The Bible- Part 1

Many people own a Bible, but that's not to say that each one of them reads it though. Most the time, their Bible sits on the shelf to collect dust, rarely to be opened. I have been and sometimes still am guilty of this, and by no means am I excusing myself. Other people think of the Bible as some "bronze-age book with fairy tales" and that since times have changed, it doesn't apply. I beg to differ. But let's take a look at some very interesting things about it, which I will attempt to break up into parts over the course of the next few posts.

Just a short introduction to the Bible:

-The Bible was written over a span of 1,500 years
-Written by more than 40 authors from every walk of life (kings, peasants, military leaders, fishermen, musicians, scholars, tax collectors, philosophers, shepards, etc.)
-The Bible is made up of two testaments (66 books): the Old Testament (containing 39 books) was composed from about 1400 B.C. to 400 B.C., and the New Testament (containing 27 books) was written from approximately A.D. 50 to A.D. 90.
-Was written on 3 continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe and in 3 languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
-The Bible addresses hundreds of controversial subjects, yet from Genesis through Revelation, the writers addressed them with amazing harmony. (Try getting 10 people from the same city to agree on one controversial subject, I doubt you will!)

One word to describe the Bible, is the word "unique". Let's take a look at the definition as Merriam-Webster defines it:
1: being the only one
2a: being without a like or equal:unequaled

It is unique in its continuity, like I stated before, all the authors agree on the same controversial subjects, yet all are from different walks of life.

It is unique in its circulation and in it's translation. Selling millions of copies (in a year) and is in over 2,000 languages.

Is unique in it's survival. It has been persecuted and criticized yet withstands to this day. Many have tried to outlaw it and burn it. Interesting to note that the French infidel Voltaire, who died in 1778, said that within 100 years from his time, Christianity would be swept from existance and passed into history. 50 years after his death, his printing press was used to print bibles at his house.

It is unique in it's teachings. We will get into more of this later, but with hundreds of prophecies fulfilled, scientific facts, and it being very specific about controversial topics, it is hard to dismiss this as some "bronze age" book.

God's word has changed millions of lives over the course of history. We will end up diving a bit deeper into what the Bible consists of over the next few posts, and I hope you stick with me, as it is very thought provoking and hopefully will end up answering some questions you may have.

-Zach