This month on the blog and on Facebook, we are talking about Study Bibles. In addition to indexes and other types of literary guides, most Study Bibles contain biblical commentary and doctrinal essays. Below is an essay on the reliabilty of Scripture from the Apologetics Study Bible for Students. This Study Bible, similar to our best-selling Apologetics Study Bible, is specifically designed for students. We hope you'll enjoy the essay, and take a moment to consider, "What are the most important features in a Study Bible?"
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by Jeremy Royal Howard
A great many people base their lives and eternity on Jesus and His teachings, and yet Jesus Himself left us no writings. Obviously, not a single scrap of audio or video recorded His teachings. So how can we know what He taught? The New Testament claims to convey Jesus’ teachings accurately, but how can we be sure that the apostles got it right? There are at least four reasons for trusting that the New Testament reports Jesus’ words accurately.
Master Teacher Rather than broadcasting His teachings randomly in hopes that someone would by chance remember what He said, Jesus chose a group of 12 men to be His full-time students. For three years they listened closely as Jesus taught the crowds. They also received private instruction on the side (Mt 24:3; Mk 13:3). Jesus used proven teaching tools such as parables, repetition, and visual aids to make learning easier. Jesus also taught the disciples how to spread His message (Mk 6:7-11), and commanded them to give their lives to this task (Mt 28:18-20).
Fresh Memories The disciples did not divorce themselves from Jesus’ storyline once He ascended to heaven (Ac 1:9). Instead, they returned to Jerusalem and became the focal point of ongoing controversy. In the weeks, months, and years after Jesus’ ascension, the disciples repeatedly defended their beliefs and explained Jesus’ teachings to anyone who would listen. Thus their memories were rehearsed daily as they gave unbroken attention to spreading Jesus’ teachings. In later years, as speaking and traveling grew more difficult due to old age, these men set their memories down in the Gospels.
Powerful Memories Living in the age before notepads and computers made data storage a cinch, Jewish students of religion had to achieve herculean feats of memorization. It was said that advanced students were like a basket full of books; they kept everything in their heads. Though Jesus’ disciples lacked formal education, it is certain that from the moment Jesus called them to be His students they knew they were expected to comprehend and remember his teachings. Possibly they even took detailed notes during Jesus' ministry as was sometimes done by students of leading rabbis. These notes would have been available to support their memory in years to come.
The Counselor Jesus’ strategic teaching efforts and the prowess of well-honed memories put the disciples in a good position to remember Jesus’ teachings, but there was another factor that helped them preach and right with accuracy: Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to help His disciples comprehend and remember his teachings (Jn 14:26). The New Testament shows that the disciples became aware of the Spirit's role in their writings. Paul quoted the words of Jesus as recorded in Luke 10:7 and called it Scripture (1Tm 5:18). Paul was convinced that Luke had accurately reported Jesus’ teachings, plus he believed God had inspired Luke’s Gospel. Similarly, Peter affirmed that Paul’s writings were Scripture (2Pt 3:15-16). Clearly, the men whom Jesus appointed to spread His teachings believed they were enabled by God to report Jesus' teachings correctly.