"All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness....."  2 Timothy 3:16

A good portion of the church (the professing Body of Christ) today is apostate, worldly, and apathetic because many Christian leaders have rejected the Bible as God's revelation to Man, and have bought, instead, the Satanic idea that the Bible is a product of Man's search for God.

Students, at the majority of Seminaries today, are taught to approach the Bible with skepticism.  No longer is the Bible viewed as the inspired Word of God, to be handled with reverence, and to be believerd and obeyed.  Rather, the Bible is viewed as any other piece of literature - to be analyzed - to be dissected - to be criticized.

Preaching in churches today has lost it's power because too many pastors base thier sermons on modern psychology, philosophy and erroneous theology.

Why should anyone believe that the Bible is different from all other books?  What sets it apart?  How do we know it came from God?

A good place to start is the fact that the Bible itself claims to be divinely insprired.  More than 3000 times, the writers of the Bible claim to be speaking the words of God.  These writers also refer to the Scriptures as the Word of God, and they affirm that it is inspired by God.

Most importantly, Jesus Himself affirmed the Scriptures as the inspired Word of God.  In His Sermon on the Mount, which was delivered early on in His ministry, Jesus affirmed that He had come to fulfill the Scriptures, and He asserted that heaven and earth would pass away before one 'jot' (the smallest letter) or one 'tittle' (the smallest stroke) of God's Word would pass away - this affrims the divine inspiration of the Scriptures.

At the end of His ministry, Jesus referred to the Scriptures as the Word of God and then added "Your Word is truth" (John 17:14-17).

   ** Jesus used Scripture to justify His Messianic claims - Luke 4:16-21
   ** Jesus used Scripture to teach the fundamentals of kingdom living - Matthew Chapters 5-7
   ** Jesus used Scripture to confront and confound Satan - Matthew 4:1-11
   ** Jesus used Scripture to teach His disciples - Luke 24:27; Luke 24:44-45

The disciples of Jesus evidenced the same respect for the Bible.  The Gospel of Matthew quotes passages of the Old Testament frequently to prove to Jewish readers that Jesus fulfilled Messianic prophecies. 

Paul refers to the Scriptures as "inspired by God" - 2 Timothy 3:16. 
Peter refers to the prophets as men who were guided by the "Spirit of Christ within them." - 1 Peter 1:11
John asserted that the one who loves the Lord is the one who "keeps His Word" - 1 John 2:5

Some of the most convincing evidence of the Bible's divine inpsiration is found in the prophecies.  Nearly 30% of the Bible is prophetic.  There are more than 300 prophecies of the Coming of the Messiah that were fulfilled by Jesus Christ.  There are more than 1200 prophecies of Jesus' Second Coming which will also be fulfilled.  There are also many other prophecies that have been fulfilled.  This is how God puts His stamp on His Word - by the telling of history in advance.

No other book that forms the basis of a religion contains prophecy.  There are no prophecies in the Koran, the Book of Mormon, the Hindu Vedas or the sayings of Confucious or Buddha. 

It is no wonder that the Bible's prophetic structure sets the teeth of the liberals on edge.  The Bibles prophetic passages mark it as a book of supernatural origin.

What is your relationship to the Bible?  Is it nothing more than a decoration on your coffee table?  Do you read it occasionally - when you have a crisis or you need to prove something?  Do you really believe that the Bible, in it's entirety, is the Word of God? 

The Bible is a personal letter to each and every one of us from our Creator.  It is designed to feed our soul by encouraging us, enlightening us, guiding us, empowering us, and pointing us to Jesus - the only true hope for our lives.

Commit yourself to read and study it daily.  It will nourish your soul and enable you to live a victorious Christian life in the midst of an increasingly pagan world.