THE BIBLE:

PROOF OF SUPERNATURAL ORIGIN

by Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D.

     Can we trust the Bible? Is it really the Word of God, as theologians and preachers say? Or is it a compilation of wise, witty and intellectual sayings, recorded by scribes and holy men down through the centuries? Is the Bible inerrant, authoritative and infallible? And what about God; does He really exist? Is He all wise, all knowing, everywhere present and eternal?

      I believe the answer to both these questions is Yes, and that I can prove it!

The Greek philosopher, Plato, said there are three valid sources of knowledge:

1). The five senses - sight, sound, smell, touch and taste.

2). Reason - which sets men apart from the lower animals.

3). Something he called "divine madness" - referring to the spiritual world of supernatural communication.

     There are only two sources of supernatural wisdom - God and Satan...Therefore, we need a divinely formulated rule book as a guide or measuring stick.

      The Bible is that rule book!

Jesus Christ endorsed the Holy Scriptures. He said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law until all be fulfilled".

Multitudes are looking for a reliable voice of authority. They know they cannot trust treaties between world leaders, statements by philosophers, scientists and even church leaders.

    But the Bible, God's Word, is the only real authority we have. Proven trustworthy throughout the centuries, the Holy Bible sheds light on human nature, world problems and human sufferings.

      Beyond that, it clearly reveals the way to God!

Who wrote the Bible? Where did it originate and why is it so important? Biblical scholar, Dr. Moshe Katz, and computer expert, Dr. Menachen Wiener, of 'The Technician', Israel's Institute of Technology have concluded that God is its author.

    Their conclusion is based on the notion that significant words are concealed in the Hebrew text of the first five books of the Bible, spelled by letter, separated at fixed intervals; a system alluded to in Rabbinical literature used much later.

     Dr. Katz said the researchers' evidence contradicts the belief that the Pentateuch is a collection of documents written and edited by different persons at different times.

    The patterns of letters repeated throughout all the text dismiss this theory, because the statistical probabilities of the pattern are information appearing at set intervals. By chance, it is extremely low - sometimes one to three million!

     Katz pointed to the repetition of the Hebrew word "Torah" (law), which appears in the book of Genesis repeatedly every fifty characters, and the word "Elohim" (God), which appears in the same book, then skipping twenty six letters.

      The numbers 50 and 26 have great significance in Jewish tradition.

The burial site of Adam and Eve is never mentioned in the text in the Bible, but by the letter skipping method the names, "Adam and Eve" appear in the text where the burial place of Abraham and Sarah, the patriarch's tomb, is described.

OLD TESTAMENT NOT WRITTEN BY HUMAN HAND!

     Another extraordinary aspect to emerge from the research is the prophetic nature of many words revealed in the text, which gives ammunition to Dr. Katz' conviction that the Old Testament was not written by a human hand.

      In the book of Esther which is read during the Jewish holiday of Purim, the story of Haman's treachery and execution was graphically told. Haman's ten sons were hanged and their names are listed in the same book.

     After the hangings, Queen Esther was asked by the king what more could be done for her and her people, the Jews. Her reply was that she wanted "Haman's ten sons hanged upon the gallows".

      This puzzled scholars for centuries, since they had already been hanged.

A major hint explaining this mystery, said Katz, is the appearance of three letters. These three letters are "tas, shin and zayin" in the list of Haman's ten hanged sons (written smaller than the other letters). "TAS, SHIN, ZAYIN" spell out the number in the Jewish calendar for the year 1946 on the Gregorian calendar.

      On October 16th, 1946 explained Dr. Katz, ten Nazis were hanged following their conviction and sentencing at the Nuremberg Trials. (Eleven had been convicted but Herman Goering committed suicide, by poisoning an hour before the execution.)

     Julius Steicher, one of the ten hanged, seconds before the noose tightened cried out, "Purim Fest, 1946"!

     Additionally said Katz, "In 1946 according to the Jewish calendar, October 16th fell exactly on the annual Jewish holiday, "Hoshna Raba", which is considered the last day of judgment in a chain of high holidays, including Hoshana, Raba and Yom Kippur, a period of judgment.

      "Such a phenomenon cannot be explained rationally", commented computer expert, Dr. Weiner.  "So we need a non-rational! And ours is that the Bible was written by God, through the hands of Moses."

     The Bible certainly can be trusted, for it is the living Word of God!

CAN THE BIBLE BE TRUSTED?

      Over the centuries, a number of very sincere doubters have set out to prove the Bible to be incorrect. One of these was Sir William Ramsay, who determined to use historical events - especially the 'Book of Acts' - to disprove the validity of the Sacred Writings!

      His strategy was to travel to every place and do all the things - recorded by Dr. Luke - which St. Paul and his party experienced. Using similar modes of transportation and reconstructing the great Apostle's missionary journeys, he discovered Luke's accounts so accurate and convincing that he received Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour!

    At the conclusion of his study, SIR WILLAM RAMSAY concluded: "Luke is an historian of the first rank; not merely are his statements of fact trustworthy; he is possessed of the true historical sense, he fixed his mind on the idea and plan that rules in the evolution of history, and proportions the scale of his treatment to the importance of each incident...In short, this author should be placed along with the very greatest of historians".

     The historical accuracy of the Bible overwhelmed Sir William Ramsay!

Another 'notable' to be converted to Christ by the outcome of his own research is mathematician, Dr. Ivan Panin. Immigrating to the USA more than a hundred years ago from his native Russia, the famous atheist was challenged by friends to prove the Bible erroneous, using mathematics.

     The results of Dr. Panin's scientific research convinced him that the Bible is indeed a 'mathematical marvel'!

     He discovered a miraculous numeric pattern and consistency, which ran like a thread throughout the entire Bible - Old and New Testaments! Using the same scientific approach to Greek classics, the Apochrapha and books of literature, Dr. Panin found no such divine design!

      Falling upon his face he cried out for mercy and received Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Saviour! And he devoted the rest of his life speaking publicly at universities, proving that the Bible is inerrant, infallible and divine!

BIBLE STILL WORLD'S BEST SELLER!

     It is small wonder then that the Holy Bible is still the world's best seller. The American Bible Society reported in 1982, that the Bible had been translated into 1739 languages and dialects which are spoken by 97 per cent of the world's population!

     What does the Bible say about this? "Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world." (Ps. 19:2-4)

     And what of the noise made by 'Johnny-Come-Lately's' like the humanistic theologians who call themselves 'The Jesus Seminar'? Like the Proverbial Story of the Dogs which run after the Caravan... The Dogs Bark, but the Caravan moves on!

MORE SCIENTIFIC THAN MODERN SCIENCE!

     Dr. T.A. PIERSON says, “There is a danger in pressing the words in the Bible into a positive announcement of scientific fact, so marvelous are some of these correspondencies. But it is certainly a curious fact that Solomon should use language entirely consistent with discoveries as Evaporation and Storm Currents (1:6,7).

    Some have boldly said that Redfield’s theory of storms is here explicitly stated. Without taking such ground, we ask, who taught Solomon to use terms that readily accommodate facts that the movement of the winds which seem to be so lawless and uncertain, are ruled by Laws as positive as those which rule the growth of a plant: and that by EVAPORATION, the waters that fall on the earth are continually rising again, so that the sea never overflows!

   "Ecclesiastes 12:6 is a poetic description of Death! How the ‘SILVER CORD’ describes the spinal marrow, the ‘GOLDEN BOWL’ the basin which holds the brain, the ‘PITCHER’ the lungs, and the ‘WHEEL’ the heart. Without claiming that Solomon was inspired to foretell the CIRCULATION OF THE BLOOD, 26 centuries before Harvey announced it, is it not remarkable that the language he uses exactly suits the facts - A WHEEL PUMPING UP THROUGH ONE PIPE TO DISCHARGE THROUGH ANOTHER.” Amen.