The Bible is a revelation -- it reveals things about history; it reveals things about God; and it reveals things about ourselves on a personal level.
However, the central theme of the Holy Scriptures is the Messiah, Jesus Christ. As the Savior of earth from sin and Restorer of mankind, He is the most important part of the whole book. He is, in fact, the living Word made flesh to dwell among mankind[1].
In doing this, God displayed His awesome enduring love in spite of man's rebellion2. Jesus, being God, is love[3]; making the principle theme LOVE.
To write the Bible, God essentially used ghost writers -- forty of them! Over a period of about fifteen hundred years from start to finish, God had His Word written. Scribes, shepherds,apostles: these were chosen to be God's messengers.
All were inspired by the Holy Spirit[4]. As He moved on their hearts, they wrote. As the thoughts of God entered the minds of the writers, they transcribed it. Of course, each writer was different in both personality and perspective. As a result, they each had a different style. No writer was like the other. Each was special, bringing variety and color to the Divine Compilation[5].
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One of the highest claims on the accuracy and authority of the Scriptures is the fulfillment of prophecy. Prophecy may be defined as "history revealed in advanced". That means it is going to happen exactly the way God said it would[6].
In addition, some of the writers indicate that God spoke directly to them[7]. Here are the statistics for the following phrases as found in the King James version of the Bible:
- "Thus saith the Lord": 413 verses
- "The word of the Lord came": 90 verses
- "God spake": 12 verses
- "In a vision": 8 verses
- "By revelation": 2 verses
The Bible is eternal, infallible, and coherent. God does not change; therefore His Word cannot change. God is the beginning and the end; He is from everlasting to everlasting[8]. His Word, then, lasts forever and fails not[9].
That being said, the Bible cannot speak against itself. Each verse stands in perfect unity with the others. Together, the entire Word of God -- the entire Old Testament with the entire New -- harmonize to reveal the Author and His will for mankind.
Scripture References:
- John 1:14
- Romans 5:7-8
- John 1:1-2; 1 John 4:8
- 2 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 3:16-17
- Galatians 2:6-9
- Isaiah 55:10-11
- 2 Peter 1:15-18
- Revelation 1:8; Hebrews 12:1-2; Hebrews 13:8; Psalm 90:2
- Psalm 119:89; Isaiah 40:7-8; Matthew 5:17-18
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