The New Testament: How We Got It & Why You Can Believe It
Is the New Testament considered Scripture? How do we know the New Testament is inspired by God? Why can we trust the New Testament? Who wrote the New Testament? What is an apostle? Who can be an apostle? Why can’t more books be added to the canon of the Bible? Why is the Bible more authoritative than other traditions or teachings? How did we get the New Testament of the Bible?
The Bible is God’s revelation to mankind & is divided into 2 main sections – the Old & New Testaments. The thing, or rather, the person that differentiates them is Jesus Christ. The 39 books making up the Old Testament were written before His life on Earth while the 27 books of the New Testament were written afterward.
But before we go any further in learning about the New Testament, we must acknowledge that Jesus Christ was a real & unique person that lived in – and even defined – the first century. But more than that, Christians understand that He is God in the flesh (Jn 1.1-2, 14, Php 2.5-8). He was supernaturally conceived unlike any other person. He fulfilled ancient prophecies of the Old Testament that no one else could possibly do. He lived a perfect moral life that no one else could ever live. He talked about things that no else could certainly know. Then He validated His authority by numerous miracles. And as further proof of His authority, He was resurrected from the dead & ascended to heaven. If those things actually happened, then not only would some observers make note of them, but they would dramatically impact the lives of the people closest to Jesus.
And that’s exactly what happened. Furthermore, there were numerous people who witnessed these things (1 Cor 15.6) & they could have refuted them if they weren’t true, but they didn’t. And Jesus’s closest followers (disciples) could have refuted them if they weren’t true, but they didn’t. We also know this wasn’t some sort of cult-of-personality for either Jesus or His disciples where the culture put them on a pedestal. Jesus was falsely accused, publicly put on trial & suffered a humiliating public execution by Roman crucifixion – it would take something truly extraordinary to overcome such horrifyingly bad publicity. And it wasn’t exactly popular to be a follower of Jesus Christ; at times it was downright hazardous. The disciples were at first scared & hid behind locked doors (Jn 20.19); they were soon persecuted, jailed, beaten & many were even killed (Acts 4.2-3, 5.17-18, 33, 40, 7.57-60, 8.1-3, 12.1-5, 16.22-24) – all for their beliefs about Jesus. Why would you go through all that if you weren’t thoroughly convinced it were all real? The only way for Christianity to have taken off & been propagated is if it were not merely true, but done by God Himself (Acts 5.38-40). This Jesus was (and is) spectacular & His message was (and is) compelling, because Jesus himself was (and is) compelling.
But before we go any further in learning about the New Testament, we must acknowledge that Jesus Christ was a real & unique person that lived in – and even defined – the first century. But more than that, Christians understand that He is God in the flesh (Jn 1.1-2, 14, Php 2.5-8). He was supernaturally conceived unlike any other person. He fulfilled ancient prophecies of the Old Testament that no one else could possibly do. He lived a perfect moral life that no one else could ever live. He talked about things that no else could certainly know. Then He validated His authority by numerous miracles. And as further proof of His authority, He was resurrected from the dead & ascended to heaven. If those things actually happened, then not only would some observers make note of them, but they would dramatically impact the lives of the people closest to Jesus.
And that’s exactly what happened. Furthermore, there were numerous people who witnessed these things (1 Cor 15.6) & they could have refuted them if they weren’t true, but they didn’t. And Jesus’s closest followers (disciples) could have refuted them if they weren’t true, but they didn’t. We also know this wasn’t some sort of cult-of-personality for either Jesus or His disciples where the culture put them on a pedestal. Jesus was falsely accused, publicly put on trial & suffered a humiliating public execution by Roman crucifixion – it would take something truly extraordinary to overcome such horrifyingly bad publicity. And it wasn’t exactly popular to be a follower of Jesus Christ; at times it was downright hazardous. The disciples were at first scared & hid behind locked doors (Jn 20.19); they were soon persecuted, jailed, beaten & many were even killed (Acts 4.2-3, 5.17-18, 33, 40, 7.57-60, 8.1-3, 12.1-5, 16.22-24) – all for their beliefs about Jesus. Why would you go through all that if you weren’t thoroughly convinced it were all real? The only way for Christianity to have taken off & been propagated is if it were not merely true, but done by God Himself (Acts 5.38-40). This Jesus was (and is) spectacular & His message was (and is) compelling, because Jesus himself was (and is) compelling.
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son (Jesus), whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. – Hebrews 1.1-2
Click on the links below to learn more about the different writings of the New Testament & find out how the New Testament came to be, why it carries divine authority & answers to other such questions. It will be most helpful if you follow the links in order. Also note that you can hover over or click on the supporting verse references to see them.