A lot of books – or at least part of a wider books – are dedicated to the question, can I trust the bible? It is a good question. But it seems to me, if we believe the bible is the very word of God, then the question kind of settles itself. Of course I can trust the bible if it is actually God’s word. Perhaps the more fundamental question is, then, why should I believe the bible is God’s Word? Here are five reasons to do so.

Jesus’ view of the Old Testament

It is hard to overlook the stark point: Jesus specifically called the Old Testament ‘the word of God’ (cf. Mk. 7:11-13; Jn. 10:34f). He quoted it authoritatively (cf. Mt. 4:4; Mk 14:27) and he accepted Old Testament prophecy was true (Mt 11:10; Mk 7:6). He considered the Old Testament to be historically accurate and he deferred to Old Testament authority when it came to his teaching, actions and the nature of his ministry. Whatever else we might want to say, Jesus considered the Old Testament to be God’s word.

The Apostles view of the Old Testament

It is perhaps less surprising that, because Jesus viewed the Old Testament as God’s word, we find the Apostles similarly view the Old Testament that way. The Old Testament was frequently cited by them, authorising their teaching and presenting Jesus himself – and the Christian faith more broadly – as the fulfilment of those scriptures (cf. Acts 2:16-36; 3:22-25; 4:11; 7:2-53; Rom 1:2; Gal 3:16-18; Rom. 15:4; 1 Pet 1:12). Like Jesus, they called the Old Testament the word of God (cf. Acts 4:25; 2 Tim 3:16f; Heb 4:3; 2 Pet 1:21). Just as Jesus considered the Old Testament to be God’s word, so did the Apostles.

Jesus’ words and teaching

But what about the New Testament? Jesus certainly believed his own words should be heard, believed and obeyed in the same way as the Old Testament (cf. Mt 5:21f; 7:24; Jn 8:31f). The Apostles themselves recognised Jesus’ divine authority and that his words were God’s word (Acts 20:35; 1 Cor 7:10; 11:23f). Even those who were sceptical about Jesus and were not his followers recognised his authority (cf. John 3:2). Jesus clearly believed in the unique power and authority of his own words (Jn 6:63; 15:3) and even went as far as to insist he speaks God’s words (John 14:10).

The authority of the Apostles

The Apostles were specifically commanded by Jesus to speak in his name (Mt 28:18-20; Jn 20:21; Acts 1:8). If Jesus spoke God’s words, the Apostles were given the authority from Jesus to speak his words. The Apostles were given special endowment from the Holy Spirit for this task (Jn 20:22; Acts 1:5) and particular guidance from the Holy Spirit for this task (Jn 14:26; 15:26f; 16:13f). On that basis, the Apostles claimed a special authority for themselves, empowered in that way as they were by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 2:9f; 2:13; Gal 1:7f; 1 Pet 1:12). That authority led to them issuing commands (cf. 2 Thes 3:6, 12) and their teaching being called authoritative scripture (2 Pet. 3:15f; 1 Cor. 14:37; Col 4:16).

The Holy Spirit bear witness to scripture as God’s word

Paul insists that only the Spirit of God can know the mind of God (1 Cor 2:11). By that, he argued God must make himself known to us and scripture itself can only be properly understood if it is made understandable to us by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 2:14; 1 Jn 4:6). But, the Apostles tells us, God gives us his Spirit so that we can understand the scriptures and who himself speaks in and through the scriptures (Rom. 5:5; 8:9f; 1 Cor 2:12ff; 2 Cor 1:21f; 5:5; 2 Tim 1:14; 1 Jn 3:24; 1 Jn 4:13).