Introduction: Tests for the Reliability of Historical Documents, Including the New Testament

“True Christianity, the Christianity of the New Testament documents, is absolutely dependent on history [including its manuscript attestation]. At the heart of the New Testament faith is the assertion that “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself” (2 Cor. 5: 19). The incarnation, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as a real event in time and space, i.e., as historical realities, are the indispensable foundations of the Christian faith. To my mind, then, Christianity is best defined as the recitation of, the celebration of, and the participation in God’s acts in history, which as the New Testament writing emphasize have found their culmination in Jesus Christ. (Hagner, NTHHCM, 73– 74)”[1]

[1] McDowell, Josh; McDowell, Sean. Evidence That Demands a Verdict (p. 89). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.