How can I determine which stories in the Bible are true?

Q: The Bible’s filled with many good things, but what’s hard to believe are sensational stories about the creation of the world in only seven days, the parting of the Red Sea, or Noah’s Ark and the great flood. God certainly doesn’t do these things in the presence of people today. And if these stories are not true, then it could be that what is told in the same book about Jesus is also not true. — D.T.

A: Early in the 20th century, Robert Ripley began creating a daily cartoon feature: Ripley’s Believe It or Not, filled with unbelievable—but true—facts about people, animals, and events.

Sometimes it’s hard to see that God is at work in our lives. In the Old Testament, the prophet Habakkuk complained to God that evil people were getting away with doing bad things. But God answered, “I will work a work in your days which you would not believe, though it were told you” (Habakkuk 1:5).

Robert Ripley reported strange stories that people could choose to believe—or not. Today people can choose to believe God’s Word—or not. For thousands of years, people have believed God and discovered that His Word is true. We can believe that God really is the Ruler over everything and that He is at work—even if we cannot see it.

“By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible” (Hebrews 11:3). Even though many choose not to believe what God says doesn’t change the fact that everything the Bible says about Him and His Son, Jesus, is true because He is the living Word, and His truth gives us the faith to believe and follow Him.

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)

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