The Bible was written by men… So why do I believe it?

Since childhood, the Bible has been a part of my life.

Admittedly, there were times it sat untouched on a shelf. Then there were days I opened it when life felt out of control.

Now, I may finish reading my Bible for the day, but it is never finished with me. When I close my Bible, the words follow me into my conversations, prayers, decisions, and circumstances.

Looking back, my relationship with the Bible has reflected my relationship with God.

At first, I believed it because someone told me I should. But I kept reading.

As I did, God revealed Himself to me through its pages. His Word led me to Jesus, the Living Water my soul craves. Daily, the Bible takes me on a personal journey of discovery. When I don’t understand a passage, I grab a simpler translation, dig in, and seek to understand.

The more I read about real people encountering a real God, the more real His promises become. The more I read, the bigger He becomes and the smaller my doubts become. The more I read God’s truth, the more I discover, understand, desire, and depend on it to live faithfully in this crazy world.

Jesus said, “These are the very Scriptures that testify about me.” (John 5:39)

Not everyone accepts the Bible as God’s Word.

A common question I get is, “Why do you believe the Bible? It was written by men.”

A man once told me, “I worked for a newspaper. Writers make mistakes. Eyewitnesses get details wrong.”

It’s a fair question—one every honest seeker should ask.

So let’s think through it together.

Although written by about 40 men over 1,500 years, the Bible consistently points to one Author—God Himself. From different cultures, occupations, and generations, they tell a unified story: God’s plan to rescue humanity through His Son, Jesus Christ.

The Bible explains it this way:

“All Scripture is God-breathed…” (2 Timothy 3:16)

One of my favorite pictures of this is found in Jeremiah 1:9:

“Then the Lord reached out His hand and touched my mouth and said to me, ‘I have put my words in your mouth.’”

God has always used ordinary people for extraordinary purposes - prophets, fishermen, kings, shepherds, and even a tax collector.

So, did God actually inspire these men?

I believe He did—not because someone told me so, but because through the pages of Scripture I have come to know the God who inspired them.

Ultimately, each of us must answer that question. It requires faith, but it isn’t blind faith. The Bible invites us to examine its claims, weigh the evidence, and seek God for ourselves.

Another common concern is whether the Bible contradicts itself.

As a former journalist, I interviewed eyewitnesses for countless news stories. Rarely did every witness describe an event the same way. Each person noticed different details from their vantage point. Their accounts complemented one another rather than contradicted one another. I would have been suspicious if every witness had repeated the exact same story word for word.

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John don’t give identical accounts of Jesus’ life. Instead, they provide four eyewitness perspectives, each emphasizing different details for different audiences while telling the same story.

So here’s a question worth asking:

Why do we readily trust the writings of historians and biographers, yet dismiss the Bible simply because it was written by humans?

Like any historical document, the Bible invites us to examine the evidence for its reliability and decide for ourselves whether it can be trusted.

Jeremiah 29:13 gives this beautiful promise:

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Notice what God promises. He doesn’t promise you’ll immediately understand every difficult verse. He promises you’ll find Him.

So I’d encourage you to pray a simple prayer:

“God, if You’re real, show Yourself to me through the pages of the Bible.”

Then hold on to God’s Word like a dog with a bone.

Keep seeking Him.

Through the Bible, God has given us everything we need to know and trust Him, and walk by faith.

In every season, God has met me through His Word and reminded me of His faithfulness, grace, and mercy. He has comforted, corrected, steadied, and strengthened me. When I have wandered, He has lovingly drawn me back to Himself.

John begins his Gospel with these words:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1)

God has never changed.

I am still changing.

The living and active Bible is never finished with me because the living God is using His unchanging Word to transform me.

Years ago, my Bible gathered dust on a shelf.

Today, I reach for it almost every day—not because I have all the answers, but because through its pages I have come to know the God who is with me wherever I go.

I pray you’ll read the Bible with an open heart, come to know its Author, and discover that it is never finished with you, either.