Day 1- BIBLICAL TRUTH

This week we will focus on how archeology proves the Bible’s historical reliability. If the Bible aligns with history, then it is a credible source. Please know there is no way we can do this extensively in one week, but use what you learn to inspire you to dig deeper into learning how to defend the Bible alongside history.
Read Luke 16:17
What bold statement does Jesus say in this verse?
Is it an easy thing for the heavens and the earth to pass away?
How does God use irony to get His point across?

Day 2- WORLD HISTORY

Did you know the Bible predicted world history before it happened? Today you are going to read a prophecy of the Bible. It is a dream that Daniel interpreted for King Nebuchadnezzar. It was a weird dream but Daniel, with the Lord’s help, was able to identify the meaning and explain to Nebuchadnezzar what it meant. The dream was of a statue and each part of the statue represented a reigning world empire.
Read Daniel Chapter 2
Who revealed the dream to Daniel according to verse 28?
Who was the head of gold on the statue?
The next part of the statue was breast and arms of silver. Silver has always been inferior to gold in value. What did this represent?
What did the bronze belly and thighs represent? What did the legs of iron represent?
What was interesting about the feet? What does the stone do?
This prophecy was given to Nebuchadnezzar around 602 BC and Babylon was defeated about 62 years later. This prophecy was 62 years before any of these events started happening. Here is what happened in World History… see how it lines up with the prophecy given 62 years earlier.
Babylon was defeated by a Medo-Persian Empire in 539 BC. Secular historians describe the Medo-Persian Empire as an “underdog” to defeat Babylon. They were considered inferior.
The Persians dropped the Medes after they defeated Babylon and ruled for a long time as a world power. (The book of Nehemiah and Esther all happened during this empire)
Greece defeated Persia and they were known in history for their bronze armor.
Rome defeated Greece. The Roman Empire was known by historians as the “Iron Monarchy.” The word “Rome” in Latin means strength. While iron is less valuable than gold, silver and bronze, it is the strongest of all metals. Rome was the biggest world empire, had the most land mass and ruled the longest. There has never been another world empire after Rome. After its defeat, the world formed rulers in different countries like we have today.
What about the part of the dream with feet of iron and clay? First look at the stone. Did you notice the stone was cut out of the mountain without human hands? The stone represents Jesus. Daniel 2 says “in those days” meaning that in the days of the feet with iron and clay, Jesus will strike the statue at its feet, crush it, and set up an eternal kingdom that will never be defeated. This is not talking about His first coming, but His second coming. He didn’t defeat world empires when He came the first time. He saved people from their sin (Matthew 1:21). The second time He comes, He will crush the world powers and set up His kingdom. So… the part of the statue with feet of iron and clay… that kingdom has not happened yet.
How does God’s accurate prediction of history 60 years before Persia and hundreds of years before Rome, defend that the Bible is true? Do you believe it?

DID YOU KNOW

Many opponents of the Bible suggest there are towns mentioned that don’t exist. This is true, but the lack of evidence cannot prove that they did not once exist. Only contradictory evidence can, but there has never been any contradictory evidence found. On the other hand, we do have proof in our current culture of towns that once existed but no longer do. If this is true today, then it makes sense how a town could cease to exist. For example, mankind realized in the late 19th and early 20th century that building dams could create clean power and water. To build these dams, cities had to be evacuated. The Three Gorges Dam in China filled up 1000 former towns. In New York, the building of the Croton Dams evacuated and buried 4 towns and 400 farms! Oasis, Missouri is another town that once existed but now does not. When the Table Rock Dam was built, it was evacuated and eventually flooded. Even though it does not exist today, it doesn’t mean it never existed. You just might be skiing over it this summer while at Kamp!

Day 3- ARCHAEOLOGICAL DIGS

Read Genesis 15:17-20; 1 Kings 10:29; Ezra 9:1; Genesis 26:34
Circle where you see the people called the Hittites.
The Bible mentions the Hittites around 50 times. They were considered a large people group in the Bible. Many people could not trust the Bible because there was no archaeological or historical record of a Hittite nation. Then, in the late 19th and early 20th century, Ernest Chantre, a Turkish archaeologist, discovered a buried city named Hattusa, the capital of the Hittite empire. They found a massive amount of clay tablets that included contracts, legal proceedings, cult worship and literature of the Ancient East. They also found a documented peace treaty between the Hittites and the Egyptians. A copy of this tablet is on display in New York City at the United Nations. The Bible has enough visible archaeology as proof, but God has gone the extra mile to uncover things that haven’t been visible throughout history. Just because we don’t have historical knowledge about a nation or city mentioned in the Bible doesn’t mean we won’t ever.

Day 4- THE NEW TESTAMENT MANUSCRIPTS PART 1

For proof of the Bible we can look right at the Gospels themselves. These are the books of the Bible written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Matthew and John were both eye witnesses. Mark was a disciple of Peter and Luke a disciple of Paul. All were alive during the events of Jesus’ life, death, resurrection and ascension. They all were also all alive during the events of the Book of Acts, which was also written by Luke. We are not exactly sure when the Gospels were written and circulated, but we can use what we know the Bible tells us alongside history. According to the Bible and history, Jesus died in 32 AD. He resurrected three days after His death and then ascended into heaven 50 days later on Pentecost. The book of Acts picks up there. The death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus was the most significant event in history; the next significant moment in history for the Jews was when the temple was destroyed in 70 AD. Jesus predicted this very event would happen in Matthew 24:1-2. Not only was this significant to Jewish history, it would have been very significant to the disciples simply because they would have seen Jesus’ words come true again. The point? None of the Gospels or Acts mention it. What does this mean? It means that more than likely the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and the Book of Acts were written before 70 AD.
Read Acts 28:11-30
How does the Book of Acts end? What is Paul doing?
What is the last word that describes Paul’s ability to share the gospel?
Acts ends with Paul in Rome, but we also know from Paul’s letters that his life on earth didn’t end without trouble. 2 Timothy was his last letter when he was in prison.
Read 2 Timothy Chapter 1 and 4
Was Paul persecuted? Are you intrigued?Day 5- THE NEW TESTAMENT MANUSCRIPTS PART 2

Yesterday you learned that the Book of Acts ends with Paul preaching the gospel in Rome unhindered and then you read where Paul, in his last letter, shares that he is in prison and going to die. This is not a contradiction. The point is the Book of Acts, written by Luke ends before Paul was put in prison. History records that around 64 AD, the Roman Emperor Nero began killing Christians because Rome was set on fire. Many of the Roman citizens believed Nero set the city on fire for his amusement, but blamed the Christians to deflect the criticism. He gathered Christians and violently killed them. Peter speaks of this in his letter.
Read 1 Peter 4:12
What does Peter tell the Christians in the midst of Roman persecution?
How does what Peter says align with what is known to happen in history?
Let’s piece together the evidence. If Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Acts don’t mention the destruction of the Temple, then it puts the writings and circulations of the Gospels before 70 AD. Even still, Luke in Acts 1:1 mentions that the book was his second writing. If it was written before 70 AD (more than likely before 64 AD when the persecutions in Rome began), then it means the Gospel of Luke was written even earlier. If Peter and Paul were killed around 67 AD, then that means 1 and 2 Peter, Romans, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 &2 Corinthians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Philemon and probably Hebrews were all written and circulated before 67 AD.  What is the point? This means most the books of the New Testament were written by eye witnesses and were circulated in a time when eye witnesses from Jesus’ life, death and resurrection were still alive. If the New Testament authors’ accounts were false, there would have been many people alive that could have quickly shot them down with the correct facts. But absolutely no one did. The Jews don’t even deny the historical events of the New Testament. They don’t deny the events of Jesus didn’t happen; they just don’t believe He was the Messiah and therefore made up a plan to lie about the events of His resurrection.
Read Matthew 27:11-15
Did the Jewish leaders deny the resurrection or hide it?
How does the time of writing and circulation of the Gospels help you defend the accuracy and truth of the Bible?