that assert that the Bible is just a book) – then the proper Biblical views should also be allowed to be put forth. This gives each student the ability to choose rationally between the two possibilities and make an educated decision about the future of their lives.
So, what is to be done about this dreadful situation? I think that we have to continue to fight for the equal presentation of both sides of the argument. I am not claiming that teachers should not put forth views, but they should put forth (to their students) all reasonable options. Since the Biblical option is by far the most reasonable option, it should be included in the curriculum of our educational institutions. Since that is not currently the case, I believe that we must educate our young people so that they can fight the good fight of faith in classrooms across the nation…even if professors and teachers claim they are “insulting their intelligence”.
