2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is God-Breathed
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Peter 1:20-21
The Holy Spirit, the Inspiration of the Old Testament
20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. 21 For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
1 Peter 1:3-12
Praise to God for a Living Hope
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care,11 trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
John 17:13-19
God's Word is Truth
13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
John 14:6-7
Jesus Says He is Truth
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
Matthew 5:11
Blessed Are Those Who Are Persecuted for Believing in Jesus
11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
Matthew 19:26
Nothing is Impossible for God
26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Hebrews 11:1
Faith
1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
Why do we believe in God?...Why do we believe in Jesus?...Why do some people say they do not believe in either God or in Jesus?...St. Thomas Aquinas said, “To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary...To one without faith, no explanation is possible.”...Faith is why people believe in God and Jesus...
Believers may believe in God because of the Bible and that is sufficient for them, because God inspired not one author, but over forty different authors to write the Bible...So, after reading the different books of the Bible, there is sufficient evidence for many to believe in God, and to believe that God's Word is True and the Truth...
And in believing in Jesus we can use the same type of reasoning...This is because the gospels and New Testament are written by different men, and not just one man who saw and talked and watched Jesus and what He did...The four gospels were written by four different authors and they each give us their accounts of Jesus and how He is an historical figure and the different things in what He said and taught and in what He did...And the other New Testament writers give us further evidence that Jesus did dwell on the earth, who talked in depth about God, and healed people, and performed miracles while He walked the earth...Then He was arrested by His own people, was given a trial, and was accused of some sort of blaspheme against God, whom He called His Father...Then He was crucified, and died on the cross...But after three days God rose Him from the dead...He was resurrected from His death and lives today, with God, His Father...
Why do we believe in anything?...It is normally because it is the Truth...And not only did Jesus say that God's Word is Truth, He also told His Disciples that He is Truth, the Way, and the Life...And then He adds that no one gets to His Father or God, except through Him...
So both the gospels and the other New Testament Books wrote about what Jesus did...Jesus did things God's Way and did God's Will...The Old Testament writers write about God and the history of His people, and also about a Messiah that was to come...The information and data from each of these writers about God and Jesus was taken and written down from what they believed to be the Truth...These writers were carried along by the Holy Spirit, and inspired by God...And thus we have the Bible, which was gathered and studied, and interpreted by these men, and these authors came to the conclusion that God and Jesus both existed, and are Divine and in heaven...And I believe that these varying authors, who inspired by God, came to the conclusion that God is True and the Truth, and the authors who wrote about Jesus, saw Him as the Truth...
Now some people only believe that God is Divine, and that Jesus came to earth and was only a Prophet, and not the Son of the Blessed One -or the Son of God...
We as believers and non-believers also are somewhat like these different authors, who take information and data in and decide what we believe in and what we do not believe in...And one question that I am not sure of is why God and Jesus would not only inspire these authors to believe in them, but why wouldn't they inspire the readers, who would read what these authors wrote -believe in both God and Jesus...Or put another way, why doesn't God and Jesus come and inspire each man and woman and child, like He did the different authors of the Bible...But believers know that Jesus did come and dwell on the earth...Peter says that above all we must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s or author's own interpretation of things...For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but the prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit...
I would like to know how many of these authors did not believe believe in God or Jesus before their inspiration or their being carried along by the Holy Spirit...I know one writer, Paul did believe in God, but did not believe that Jesus was LORD...Only later would Paul believe in Jesus, after his conversions on the road to Damascus...Paul had formed a premature non-belief about Jesus by the original facts he had gathered, and learned as a Pharisee...Then only later when Jesus came to him, did he get inspired and believed, and then he wrote his epistles to the different regions and churches and men...
It would be a great thing, if everyone would be inspired and that the Holy Spirit would stir their souls, by these inspired authors, but they are not...It would be a good thing it everyone who read the Bible were inspired by God and Jesus, but they are not...In fact, some atheists after reading and learning the Bible, put up good debates against believers in God and Jesus...And in my opinion, this is for several reasons...One we are now two thousand years removed from Jesus...And we are many, many more years removed from the God of Abraham, and the God of Moses, who were both witnesses of God...Another reason, is the modern atheist and non-believer has not seen his or her personal modern miracle...The old miracles are not enough...If Jesus has risen, then why doesn't He do a modern miracle in front of them...And an even bigger reason, is that we see so much evil, pain, and suffering in our world, including suffering of young children...If God is the Living God, then why doesn't He intervene and help these groups that are in pain and are suffering, especially the young ones...I might say, that in all his sufferings and trials, Job clung to his faith...
Yet, it was true that our first Christians, who loved Jesus would be persecuted greatly for believing in Him...St. Peter told suffering believers that in all there suffering to greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in and all kinds of trials may come upon you...These sufferings and trials have come to better prove the genuineness of their faith—of which is greater than worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed...Though these sufferers had not seen Him, they still loved Him; and even though they did not see Him now, they believed in Him and were filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls...
Believing in God and Jesus or faith in Them is about hope...But faith is more than hope...Faith is a lamp to finding a purpose and meaning to life...The author of Hebrews tells us that faith is the confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see...Faith gives us an inner strength to withstand the turmoils of our life and this world... Jesus looked at His Disciples and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”...