Is the New Testament Reliable?

Painting of Matthew writing the book of Matthew

The Six E's

  1. Early Testimony -- We can be very confident that most (if not all) of the New Testament documents were written before the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D. We can also be confident that the writings of Luke and possibly the Gospel of Mark were written before 63 A.D.1 On top of that, 1 Corinthians 15:3-6 contains a creed that can be traced back possibly as early as the year Jesus was crucified!2
  2. Eyewitness Testimony -- Many details are mentioned, particularly in the writings of Luke and John, that can only be known by eyewitnesses or those who spoke with eyewitnesses.
  3. Embarrassing Testimony -- The disciples portray themselves as dim-witted, uncaring, uneducated, cowardly doubters who are rebuked by Jesus.
  4. Excruciating Testimony -- Most of the disciples were killed, some even tortured, for their belief. Many were given the opportunity to live, if they would only say that Jesus didn't rise from the dead. A witness who is willing to die rather than change his story is a very strong witness.
  5. Expected Testimony -- If the Bible is true, we should expect the Old Testament prophesies about the messiah to be fulfilled in the New Testament. As it turns out, they are.3
  6. Extra-Biblical Testimony -- Jesus of Nazereth is mentioned by ten non-Christian sources, including Josephus, Tacitus, Suetonius, Thallus, Phlegon, Pliny the Younger, and the Jewish Talmud! Based on their references alone, we can put together a story similar to the New Testament.
















  1. More on this can be found in "I Don't Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist" by Norman Giesler and Frank Turek
  2. Prime Time Jesus Blog
  3. See "The Case for Christmas" by Lee Strobel for more on this.