The evangelistic newspaper of the modern Jesus Army
2006
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The Bible still tops the bestseller lists. So what's it all about?
WHAT IS the Bible? A set of rules? A leftover from an unscientific age? A propaganda tool? Or just a dull book from school assemblies, best forgotten?
Popular, powerful, and precious?
The fact is that the Bible remains popular. About 44 million Bibles are bought each year. It remains a powerful book which has hugely influenced history's giants, from Martin Luther to Martin Luther King. And for many, many people it is precious beyond words. As one Chinese Christian said "The first Bible I saw was very precious because it was during the Cultural Revolution when the Christian faith was prohibited and Bibles were not permitted."
So why has this book, regarded by some as dangerous or dynamic and others as dull, been so hugely influential? Is it worth the fuss?
The God story
The Bible is not just religious propaganda. It is scarily honest. Rather than "spinning" an official line, the Bible spells out unsparingly the failures of God's people when they messed up, like religious people sometimes do today.
The Bible tells the real, often painful, story of God and the human race: that all life has been created by a God who loves this world, who wants to make Himself known, who gets involved with us and wants us to work with Him.
As well as being human writings that reflect the personalities of many different authors, the Bible's writings also claim to be "inspired" by God. God spoke through the writers to communicate His heart and desire for people everywhere.
The common thread
Not that the Bible is an easy read like a paperback romance or a junior school textbook (who would expect this from a book that stretches so far across history and different cultures?)
But there is one common thread that links the entire Bible together and makes sense of it all. One person: Jesus. The Old Testament contains hundreds and hundreds of stories and prophecies that point towards the saviour that God would send to the world. And His arrival is chronicled and explained in the New Testament. One statistician calculated that the chances of all the prophecies made about the Christ being fulfilled in one man - as they were in Jesus - are about 1 in 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000.
In other words, not very likely!
Relevant?
The story is told of a South Sea Islander who proudly displayed his Bible to an American soldier during World War II. Scornfully, the soldier commented "We've grown out of that sort of thing". The Islander smiled and said "It's a good thing we haven't. If it weren't for this book, you'd have been a meal by now!"
Down the centuries, the Bible has enabled people in every kind of situation to experience God's special love through Jesus. This love has changed millions of lives, sustained people through the toughest times and given them a reason and the endurance to make the world a better place.
That is why the Jesus Army works to make the Bible - and Jesus, who the Bible shows us known by people everywhere.
"Don't be afraid of anyone! Everything that is hidden will be found out, and every secret will be known."
Matthew 10:26
But you must defend those who are helpless and have no hope.
Proverbs 31:8
"What God has planned for people who love him is more than eyes have seen or ears have heard. It has never even entered our minds!"
1 Corinthians 2:9
You are the one who put me together inside my mother's body, and I praise you because of the wonderful way you created me.
Psalm 139:13-14
Be sure to welcome strangers into your home. By doing this, some people have welcomed angels as guests, without even knowing it.
Hebrews 13:2
The last enemy he destroys will be death.
1 Corinthians 15:26
Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away. If one were to give all the wealth of his house for love, it would be utterly scorned.
Song of Solomon 8:7
The LORD God has told us what is right and what he demands: "See that justice is done, let mercy be your first concern, and humbly obey your God."
Micah 6:8
"If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest. This yoke is easy to bear, and this burden is light."
The Bible is actually more of a "library" of quite varied writings rather than one "book". It has been gathered into the Old Testament (or Hebrew Bible) - accepted by Jews and Christians - and the New Testament used by Christians.
The New Testament was written in the first days of the spread of Christianity, some bits less than 20 years after the life of Jesus which inspired it. Experts are confident that what we have in a modern New Testament is very close indeed to what originally written.
The Bible was written: over a 1500 year span over 40 generations over 40 authors from many walks of life (kings, peasants, philosophers, fishermen, poets, statesmen, scholars) in different places (deserts, dungeons, palaces) in times of war and times of peace in the heights of joy and the depths of despair in three languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek)
But there is one common thread that links the entire Bible together and makes sense of it all. One person: Jesus. The Old Testament contains hundreds and hundreds of stories and prophecies that point towards the saviour that God would send to the world. And His arrival is chronicled and explained in the New Testament. One statistician calculated that the chances of all the prophecies made about the Christ being fulfilled in one man - as they were in Jesus - are about 1 in 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000.
See also: 
over a 1500 year span