Amazing Facts

To believe or not to believe?  That is NOT the question.  

If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? ~ John 3: 12

There are some things about me that are just nerdy.  Reading and pondering amazing facts is one of the things I love.  I particularly enjoy reading about animals and the way they survive and live through instincts. 

A few weeks ago during our small group time during Bible study, a lady said that her husband believed that the stories in the Bible are not all true that some of them are just symbolic.  Of course, my mouth flew open, but I realized that I have heard people say that before.  After that night, I just started reading different ways that theologians have gone about proving the Bible is in fact the word of God and it is all true.  I was reading that the Bible is authenticated by experience, science, Christ, miracles,  and prophecy.  Now I have a fondness for all the ways God has linked the Old Testament to the New Testament.  It is one reason why I enjoy Beth Moore's bible studies.  She has you all over the Bible making connections.  Anyway, a mathematician who was an expert in mathematical probability, Peter Stoner, wrote this in his book Science Speaks:
If you take eight, JUST EIGHT (let that sink in), of the Old Testament prophecies Christ fulfilled, and add up the probabilities that JUST THESE EIGHT prophecies could have happened BY ACCIDENT, it would be one change in 10 to the 17th power  (You know?  The number 10 with the exponent 17 written to the right!) that such an accident could happen.  So what you say?  Let's put that in perspective.  The chance of JUST THOSE EIGHT prophecies being fulfilled by accident would be like filling the state of Texas two feet deep in silver dollars, putting an X on ONE of them, and giving a BLIND man one pick.  He would have one chance in 10 to the 17th power of picking the one with an X on it.  That's is the probability there is of these eight prophecies with all their specific details ever coming to pass by accident.  Is that not BEYOND COMPREHENSION?! 

Then I ran across something else.  Something Herbert Spencer said.  Now before I share that with you, let me tell you what I learned about Spencer.  Herbert Spencer attended the funeral of Charles Darwin breaking a rule he had of his to never enter a church.  Herbert Spencer, it is said, discovered that all the things in the universe could be categorized into five categories:  time, force, action, space, and matter.  Got it?  Now think about this verse from Genesis:  "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" Genesis 1:1.  Do you see how Mr. (cough, cough) Herbert Spencer just proved the Bible is true?  Label that verse according to what Spencer says: 
 
~In the beginning...Time
~God...Force
~created...action
~the heavens...space
~and the earth...matter

Is your mouth hanging open the way mine did?  Not only did my mouth fall open at how amazing this is, but I was ROTFLOL by the fact that we can use Spencer's categories of all things in the universe (You know?  Spencer that made it a rule to never step foot in a church because he did not believe in God.  Hahahahahahahaha!) to show us that the Bible speaks accurately.  I ran across this in a book by John MacArthur that I was reading.

I just had to share these two things with you to give you something to ponder.  I've never questioned whether or not the Bible was all true.  I believe it is.  However, I still enjoy reading how people have proved it to be true to non-believers.  I found a few more amazing facts that I'll share tomorrow.  Just wait until you read those!  Wink!

I hope you have an amazing day knowing that our "beyond amazing" God is in control.