Home  >  Christianity Basics  >  A Starting Point

These days there is not much that we all agree on, but perhaps one thing that most everyone can concede is the reality of physical existence.

If we can accept as truth that we and all that we observe exist, we can then move on and contemplate how it all got started, and whether or not there was a point way back in time when absolutely nothing existed. Based on our observations and reasoning, we have learned that everything within the natural universe comes from or is made up of something else, and because of this we are able to conclude logically that at least something had to always exist in order for anything to be in existence now. We can take this back as far as we wish, but ultimately something at the front of that generational chain must have had the independent power to exist.

In trying to determine what that something could be, we have looked to the cosmos itself or the material that comprises it. Everything we can observe, however, shows signs of origination, change, finiteness, and subjectivity to forces beyond itself, characteristics that are incompatible with sovereignty of being. From the atoms to the stars, nothing in the natural realm can be shown to be self-existent and eternal. All of it is contingent, and ultimately has to be the product of something that is in fact super-natural.

As we further observe and contemplate our physical universe, we come to recognize consistencies, repetitions and predictabilities within it that demonstrate an order as opposed to chaos and random chance. We are ourselves intricate beings comprised of ordered systems, making us capable of rational and conceptual thought. We exercise this ability as we ponder the origination of the universe, and some have grasped intent in its established patterns and an indication of underlying purpose.

If there is purpose to the universe, then the universe also has to be an effect of intentional action. And if the universe is an effect, it certainly must have a cause. It reasonably follows that the causal agent would be that self-existent, eternal and supernatural something from which every thing and event perpetuates. This is what many people have come to recognize as God.

The observable creation of God is exceedingly diverse and complex, yet we can’t help but notice that among all known life forms man is seemingly special. There is a definite and massive developmental gap between humans and other creatures, leading us to wonder why we have been designed with such advanced functional capacity. How is it that we have such unique potential to create and achieve beyond ourselves? Why do we possess an innate sense of ethics, of right and wrong, of objective moral truth, and the ability to exercise or repress these? Where does our ability to appreciate beauty, or to meditate on spiritual matters come from? How is it that we are able to contemplate our own existence and our own limitations?

The fact that we can perceive limitations at all suggests that something greater exists—indeed our very construction and conscience point to this ideal—and so we often gravitate toward religion, a natural response to the existence of God. Deep down we know that there is more than what we can observe and experience, and we search and strive for it. Why? Most likely because there is more, and God purposely included in our makeup a desire to search and strive for Him.

While we are limited in our natural capacity to experience God, we are able to deduce His existence and know something about His attributes by observing the universe He created. This mediate aspect of God’s revelation of Himself works similarly to the way we demonstrate the abstract facets of our own nature.

We know, for instance, that our own thoughts and ideas exist but their existence cannot be proven empirically. We can certainly express these thoughts and ideas through language and works, but such abstractions by themselves cannot be grasped directly through the five senses. They must instead be represented, or revealed through things we can physically sense in order to be known and experienced by others. God, existing as a supernatural, spiritual being, reveals Himself to us in such a way through the creation. We can know that He exists because of the universe’s testimony.

But is this where His revelation ends? Having so meticulously created us and everything around us, having provided evidence of His presence, having demonstrated order and intent in the creation, having given us a moral conscience, an inherent sense of potential, and such a unique conscious existence, certainly God has designed these special aspects of the human character and thus they reflect something about His character. Might then this personal God also have something more to reveal to us beyond basic evidences of His presence? And if He did, how would He go about doing it?

Perhaps He would do it in the manner in which He designed us to communicate, by using language.

While we are able to ascertain that humanity is a special creation of God, we can also see that a barrier exists between God and man, hindering our full comprehension of Him and seemingly preventing a direct relationship. But despite this estrangement, God appears to have employed a progression of indirect methods for dealing with us throughout history, using such methods at certain times to reveal—beyond what is evidenced in nature and conscience—details regarding His attributes and expectations. It is through this special type of revelation that, for example, we have come to appreciate the magnitude of His holiness. God has typically used man as the conveyance for this special revelation, supernaturally communicating through particular, commissioned individuals to disclose His essential truths—or word—to humanity.

God’s word is deeply connected to the nation of Israel because it was providentially conveyed to that specific people and it was through them that it was introduced to the world. Delivered progressively over time, these inspired messages were authenticated as divine in origin by way of their prophetical inerrancy and the accompaniment of miraculous signs.

If a supernatural God exists, it follows that miracles can exist, and His true prophets were empowered to perform such acts in order to validate and emphasize their pronouncements as the word of God. These prophets also gave detailed predictions regarding future historical events—sometimes hundreds of years in advance—and were correct 100 percent of the time. Such inerrancy and displays of supernatural power testified to the great authority and source of the messages, leading to the acknowledgement and documentation of them as articles of God-inspired, holy scripture.

A universally sovereign God capable of supernaturally directing His creatures to convey His knowledge and commandments through their own testimonies would certainly have the ability to guide the collection of their written accounts and attend to their preservation. The amazing process by which scripture was produced, protected, and compiled into what we know today as the Christian Bible speaks to its divine nature.

The Bible in our possession today is the complete written record of God’s special revelation to man, consisting of 66 works transcribed by at least 40 writers on multiple continents over a period of 1,500 plus years. Despite the great separation in centuries, distance, and the extremely varied backgrounds of the writers—some were educated, some were uneducated, some were nomads, some were shepherds, some were priests, and some were kings— the Bible carries an uncanny internal consistency and clarity. Its separate texts, penned from the latter part of the Bronze Age through the early stages of the Roman Empire, somehow combine to form a seamless history and a consistent explanation of God’s dealings with humanity.

The Bible confirms the reality of the separation we perceive between God and man, and reveals that holiness is the central issue related to it—God’s infinite holiness versus man’s lack of it. The redemption of man before God therefore is the central theme of the Bible and the ultimate aim of special revelation. Only through scripture and the person of Jesus Christ has the need for redemption been disclosed and the path to attain it revealed. It is the essential message from God to humanity.

While the Bible outlines the details regarding spiritual reconciliation between creature and Creator, it is interesting to note that nature itself also attests to the concept. The process of physical healing that we observe in the natural world demonstrates that whenever afflicted, life strives toward regeneration and resolution.  If as scripture testifies, the creation reflects God’s nature, then we can know—even without the gift of special revelation—that mercy and a willingness to reconcile are part of His character.

We may accept that special revelation exists and that God’s word was faithfully documented in centuries past, but how can we be sure that the text we have today is genuine and unmanipulated? There is an extensive chronicle of the Bible’s transmission, consisting of more manuscript evidence attesting to its authenticity than for any other ancient work. This long chain of thousands of manuscripts and fragments of both Old and New Testament texts has confirmed that the information has been ordered and transmitted accurately. The small number of textual variants from manuscript to manuscript introduced by flawed human copyists and interpreters over time has not contradicted or changed the Bible’s fundamental truth claims. Providentially, its critical message has endured.

The compilation of the Bible text was painstakingly managed by the ancient Israelites and the early Christian church. Works received as holy scripture among the community of believers already had gained widespread acceptance as the word of God, showing faithfulness to and consistency with the orthodoxy established by previous inspired texts all the way back to the earliest Hebrew documents. Scripture was always delivered through acknowledged prophets of God, apostles of Jesus, or close associates of apostles, or had been confirmed by the same. The compilation process, providentially guided, did not suddenly sanctify these works, but rather codified texts that were already accepted as divinely inspired.

The Bible is unique among major religious texts in that it has a clear relationship to reality. It records real people, places and events in a historical context corroborated often by eyewitness accounts and tried by the scrutiny of the day. Its descriptions were based on independently verifiable facts rather than the presuppositions of any one writer or group. Its time-tested historical, scientific and prophetical accuracy allows it to stand on its own merits; because scripture has correctly prophesied a multitude of observed events, its description of events that had no human witness—such as the creation of the universe—can likewise be trusted. As the word of God, the Bible carries the authority to testify reliably on its own behalf. This is how we can be certain today that it is a genuine and complete record of God’s written revelation, and in all cases where it references itself such references are trustworthy.

Finally, the Bible seems to demonstrate supernatural power—an inherent, commanding ability to transform the heart and mind of many who experience it. Because its basic principles are ingrained within the human conscience, it does not fail to resonate powerfully within those whom God has granted comprehension, and millions of lives have been changed over the course of history as a result. God Himself works through scripture to bestow and strengthen faith, understanding, and inner peace in a way impossible to attain otherwise.

Still, no book in history has been attacked quite like the Christian Bible. If humanity has sought after God and God has determined to further reveal Himself through scripture, why would we then attack such a profound gift of revelation so relentlessly for so long? It has been a constant assault, particularly during the past 200 years, yet the Bible’s opponents have failed to overcome it; the text remains intact and nothing in it has ever been disproven. So why does man continue working to discredit and destroy it? Again, holiness is the crux of the matter.

The Bible contrasts very clearly the natures of both God and man through its presentation of the divine, absolute moral standard that man understands in concept but fails to achieve in practice. Scripture’s message of man’s utter helplessness in the face of his sin is at odds with basic human nature and the faith that humanity has always placed in its own abilities. God’s plan of redemption revealed in the Bible requires a savior, not human works. This concept of substitutionary atonement and imputed holiness as the only way for man to be reconciled to God is unique among human religious beliefs, the balance of which attest that man may effect his own spiritual progression, fulfilment or justification by way of his own efforts.

While man-made religions predictably point to man as the source of his own salvation, the Bible alone explains that faith placed in ourselves is faith misplaced. It makes the sobering declaration that on his best day, the natural man exists in a state of transgression before an absolutely holy God and is dependent entirely on that God for deliverance. In pride and unrighteousness natural humanity bristles at this message and continually aims to suppress it by rejecting God and discrediting His word. But if God is in fact the originator of everything, surely His mind is the standard for all knowledge, and holy scripture has endured as the representation of that infallible, perfect standard.

God’s ultimate revelation however was given through the person of Jesus Christ. It is He to whom both nature and scripture point: the embodiment of the one, true, living, holy God. It is in and through Him that all spiritual answers and fulfilment may be found, by whose grace alone we are finally and eternally redeemed, and for whose glory mankind and all of creation are purposed.

Scripture Alone • Faith Alone • Grace Alone • Christ Alone • To the Glory of God Alone
Most scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB)

The Way Is Narrow  |  About  |