how do you keep your faith in God ? How do you know the bible is true ?

Answer 1

Service With Strength
Colossians 1:10-12
Ministry isn’t something we do, but rather, it is something God does through us. So much fatigue and failure could be avoided if believers remembered that He is the source of strength. We serve Him using Spirit-provided resources. “Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass,” promises the Word (1 Thessalonians 5:24). This means that the Lord assumes responsibility for enabling His children to carry out whatever work He calls them to do.
The Savior exemplifies this principle — He also did His earthly work through divine power. Upon His return from the wilderness, Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit, and He came preaching a Gospel of repentance. Here is what He said of Himself: “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works” (John 14:10).
As co-heirs with Christ, believers are entitled to access that same spiritual strength. What a comfort to know that a divinely ordained ministry is not in our hands alone! Some other person may be able to do the work better or offer wider experience, but God does not look for servants who are gifted. He instead seeks out those willing to live in His strength. If we have done all we can through the power of the Holy Spirit, then we never have to wonder if we have done enough.

Are you discouraged? Tired? Ready to give up? God is ready to restore you to joyful service if you will simply ask Him to do His work through you.

A person either believes this is the inspired Word of God, or they don't. A Christian can't doubt the Word and be a Christian. This is God's opinion himself.

Bible Wannabes:

In the early 1800s, Joseph Smith published the Book of Mormon as “another” testament of Jesus Christ. In the mid 1500s, the Roman Catholic Church declared the writings of the “Apocrypha” to be on par with the rest of inspired Scripture. In the 600s, Muslims touted the Quran as the final, superior addition to God’s holy writings. And in the 200s, the Gnostics added dozens of mystical and mythical documents to their “Scriptures.”

Why don’t Christians believe that the additions of the Mormons, the Catholics, the Muslims, or the Gnostics belong in our Bibles?

The Real Bible vs. “Bible Wannabes”

During the early years of the Christian church many “Bible wannabes” competed for acceptance. Titles like the Gospel of Thomas, the Apocryphon of John, the Gospel of Truth, and the recently discovered Gospel of Judas all presented different portrayals of Christ and different versions of Christianity. Why aren’t some of these “rejected” writings found in our New Testament? More importantly, how did the early Christians choose the books we have in our Bibles?

The fictional historians in The Da Vinci Code suggest that a council of bishops at Nicaea in AD 325 voted on these particular books out of hundreds of worthy competitors. And some real historians today say church leaders selected New Testament books that protected their authority and rejected those that challenged it. Clearly, understanding the truth about the authentic Scripture versus “Bible Wannabes” will help strengthen our confidence that the Bible we hold in our hands contains only the books that belong . . . and none that don’t.

For the earliest Christians, “Scripture” consisted of the Old Testament books as we have them in our Bibles today. However, the collection of the New Testament writings took some time. How did this occur? How did the early Christians know which books were Bible-worthy and which were Bible-wannabes? How can we trust their judgment in this matter?

Scripture in the Early Church

The fact is that the authority of any New Testament writing was dependent upon whether or not it came from the pen of a true apostle or prophet. Other writings could be true, beneficial, and edifying . . . but not inspired and inerrant. But how would they know whether a book or letter had been written by an apostle or prophet? In the same way you and I can tell whether a letter we receive is from a close friend or from a total stranger--Christians knew which books were authentic because they knew the authors. Almost immediately these writings began to be copied and passed around to other churches. From the start, churches used these writings for instruction and worship. So for most New Testament books, there was little question about whether or not they were authoritative for the faith and practice of the churches.

But wouldn’t later generations lose their certainty about those writings and be fooled by Bible-wannabes? No, the Christian churches would still know which writings were true and which were false. Let me illustrate. In the archives of Scofield Memorial Church in Dallas, Texas, you can find hand-written notes from C. I. Scofield himself that are over one hundred years old. How do we know these documents are authentic? Because the church knows they are authentic—they are documents that have always belonged to the church. While outsiders may know nothing of their existence, these writings have been part of that church’s legacy from the beginning, and there is no question about what they are or who wrote them. So if some scholar studying the life and teachings of C. I. Scofield wanted to collect all of that pastor’s miscellaneous writings, the local community where he served for several years would be able to provide the documents and vouch for their authenticity.

The same was true of most New Testament books. For example, around AD 95 the apostle John may have handed a copy of his fourth gospel over to Onesimus, pastor of the church in Ephesus, who then sent copies to Polycarp in nearby Smyrna around AD 100, who then gave a copy to his student Irenaeus around 150, and so on. At no time would these believers question whether or not John wrote this book. Eventually, remote Christians in other churches and regions would also come to accept the gospel of John as they researched its history, examined its content, and corresponded with other churches.

Even when we hear about “disputed” books that took a little longer for all the churches to accept (or reject), we should actually be encouraged by this news rather than discouraged. Why? Because this prudence indicates that the early church leaders were extremely cautious regarding writings about which they were uncertain. They diligently investigated these writings to discover the truth before they reached universal agreement on what was to be accepted as true Scripture.

The Whole Bible and Nothing More

Although the majority of our New Testament books were collected and used together throughout the churches by about AD 200, the final, official affirmation of our present New Testament occurred at the Council of Carthage in AD 397. This council did not vote on these books from among dozens of competing “candidates” for Scripture; rather, it acknowledged the writings that Christians all over the world had already accepted by that time—and have received ever since.

Around AD 177, Irenaeus of Lyons, a student of John’s disciple Polycarp, warned Christians about some Gnostic heretics who “adduce an unspeakable number of apocryphal and spurious writings, which they themselves have forged, to bewilder the minds of foolish men, and of such as are ignorant of the Scriptures of truth” (Irenaeus, Against Heresies 1.20.1). Irenaeus clearly limited the authentic gospels to four: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and noted that some heretics accepted one gospel but reject others, or they tried to pass off their own fictions as fact. He wrote, “It is not possible that the Gospels can be either more or fewer in number than they are” (3.11.8).

Irenaeus also mentioned several Gnostic writings that were being passed around in his day. Some of these were found in 1945 at Nag Hammadi, Egypt. With reference to the followers of the Gnostic teacher Valentinus, Irenaeus wrote, “Indeed, they have arrived at such a pitch of audacity, as to entitle their comparatively recent writing ‘the Gospel of Truth,’ though it agrees in nothing with the Gospels of the Apostles, so that they have really no Gospel which is not full of blasphemy” (Against Heresies 3.11.9). And in April 2006, the National Geographic Society will be publishing an English translation of the recently discovered Gospel of Judas. However, Irenaeus referred to this false gospel as a writing of the Cainites, who claimed that Judas Iscariot, “knowing the truth as no others did, accomplished the mystery of the betrayal; by him all things, both earthly and heavenly, were thus thrown into confusion. They produce a fictitious history of this kind, which they style the Gospel of Judas” (Against Heresies 1.31.1). We learn from the writings of the early church father Irenaeus that heretics have always tried to add to or take away from the authentic writings of the apostles and prophets. Today these ancient forgeries may tell us what early heretics believed, but they give us no reliable information about Jesus, nor do they have any spiritual value for true Christians.

So do the Book of Mormon, the Apocrypha, the Quran, and the Gnostic gospels belong in our Bibles? No! We can be confident that, by the wisdom and providence of God, the early church made sure the book we trust as inspired Scripture contains the whole Bible and nothing more.
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Answer 2

There are two questions here. Let me start with the second. How do we know the Bible is true? Answer it isn't. If the Bible was the word of God it would be flawless and error free. There would be no conflicts with reality. The Master would know all the answers hence everything in there would be absolutely correct. The World was not created in 7 days 6 thousand years ago otherwise the plates that comprise all the continents from the supercontinent Pangea would have moved to their present locations (several thousand miles) so quickly the earth would be in a constant Richter 10 earthquake and how would the fundamentalists explain how stars and galaxies are millions of light years away. The story of the great flood and garden of eden were plagiarized from other cultures and events were simply not historically accurate.

So to answer the first question, how do you keep your faith in God? Don't. If there is a God why would (he/she) need us to grovel, for validation??. To feel better about "himself"? Life is a gift. Time is precious as we never know how much time we have. Life can be easier if we simply spend more time what we love doing with those we love and being a responsible steward of our earth and those around us. Love, be loved, and enjoy life and don't worry about how is the right way to worship. An agnostic who gives is more sincere than a "believer" who gives because of some anticipated celestial reward. One is giving purely and the other still expects something back for it., Giving charity is giving because it is the right thing to do.

I believe there is some sort of higher power but not the smoke and mirrors that has been programmed into us. Religioun practice bigotry, is confining and keeps us from growing when it takes away self- accountability. How are we accountable when everything is the "will of God" Why bother praying asking God to do what "he" is going to do anyway. And while we are at it, why would there be Pearly Gates? That means there is a fence up there and like who is going to break into heaven? No religion has all the answers because none of them have "The Word of God" When people worship a book (the HOLY bible) they get blinded to reality. That is the reason fundamentalists hate science as it disproves their dogma.

Answer 3

It's kind of logical, really. I have a sense of right and wrong, and morals, and they must come from somewhere. I lived in a world that is far more complicated than I can ever understand, and that is plenty of evidence that there is a God. Once that is established, the only writings that I can seriously trust about God are in the Christian Bible, and that Bible speaks of God's son Jesus, who died a terrible death on a cross but rose again after three days. All we have to do is have faith that these people were not kidding, and that there was a reason that they were so excited that they would willingly and gladly go to their own deaths because of its truth in order to spread this good news. So I've signed on to the Christian faith, and with a reward in heaven after I die, that's really not a bad deal. So I'll keep trying to convince the atheists that it's worth it for them, too.

Answer 4

My faith in God is based on His Word...the Bible. I make a point to read and study this Bible every day, using it as a jumping-off point for further conversation with Him in prayer.

I also pray everytime I think about Him, which is often. I pray out loud when I'm alone, and in my thoughts when I'm around people. I realize that my faith is not based on my feelings, but on the Word that has rung true so often in my life.

As far as the Bible being true...no other book, let alone scripture, has withstood the test of time and criticism better than the Bible. The Bible is a compilation of 66 writings by 40 different people, written over a period of nearly 2000 years, yet has a unity that defies time.

The fulfillment of events prophecied in the Old Testament concerning the life and execution of Jesus Christ is one of the most remarkable aspects of the Bible. Whether these events occurred as a result of the actions of Jesus himself or by third-party antagonists, the probability of all these events happening together, in the precision described, only by chance, is, well, inestimable.

Think I covered it...lemme know if you have questions.

Answer 5

Keeping your faith is the easy part. It starts with reading the Bible. When you read the bible you must first ask God through Jesus Christ to send His Holy Spirit to you that you may have the understanding of the Word and thereby gain the wisdom. God will dump it on you when you do it His way.

Knowing the Bible to be true is easy as well. I recommend you only read the 1611 King James Version and the Strong's Exhaustive Concordance. All you need is in the volume of the Book.

It you humble yourself before the Father, you can't imagine the blessings that will come.><>

Answer 6

For a start, you don't know that God is true, or if the Bible is true, but there is ample evidence (or lack of evidence) to prove with almost 100% certainty that God and the Bible are fake. So you are left with faith, which is nothing more than saying "I wish to believe" regardless of fact. Now consider this ...

If we assume the universe was created, then it’s reasonable to assume there was a creator. That’s as far as science has progressed today, but just look how far religion has progressed.

Religion states (fact) there was a creator called God, that God still exists, God also created places called Heaven & Hell, God wrote an instruction book called the Bible, God will banish evil people to Hell, God will send good people who follow the Bible to heaven, that people referred to in the Bible (like Jesus) will return to Earth, and a whole raft of other statements of fact. That’s right, religious fact, not assumptions.

Now tell me truthfully, if science doesn’t even know yet whether the universe was created or not, but religious believers state: “not only was the universe created by God, here’s a whole lot more proof and facts to go with it, what do you think?

Either religious believers just have vivid imaginations or suffer from a common mental illness. I think commonsense and logic would suggest that religious believers are mentally handicapped.

Answer 7

you dont know the bible is true. but your belief in the bible leads you to think that it's true or partially true. your belief in a religion helps to increase your faith in God, and maintaining that belief keeps that faith, as well as trusting it and relying upon it. as long as you dont turn into an atheist or satanist and start to think otherwise, and also keep asking questions on it, is a major impact to losing your faith, which isnt what you should do because without faith and belief you dont have a religion to follow and you cant be at peace with God truly. Just know that there are millions of people in the world who have faith in God and who would pray to him as well, and just because God may not listen or answer your prayers right away doesnt mean that he wont do it, just means that there are other things God tries to do as well. having patience makes it all the more better.

Answer 8

Faith is nourished by feeding everyday. Read your bible, fellowship with other Christians, and pray. The Bible is, by far, the most highly scrutinized book in the world. People have been trying to disprove for centuries, but they cannot. The Old Testament had been circulated for centuries before the birth of Christ. The books of the New Testament were written and circulated less than a hundred years after the Crucifixion of Christ. The stories and accounts are supported by numerous ancient documents (both secular & nonsecular) and artifacts. There is no other book that has more ancient and scientific documentation to support it. The Bible is the divinely inspired word of God. If it could've been disproved, it would've been.
The words in the Bible may have changed because you can rarely translate from one language to another word for word, but the meaning is still the same. The most ancient copies of the Bible are there for believers and non-believers to translate. If someone had changed the bible for their own benefit, everyone would know it

Answer 9

These are two completely different questions!!

You keep your faith in God by learning to appreciate a consistent God (a God of goodness by way of goodness). You will never KNOW the claims made in the Judeo-Christian bible are true. If you BELIEVE they are ALL true (and think you "know" this) then you are a sad person with a lot of insecurity.

Answer 10

Not to stamp on Christianity but you cannot base your faith on the bible. Actual bibical text number over 1,000 and the bible you are reading only contains about 77. Some Roman emperor, Constantine to be more specific, just chose which work the best together and told you what to believe. Not God. The bible can serve as a good guideline but it isn't a recipe book for faith. You need to find faith in your heart.

Answer 11

how can you ask how you keep your faith in God then ask if the Bible is true?? That is a total contradiction. The Bible is true because it's God's Word! If you have faith in God you have faith in the Bible that it's true. God doesn't lie