How well do you know the Bible? Do you value it as the Word of God?
Have you ever read any other religious books that are called (holy) sacred books from other religions? If you have read some, how did you think they compare with the Bible?
Regarding religions, are they all true? From your own research, which books specifically are inspired and agree with God’s Word? We know that the Bible was written by holy men who were inspired by God. But what about the others? There are many other “sacred” books for many religions, such as: Quran for Muslims, the Tripitaka for Buddhism, the The Kitáb-i-Aqdas (Arabic: The Most Holy Book) for Baháʼí Faith, Hadith, and The Tafsir for Islam, The Tao Te Ching of the Taoism, the Kojiki for Shintō religion. Which ones are trustworthy?
“What is truth?”
In the year AD 31, this question was asked by the Roman governor, Pilate. He was judge over the people. He ruled other lands for many years, but he asked, “What is truth?”
Why did he ask this important question? Because Jesus confirmed that He is a king. “Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice.” John 18:37–38
I ask you now, what is truth for you? How do you know that other religious writings are not inspired by God? How sure are you about your belief? Or have you been raised to believe that only the Bible is the inspired word of God?
This leads us to ask about other books that claim to be inspired by God. We will look in detail at the Quran and the Book of Mormon and compare them with the Bible. These books, however, are quite different from the Bible.
The Book of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is one of several books considered as holy by Mormons, who refer to themselves as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It was the work of one man, Joseph Smith, who did not witness the events described therein.
Joseph Smith lived from 1805 to 1844. He was put on trial in 1826 for being a “glass-looker” (a con-artist), which calls into question his credibility. Smith claimed that he was visited by an angel named “Moroni” in the year 1823, who gave him the location of buried golden plates that contained sacred writings. They were written in the language that Joseph Smith called “reformed Egyptian.” However, there is no historical evidence for a language called “reformed Egyptian.” In contrast, the Bible was written in known languages: Hebrew and Greek. Joseph Smith lived thousands of years after the supposed history contained in the Book of Mormon. He was not an eye-witness to any of the things he wrote. And no other eye-witness accounts confirm any of the events described therein. Also, the Book of Mormon has no corroboration with other books written by other authors to its supposed history while the Bible was written by multiple authors who were eye-witnesses to the events they recorded.
The Book of Mormon has some teachings that contradicts the Bible teachings such as, little children cannot sin because they do not have a sinful nature (Moroni 8:8). Yet, the Bible teaches that people are born with a sinful nature (Psalm 51:5; 58:3). The Book of Mormon teaches that Adam’s fall into sin was necessary in order for him to have children (2 Nephi 2:22–25). This contradicts the Bible in which God commanded Adam and Eve to go forth and multiply (Genesis 1:28) and to abstain from eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17), which would be logically impossible if the Book of Mormon were true.
Mormonism contradicts the Bible truth about the nature of the Godhead as recorded in Scripture. Namely, the Bible teaches that God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit are distinct persons (Psalm 110:1; John 5:31–37; 14:16, 26; 15:26), yet each of these persons is fully God (1 Timothy 1:2; John 20:28; Acts 5:3-4). And there is one and only one Living God (Deuteronomy 6:4), and He does not change with time (Malachi 3:6). However, the Mormon religion is polytheistic; it has multiple gods. Joseph Smith publicly claimed that God the Father was once a man like us who then ascended to godhood. Mormons teach that human men too can become gods like the Heavenly Father. This violates the biblical teaching that there is only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4).
The Book of Mormon fails the test of internal consistency by also affirming and denying the Bible and so the book of Mormon is not from God.
There is no historical evidence that anything described in the Book of Mormon actually happened. Moreover, there is no archeology to verify these stories. Archeologists consult the Bible when they want to know where to dig. They do not consult the Book of Mormon.
The Book of Mormon has none of the characteristics of God’s Word, but instead has all the marks of being the invented fiction of one man.
The Quran
The Quran (or Koran) is the basis of Islam. The Quran likewise was the work of one man: Muhammad. He lived from around the year A.D. 570 to 673 and considered himself a prophet of God. As a child, Muhammad apparently had some limited exposure to Christianity and the Bible. He would often go to a cave to pray, and when he was 40, he reported being visited by the angel Gabriel who gave him revelations from God. He then began preaching these revelations to others. Muhammad’s companions eventually wrote down these revelations, which became the Quran. The Quran is divided into chapters called “Surahs” and often refers to God as “Allah.” Like Joseph Smith, Muhammad did not witness the alleged events recorded in the Quran. And, like the book of Mormon, the Quran does not have the corroboration of other authors. Again, this text has none of the characteristics of divine revelation and appears to be the invention of one man.
The Quran also fails the test of consistency with the Bible. Islam is monotheistic but specifically denies the three persons of the Godhead (Surah 4:171), and denies that Jesus is God (Surah 9:31, 23:91), in contrast to Scripture (Hebrews 1:8–12; John 20:28). The Quran endorses much of the Bible including the Gospel (Surah 3:3, 48, 65; 57:27). But it also contradicts the Gospel in claiming that Jesus was not actually crucified (Surah 4:157). Without the crucifixion and resurrection, there is no Gospel (1 Corinthians 15:12–19).
According to Scripture, Jesus is the Son of God (Matthew 16:16–17; 26:63–64; Mark 9:7; Luke 1:35; 22:70; John 1:24; 3:16; Romans 1:4, 9; 5:10; 8:3; Hebrews 1:8; 2 Peter 1:17). This is the uniform teaching of Scripture. The Quran specifically denies that God could have a son. Surah 23:91 states, “No son did Allah begat, nor is there any god along with Him…” In Surah 4:171 the Quran states, “For Allah is One God: Glory be to Him; Far Exalted is He above having a son.”
The Quran cannot be part of God’s Word, since it both affirms and denies parts of the Bible. In the Bible additional revelations are always consistent with previous revelations. With the Quran this is not true.
Although Muhammad had been exposed to Christianity, his misunderstandings of it are revealed in the Quran. For example, the Quran mistakenly identifies Mary (the mother of Jesus) as the sister of Aaron (and Moses) and daughter of Imran (Surah 19:27–28; 66:12). It seems that Muhammad had confused Mary with Miriam, who lived around 1400 years earlier (Exodus 15:20). God would not make such a mistake, and therefore the Quran cannot be part of His Word. It is not consistent with the Bible.
Both the Quran and the Book of Mormon endorse parts of the Bible. This is significant because the Bible itself provides tests by which we may judge if any particular book really is divine. One of those tests is that further revelation must be consistent with previous revelation (Deuteronomy 13:1–3; Galatians 1:8–9). The God of truth will never contradict Himself (2 Timothy 2:13).
The Quran and the Book of Mormon each appear to have an entirely human origin without any divine inspiration. They have none of the characteristics of God’s Word.
The Reliability of the Bible
The Bible extends to us claims of being God’s inspired revelation to man, which is not true for all other so-called Holy and sacred books. Human intelligence and skill alone could not possibly have produced the Bible. It is unique and authentic, far above all other literature.
The Bible is considered a treasure because it contains 31,000 promises and valuable advice for the home, young people, and education. It encourages, comforts, and strengthens us. It tells us “Fear not” 360 times. It has reason to be called the Holy Scriptures, the Word of God, the Holy Book, the Divine Letter, the Book of Books. There is much evidence to prove that the Bible was inspired by God:
The harmony of its message:
The word Bible means “a set of books.” There are a total of 66 books: 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament. Although it was written by more than 40 authors over a period of 1600 years it presents a unified message. These men came from different walks of life and were eye-witnesses to the events they recorded. They include kings, prime ministers, doctors, fishermen, shepherds, prophets, priests, apostles, and scholars. Some of these men were in palaces. Some in prisons. Some in exile. Some in captivity.
Yet, these books complement each other, and there is one common thread that runs through them. There are no contradictions found because the writings were inspired by God. In spite of the long time period and the changes in society it is a unified whole.
Its historical accuracy,
proven by archaeology.
Archeological excavations confirm the historical veracity of the Bible. 2500 places mentioned in the Bible have been discovered by archeologists. Cities like Babylon, Lachish, Hazer, Meggido, Nineveh, and others along with palaces and artifacts have been uncovered, like the Ivory Palace of King Ahab. God has proven the authenticity of His word as seen in discoveries such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Chester Beatty Codex, and others. Complete libraries have also been found. Numerous discoveries in the Middle East confirm Biblical history.
Prophecies accurately fulfilled:
Prophecy is a strong indicator that the Bible is more than just a human document. The chances that this many prophecies could be fulfilled is very slim from a human standpoint, yet all Biblical prophecies have come to pass. There are more than 2300 prophecies about people, empires, nations, and events that give us a view of the past, the present, and the future and they have all been fulfilled. This can only prove divine origin.
It contains predictions about scientific advances. It mentions cars and airplanes, the laws of gravity, the weight of air, the earth being a sphere, contrary to the knowledge of the time.
Through the prophetic chains in the Book of Revelation, the political and religious history of about 2,000 years has been foretold. We are told why Hitler and Napoleon lost the war, who will rule the world, the cause of the current world crisis, etc.
There are 333 prophecies about a single Man, Jesus Christ, which were written centuries before He was even born.
People have been converted by it.
Reading the Bible has helped people to change dramatically for the better. Terrorists, murders, thieves, adulterers have become decent people and useful members of society. The Bible answers the most important questions of life: Where do we come from? Why are we here? Where are we going? It describes the origin of sin in a perfect world and its eradication and salvation through Jesus Christ. Jesus confirmed the authority and reliability of Scripture in His day and He lived by it.
The most widely distributed book:
The Bible is the most widely distributed book in the world. It has been translated—at least partially—into more than 3600 languages. Yearly more than 150 million Bibles and parts of Bibles are distributed.
“It is the first and highest duty of every rational being to learn from the Scriptures what is truth, and then to walk in the light and encourage others to follow his example. We should day by day study the Bible diligently, weighing every thought and comparing scripture with scripture. With divine help we are to form our opinions for ourselves as we are to answer for ourselves before God. . . . The truths most plainly revealed in the Bible have been involved in doubt and darkness by learned men, who, with a pretense of great wisdom, teach that the Scriptures have a mystical, a secret, spiritual meaning not apparent in the language employed. These men are false teachers” –The Great Controversy, p. 598–599
The Bible deserves our interest because, in a world filled with books, the Bible stands alone as the Book of the world. It is indeed the Book of Books. Many people affirm this to be true, such as:
Daniel Webster – “I have read it through many times, and I pity the man who cannot find in it a rich supply of thought and rule of conduct.”
Abraham Lincoln – “I am profitably engaged in reading the Bible. Take all this book upon reason that you can, and the balance by faith and you will live and die a better man.”
Dr. William Lyon Phelps – “I thoroughly believe in a university education; but I believe a knowledge of the Bible without a college education is more valuable than a college course without the Bible.”
The Bible should be at the heart of all education. No person is well informed, however thoroughly educated, without a knowledge of the Bible. The Bible is a timeless and eternal book. The oldest books of the Bible were written more than 1500 years before Christ, or about 3500 years ago. Although written thousands of years ago, its message is as fresh and as meaningful as ever. It is very relevant for mankind today as it has been all throughout history.
Accountability of not searching for truth
“None will be condemned for not heeding light and knowledge that they never had, and they could not obtain.” –Last Day Events, p. 218
“Those who have an opportunity to hear the truth and yet take no pains to hear or understand it, thinking that if they do not hear they will not be accountable, will be judged guilty before God the same as if they had heard and rejected. There will be no excuse for those who choose to go in error when they might understand what is truth. . . there is no provision made for willful blindness.” –Ibid., p. 219
May God help and assist you in your study of the Bible and in your efforts to help others see and understand what is really the Word of God today, among all the numerous so-called holy books that exist. Time is short. Life is too short, and eternity is too long for you to be wrong. For further personal study on this topic please go to www.biblewell.org. If you have questions or desire to learn more about the truth on various religions and churches, or any other subject, please contact us (www.4truth.ca; [email protected]). May the Lord help you in your research. Amen.
Victor Shumbusho, DR Congo