Why I Believe the Bible is the Word of God: It Authenticates Itself

A quick question for you: If you want to convince someone that there is a bright shiny warm sun, what would be your best approach? Think about it now. You can do this. In fact it's so easy a caveman could do it.

If you want to convince someone that the sun exists, simply tell them to look up. Don't waste too much time building a case, laying out the cosmic facts, citing scientific references and scholars, or reasoning from the history of human thought on the subject. Just tell them to look up and see it for themselves.

You see: the sun verifies itself. By simply shining the sun self-authenticates. It demonstrates its own existence, glory, and brilliant attributes simply by being what it is and doing what it does. The sun proves the sun.

Why do I believe the Bible is God's Word? Simply because it proves itself to be God's Word. The unity, majesty, beauty, real-life relevance, and transforming power of the Bible give to it a self-authenticating quality. It proves itself to be the Word of God just by what it is and does. The Bible proves the Bible.

The more I read and study the Bible (something I literally have been privileged to do for about 35,000 hours of my life), the more I find that it doesn't need so much to be proven as it needs simply to be read. That is to say: if you want to know the Bible is the Word of God, all you really need is an open Bible and open eyes with an open mind. The Bible itself will do the rest, as the Holy Spirit makes it shine into your heart.

Much like the sun proves itself to be the sun simply by shining, the Bible proves itself to be the Word of God simply by being (Psalm 119:130). It's brilliance is too glorious, its truth too compelling, its power too transforming, its effects too deep and satisfying for it to be anything but the Word of God.

This self-authenticating witness of the Word is confirmed further by the internal witness of the Holy Spirit within those who read the Bible with reverent and open hearts. This is what the Westminster Confession had in mind:

We may be moved and induced by the testimony of the Church to an high and reverent esteem of the Holy Scripture. And the heavenliness of the matter, the efficacy of the doctrine, the majesty of the style, the consent [agreement] of all the parts, the scope [goal] of the whole (which is, to give all glory to God), the full discovery it makes of the only way of man's salvation, the many other incomparable excellencies, and the entire perfection thereof, are arguments whereby it does abundantly evidence itself to be the Word of God: yet notwithstanding, our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority thereof, is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts.

All that is to say that as the Holy Spirit gives light through the shining truth of God's Word, the need for other arguments diminishes. God authenticates His own Word by the illuminating light and power of that Word for the enlightenment and transforming good of those who read it.

If you're still having doubts can I plead (not too strong of a word, for everything of meaning hinges on your willingness) to do something?

Pray. Pray for the Holy Spirit to give you eyes to see and a willingness to look. From that point on the Bible will speak for itself.