How Do We Know the Bible is from God?

How do we really know the Bible is from God? For many faith traditions, the Bible represents the in errant "Word of God." For some, the Bible is little more than wisdom literature. What does all that mean, anyway?

There are many ways to know subjectively, very little objectively. From a personal standpoint, I can find God in the Bible from the eternal truths it teaches, truths that are intertwined in many religions. An example of that could be "it is good to tell the truth." I can be compelled by the traditions of my church, which has been in the process of sharing the stories of God since the time of Christ. I can know that the Bible is the Word of God because Jesus attested to such.

In the case of inerrancy, I could believe that God divinely inspired people of faith to write each and every word exactly as they appear in the Bible. No one attests to God penning the material personally. It is more like Divine dictation.

For the others, the Bible was written by humans for humans. It stands along side the many wisdom books of the ages. There is simply not enough "objective" proof to show that any of it was written by God, or dictated through others for that matter.

So, do we just chalk the argument up to faith? If I believe it is the Word of God, then it is? Not necessarily. There is a manner in which we can think about the Bible as being the Word in an objective fashion. The late theologian, Karl Barth, elaborated on it.

We can know the Bible is the Word of God, because God has revealed it to be so. Indeed, God has made himself known in the person and work of Christ, in the Bible, and in the preaching and declaration of the Bible. We have never completely found God in any other manner, precisely because God wants it that way! How is that for a mind bender? This "knowing" happens because of the Holy Spirit at work in all of us. It is kind of simple, but very profound: we just know!

I have never seen a quark. I do, though, believe they exist. One day, someone may be able to let me see it with my Missouri State Sho-Me eyes! For me, the same holds true for God.